ATLANTA – Tommy Fleetwood has finally done it.
After years of close calls, the English golfer won his first PGA Tour title on Sunday at the Tour Championship. He shot a 2-under 68 to finish at 18 under, three shots ahead of Russell Henley and Patrick Cantlay at East Lake Golf Club.
This was Fleetwood’s 164th PGA Tour start. The wait was long and often frustrating, but it ended with a big reward: the FedEx Cup trophy and $10 million.
“It’s easy to say you’re strong and keep fighting, but it’s different when you actually have to prove it,” Fleetwood said.
Fleetwood, 34, had already won seven times on the DP World Tour and three more events worldwide, but a PGA Tour victory had always escaped him—until now.
Rory McIlroy praised him, saying: “It shows his great attitude and resilience. If he pulls it off today, it would be amazing. We’d all love to see it.”
Fleetwood had been painfully close before. He had 30 top-five finishes without a win—the most in 100 years on the PGA Tour. He had also earned $33.4 million, the most money for a player who had never won.
“I never thought it would never happen,” Fleetwood admitted. “But there’s always a bit of doubt.”
In recent months, he suffered two heartbreaking finishes. At the Travelers Championship in June, he led by one shot going into the final hole but three-putted and lost to Keegan Bradley. “I’m upset and angry,” he said afterward.
Then, at the FedEx St. Jude Championship two weeks ago, he led by two shots with three holes to play but slipped, finishing third as Justin Rose went on to win.
This time, though, Fleetwood held his nerve—and finally became a PGA Tour champion.
“Winning on the PGA Tour was something I really wanted,” Fleetwood said. “I didn’t need it, but I wanted it. I wanted to prove I could do it. It makes up for all the close calls I’ve had.”
On Sunday, things weren’t very dramatic. Fleetwood made a bogey on the 10th hole, cutting his lead over Cantlay to one shot. But then he made birdies on the 12th and 13th holes to go back up by three. By the 18th hole, he still had a three-shot lead.
Cantlay’s bogey on the 16th hole ended his chance of catching up.
Fleetwood became the first golfer to win his first PGA Tour title at the Tour Championship at East Lake. The only similar case was Chad Campbell, who won the 2003 Tour Championship in Houston.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, trying to become the first golfer to win the FedEx Cup two years in a row, struggled early. On the first hole, he hooked his tee shot out of bounds and made a bogey, dropping five shots behind Fleetwood. He bogeyed the 5th hole too but then made four birdies to fight back. His hopes ended at the 15th hole when he hit into the water and made a double bogey.
Scheffler finished with a 2-under 68, tying for fourth at 14 under. It was still his 14th straight top-10 finish, matching Jack Nicklaus’ streak from 1977. Corey Conners, who shot an 8-under 62, and Cameron Young, who shot 66, also tied for fourth.
“I fought all week to give myself a chance,” Scheffler said. “I wasn’t as sharp as I wanted to be. My first round was good, but after that I didn’t play my best. I still gave myself a shot but needed a few better swings.”
U.S. Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley started the day three shots behind Fleetwood and Cantlay, but he couldn’t get much going either. Like Scheffler, he found trouble on the 15th hole, hitting his ball into the water for a double bogey.
Bradley will announce his six Ryder Cup captain’s picks on Wednesday. He said choosing whether to pick himself is “the biggest decision of my life.”
“No matter what I decide, I could easily go the other way,” Bradley said. “All I care about is that on Sunday at the Ryder Cup, we win. Then I’ll know I made the right choice. Until then, I won’t know. It’s going to be crazy, but I trust the guys on our team. They’re all playing well. It’s exciting.”
There hasn’t been a Ryder Cup playing captain since Arnold Palmer in 1963, when the U.S. won 23–9 at East Lake. Bradley is ranked 13th in the world, and only Scheffler has won more tournaments in the past year.
“Keegan Bradley wants to win the Ryder Cup more than anyone,” said Maverick McNealy, ranked 10th in points. “I know he’ll do what’s best for the team. In the end, it’s about who’s playing the best golf.”
Published: 25th August 2025
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