Eagle McMahon turned in a dominant weekend for the LVC title. Photo: Alyssa Van Lanen / DGPT

Eagle McMahon's finish at the DGPT - Las Vegas Challenge presented by Innova was nothing short of dominant. Paige Pierce's road to victory came down to the 72nd hole of the season opener.

It all led to a thrilling kickoff to the 2021 PDGA Elite Series.

McMahon's dominance started on the back nine of the third round on Saturday and, over the final 27 holes, the Colorado native finished at a blistering 23 under par to grab his second Las Vegas Challenge title.

Pierce, who grabbed the lead in the third round, battled past Catrina Allen all the way down to the final hole of round four to pick up her fourth LVC crown.

In a battle of the top four players in MPO, McMahon was the class of the field on Sunday, firing off a 13-under round on the way to an eight-stroke victory. He entered the final round with a one-stroke lead over Calvin Heimburg but after a 5-for-5 start, including the only birdie on Hole 4, McMahon was all gas the rest of the way and left no doubt.

McMahon's hot round of a 13-under 49 brought his final to 48-under par for an average rating of 1077 throughout the event. McMahon led the tournament in fairway hits (87%), parked percentage (26%), Circle 1 in regulation (63%), Circle 2 in regulation (86%) and birdie percentage (67%), according to UDisc. He also led the field in UDisc's new stat entering the 2021 season: strokes gained tee to green at 19.24.

Ezra Aderhold, who grabbed the lead in the second round on the Innova course with an 1099-rated 16 under, returned to the same track on Sunday and fired off an 11-under round to finish in a tie for second place, the South Dakota native's best showing at a DGPT event. He tied with Heimburg at 40-under par for the tournament.

Garrett Gurthie and Kevin Jones followed with 12-under rounds on Sunday to finish in fourth and T-7, respectively. Jones tied with Brian Earhart, who averaged 1065-rated golf over the final three rounds for a top-10 finish.

On the FPO side, it was a two-player race entering Sunday and the latest installment of the storied rivalry between Pierce and Allen.

Pierce entered the final round with a three-stroke lead over Allen, a lead she would not relinquish throughout Sunday's action.

But it would get close.. a few times.

Pierce and Allen, who entered Sunday clear of the field by 13 strokes, were both three under through eight holes on Sunday before Pierce had the first blemish with a double bogey on Hole 9, setting off a loud roar from the three-time LVC champion. She showed a champion's resilience and pushed her lead by to two strokes with an eagle on the 10th.

Allen trimmed the lead back down to a single stroke with a birdie on hole 12. Pierce answered that with her second eagle of the round on 13. The margin went back to one stroke with Allen's birdie on 14.

A birdie from Pierce on 17 gave her a two-stroke lead heading into the 18th, a margin she would need after picking up two OB strokes. Allen's upshot also found the OB to the right but Pierce canned a 27-foot, uphill putt for a bogey six to seal her fourth Las Vegas Challenge title.

Jessie Weese grabbed a third-place podium finish with an eight under, two shots ahead of Ohn Scoggins and three ahead of Hailey King, who jumped from 30th place after the first round into fifth.

The 2021 PDGA Elite Series continues on March 12-14 with the DGPT - Waco Annual Charity Open.