Bryson DeChambeau Continues Extraordinary Run of Form in FedEx Cup Playoffs

Bryson DeChambeau continued his extraordinary run of form by winning his second successive FedEx Cup event and tightening his grip at the top of the playoff standings. Last week, he began the final round at the Northern Trust with a four-shot advantage; this time he teed off one shot behind playing partner Abraham Ancer and reeled him in at TPC Boston to take the Dell Technologies Championship.

He birdied the second, dropped a shot at the third, picked up another birdie at the fourth and when he birdied the seventh, eighth and ninth holes to reach the turn in 32 and move to 16 under par he had the tournament in his pocket barring a meltdown on the back nine. It was never likely to happen.

While Ancer, seeking his first PGA Tour title, struggled to keep it going, Australian Cameron Smith made a late charge to get within a shot. But DeChambeau’s final birdie, at the par-4 15th, sealed the deal. A three wood struck 309 yards, then a wedge to inside nine feet, then the birdie putt.

“That was it,” DeChambeau said. “That’s how I play golf right there. Make that birdie and come off the green confident.”

Right now, nobody should have more confidence than DeChambeau. Two straight wins to start the Playoffs – only Vijay Singh (2008) has done that. No 1 in the FedExCup, No 7 in the world rankings. And expect him to get a call from U.S. captain Jim Furyk for a spot on the upcoming Ryder Cup team.

Of course, there is only one guarantee that he’ll finish the season as the FedExCup champ – by winning the Tour Championship at East Lake. If he fails to achieve that, the door could be open for somebody else, since points will be reset after the BMW Championship.

“I’ve always been a guy that’s been weird and unique relative to everybody else,” he said. “I’ve always gone about my business trying to do the absolute best I can. Let today’s garbage be better than yesterday’s. And so I don’t view people’s criticism as a negative thing. I actually view it as a positive thing because what people can’t understand sometimes is actually a benefit to the person that does understand it.”

Hold it high, @B_DeChambeau. ????#LiveUnderPar pic.twitter.com/E1eTQYnYpo

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 3, 2018

European Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjorn will also have taken more than a passing interest in events at Boston. Justin Rose, who will be a key member of his team, finished second, two behind DeChambeau after Smith dropped a shot at the 18th. There were also encouraging performances from Rafa Cabrera-Bello, who is hoping for a wild card, and Rory McIlroy, while Tyrrell Hatton will be bitterly disappointed with his closing round of 73.

So now we wait for Bjorn to name his four wild cards and Furyk to reveal the identity of three of his four choices.