last pga tour hole in one

Every hole-in-one at the PGA Championship: Sebastian Soderberg makes Valhalla ace

Published: 15 May 2024 Last updated: 17 May 2024

Will Valhalla see the next PGA Championship ace?

The PGA Championship has now seen 49 hole-in-ones but will Valhalla also see the Championship’s landmark 50th ace?

Valhalla hadn’t seen a PGA Championship hole-in-one since 1996 before Swede Sebastian Soderberg’s second-round effort from 169 yards on perhaps the most eventful morning in the championship’s history .

Editions in 2014 and 2000, won by Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods respectively were ‘ace-less’, although three came along in 1996 courtesy of Vijay Singh, Steve Lowry, and George Bowman. That was still one less than Kemper Lakes in 1989 though, which saw a record four aces at a single PGA Championship.

Valhalla’s four “realistic” opportunities are a true test of the meaning. Only the 8th had a scoring average under par in 2014 with all par-3 stroke indexes ranging between 6-12. The first chance (so to speak), comes at the 208-yard 3rd hole (Honest Abe), a demanding par-3 guarded by three bunkers and Floyd’s Fork, which sweeps in front of and to the right of the narrow, elevated green. The 190-yard 8th hole (Float Like A Butterfly) provides the next shot on a hole famed and named for the complexity of its green.

Over on the back nine, the 211-yard 11th hole (Holler) requires players to hit into a shallow, elevated green that features a slight false front, with a large bunker front left and a smaller one back right. And at 254 yards, the 14th (On The Rocks) is the most unlikely chance of the lot, now playing an additional 40 yards longer than before up to its two-tiered green sandwiched between two bunkers in front and two behind. You can read our Valhalla Golf Course guide for a detailed breakdown of every hole on the Kentucky track.

But now, let’s take a look back at the PGA Championship hole-in-ones.

PGA Championship: Hole-in-Ones

There have been 17 hole-in-ones at the PGA Championship since the turn of the century with Atlanta, Whistling Straits, and Oak Hill witnessing the feat three times each.

2024: Sebastian Sodeberg – Valhalla | Hole 8 | 169 yards | Round 2

In just his second-ever major start, Swedish player Sebastian Soderberg ensured he would be leaving Valhalla with special memories, regardless of whether he ended up making the cut. A pure strike from just shy of 170 yards pitched within feet of the pin, almost slamming in on the second bounce, before spinning the right way for the first ace of the 2024 Championship.

ACE! Sebastian Soderberg makes the first hole in one of the week from 169 yards on No. 8! #PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/cyrirzEULX — PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 17, 2024

2023: Michael Block – Oak Hill | Hole 15 | 151 yards | Round 4

He knew it was good, but it wasn’t until he’d walked 100 yards repeatedly asking the crowd and Rory McIlroy “Did it go in”, that the penny dropped, or more like ‘slam-dunked’ into the hole on Oak Hill’s 15th hole. It was arguably the most iconic moment of the Championship with club pro Block going on to be crowned the ‘People’s Champion’, becoming one of the most influential people in golf overnight . His ace pulled him to the clubhouse in a tie for 15th which earned him an exemption into the 2024 Championship.

“I’m like, ‘Why is Rory giving me a hug?’ Rory is giving me a hug for hitting it 3, 4, 5 feet? That’s weird. I’m like, ‘I think I just made it,’ said Block. “To do it on that hole on this stage was a lifelong dream. It can never be better. That’s it. I can retire. Good night.”

2020: Byeong Hun An – TPC Harding Park | 11th Hole | 189 yards | Round 4

“And the crowd goes crazy,” joked the commenter as a solitary voice hollas out at the Covid-restricted 2020 edition of the PGA Championship. His high baby draw honed right in on the pin, landing softly with three hops before rolling a couple of feet into the hole. At least it was televised!

2019: Lucas Bjerregaard – Bethpage Black | 17th Hole | 206 yards | Round 4

Now this really was the definition of a honing missile. The Dane drilled a 6-iron that never left the flag, carrying the front bunker before pitching a couple of feet short and diving straight into the hole, sending the crowd wild. However, the celebrations didn’t stop there as playing partner Lucas Glover holed out from the sand on his second shot to make them even more frenzied. An ace and a hole-out on the same hole…what are the chances?

