Tripling Up

Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Wyndham Clark rallies to close with 3 straight birdies and win BMW Championship, marking his 3rd PGA Tour victory in 3 months; he also earns Presidents Cup spot and more than $11 million from purse and bonuses

By Gary Baines 

Wyndham Clark made things much more interesting than he would have preferred in the final round, but just like at the U.S. Open in June, the Denver native emerged with the title on Sunday,

The Colorado Golf Hall of Famer lost all five shots of the lead he took into the final day of the BMW Championship in St. Louis, but came to life in a big way down the stretch and claimed his third PGA Tour victory in the last three months.

After failing to make a birdie for 19 straight holes going back to the end of the round on Saturday, Clark rolled in a 17-foot birdie try on No. 16 at Bellerive Country Club on Sunday to break a tie with Rory McIlroy. Then Clark added a 13-foot birdie on 17 and a 17-footer on 18 en route to a three-stroke win over Patrick Cantlay.

Talk about doing a 180 … going 19 holes without a birdie, then making birdie on each of the last three.

The result was not only career victory No. 6 for Clark, but it paved the way for one other notable accomplishment and may do so for another.

The Valor Christian High School graduate locked up an automatic berth to represent the U.S. in next month’s Presidents Cup, and certainly helped his “candidacy” for PGA Tour Player of the Year honors.

Asked on CBS what the week proves to him about himself, Clark said, “I think it shows that I’m one of the best players in the world. 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, coming off my worst year ever (2025). I’m just really pleased where I’m at right now.”

His three victories include a major (the U.S. Open) and a FedExCup Playoff event (the BMW). He’s also finished in the top five in six of his last 10 PGA Tour starts, a stretch which includes all three of his 2026 victories. And there’s still next week’s Tour Championship, then the players vote on the POY award, which will be announced in December.

“Hopefully that maybe is in the cards, but if not I’m just really pleased with how the year has gone,” said Clark, now the No. 5 ranked player in the world.

Clark (right) and his caddie Dave Pelekoudas with the spoils of victory. (Photo: PGA Tour on X)

Regarding the President Cup — where the Americans will face a non-European International squad Sept. 24-27 at Medinah Country Club near Chicago — Clark makes the U.S. team for the second time, in this case by finishing third in the points standings. He went 1-2-1 individually in the 2024 Presidents Cup, when the Americans beat the Internationals 18.5-11.5. He’s also played in the 2023 Ryder Cup and the 2024 Olympic Games.

The 2010 CGA Amateur champion never did outright relinquish the lead on Sunday at the BMW Championship. But given that he stood 3 over par for the day through 10 holes — and 15 — on Sunday, he was tied for the lead for much of the back nine. Cantlay caught him first — if ever so briefly — and McIlroy moved into a tie with a 9-foot birdie on No. 11.

But after struggling mightily with his putter through 15 holes on Sunday — after being stellar with the flat stick most of the day on Saturday — Clark finally regained his form on No. 16.

The 32-year-old honorary member at Cherry Hills Country Club drained a 17-foot birdie on 16 to regain the outright lead. Then he holed a 13-footer on 17, then a 17-footer on 18. All of a sudden what had been a tie for the top spot for most of the back nine turned into a three-stroke victory.

“Wyndham stepped up when he needed to,” said McIlroy, who finished third on Sunday after being the runner-up to Clark at the 2023 U.S. Open. “The birdie on 16 was huge. Birdieing last three showed a lot of character.”

Clark’s win came not only with a $3.6 million payday — specifically for the BMW Championship — but with $8 million more in bonus money for finishing third in the FedExCup season-long standings heading into the Tour Championship — $7 million up front and $1 million deferred. Scottie Scheffler ended up first in the FedExCup bonus money standings and Matt Fitzpatrick second. A $40 million purse — but no additional bonus — will be at stake at next week’s Tour Championship in Atlanta.

Clark chats about his victory on Sunday.

This marks the second time Clark has place third in the FedExCup bonus money standings as he also did so in 2023.

In his last 10 PGA Tour starts, Clark owns three wins (CJ Cup Byron Nelson, the U.S. Open and the BMW Championship), a third place and two fifths. In those 10 PGA Tour events, Clark’s scoring average is a stellar 67.58.

On Sunday, Clark battled to post an even-par 70 in the final round, which left him at 17 under par overall.

“I don’t think you can call that round graceful, but it was gritty,” CBS on-course reporter Dottie Pepper said.

“I was making dumb bogeys, didn’t make anything on the greens,” Clark said regarding the first 15 holes on Sunday. “I kept trying to get myself going. When I made the putt (on 16), it kind of got me back and I jumped right back into it. … As much as I would have loved to run away with this, it was fun getting the juices going.

“… I was really proud of myself that I didn’t let it get away. Even though it seemed like it did, I was still mentally there, and then finished wrong.”

Though Clark made it a point to slap hands with fans on the way from greens to tees on Sunday, he acknowledged he wasn’t the overall fan favorite as he was paired with McIlroy.

“I’ve kind of been the underdog in all of my wins, and I’ve just accepted that and enjoy that moment,” he said.

After the awards ceremony, the leadership at Bellerive Country Club awarded Clark an honorary membership.

“This place is amazing,” Clark said. “Honestly, the minute I got on the golf course it reminded me of Cherry Hills where I grew up. Beautiful, tree-lined golf course with awesome doglegs and water. So, to be a member here is fantastic. I told the president, I’ll be your best member. I might come back once a year, so you won’t have to worry about me too much. But it’s really awesome. This tournament has held Presidents Cups and BMW Championships and PGAs, and to be a member at a place like this is a huge honor.”

Net proceeds from the BMW Championship go to the Evans Scholarship for caddies. One of the Evans Scholars houses is based at the University of Colorado.

For all the scores from the BMW Championship, CLICK HERE.

Elsewhere in major tour golf for players with strong Colorado connections:

— Another KFT Top-10 for Former CU Golfer Justin Biwer: Former University of Colorado golfer Justin Biwer has only played in three Korn Ferry Tour events in his career, but his top-10-finish percentage is pretty darn good.

Biwer, who tied for fifth in his KFT debut last month at The Blue Championship at TPC Colorado in Berthoud, finished in a share of ninth place Sunday at the AdventHealth Championship in Kansas City, Mo. He carded scores of 67-64-70-65 for a 22-under-par total, which left him seven strokes back of winner Yuta Sugiura. SCORES

Other Notes: Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Jennifer Kupcho struggled on the final day of the CPKC Women’s Open in Edmonton, but still tied for 11th place. Kupcho followed up rounds of 66-68-64 with a 4-over-par 74 and ended up at 8 under par. Kupcho’s best finishes of the year have been two eighth-place showings. SCORES … Katherine Hollern, who grew up in Salida, posted her best showing ever on the Epson Tour by tying for 10th on Sunday in the Wildhorse Ladies Classic in Pendleton, Ore. Hollern, who didn’t play college golf, went 65-70-67 for a 14-under-par total. SCORES … In the final LIV Golf event of 2026, part-time Colorado resident Scott Vincent tied for fifth on Sunday in the stop in Indianapolis. He went 66-68-66-65 for a 15-under-par total, which left him three strokes behind winner Michael La Sasso. It was Vincent’s fourth top-5 showing of the LIV Golf season. SCORES … In her sixth straight year making the cut in the U.S. Senior Women’s Open, part-time Centennial resident Sherry Andonian Smith finished 35th in Ann Arbor, Mich. (76-77-79-75 for a 19-over-par total). Former part-time Coloradan Hollis Stacy, a six-time USGA champion, placed 24th (76-75-78-74, 15 over par). SCORES

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