(Olympia Fields) Viktor Hovland had the best round of his career at the best time, recording birdies on every but two holes of the back nine on Sunday to set an Olympia Fields course record and pass Scottie Scheffler and Matt Fitzpatrick to win the BMW Championship.
Hovland turned in a 61 (minus-9) to win.
What seemed like a two-man race between Scheffler and Fitzpatrick for the title eventually turned into a one-man show from Hovland. He started the back nine four strokes down. In the end, Scheffler and Fitzpatrick had to wedge their shot from the fairway to join him.
Both finished with a score of 66, which would normally have been enough to win on a day like this. They had to settle for second place, however, behind Hovland, who won for the second time this year and never looked better.
Hovland only putt over 15 feet on the back nine. He concluded the day with birdies on the 17th and 18th holes, the two toughest on the course.
“It has to be the best round I’ve played, especially considering the circumstances – the playoffs, this course – the way I played those last few holes, it was really special,” Hovland said. .
Jordan Spieth bogeyed his last two holes and returned a 71 as he was on his way out of the FedEx Cup top 30, heading to East Lake next week for the Tour de France Championship. the PGA. Denny McCarthy, however, made three bogeys to break out of the top 30.
Sahith Theegala birdied three in a row until the 17th hole and was expected to be in the top 30. However, he bogeyed on the final hole as Patrick Cantlay of his group birdied. They finished tied for 15th, and that bogey-and-birdie streak brought Theegala’s season to a close.
Xander Schauffele grabbed eighth with a 68 card, earning enough money to clinch the automatic sixth and final spot on Team USA’s Ryder Cup.
Canadian Corey Connors finished the competition in 10th place, posting a score of 69. Adam Svensson also finished at 69 and tied for 15th.
Scheffler is the favorite at East Lake for the second straight year. That means he will start the tournament at under-10, two shots ahead of Hovland.
Rory McIlroy, who shot 66 and finished the day fourth in the BMW Championship, is the third seed. Jon Rahm and Lucas Glover follow him.