2018: Matt Wallace – Bellerive | 16th Hole | 232 yards | Round 2

“This is Mike Wallace,” announces the commentator just before one of the best shots of the Englishman’s career. Another ball that never left the pin, sailing over the valley on Bellerive’s 16th hole and landing softly with two small hops before rolling gently through the front door. He then horrified everyone by kissing the ball and throwing it into the crowd!

2017: Joost Luiten – Quail Hollow | 4th Hole | 181 yards | Round 1

Seven over through 12 holes and in desperate need of a break, Dutchman Joost Luiten nailed his 6-iron into the par-3 fourth hole at Quail Hollow which after one bounce, smashed into the pin and dropped for a much-needed eagle. Joost’s effort put an end to the three-year wait for the next ace at a PGA Championship, last achieved by the man next on our list.

2013: Tim Clark – Oak Hill | 11th Hole | 220 yards | Round 4

There can’t be many better feelings in golf than walking up to the green with Miguel Ángel Jiménez after holing out from 220 yards with a 3-hybrid. It’s just a shame Tim Clark was nine over for the tournament when it happened. Nonetheless, a special moment, and what a hole-in-one it was too. The South African drilled his tee shot straight at it, taking two short hops and diving in.

2010: Tom Lehman – Whistling Straits | 17th Hole | Round 3

What a backdrop. With the ocean crashing away to the left of Whistling Straits’ 17th hole, Lehman’s 4-iron pitched in the perfect position, settling quickly before taking the slope and rolling five feet into the cup for a spectacular ace at the iconic venue.

2008: Freddie Jacobson – Oakland Hills | 13th Hole | Round 4

Jacobson brightened a damp final round at Oakland Hills when his tee shot on the 13th hole pitched in the heart of the green and rolled up to the pin on the perfect line before dropping in for a famous score.

2006: Olin Browne – Medinah | 17th Hole | Round 1

Judged to perfection, Olin Browne took on the precariously positioned pin just over the water on Medinah’s 17th hole. His 6-iron jumped straight in with little fuss before the American leaned back with arms aloft, celebrating as deserved.

2005: Charles Howell III – Baltusrol | 4th Hole | Round 3

Even par for the Championship, Charles Howell III knocked a 7-iron straight down the throat of the 194-yard 4th hole at Baltusrol, bouncing once before slamming down for his first ace in a tournament.

“I couldn’t think of a better place to have it than a major,” said Howell. “It was absolutely the perfect club when I walked on the tee because it had a little bit of wind helping. But the longer it took from the time I walked on the tee to hitting it, the wind was dying a little bit and I wasn’t sure it was the right club. It wound up being the right club.”

2004: Robert Gamez – Whistling Straits | 17th Hole

The man who holds the record for the longest time between wins on the PGA Tour at exactly 15 years, 6 months aced Whistling Straits 17th hole in 2004, pitching it well short on the tiered green and watching the ball roll straight and true up to the hole. Gamez is perhaps best known for a different eagle, however, when he holed his second shot from the fairway in the final round at the Nestle Invitational in 1990, giving him a one-stroke win over Greg Norman.

2004: Hale Irwin – Whistling Straits | 7th Hole

Irwin registered his second ace at a PGA Championship 29 years after his 1975 effort at Firestone. Unfortunately, we’re yet to see footage of his 2004 hole-in-one on the 7th hole at Whistling Straits – so we will have to leave it to the imagination for now.

2003: Robert Allenby – Oak Hill | 11th Hole

Allenby took on a super-tricky pin, positioned just a few yards on. Half a club short and he would have faced a very tricky up and down from either the front bunker or a nasty-looking patch of deep rough. Chance favors the brave though, with the Australian pitching his approach on a dime and watching it roll straight in. Allenby, who is tied at the top of the PGA Tour’s hole-in-one leaderboard on 10 aces with Hal Sutton, described the Oak Hill ace as “the best shot I’ve ever hit.”

