Wyndham Clark finally got it together in the final round of the BMW Championship, putting it in overdrive down the stretch.
Clark posted his only three birdies on the last three holes to rally from a poor start and win the playoff event Sunday in St. Louis.
“As much as I would have loved to run away with this, it was fun getting the juices going and really feel the angst coming down at the end,” Clark said.
Clark, whose five-stroke lead vanished early on the back nine, shot even-par 70 to put him at 17-under 263. That was good enough for a three-stroke victory over Patrick Cantlay at Bellerive Country Club, where the second stop in the FedEx Cup playoffs was contested.
Clark, who also won the U.S. Open this year when another large lead shrunk rapidly in the final round, rose to No. 3 in the FedEx Cup standings. Now with three titles in 2026 (including the CJ Cup Byron Nelson), Clark is behind only Scottie Scheffler and England’s Matt Fitzpatrick in points.
“I think it shows that I’m one of the best players in the world,” Clark said. “I know everyone maybe gives me a hard time and roots for other people, but I feel like I’ve kind of come into my own. Three wins in one season is my best year yet.”
Clark’s birdies Sunday came when he rolled in a 16 1/2-foot putt on the par-3 16th hole to regain the lead and followed that with a 13-footer on the next hole. He sank a 17-foot putt to cap the triumph.
Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy had tied Clark, but he took a bogey on No. 17 in what amounted to a two-stroke swing among the golfers in the final pairing. McIlroy shot 69 to finish at 13 under, alone in third.
Yet it was a good week for the two-time reigning Masters champion, who finished 66th of 68 last week at the FedEx St. Jude Championship.
“The atmosphere, being out there and playing in front of these crowds, it has been an absolute pleasure,” McIlroy said.
Cantlay’s 68 left him at 14 under, more than enough to rocket into the top 30 of the points standings to advance to the season-ending Tour Championship. He jumped from No. 43 to No. 19.
“I got another chance to win a golf tournament next week and I’ll let all of the other stuff take care of itself,” Cantlay said.
Clark’s lead dipped to two strokes on Cantlay and McIlroy by the time the leaders reached the halfway mark of the final round. Then Cantlay birdied No. 10 to tighten the top of the leaderboard.
“I kept trying to get myself going,” Clark said.
While Cantlay found the water at No. 11 and went on to make double bogey, Clark’s bogey at No. 10 allowed McIlroy to come within one stroke. McIlroy rolled in a 9-foot birdie putt on No. 11 to pull even, giving him three birdies in a four-hole stretch.
“I always felt like I needed to just get my nose ahead to really try to put the pressure on Wyndham, and I couldn’t,” McIlroy said. “We were tied there for a few holes, and then when he made that putt on (No.) 16 for 2 and I couldn’t answer, that was obviously a huge moment in the round and in the tournament.”
Clark actually led by six strokes late Saturday before a bogey on the final hole. He began Sunday’s round with a bogey, still better than the double-bogey 6 he made on No. 1 in the third round.
Collin Morikawa shot 68, aided by an eagle on the 17th hole, to jump up to a tie for fourth place with Gary Woodland (69) and Chris Gotterup (69).
“Really happy, kind of just how I grinded throughout the week,” Morikawa said.
Scheffler’s final-round 68 put him at 7 under and tied for 12th a week after winning the St. Jude to open the playoffs. He wasn’t able to overcome an opening-round 72.
“Didn’t do a whole lot that well I feel like overall,” Scheffler said of his week. “I felt like I was close, but I got off to a tough start and didn’t really get too hot after that.”
Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre posted a 65 to tie Jake Knapp for the best round of the day. That left MacIntyre at 10 under and tied with Maverick McNealy (68) for seventh place, catapulting him from 36th to 25th in order to make the Tour Championship field.
“It’s good to extend the season on the PGA Tour an extra week,” MacIntyre said. “Satisfying round of golf today. It was absolutely beautiful.”
Cantlay, MacIntyre and Woodland (from No. 31 to 18) played their way into the top 30. The three who dropped out after starting the week in the top 30 were Rickie Fowler (No. 30 to 33), Bud Cauley (No. 29 to 34) and Kurt Kitayama (No. 28 to 31).
Despite a Sunday 66 for his best round of the tournament, J.T. Poston tied for 22nd place at 5 under, leaving him outside at No. 32 in the standings.
–Field Level Media
