Séamus Power closed out with a five-under 66 to secure his first top-10 finish of the year on the PGA Tour while Jacob Bridgeman produced a stunning final round to claim the Biltmore Championship Asheville and his second win of the season.
The Waterford man, after rounds of 66, 67 and 65, entered the final round with the opportunity to climb inside the top 100 in the FedEx Fall Rankings, but despite carding five birdies in a bogey-free round, his 20-under finishing tally wasn’t enough to see him make a move up the leaderboard and he ended the day as he started in a share of seventh place.
The result saw him rise from 114th to 104 on the FedEx Fall Rankings, however, and he’ll be all guns blazing over the remaining seven events to ensure that he moves inside the top 100 and regains full status for 2027.
Bridgeman began the final round five shots behind 54-hole leader Neal Shipley but shot the lowest round of his PGA Tour career to overtake him and everybody else and become the sixth multiple winner on the PGA Tour this year having taken the Genesis Invitational at Riviera back in February.
His victory came several hours after J.J. Spaun won the BMW PGA Championship on the DP World Tour, making a statement that perhaps he deserved consideration as a Presidents Cup pick for the U.S. Team. Bridgeman’s victory was a reminder why he was one of the picks for the event next week outside Chicago.
The 26-year-old from South Carolina was practically flawless at The Cliffs at Walnut Cove, and given the rain-softened conditions, there was no other choice. J.T. Poston had a 25-foot putt for 59 that he narrowly missed, and Ben James also shot a 61.
Neal Shipley, the 54-hole leader, couldn’t keep pace. He didn’t make his first birdie until the par-5 eighth hole, and by the time he finally was under par for his round, it was too late.
Bridgeman had eagle attempts from 10 feet and about 20 feet late in his round, missed them both for tap-in birdies and finished at 26-under. He won by two shots over James, who birdied three of his last four holes and had to scramble for par on the final hole.
Jackson Koivun, the 21-year-old who made his pro debut in early July and won in his third start at the 3M Open, also was one of Brandt Snedeker’s picks for the Presidents Cup matches at Medinah. Koivun had a 63-65 weekend and tied for fifth.
Bridgeman, who leads the PGA Tour in the key putting statistic, leaned hard on his putter. Along with eight birdies and an eagle, two of his biggest putts were for par on the 11th and 12th holes to keep him in the chase.
He made a 13-foot par putt on the 11th, and then after going bunker-to-bunker on the par-4 12th, Bridgeman made a 12-foot putt. He followed with three straight birdies to pull away.
He grew up about an hour away from the course in Inman, South Carolina, and he had his parents, his wife’s parents and plenty of other family members watching on Sunday. His parents were not in Los Angeles when he won earlier this year.
“I think they wanted me to get a win in front of them,” Bridgeman said. “I didn’t think it would happen this soon. I’m just super pumped.”
James (24-under) had a 61 in his second straight tournament. It just wasn’t enough to catch Bridgeman.
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