2001: David Toms – Atlanta | 15th Hole

Toms pulled out a 5-wood on the 15th at Atlanta Athletic Club, carrying it 243 yards to the hole where it bounced into the pin and dropped down for one of the most memorable hole-in-ones of all time. The ace was crucial in helping Toms hold off Phil Mickelson by a shot to claim his maiden major title. Toms’ hole-in-one was believed to be the longest ever recorded by a major champion.

2001: Scott Hoch – Atlanta | 17th Hole

Going along nicely on four-under-par, Hoch went straight at the flag on Atlanta’s penultimate hole, getting his yardage spot on as his tee shot carried the water and raced up and into the hole for another spectacular ace at the 2001 Championship. Hoch sits fourth on the PGA Tour all-time hole-in-one leaderboard on seven aces.

2001: Nick Faldo – Atlanta | 4th Hole

Faldo hit the 10th ace of his career on the 204-yard 4th hole at the 2001 PGA Championship, and his first in a major. The World Golf Hall of Famer landed his tee shot seven feet right of the water, bouncing forward and on its last roll, dropped into the side of the hole for a stunning eagle to send the grandstands wild.

“That was a peach,” Faldo said about his first hole-in-one in a Major championship. “I hit a really perfect shot. A four iron with a wee draw.”

PGA Championship: Hole-in-Ones (Pre-2000)

1999: Mark Brooks – Medinah

1997: Ernie Els – Winged Foot

1996: Vijay Singh – Valhalla

1996: Steve Lowry – Valhalla

1996: George Bowman – Valhalla

1995: Fuzzy Zoeller – Riviera

1995: Lee Janzen – Riviera

1989: Lanny Wadkins – Kemper Lakes

1989: Scott Hoch – Kemper Lakes

1989: Mark O’Mera – Kemper Lakes

1989: Davis Love III – Kemper Lakes

1988: Raymond Floyd – Oak Tree

1988: David Edwards – Oak Tree

1988: Paul Azinger – Oak Tree

1988: Gene Sauers – Oak Tree

1987: Bob Lohr – PGA National

1985: Donny Hammond – Cherry Hills

1983: Bobby Nichols – Riviera

1982: Peter Ossterhuis – Southern Hills

1982: Woody Blackburn – Southern Hills

1981: Bob Eastwood – Atlanta

1979: Frank Connor – Oakland Hills

1979: Ron Streck – Oakland Hills

1978: Gil Morgan – Oakmont

1977: Bob Zender – Pebble Beach

1977: Tom Nieporte – Pebble Beach

1976: Peter Ossterhuis – Congressional

1975: Hale Irwin – Firestone

1969: Jim Turnesa – NCR

1968: Larry Ziegler – Pecan Valley

1965: George Knudson – Laurel Valley

1963: Dick Hart – Dallas

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Michael Block says hole-in-one 'absolutely destroyed' the cup, soaks in finish

The pro from Mission Viejo will return to play in the 2024 PGA Championship.

All eyes were on an unlikely hero at Oak Hill Country Club in Pittsford, New York, over the weekend where a California golf pro made history at the PGA Championship with his mind-boggling hole-in-one during the final round.

Michael Block, 46, slam dunked his shot off the 15th tee alongside Rory McIlroy, who hugged him and had to assure him it really went right in the hole.

"That's a brutal hole because you can't miss it right or left. Rory had just gone right before me and got a horrible kick, was in a really tough position," Block told "Good Morning America," reflecting on the tee shot less than 24 hours later. "I knew I had to hit a pretty good shot there."

He continued, "I didn't see it go in and all of a sudden Rory turns around and he starts walking back at me with his arms open to give me a hug. I'm like, 'Why in the world is Rory McIlroy giving me a hug right now -- did it go in?' He goes, 'Yeah, Block, it went in!' I couldn't believe it. To have it happen under those circumstances, coming down the stretch on the back nine on a Sunday in the PGA Championship with Rory McIlroy was an experience I'll never have again in my life and I'm gonna enjoy it."

He added that the force of the ball "blew up the hole," making it difficult to pull out initially.

"The hole got just absolutely destroyed. The ball went directly in, it flew in the front of the cup, it never bounced or hit the pin or anything," Block said. "We had to take about five minutes. Rules officials had to come over. We had to get it fixed -- I have never had it happen like that in my life. It was crazy."

