[Photo: James Gilbert]
Austin Smotherman needed 100 starts to win his first PGA Tour event. He needed only one more to win his second. With the first victory he answered questions in his own mind. On Monday morning (Bermuda time), after beating Seamus Power on a third playoff hole in the weather-shortened Butterfield Bermuda Championship, he answered questions about why he felt the need to keep playing in late-season tournaments.
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“A lot of people were asking me coming into this week, ‘What are you doing, you just won, you locked up a bunch of stuff?’ But like I said, we’re doing a lot of good things and we want to come to a beautiful spot that I have some good history at playing here,” Smotherman said. “Port Royal, Bermuda, everything, it’s easy to enjoy this week and that’s what our goal was.”
And now the 32-year-old can enjoy the spoils of riding a hot hand.
Smotherman collected $US1.08 million and joined Matt Fitzpatrick in winning tour events in consecutive starts in 2026. He’s now exempt through 2029 in the Championship Series that the tour is introducing in 2028, which is huge. He rises from 66th to 54th in the world ranking, edging closer to a Masters berth that he could earn if he finishes the year inside the top 50. (He was 121st before winning the Bank of Utah Championship earlier in the month.) Finally, he is 51st in the FedEx Cup Fall standings, almost assuredly locking up starts in the first two signature events of 2027.
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Smotherman and Power completed 54 holes at Port Royal Golf Course in Southampton, Bermuda, on a windblown Saturday with some impressive play. With gusts near 40 miles per hour, Smotherman shot a five-under 66 while Power, who won this event in 2022, carded 67 to end up deadlocked at 16-under 197. When heavier winds strafed Port Royal on Sunday – and with more predicted for Monday – the tour cancelled the final round, setting up a sudden-death playoff.
The two men squared off at the par-3 16th hole along the Atlantic Ocean with winds still buffeting the course. After each twice made par on the hole set up at 178 yards – with Power getting a sand save with a six-footer the second time – the pin was moved to the front of the green, setting up a shot of 152 yards. Power again missed the green, this time into thick rough. He hacked out to 16 feet and missed. Smotherman, who had the honour throughout, two-putted from 14 feet for the victory.
For Power, who won $US658,000, the loss was disappointing, but the week wasn’t as he moved from 103rd to 68th in the FedEx Cup Fall standings, which secures his PGA Tour card for 2027.
“It gets me back to like full status again, which was frustrating this year playing [conditionally]… not really knowing when you’re in, when you’re not in. That’s nice,” said the 39-year-old Irishman, ranked 196th in the world entering the week. “That was a big goal for the [northern autumn] was to get a top 100 locked up. Now I’ll have a look at the list and see if I can maybe move into… whatever that cutoff is for the first couple of elevated events. But really big strides for me forward like in the fall, three events, two top-10s, almost winning here, so a lot of good stuff.”
Smotherman, who dedicated this second win to his father, is doing even better stuff. As a result, his career arc has changed quite dramatically. He struggled to describe the feeling, saying “Stop it. Stop it,” when presented with his recent accomplishments.
“That’s so cool. I’m still shaking,” he added. “I just want to get back to my family, go celebrate with them. Oh, my gosh. When I won in Utah, I had forgotten my dad’s necklace at home that week and I wore it all week this week, brought them to the islands with me. This one’s for him.”
