COLUMBUS, Ohio – In the public eye, Norman Xiong is a man of few words. The University of Oregon alum opts to let his game do the talking.

His clubs had plenty to say Saturday at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship, as Xiong made three consecutive closing birdies at The Ohio State University GC (Scarlet) to card 4-under 67 and move to the precipice of his first PGA TOUR card via The Finals 25.

Xiong stands T8 for the week (9-under total) into the final round in central Ohio, as the 23-year-old aims to cap off a Cinderella season in which he won the Wichita Open Benefitting KU Wichita Pediatrics in June as a Monday qualifier and non-member.

After a T50 at last week’s Albertsons Boise Open presented by Chevron, Xiong arrived at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship needing a two-way T5 or better to clinch a spot in The Finals 25 and his first TOUR card. Even if he falls short of that threshold Sunday, he’ll have another chance to cement a TOUR card at next week’s Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance.

Even with his flurry of a finish Saturday in Columbus, Xiong was not quite satisfied. He headed immediately to the practice green for some additional late-afternoon work, smiling with his caddie throughout.

Xiong’s tunnel vision this week is perhaps an indication of a singular goal: avoiding distractions and earning a spot on the PGA TOUR. As a college sophomore in 2018, Xiong earned the Fred Haskins Award and Jack Nicklaus Award as the top player in college golf. He turned pro and earned Korn Ferry Tour membership for 2019, but he struggled as a rookie, making just five cuts in 21 starts and finishing a distant No. 166 on the Points List, losing his status in the process.

A career trajectory can change in a week, though, and Xiong secured full Korn Ferry Tour status through 2023 with his win in Wichita.

Sunday afternoon, he’ll aim to climb one more rung on the ladder.

“It’s a really tough sport,” reflected Xiong after his win in Wichita. “I feel so much different than I did when I was out here a few years ago.”

PGA TOUR veteran David Lingmerth holds a two-shot lead into the final round at the Scarlet Course, as storylines abound as players jockey to either improve their TOUR status or earn a TOUR card via The Finals 25.

Lingmerth has not recorded a top-10 in a PGA TOUR-sanctioned event in five years, but the winner of the 2015 Memorial Tournament presented by Workday has channeled those good vibes in Columbus to the tune of a 14-under total through three rounds. He’ll carry TOUR Past Champion status at minimum into next season, but he aims to better his spot on the Priority Ranking and attain a better sense of his schedule into the fall.

Other players who hold conditional TOUR status at minimum and aim to better their spot on the Priority Ranking include Nick Hardy (T2), Brian Stuard (T5) and Ben Martin (T5).

Players who earned a TOUR card via the Korn Ferry Tour Regular Season are competing in the Finals to improve their spot on the TOUR Priority Ranking, which alternates between members of The 25 and The Finals 25 and will be solidified at the conclusion of next week’s Korn Ferry Tour Championship.

Several members of The 25 are showing out so far in Ohio, including Paul Haley (T2), Marty Dou (T2) and Taylor Montgomery (T8) – Montgomery carded Saturday’s low round at the Scarlet Course with a scintillating 8-under 63.

Then there are those eyeing their first TOUR card, taking the stage Sunday in chase of the ultimate golf dream.

Along with Xiong, there’s Tano Goya (T11), a 34-year-old Argentina native who has played professionally for 15 years on various tours across the globe. Goya moved to Jacksonville, Florida, in recent years and quickly found a comfort level in his rookie Korn Ferry Tour season. He recorded six top-25s in the Regular Season to keep full status into 2023.

With a two-way T5 or better in Columbus, Goya would cement his first TOUR card. He enters the final round at 8 under, two strokes back of a three-way T5.

There’s David Kocher, a Maryland alum who stood outside the top 100 on The 25 with three events remaining in the Regular Season. All he did was win the Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Dr Pepper to swap a likely Q-School appearance for a spot in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals. Kocher stands T20 into Sunday and could cement his first TOUR card with a two-way T4 or better – regardless of his finish, all points accrued will serve useful into next week’s Korn Ferry Tour Championship.

And there’s Air Force Captain Kyle Westmoreland, who served five-and-a-half years of active duty before returning to civilian life in 2019 to chase his professional golf dreams.

Westmoreland, 30, earned Korn Ferry Tour membership via Q-School last fall and recorded five top-25s this season to gain Finals access. He’s T20 into Sunday in Columbus, the same position as Kocher – two-way T4 for a TOUR card; all points could be crucial into next week.

“We’re playing with house cards, right?” Westmoreland said after a third-round 68 at the Scarlet Course. “You have your Korn Ferry Tour card locked up, but you’re trying to make the PGA TOUR, and that’s the dream.

“I think I was awarded great perspective being in the military; I loved my time, and it makes me thankful for being out here and getting to play golf. And I really appreciate the guys that go out and protect our country and allow us to play golf, chase balls and stuff. I like to think I’m living retired life at the age of 30.”

He wouldn’t mind living that “retired life” on the PGA TOUR.