He became the first PGA club pro to make a hole-in-one at the PGA Championship since George Bowman in 1996, according to ESPN .

Fans at Block's hometown Arroyo Trabuco Golf Club in Mission Viejo, where he teaches lessons, erupted in cheers as the crowds on the course boomed with excitement.

"The support that I have from Arroyo -- the management there has also allowed me to get out and play. And to be able to work on my game. I have got a great position -- I'm very, very lucky," he said. "I think I have got the best job in golf where I can come out and still play with the best players in the world, yet at the same time I can be at my house most of the time and have a steady job and steady pay check where I don't have to play golf to make a living."

Block sat tied for eighth going into Sunday's round, just six shots back from four-time major champion Brooks Koepka, and finished out his fairytale week with a final putt for par. The par save clinched a tie for 15th and gave him automatic entry into the 2024 PGA Championship.

"We were literally walking down fairways pinching ourselves," Block said of his weekend with caddie John Jackson. "I'm paired with Justin Rose on Saturday and Rory on Sunday. The crowd's just huge here in Rochester. Fans were amazing. Rory is walking ahead of us and I looked at my caddie and said, 'Is this even real?'"

Three holes after his remarkable ace, Block needed to make par on 18 to finish 15th and automatically qualify for next year's tournament.

"I honestly didn't know what it was for," he said of his final putt to close the day. "I didn't know where I was in position. I said I was not going to look at the scoreboards, even though they are all over the place and huge. ... I would not have made the putt if I knew. I'm happy with the fact that I didn't know."

Block sank the putt to finish with a 1-over 71 on Sunday and 1-over for the tournament.

In the 105 years of the PGA Championship, no PGA professional has ever finished inside the top 10. In 2005, Steve Schneiter was the last PGA pro to finish inside the top-40 at the tournament.

Earlier in the week, Block was already the talk of Twitter, as the only PGA professional to make the cut out of the 20 who qualified to play.

Koepka, who defected from the PGA to play for the rival Saudi-backed LIV Tour, took home his fifth major win.

"He walked off of 18 green, I was walking towards 18 -- [Koepka] told me that the first round [of drinks] was on me after that hole-in-one. He gave me a big hug," Block said. "I am very thrilled to be able to stand next to him during the final ceremony."

In addition to qualifying for next year's PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club in Kentucky, Block also received a sponsor exemption to play in next week’s Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas.

Block told "GMA" his biggest takeaway after this tournament is "you gotta be yourself."

"You play your best when you try to be just yourself. Don't try to be a tour pro. Don't try to be somebody you're not," he encouraged. "That's what I have been doing and it's really helped my game a ton. It's made the hole bigger."

Block continued, "I have always lived my whole life to where I want that hole to look as big as possible. Thank goodness this week at Oak Hill, it looked huge."

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Michael Block sends PGA Championship into a frenzy with unreal Hole in One

Michael Block’s fairytale week isn’t over yet as the PGA pro slam dunked a hole-in-one on the par-3 15th, as if this story couldn’t get any sweeter.

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Share All sharing options for: Michael Block sends PGA Championship into a frenzy with unreal Hole in One

Michael Block isn’t finished winning over the Oak Hill Country Club fans as he slam dunked a hole-in-one on the par-3 15th. The ball didn’t roll in but went straight in on the fly. A hole in one is rare enough, but to do it that way is even more incredible.

Block couldn’t believe it either, and he kept saying, “No way. No Way. Rory, did that go in?” Yes, it went in and sent the crowd into a frenzy. As if his story couldn’t get any better, Block makes an ace to get back to even par in the tournament.

He has had some of the best luck this week, and the golf gods must want the world to see his story because the odds of making a hole-in-one are astronomical, but to make one on Championship Sunday at a major — who even knows. Block continues to show how much of a stud he is with his game. He is fighting hard despite a tough start to his final round.

UNBELIEVABLE! MICHAEL BLOCK JUST DUNKED A HOLE-IN-ONE! pic.twitter.com/Qin8FYXFQV — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 21, 2023

CBS Sports wasn’t giving the Southern California pro much coverage , but they should now. With three holes to play, Block could be playing himself into next year’s PGA Championship and the history books.

