Denver native Wyndham Clark soars into top 5 with eagle at BMW Championship; final-hole birdie on Saturday gives Keegan Bradley 1-stroke lead after topsy-turvy day at Castle Pines
By Gary Baines – 8/24/2024
CASTLE ROCK — Wyndham Clark raised his arms in a moment of sheer relief and high-fived his caddie, John Ellis.
Had the Denver native won another PGA Tour title? No. But he definitely managed a small victory that he can conceivably parlay into a big one.
The scene had played out Saturday on the 17th fairway at Castle Pines Golf Club — where Clark hit his approach from 212 yards to within 17 feet of the hole on the par-5. And shortly after he sank the eagle putt, NBA and Olympic champion Derrick White of Parker, a buddy of Clark’s who’s been following him around through all three rounds of the BMW Championship, took a page straight out of Hale Irwin’s book from the 1990 U.S. Open: White trotted along the rope line near the 17th green, slapping hands with just about anyone who reached out. This is the same White who was carrying around a “Dub Club” hat for those rooting on Clark, who’s called Dubs by many of his friends.
“I have not played that hole well,” Clark said of going bogey and par the first two days on No. 17, the easiest hole at Castle Pines through three rounds, averaging more than a half stroke under par. “It’s a pretty easy hole and everyone is torching the par-5s except for me (he was 1 under through his first 11 par-5s this week). I finally hit the fairway and then we hit the green, so it was our goal to just kind of put it in a spot where we could make birdie. Obviously eagle is a bonus.”
The eagle vaulted the 30-year-old who grew up south of Denver into contention in the FedExCup Playoff event. His 3-under-par 69 on Saturday left him at 7 under par overall, tied for fifth place. The Valor Christian grad and 2023 U.S. Open champion trails leader Keegan Bradley by five going into Sunday’s final round at Castle Pines, a course where Clark has far more experience than any other player in the field.
Clark (right) shares a laugh on Saturday with buddy Derrick White of Parker, an NBA and Olympic champion who has been cheering on Clark this week at Castle Pines.
There was definitely a hometown feel for the three-time PGA Tour winner, especially as he approached the 18th green following his eagle, receiving much fan support and loud yells of encouragement.
“It’s been amazing every day,” said the guy who grew up playing the now-defunct Mountain View Golf Course, Family Sports and Cherry Hills Country Club. “Even in the practice rounds, it’s been so awesome. Then obviously having my immediate family and then close friends that don’t usually get to come out and watch me play, it was really nice. Then just the hometown support has been amazing.
Asked how many friends and family members were on hand, Clark said, “People I really know and are close, it’s probably a couple hundred. There’s so many kids from my high school, guys I went to college with, and obviously my cousins and then their kids, grandparents, all that stuff. There’s a lot of people.
“Then seeing faces that I haven’t seen in a long time. … I feel like if I went through everyone in the crowd it would be about 1,000 people, which is pretty cool.”
And Clark said he’s made a point to look into the crowd for some of the familiar faces, albeit while focusing on the task at hand.
“I’m trying to make eye contact as much as possible,” said Clark, who won a CGA Amateur at age 16, two state high school titles, a CGA Junior Stroke Play and a Pac-12 championship in Colorado. “Golf is so tough. Not that I’m at this level, but I feel a little bit like how Tiger is because he always had the most amazing fan support, and he would be walking through and everyone is pumping him up, and you get your levels raised up so much. So it’s been really tough for me to just calm down before I hit my next shot.
“But I feel like I’ve done a good job with it, and hopefully tomorrow I can keep my nerves down.”
It’s been particularly nice for Clark having White following him nearly the whole way this week. The two played basketball against one another as kids and in high school and reconnected at the Olympics where both were competing. This year White won an NBA title with the Boston Celtics and an Olympic gold medal with Team USA.
“It’s really funny,” Clark said. “I saw him the first day and thought it was cool. Then I saw him the next day, then I saw him today walking all 18. I was like, ‘Man, you’re really into golf.’ He’s like, ‘Yeah, this is fun.’ It’s pretty cool. It’s great to see where Derrick has gone in his career.
“It’s honestly one of those pinch-yourself moments because we were third grade all the way to high school playing basketball against each other, and you would almost never think that he’d be at the highest level and I would be at the highest level at my sport, and (for) two kids coming out of Colorado, it doesn’t happen very often.”
White with his Dub Club hat on Saturday.
On Saturday, Clark cut four strokes off his deficit compared to the leader, thanks to his one-eagle, three-birdie, two-bogey day. He even got a good break or two along the way, including a big one on the par-4 second hole, where he hit his tee shot well left, but it bounded off a tree into the fairway and he went on to make a 12-foot birdie.
