Wyndham Clark Rides Closing Stretch to BMW Championship Win

“I kept telling myself, hey, if you told me before the week with 10 holes to go, I would have a one- or two-shot lead, I would take it,” Clark said. “If I was tied with six holes to go, I would take it, regardless of what happened coming into the day.

“I think that helped keep me in the moment. Rather than being bummed, kind of look at it as an opportunity. Then, fortunately, finally had a putt drop on 16 and then that propelled me to birdie the last two.”

With Clark struggling, McIlroy looked to be the one to separate from the crowd of chasers and take advantage. He drew level with Clark on the 11^th hole, but failed to make a birdie throughout the rest of the round, putting an end to his hopes of a win with a bogey on the 17^th hole.

While disappointed in the result, McIlroy, one week removed from a 66^th place finish at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, will leave Bellerive Country Club encouraged by the work he’s put in and optimistic heading into the Tour Championship.

“I’m not in a spot where I’m super happy with where my game is or where my swing is, so I just have to keep working on it,” McIlroy said. “But it’s nice to know even when I’m not super happy with everything I can still piece it together and get it around and still give myself a chance to win tournaments.”

Gary Woodland entered the week needing a strong finish to extend his season, and did just that with a T4 finish at 12 under. Woodland has established himself as one of the most meaningful stories of the season, winning the Texas Children’s Houston Open in March after opening up to his struggles with PTSD following brain surgery.

He’ll be making his first appearance at the Tour Championship since 2019, and battled back emotions after his round.

“I’m going to say it’s impressive from where I’ve been, for sure,” Woodland said. “There’s definitely weeks out here where I didn’t even think I would be here this week. To get to next week with everything I battled this year, I’m super proud of myself, I can tell you that.”

Woodland at one point was a shot off the lead, but faded from contention after he topped his tee shot into the water on the ninth hole and carding a double bogey.

“It shocked me more than anything,” Woodland said laughing. “I haven’t done that in a long, long time.”

With his third win of the season, Clark joins Matt Fitzpatrick and Chris Gotterup as three-time tour winners in 2026. He’ll enter the Tour Championship ranked third in the FedEx Cup standings and officially clinched a spot on the President’s Cup team in September.

For Clark, he sees it as momentum he can build on to finish the year strong and beyond.

“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. Coming off my worst year ever, I’m just really pleased where I’m at right now.”