He already became the first PGA Club Professional to enter the final round of a Major in the top 10. He’s looking to finish that way as well, and make history along the way.

He won over the people of Rochester, NY., the PGA Tour pros around him, and is showing the world who he is. It doesn’t get much better than an ace on a Sunday.

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How Many Holes-In-One Does Tiger Woods Have?

The 15-time Major winner has plenty of aces, but most came early in his career

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As one of the greatest players of all time, it is hardly surprising that the list of impressive statistics attributed to Tiger Woods is long – and one of them is the number of holes-in-one the 15-time Major winner has achieved.

Woods has 20 holes-in-one, although, perhaps surprisingly, only three of those came on the PGA Tour. Even more strangely, those came in three successive years, way back in the 1990s. The first of Woods' PGA Tour aces came in the 1996 Greater Milwaukee Open in his debut appearance as a professional. He approached the tee at the par 3 14th and, using a 6-iron, hit the ball just below the flag. From there, it took two bounces before landing in the hole. 

Woods repeated the feat in the 1997 Phoenix Open at the par 3 16th hole. Using a 9-iron, Woods hit the ball, which took one bounce and landed in the hole, sending the predictably raucous crowd - and the man himself - wild. You can check out a video of the shot here.

Woods’ final PGA Tour hole-in-one to date came the year after in the Sprint International in Colorado on the 185-yard seventh hole with an 8-iron. It would be his last for more than 20 years.

While that accounts for three of Woods’ aces, how about the other 17? Understandably, many would have come in practice rounds and so are undocumented. However, there are details about Woods' first hole-in-one and his most recent. 

You need to go way back for the first of them, to when Woods was just eight, on the 12th hole at Heartwell Golf Course in Long Beach, California. Recalling the momentous occasion in 2018, Woods said: "I hit it and was too short to see it. So the ball carries the bunker, it rolls into the hole. Everybody in my group celebrates but me. I can’t see that high. So, one of the guys picks me up, shows me there’s no ball on the green. I’m excited – I run to the green, pick the ball out of the hole and I’m celebrating. And the kids came down and said: ‘You idiot, your golf bag’s up on the tee.’ So I had to go back up and get my golf bag."

Woods’ 20th and, to date, most recent hole-in-one came in 2018 at the Madison Club in La Quinta, California , during a friendly round with his pal Fred Couples and son Charlie. Using a 5-iron, Woods found the hole on the 208-yard second hole. Describing his first ace in two decades, Woods said: “We didn’t see it go in. Somehow when we got to the green it was gone. I thought it might be over the back but I said no, I hit it a lot softer than that. And we get up there and then it’s in the hole.”

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While Woods’ haul of aces is undoubtedly impressive, it still falls a long way short of the most holes-in-one attributed to a PGA Tour player. That honour falls to Art Wall, who is generally accepted to have 45 aces. Compared to other greats of the game, Woods’ tally compares favourably. He has an equal number to arguably his sole rival to all-time great status, Jack Nicklaus. Meanwhile, Arnold Palmer had 21. On the other hand, Ben Hogan had only two career holes-in-one, despite a superb career that included nine Major wins.

Whether Woods adds to his tally remains to be seen. What is for certain is that, even as it stands, the American's haul of aces is yet another hugely impressive number in a career of remarkable achievements. 

Things You Didn't Know About Tiger Woods

Mike has over 25 years of experience in journalism, including writing on a range of sports throughout that time, such as golf, football and cricket. Now a freelance staff writer for Golf Monthly, he is dedicated to covering the game's most newsworthy stories. 

He has written hundreds of articles on the game, from features offering insights into how members of the public can play some of the world's most revered courses, to breaking news stories affecting everything from the PGA Tour and LIV Golf to developmental Tours and the amateur game. 

Mike grew up in East Yorkshire and began his career in journalism in 1997. He then moved to London in 2003 as his career flourished, and nowadays resides in New Brunswick, Canada, where he and his wife raise their young family less than a mile from his local course. 

Kevin Cook’s acclaimed 2007 biography, Tommy’s Honour, about golf’s founding father and son, remains one of his all-time favourite sports books.

