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The international swing of the FedExCup Fall concludes this week adjacent to the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. The Port Royal Golf Course in the coastal town of Southampton hosts for the fifth consecutive year.
The most decorated player in the field this week is also the favorite. Adam Scott (+1600) has lifted a trophy more than 30 times worldwide over his career and is one of just two players in the OWGR Top 50 entered this week. Returning to Port Royal for the first time since winning the Grand Slam of Golf in 2013, the Australian will be looking for his first victory worldwide since winning The Genesis Invitational in 2020.
Brendon Todd (+1800) was the inaugural winner of this event in 2019. Racking up 27 birdies, including 10 in his closing-round 62, against only three bogeys, he cruised to a four-shot win, posting 24-under par. Missing the cut in his defense, he returns this time in fantastic form. Posting top-10 paydays in three of his last six starts on TOUR, including solo sixth in his last outing at the Fortinet Championship, Todd looks to become the first multiple champion on the par 71, 6,828-yard Robert Trent Jones design.
Alex Noren (+2000) is still searching for his first PGA TOUR victory and first anywhere in the world since winning in France in 2018. Returning to Bermuda for the first time since posting all four rounds in the 60s in 2020 (T15), the short-game wizard will look to keep his streak of rounds in the 60s intact. Cashing in seven of his last nine on TOUR, he will look to add his third top-10 paycheck in ten starts.
Sitting at No. 62 in the FedExCup Fall, Thomas Detry (+2000) is knocking on the door for a top-10 Fall finish. If the Belgian kicks open that door and hangs on through next week, he will be entered into the first two Signature Events of 2024 (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-am and The Genesis Invitational). Finishing runner-up to Seamus Power (not entered, hip injury) in 2022 and cashing T22 in 2021, he will look to add to his streak of seven consecutive rounds of 70 or better at Port Royal (27-under par) in his third consecutive visit.
Akshay Bhatia (+2200) continued his sizzling form with his third top-10 payday in his last eight events on TOUR with a T10 in Mexico last week. The champion at the Barracuda Championship has proven his chops on previous coastal stops on TOUR, including top five finishes in the Puerto Rico Open and at the Mexico Open at Vidanta. After missing the cut in the two starts following his first win on TOUR in August, he’s rattled off four straight weekends, including closing with a 64 last Sunday.
Sitting No. 58 in the FedExCup Fall, Alex Smalley (+2200) returns to Bermuda for the third consecutive year. At this happy hunting ground he has produced finishes of T11 and T12 in the last two editions, and he’s yet to post a round above 70 in eight chances. Making his first start since T61 in Las Vegas, the former Duke player sits in the top 50 in SG: Off the Tee and SG: Approach.
Australian Lucas Herbert (+2200) became the first international winner in the 2021 edition. Making only his 20th start on the PGA TOUR, he held on by a shot in breezy conditions to win on his debut. The FedExCup Fall ended an almost two-month hiatus on the PGA TOUR but has resulted in T31 or better in three of four starts. The last time he hit the top 10 in stroke play was his victory in April at the ISPS Handa – Championship on the DP World Tour.
Canadian Taylor Pendrith (+2200) has unfinished business in paradise. Firing a second-round 61 followed by 65 in Round 3, he led at 17-under in 2021 before Herbert came from behind on Sunday to steal the victory. The big-hitter broke a personal four-event streak of missed cuts with T3 (-18) in Las Vegas and followed up with T15 (-18) in Mexico last week.
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