Kembali
Many PGA Tour players, including Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler, know how challenging it can be to prepare for a playoff at an event when the additional holes are set to be played on a Monday.
There is always an eerie atmosphere when a tournament bleeds into the start of a new week. Many will remember the bizarre feeling of Scheffler and Viktor Hovland’s playoff lasting less than 20 minutes at the Travelers Championship earlier this year, with the Norwegian emerging victorious.
But there is an even stranger situation going on at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship right now, with Austin Smotherman and Seamus Power preparing for a Monday finish in Southampton.
The two players will head to the 16th tee on Monday for their first shot in a tournament since Saturday due to the high winds in Bermuda.
It was decided that this year’s event would be cut down to 54 holes with the tournament organisers deeming that no play was going to be possible on Sunday.
The problem was that Smotherman and Power are tied for the lead on 16 under par. With that, they will return for what many are presumably hoping will be a quick finale.
Both men spoke about how bizarre the circumstances were after having to stick around on Sunday.
“Yeah, I mean, it was such an unusual day kind of waiting to find out what exactly was going to happen. It’s a weird feeling, I’ve had a playoff before but obviously not overnight kind of thing. Looking forward to it. It’s going to be a different experience. Hopefully we’re able to get out there, most importantly,” Power said.
“So yeah, it’s an unbelievable opportunity. Looking for win number three and you’ve got a one-on-one battle for it, so looking forward to getting out there and see what happens.”
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Smotherman said, when asked whether he had experienced anything similar: “I mean, no, absolutely not. Nothing like this remotely close.
“I had one time at Q-School where I had a third round maybe rained out and we came back and played the next day. I think even Q-School a couple years ago in Jacksonville we had a whole third day off, played the next day kind of thing. So like not too unfamiliar with like rain delays, but being in a position we’re at, knowing we got up and down on 18 yesterday to make par to even have a chance. I know the tournament would probably prefer to have an outright leader right now, but we’ve still got work to do.”
A victory would be more significant for Power, as things stand. Smotherman, of course, recently won the Bank of Utah Championship on his 100th career start on the PGA Tour.
He would actually move up just one place in the FedEx Cup standings with a win, going from 52nd to 51st.
For Power, however, a win in Bermuda would move him from 103rd to 53rd. It would also look set to ensure that he was exempt into the Championship Series in 2028. Clearly, that is a huge prize for many of those playing regularly in the Fall.