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Breaking news, michael block sinks hole-in-one at pga championship in surreal scene.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Just when you think this week at the PGA Championship couldn’t get any more unbelievable for Michael Block, the 46-year-old club pro from Mission Viejo, Calif. jarred a hole-in-one on the 15th hole in Sunday’s final round.

Block, the only one of the 20 club pros in the 156-player field to make the cut, stood on the tee after his shot in utter disbelief when he realized the shot went into the hole in the fly.

“Did that go in?” Block asked his playing partner Rory McIlroy, who gave him a hug with a pat on the stomach. “No. No. No way. I just saw (the ball) go at it, but I had no idea. Are you kidding me?”

Block, whose mantra is the phrase “Why Not?’’, has had an are-you-kidding-me week since the moment the tournament began.

“I didn’t really see it, I knew it was at the pin,” Block said on CBS after his round. “I had no idea it went in. … Then Rory comes over and give me a hug. I’m like, ‘Why’s Rory giving me a hug?’

“I really walked down another 20-30 yards and I looked back and him and went, ‘Did that go in the hole?’ because everyone’s going crazy.”

MICHAEL. BLOCK. ACE. #PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/YitD2QLDB7 — PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 21, 2023

He said he had never made a hole-in-one in a tournament before

To makes things better, his up-and-down for par on No. 18 clinched him a finish in the top 15 at 1-over and earned chance to play next year’s PGA Championship.

He entered Sunday’s final round having shot three consecutive even-par rounds to stand at even for the tournament and in ninth place.

No club pro has ever finished in the top 10 in the storied 105-year history of the PGA Championship.

A top-15 finish this week would qualify Block for next year’s PGA at Valhalla.

A top-four finish would qualify him for next year’s Masters.

A top-10 finish would get Block an invitation to next week’s Canadian Open, and a two-way tie for third or better would get him temporary playing status on the PGA Tour.

The ace moved Block from 2-over par to even par and in a tie for 14th at the time.

Block, whose largest paycheck for a golf tournament was $75,000, stood to make a six-figure prize-money check Sunday, pending his finish.

He already was as much the star of this PGA Championship as the top players in the world, vying for the title, including Brooks Koepka, Scottie Scheffler, McIlroy, Bryson DeChambeau and Viktor Hovland.

Then came the ace on No. 15, the 29th hole-in-one in a PGA since 1983.

Scheffler was getting ready to hit his second shot on the 14th hole when Block’s ace occurred, igniting — by far — the loudest roars this tournament has produced all week.

When a walking TV reporter told Scheffler what had taken place, Scheffler smiled and said, “This is crazy.”

When he arrived to the green and plucked the ball out of the hole, Block showed it to the fans surrounding the green, who were in an absolute frenzy.

Block’s shot damaged the lip of cup on 15 that needed to be repaired and his caddie, John Johnson, a full-time looper at Pebble Beach, said to him, “Way to cause a delay.’’

Block responded, “I’ll cause that delay any time.”

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WATCH: Hayden Buckley drains hole-in-one on famous par-3 17th at 2023 Players Championship

Buckley carded an early ace, catapulting himself into a share of the lead at the start of round 1.

Not even a quarter of the way into the first round of the 2023 Players Championship, and a player has already made a hole-in-one on the famed par-3 17th. Hayden Buckley was the man up to the challenge at TPC Sawgrass early Thursday.

Effectively using the slope behind the front pin location on the island green, Buckley's tee shot from 125 yards zipped back from the top of the ridge and into the bottom of the cup. His ace is the 40th in the event's history and just the 11th to come on the famed island hole.

🚨 BUCKETS FOR BUCKLEY! 🚨  @HBuckley13 makes a hole-in-one at the 17th hole in the second group of the day! pic.twitter.com/Cd7BULOB2W — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 9, 2023

Buckley joins Shane Lowry, Ryan Moore, Sergio Garcia and Willy Wilcox as golfers who made holes-in-one at the island green over the last seven years. For Buckley, it marks the second ace of his PGA Tour career and second in the last three years after draining one in the first round of the 2021 Shriners Children's Open.