“My caddie and I, we just wanted to be in contention,” Clark said. “Regardless of what happens tomorrow, at least I had the juices flowing this week and battled a lot of the adversity of (being the) hometown kid, the pressure. Regardless of what happens, at least I have good momentum going into next week,” the Tour Championship in Atlanta, where just 30 players will battle it out after 50 competed at Castle Pines.
“I felt like I’ve played maybe some of the best golf out here, I just haven’t scored it very well” this week, he said, noting that he had three water balls on Thursday. “Things could have gone a little different in each of those rounds (and) we’d be having different talks.
“But it is really nice that (the leaders) came back a little bit today. This golf course, there’s a lot of scoring holes and then there’s a lot of holes you can make big numbers. If you can kind of avoid the disasters and then take advantage of those birdie holes, you can really get on a run and cover some ground.”
Clark will be going for his fourth PGA Tour title — all of the previous three having come since May 2023. He has seven top-10 finishes in 2024, including a victory at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Late Saturday, Clark, in celebration of the week he’s had at Castle Pines GC, posted on social media that he will donate $50,000 to Colorado charities and cancer charities through his Play Big Foundation. And he noted that he hopes fans will wear pink on Sunday, which is Clark’s traditional final-round color. Clark’s mother, Lise, passed away in 2013 after battling breast cancer.
54-hole leader Keegan Bradley made just four pars in Saturday’s round.
Final-Hole Birdie Regains Outright Lead for Keegan Bradley: Adam Scott took a three-stroke lead into Saturday at Castle Pines, but you never would have known it by how things looked about an hour into his third round. Ludvig Aberg, who trailed Scott by four going into Saturday, had grabbed a three-stroke lead after he completed five holes as Scott played his first four holes in 4 over par.
And round and round it went as Scott, Aberg and Keegan Bradley took turns in the lead on Saturday. And by the time things wrapped up, it was first-round leader Bradley, the 2025 U.S. Ryder Cup captain, who owned the outright advantage, thanks to a 9-foot birdie putt on his final hole.
The 38-year-old six-time PGA Tour winner had a wild day that added up to a 2-under-par 70, leaving him at 12 under par overall. He made just four pars on Saturday, with his last one coming at No. 10. He carded eight birdies and six bogeys, but finished strong, playing his final five holes in 4 under.
“It was tough out there today,” Bradley noted. “It was really windy, a lot of elevated tees that were into the wind, which makes it really tough. I’m proud of the way I fought today. I played some brilliant golf but I hit also some terrible shots, too. I guess that’s the way of the world. But I’m proud of the way I fought there in the end.”
Bradley was asked, being the Ryder Cup captain, if he feels somewhat forgotten about as a player.
“A little bit, but that’s sort of been how I’ve gone my whole career,” he said. “So I’m fine with it. To be named Ryder Cup captain and still be a full-time player is strange. I don’t know if anyone knows how to handle this situation, so I’m doing the best I can. The only thing I can keep doing is play my best golf and maybe play my way on to some of these teams.”
On Saturday, given his Ryder Cup position, he heard chants of “USA, USA” on more than one occasion.
“It’s just incredible,” he said. “Being the Ryder Cup captain is such an honor, and it comes with such a heavy weight of the world, the United States, the players out here. But when you get to feel that energy from the fans, it’s really special. I haven’t felt that since I played in the Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup — what I felt out there today. That was really cool.”
As was the reaction of Colorado fans who hadn’t seen a PGA Tour event in the state since 2014 — until this week
“I honestly wasn’t expecting this,” Bradley said.” But I love when we come and play in markets that we don’t (usually) come to, and you can just tell the fans are really excited.”
Bradley came into the week 50th and last in the FedExCup point standings among the players in the BMW Championship field. But being in the lead at Castle Pines now, he’s projected to jump up to the fourth spot.
But, of course, there’s one more round to play. And there are five golfers within five strokes of the lead heading into Sunday. Scott (11 under par) is one back, Aberg and fellow Swede Alex Noren (10 under) are two behind, and Clark and two-time 2024 major championship winner Xander Schauffele (7 under) are five back.
Adam Scott overcame a rough start to stay near the lead.
Scott bounced back nicely after a start that went bogey (his tee shot went out of bounds right on No. 1 and he had to re-tee), par, double bogey (water off the tee) and bogey (bunker).
“I kind of felt like I made a meal of that, and I didn’t feel like I did that much wrong,” Scott said. “A couple of drives were just not quite right, and a three-putt, and all of a sudden I’m kind of chasing.”
