Call the 3M Open the career resurrector.

TPC Twin Cities is quickly becoming notorious for being a site where struggling golfers can pick themselves off the mat.

In 2020, Michael Thompson picked up his first PGA Tour victory in seven years when he emerged victorious in Blaine. In 2021, Cameron Champ won after missing the cut or withdrawing in 10 of his previous 15 events.

And now, Jhonattan Vegas — who entered the tournament playing on a medical exemption — is back in the winner’s circle for the first time since 2017.

The Venezuelan birdied his 72nd-and-final hole of the week on Sunday to get to 17-under for the tournament, one shot clear of tour rookie Max Greyserman.

After belting a drive on No. 18 down the center of the fairway, Vegas’ second on the Par-5 finishing hole found the left side of the green, 96 feet from the cup. Vegas had two putts to win the tournament. His first was a beauty, peeking at the cup as it rolled a comfortable 3 feet past, leaving a straightforward short putt he drilled to hoist the trophy in front of his family — including his children, who were also in attendance — on the 18th green.

With the win comes a $1.458 million check, a full-time exemption through the 2026 PGA Tour campaign and 500 FedExCup points that move the 39 year old — who entered the week 149th in the standings and on the verge of losing his tour status — into 66th, likely meaning he’ll qualify for this year’s playoffs.

What a difference four days make.

“Wow, yes, seven years. In my head it doesn’t really seem that it’s been that long,” Vegas said. “You know, it hasn’t been easy, that’s for sure. It’s been a lot of grinding, a lot of dealing with injuries, a lot of headaches, but these are the moments that you get up every day and you work hard, you do all the right things because nothing feels better than this.”

Vegas — who spent the last two-plus years battling an elbow injury and then a shoulder issue, which required multiple surgeries to resolve — once again has a secure future in professional golf.

It didn’t come easy. Vegas started the day with a bogey. For as good as he felt Saturday in moving to the top of the leaderboard, Sunday was a struggle. The shoulder was again in pain.

“Today, I wasn’t 100% and I felt it right away on the first hole,” said Vegas, who finished in a tie for second in Blaine in 2021. “It was a nightmare, but luckily stayed calm and I was able to play pretty solid and not make huge mistakes.”

Every time he had a slip up, he’d find a way to respond.

At one point in the round, Vegas’ lead was three strokes. But then he found the water on No. 9 and had to get up and down for bogey, didn’t birdie the par-5 12th and bogeyed No. 13.

At that point, four men were tied for the lead at 15-under and Vegas appeared to be heading in the wrong direction.

But Vegas recovered. A 9-foot birdie putt on No. 15 moved him to 16-under.

That’s the score posted by Greyserman, who shot his round of the season — an 8-under 63 — on Sunday, which included a 30 on the back nine.That was punctuated by an impressive birdie on No. 18 in which Greyserman hit his tee shot into the sea of concession stands under the trees left of the fairway. He had only a small window between the trunks to hit the ball through. He took it on, hammering a wood that slipped through the trees and traveled 260 yards to the putting surface.

Greyserman two-putted from 79 feet to take the clubhouse lead at 16-under. He provided the stiffest test, as Vegas’ playing partners — Matt Kuchar and Maverick McNealy — failed to generate enough quality shots and putts over the final few holes to make a serious move. They both finished in a tie for third at 15-under.

Kuchar — who entered the week at No. 155 in the FedExCup standings — is the only player to have reached the playoffs in every year since the format was created in 2007. And while this weekend’s performance moved him up to No. 111 — greatly improving his chances of maintaining full status next season — a win would’ve likely pushed him into the playoffs.

Now, he’ll probably need a victory at the Wyndham Championship in two weeks to move into the top 70.

“Certainly making the playoffs, keeping my job for next year, they’re all checkmarks. I normally like to check these off a lot earlier in the year than right now, but tis the bed I made. Certainly helpful,” Kuchar said. “It is on my mind, it is something that I know is kind of back there. I don’t want to miss the Playoffs, don’t want to miss Top-125, all those things you tend to try to check off somewhere on the west coast, but here I am late in the year, trying to still check them off.”

Vegas likely entered the week with similar concerns, and went out and alleviated them with a victory.

“That’s the beauty of golf, that’s the beauty of the PGA Tour,” Vegas said. “No other tour in the world provides that. Any week can change your life forever, so just thankful the win came this week.”

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