Patrick Cantlay won another thriller in the BMW Championship

WILMINGTON, Delaware – One good break. One great shot. That’s all it took on Sunday for Patrick Cantlay to win his second straight BMW championship with a finish that was nothing like last year except for his clutch moments.

Another difference: The win did not give him the No. 1 seed for next week’s FedEx Cup Finals at East Lake in Atlanta.

That didn’t bother Cantley much after he finished with a 2-under 69 that earned him a one-stroke victory over Scott Stallings at the Wilmington Country Club.

“I was happy not to go six holes in the playoff,” Cantlay said, referring to his unlikely playoff victory last year at Caves Valley over Bryson DeChambeau.

It looked like it was headed that way as Cantley and Stallings were tied on the stretch, with Masters champion Scotty Scheffler and Xander Schaufele lurking.

Tied with two holes to play, Cantlay took an aggressive line to cut the corner of the arc and found himself headed for a cluster of bunkers. But the ball landed short of the last bunker, bounced hard over the sand, dropped into the first cut and rolled to the fairway, just 64 yards from the hole.

“I thought if he got to that line, he would probably be in the bunker,” he said. “Had a great vacation — maybe one of the best vacations I’ve ever had — and when you get vacations like that, you’ve got to pay for it.”

That he did, hitting a wedge on the spinner that skipped and stopped 5 feet behind the hole for birdie and a one-shot. Stallings, in the lead group, narrowly missed a 10-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a 69.

Needing a par to win, Cantlay drove the ball into the bunker with the ball over his feet, 158 yards to anchor it on the steep green.

“I tried to slice the 8-iron as hard as I could and go where I thought I could get it and it was one of the best shots I hit all week,” he said.

His shot caught the edge of the cup, leaving him a tap-in, about the easiest shot he had all day.

Cantlay, who finished 14-under 270, became the first player to win the BMW Championship in multiple years since the FedEx Cup’s inception in 2007. No one has ever repeated in any playoff contest. His second win of the year took him to No. 3 in the world.

He went all four rounds with Schaufele and only later realized he might have needed a little help from his best friend on tour. Schaufele (71) missed a 7-foot putt on the final hole that tied him for third and moved Scheffler to fourth.

That would make Cantley the No. 1 seed, who has a two-point lead heading into the Tour Championship. He will now start two shots behind Scheffler, who missed a short par on the final hole that ultimately cost him the FedEx Cup.

Stallings has played 238 times since his last win eight years ago at Torrey Pines, and he played like the drought might end. But he missed four birdie chances inside 18 feet at the end, the last from just 10 feet.

The consolation prize is his first trip to the Tour Championship.

“That was the biggest goal of the year,” Stallings said. “Better late than never.”

Stallings was not alone. Adam Scott returns to East Lake. He was ranked 77th in the FedEx Cup standings when the postseason began, and last week’s fifth-place finish moved him up to 45th.

Scott birdied the 12th hole and made some great lag putts on the firm, crisp Wilmington greens for a 71 to tie for fifth.

Calling for par on the final hole, Scott pulled the ball to the edge of the bunker, meaning he had to stand on the sand and try to tee off the sticky first cut with the golf ball at hip height. He pulled it into the bunker and then hit a great shot to get away.

“I guess that’s the beauty of the FedEx Cup playoffs. You can pick up a lot in a year, have a couple of good weeks and get a big reward by going to East Lake and making the top 30 with all the perks that come with that,” Scott said.

Aaron Wise had a 73 to finish 30th. He was one of four players ranked in the top 30 to qualify for the Tour Championship. The others were Stallings, Scott, Aaron Wise and KH Lee, who had a 65 on Sunday to tie for fifth.

Korn Ferry Tour finale

BOISE, Idaho — Will Gordon won the Albertsons Boise Open to complete the PGA Tour card in the opening final of the Korn Ferry Tour, defeating MJ Daffue and Philip Knowles by even scores on the first playoff hole.

Gordon closed with an 8-under 63 to match Duffy (65) and Knowles (70) at 21-under 263 at Hillcrest Country Club. Duffy and Knowles both had double bogeys in the playoffs.

Knowles also wrapped up the PGA Tour card. Duffey has already earned his PGA Tour card through the regular season points list.

Former Pittston Area star Brandon Matthews tied for 18th with a 268. Matthews already earned his PGA Tour card earlier this season.

PGA Tour Champions

ENDICOTT, N.Y. — Padraig Harrington won the DICK’S Sporting Goods Open for his second PGA Tour Champions win of the year.

At En-Joie Golf Club, Harrington closed with a 5-under 67 for a three-shot victory over Mike Weir and Tongchai Jaidi.

A stroke behind Weir entering the day, Harrington birdied Nos. 2, 3, 9, 11 and 12 in a bogey-free round to finish at 16-under 200.

The 50-year-old Irishman won the US Senior Open in late June at Saucon Valley. He also had four runner-up finishes and a third-place finish in 11 starts this year.

Weir shot 71 and Tongchai 66.

European tour

VYSOKY UJEZD, Czech Republic — Maximilian Kiefer closed with a 6-under 66 to win the rainy Czech Masters and claim his first European Tour title.

At the Albatross Golf Resort near Prague, Kiefer finished one stroke ahead of leader Gavin Green with a 16-under 200 total.

Play was suspended for a day on Saturday after the pitch was flooded following heavy rain shortly after the start of the third round. The round resumed on Sunday, when the tournament was decided over 54 holes.

The first trophy for the 32-year-old Kiefer came after four runner-up finishes on the tour. He also became the first German to win a regular European Tour title since Marcel Siem captured the 2014 BMW Masters in Shanghai.

Other tours

Parker Cuddy ran away with the Manitoba Open for his first PGA Tour Canada, closing with a 5-under 67 for an eight-stroke victory. Cuddy, the grandson of 1971 Masters champion Charles Cuddy, finished at Southwood Golf & Country Club in 27-under 261. Cuddy teamed with twin brother Pearson to help Texas win the NCAA team title in June. Pearson also won the Korn Ferry Tour in Maine in June. … Taehun Ok closed with a 3-under 68 for Byo Kim’s only International Series win in Korea on the Asian Tour. … Hiroshi Iwata had a 5-under 67 for a one-shot victory over Tomaharu Otsuki in the Shigeo Nagashima Invitational Sega Sammy Cup. It was his fourth career victory on the Japan Golf Tour. … Emilio Quartero Blanco birdied the 16th hole and carded a 5-under 67 to rally for a one-stroke victory over Jeremy Freiburghaus in the Dormy Open in Sweden on the Challenge Tour. … Philip Price of Wales won the Irish Legends, closing with an even-par 71 for a one-shot victory over Jarmo Sandelin of Sweden on the Legends Tour in Europe. … Albert Venter had an even-par 71 to win the SunBet Challenge on the Sunshine Tour in South Africa by six strokes. … Chisata Iwai closed with a 2-under 70 to win the CAT Ladies at the Japan LPGA by one stroke over Miyuu Yamashita. … Jin Sung Han had a 68 to win the High1 Resort Ladies Open by two strokes on the Korea LPGA.