But after a front-nine 40, the 44-year-old Australian played the back in 2 under for a 74 despite a lost-ball bogey on 14, making birdie on two of his last three holes. But after being first in Strokes Gained: Putting through two rounds, Scott was 46th out of 48 players in that stat on Saturday.
“I really struggled mostly on the greens today,” the 14-time PGA Tour winner said. “They were just so different from yesterday’s round speed-wise and firmness and look and everything. I felt like I was on a different course almost, and I just battled that most of the round.
“Look, I love my position,” he said. “I feel like I’m playing on house money, and I’m right in this golf tournament.”
Ludvig Aberg’s aggressive mindset has served him well so far this week.
Meanwhile, Aberg, the 24-year-old who has one PGA Tour victory to his credit and oodles of talent, overcame a first-hole nosebleed that left spots on his shirt and went on to eagle the 649-yard 14th hole for the second consecutive day, this time shooting 71. On Saturday, he hit a whopping tee shot of 414 yards on No. 14, then put his second 34 feet from the flag and drained the eagle putt.
“I hit a great drive today there,” he said. “It kind of went down there quite far compared to how it did yesterday. I hit a nice 5-iron on the green. Those putts you’re just trying to get up there somewhere, but luckily it went in. … A couple of 3s there is always going to be nice.”
Bradley is certainly aware that the impressive Swede is not far off the pace.
“I think that he’s one of the best players in the world now, and he will be for the next 20 years,” Bradley said of Aberg. “I think he’s such an impressive player, great guy, and somebody that we’re going to have to deal with for as long as he’s out here.”
Aberg has noted his intent to play aggressively, and he has no intention of changing that now.
“When I play my best, that’s the way I play,” he said. “I feel like in order to beat all these guys that are obviously such good golfers, you have to be aggressive and you have to take advantage of the chances, and you don’t do that by not being aggressive. I feel like we’ve been doing that quite well over the last few days, and hopefully we can do that again tomorrow as well.”
The 14th hole on Saturday isn’t the only time Aberg has hit a 400-yard-plus tee shot this week. He uncorked a 418-yarder on the par-4 10th hole on Thursday. And … he did that with a 3-wood. The hole is downhill, but it was still a powerful wallop. Alas, the Swede hit his next shot into the water and took a double bogey.
Clark on Saturday with 2024 U.S. Amateur qualifier Miles Kuhl from Boulder.
Miles Kuhl Reconnects with Wyndham Clark: Wyndham Clark took time out after his round and post-round interview sessions on Saturday to chat for several minutes with one of the better junior players in Colorado, 16-year-old Miles Kuhl of Boulder, who qualified for this year’s U.S. Amateur. Earlier this summer, Kuhl won the AJGA Colorado Junior that is being sponsored by Clark’s Play Big Foundation.
“It was amazing” talking with Clark on Saturday, Kuhl said. “He’s a real nice guy and he gives great advice. He talked about colleges and going through that (recruiting and selection) process.”
Kuhl said this marked the second time he’s interacted with Clark. The first came at Kuhl’s home course, Boulder Country Club, in 2017 when Clark won both the individual and team (Oregon) titles in the Pac-12 Championships.
Kuhl is a junior at Fairview High School and he’s already won one prep tournament this season, shooting a cool 65.
Xander Schauffele came on strong down the stretch on Saturday.
Clark, Cantlay and Colorado: Wyndham Clark and Patrick Cantlay, who were paired on Saturday at Castle Pines, are no strangers to playing together. Most notably, they were partners last year in a Saturday afternoon four-ball in which the Americans prevailed 1 up over Rory McIlroy and Matt Fitzpatrick at the Ryder Cup. That’s the match in which McIlroy got upset with Cantlay’s caddie, Joe LaCava, for his celebration on the final green as McIlroy was lining up his putt.
And this isn’t the first time Clark and Cantlay have competed in Colorado in the summertime. In 2010 at Saddle Rock Golf Course in Aurora, both qualified for the U.S. Amateur — along with Coloradan Cody Kent. It was the first of five U.S. Amateurs in which Clark would compete.
On Sunday, Clark will be paired with world No. 2 Xander Schauffele for an 11:10 a.m. start.
Speaking of Schauffele, he had quite a turnaround on Saturday. The PGA Championship and British Open winner played his last six holes in 4 over par on Friday. But after rough start on Saturday — 2 over through six — Schauffele went 7 under for his final 12 holes to shoot a 67. At 7 under, he shares fifth place with Clark.