From a broader perspective, his ace catapulted him into contention in the early stages of the PGA Tour's flagship event. Arriving at the 17th sitting 1 under for the day, Buckley reached 3 under with his ace and made the turn with a share of the lead at 4 under after scoring birdie on 18 (he started on the back nine).

With the front pin location on the 17th hole, don't be surprised if others join Buckley with aces on Thursday. Players have peppered the flag stick early and often, so another hole-in-one may be in the cards.

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CASTLE ROCK, Colo. (AP) — Keegan Bradley went from the last man in the BMW Championship to a winner Sunday, closing with an even-par 72 for a one-shot victory that opened up all sorts of possibilities he never imagined possible a week ago.

Bradley pulled away from mistake-prone Adam Scott early on the back nine and delivered a clutch shot into the par-5 17th that all but sealed the seventh victory of his PGA TOUR career, and the most unlikely.

He was biting his nails a week ago, needing help just to finish at No. 50 in the FedExCup and qualify for the second postseason event. And then he managed the mile-high air, the wind and the Sunday pressure to win at Castle Pines.

“It just shows why you've got to grind it out because you never know how fast it can switch,” Bradley said on the 18th green, where he stood alongside his father. Mark Bradley, a longtime club professional, had never seen his 38-year-old son win in person.

The victory moved Bradley from No. 50 to No. 4 in the FedExCup, sending him to the TOUR Championship where he will start four shots behind Scottie Scheffler in a 72-hole chase for the $25 million prize.

There's also another cup in play. Bradley, the first Ryder Cup captain to win a PGA TOUR event since Davis Love III nine years ago, moved to No. 10 in the Presidents Cup standings. The top six after the BMW Championship automatically qualified, and Jim Furyk gets six captain's picks. Bradley will surely be in the conversation after winning for the third straight year.

Bradley heard plenty of “U-S-A! “U-S-A!”” chants as he went along the back nine at Castle Pines, the loudest coming on the 18th when thousands of spectators were allowed to encircle the green for the final touch of a big week.

Keegan Bradley interview after winning BMW Championship

Scott, a runner-up at the Genesis Scottish Open last month, was tied for the lead until starting the back nine with three soft bogeys, two of them with a wedge in his hand from the fairway. He birdied the closing par 5s, but lost a big chance when he overshot the 15th green from 101 yards.

He closed with a 72, though it also moved him into the top 30 who qualified for East Lake.

Sam Burns finished with a Sunday-best 65, including a bogey on the par-5 14th, and shared second place with Scott and Ludvig Åberg of Sweden, who let another good chance get away with too many Sunday mistakes.

Åberg was 12 under on the par 5s going into the final round, and he played them at even par. He closed with a 71.

Justin Thomas somehow made it to East Lake for the TOUR Championship, even though he was already home in Florida in the same nail-biting spot as Bradley was a week ago.

Thomas needed plenty of help to get the 30th spot, and it came from former British Open champion Brian Harman and Alex Noren. Harman needed a par on the last hole to stay in the top 30 and made double bogey.

Noren, who has never made it to East Lake, was poised to finish in the top 30 when he holed a 25-foot par putt on the 13th hole and made birdie on the 14th. But he finished with three straight bogeys, the most damaging on the par-5 17th, the easiest hole at Castle Pines. He had to lay up from a drive in the rough and hit wedge into a bunker. He shot 75.

The 17th is where Bradley, who finished at 12-under 276, all but sealed it.

Burns had posted at 277. Åberg and Scott remained close. Bradley hit a 5-iron between two bunkers to a back left pin on a firm green to 16 feet, the closest shot of the day. He missed the eagle chance, but it gave him a two-shot lead going to the 18th.

And while he missed a 4-foot par putt that only determined the margin, he reacted with energy that has come to be expected from the 38-year-old New Englander. He thrust his arm in the air and soaked up the “U-S-A! U-S-A!” chants.

Keegan Bradley clinches victory on 72nd hole at BMW Championship

Bradley earned $4 million for his second title in the BMW Championship, also winning at Aronimink in 2018 when he was the No. 52 seed in what was then a 70-man field.