“Yesterday I kind of got a little mixed up and was a little bit out of sorts,” he said. “Today was a little weird, too, starting out. I kind of got gusted, I think, on (hole) 3. I hit an 8-iron that literally went — I got like 25 yards of hurt, which we haven’t had all week. I kind of was posing, and it was a little embarrassing for that thing to hit the wall and go in the water 20 yards off. Then I hit a flagstick a hole later. I felt like I had to dig deep in my little patience bucket that’s running thin this late in the year on a Saturday. But I was lucky to sort of turn it around and hit some good shots coming in.
“It is frustrating playing at altitude. …. I know I’m not the only one where guys are flagging shots and it’s plugging in a bunker over a green or coming up well short. It’s a little bit of that altitude deal.”
Rory McIlroy holes out a bunker shot for birdie on the first hole Saturday.
Notable: For the second time in two days a player withdrew from the BMW Championship field with lower-back issues. A day after Hideki Matsuyama pulled out, Robert MacIntyre did so on Saturday — after shooting 2-over-par 38 on the front nine and standing 1 over for 45 holes. MacIntyre, winner of two PGA Tour titles this year, should still easily advance to next week’s Tour Championship, where 30 players will tee it up. He currently is 19th in the standings. … 26-time PGA Tour winner Rory McIlroy had a unique start to his Saturday round. After two shots on the par-5 first hole, he was just 90 feet from the hole in the intermediate cut of rough with a relatively easy pitch to the pin. But he mishit his third into bunker short and right. But then he proceeded to hole a 38-foot bunker shot for birdie. McIlroy shot a 70 and stands in ninth place at 5 under overall. … Max Greyserman by virtue of being tied for last in the field after 36 holes, played Saturday’s round without a competing partner as the BMW has been using twosomes, and with Matsuyama out, there were 49 golfers in the field. Greyserman certainly didn’t seem to mind as he followed up rounds of 78-72 with a bogey-free 6-under-par 66. … The odds are still stacked against rookie Nick Dunlap, winner of the U.S. Amateur at Cherry Hills Country Club 12 months ago, to advance to next week’s Tour Championship. But he’s making progress. Still just 20 years old, Dunlap shot a 2-under-par 70 on Saturday to move into the top 10 on the leaderboard. It also pushed him from 48th to 40th in the FedExCup standings. He’ll need to vault into the FedExCup top 30 by the end of Sunday’s final round to punch his ticket to the Tour Championship.
For the scores and pairings for the BMW Championship, CLICK HERE.
About the Writer: Gary Baines has covered golf in Colorado continuously since 1983. He was a sports writer at the Daily Camera newspaper in Boulder, then the sports editor there, and has written regularly for ColoradoGolf.org since 2009. The University of Colorado Evans Scholar alum was inducted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame in 2022. He owns and operates ColoradoGolfJournal.com
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BMW CHAMPIONSHIP: THE ESSENTIALS
What: The BMW Championship, the second of three PGA Tour FedExCup Playoff events in 2024.
When: Sunday is the final championship round. Note: Gates open at 6:30 a.m.. For Sunday tee times, CLICK HERE.
Where: Castle Pines Golf Club in Castle Rock, opened in 1981 and designed by Jack Nicklaus. Castle Pines GC hosted the PGA Tour’s International from 1986 through 2006. Colorado Sports Hall of Famer Jack Vickers founded Castle Pines GC and The International.
Purse: $20 million, with the winner receiving $4 million.
Beneficiary: All the net proceeds from the BMW Championship benefit the Evans Scholars Foundation for caddies. Evans Scholarships, worth an estimated average of $125,000, are awarded by high-achieving teenage caddies with significant financial need.
Defending Champion: Viktor Hovland.
Course Setup: A PGA Tour-record length (since at least 1983) of 8,130 yards (Par-72). Green speed on Stimpmeter: 13. 77 bunkers and 10 water hazards.
History of Event in Colorado: The BMW Championship has been held once before in the Centennial State, in 2014 at Cherry Hills Country Club.
Tickets/Military Honors: For information, CLICK HERE. Note: Kids 15 and under receive complimentary grounds admission when accompanied by a ticketed adult (2 juniors per adult). Also, active-duty military, along with military retirees, active reserves and veterans can also be admitted free to the tournament after obtaining passes at bmwchampionship.com .
Format: 50-player field. No cut. The top 30 in the season-long point standings after the BMW Championship will advance to the Tour Championship.
TV Schedule: Sunday: 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Golf Channel; 1-4 p.m., NBC. Dan Hicks, Kevin Kisner, Terry Gannon and Brad Faxon will call the action at different times from Castle Pines.
General Information about BMW Championship: CLICK HERE.