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Did you know: There has only been one hole-in-one on a par 4 in PGA Tour history—and it was a real doozy

Andrew Magee was a three-time All-American at Oklahoma and a four-time winner on the PGA Tour, but he'll forever be known for the one-time thing he did more than two decades ago. That's because Magee's hole-in-one at the 2001 Phoenix Open remains the lone ace on a par 4 in PGA Tour history. And boy, was it a doozy.

DID YOU KNOW: There have been five holes-in-one on par 5s

As Magee tells it, he was a little ticked after making bogey on the easy par-5 15th at TPC Scottsdale, but he bounced back by draining a long birdie on the famed par-3 16th—you know, the one with all the drunk fans. Stepping to the tee on No. 17, he was still a bit steamed and he launched a driver on the 332-yard par 4 that he'd never come close to reaching. But adrenaline is a heckuva drug and Magee's golf ball bounded up onto the putting surface and into the group in front. That's where things got really wacky.

Magee's ball narrowly missed hitting Steve Pate but it couldn't avoid one of his playing partners. Tom Byrum was lining up an eight-footer and wouldn't you know it, but Magee's ball caromed perfectly off his putter and into the hole for the craziest ace in PGA Tour history. Talk about being in the right place at the right time. Well, for Magee, that is.

Sounds too unbelievable to be real? See for yourself! Wait … um … about that … sadly, no good video of the shot exists. Seriously. You'd think this happened in 1901 instead of 2001. Anyway, the best clip out there is this slow-mo look of Pate nearly getting hit by a bouncing ball and Magee narrating how it all went down. Here it is:

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An ace albatross! An ACEatross! Amazing.

As Andrew says in the video, he wasn't sure what had happened—or if it would even count. Obviously, it did, though, or we wouldn't be talking so much today about a guy who hasn't even played on the senior tour in six years.

But while Magee's is the only one on the PGA Tour, it has happened on other major tours in competition. Ha Na Jang and Minjee Lee have done it on the LPGA, while Rahil Ganjee and Chip Beck have pulled it off on the Korn Ferry Tour. And those players were all lucky enough to have their feats caught on camera . Must be nice.

But back to Magee, thanks to his memorable hole-in-one, he shot a first-round 66, which kickstarted a not-so-memorable T-44 finish. More importantly, we're guessing it set off quite a celebration at TPC Scottsdale's 19th hole. In any event, Andrew Magee is still dining off that tale more than 20 years later. And Tom Byrum is probably still drinking on Magee's tab.

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Due to safety concerns, the pga tour adds internal out of bounds at east lake for 2024 tour championship, share this article.

East Lake Golf Club received an extensive renovation over the last year and players in the field for this week’s 2024 Tour Championship have had to re-learn a golf course they’ve gotten used to playing a certain way.

Thanks to a few changes throughout the routing, players were considering hitting down other fairways to create better angles into greens.

For example, world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler said he was considering playing his tee shot on the par-5 18th down the 10th fairway to make the hole more manageable.

“It seems like a safer play to take all that out of play, hit it down 10,” Scheffler said. “The green is going to be pretty extraordinarily hard to hold anyways with it being a downslope and having a long club in there. It’s more you’re playing for birdies. There is less opportunity I think for eagle than there was before.”

Tour Championship:  Thursday tee times  |  Picks to win | Staggered start

On Wednesday, the PGA Tour made sure that strategy was no longer possible.

“For the safety of spectators, players, caddies and everyone on property at East Lake Golf Club, the PGA Tour Rules Committee has established two internal boundaries for this week’s Tour Championship,” the Tour said in a statement. “The fairway on No. 7 is out of bounds during play of No. 6, and the fairway on No. 10 is out of bounds during play of No. 18.”

According to Chief Referee Gary Young, “This decision was made primarily out of safety concerns, specifically to prevent players from effectively putting people in harm’s way by taking an alternate route. When it sounds like that is going to be a possibility, it necessitates an internal boundary.”

The first round of the Tour Championship gets underway at 11:16 a.m. ET Thursday with Justin Thomas and Christiaan Bezuidenhout. Scheffler will start at 10 under and two shots ahead of Xander Schauffele. The field of 30 is battling for a $25 million first-place prize .

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