SOUTHAMPTON, Bermuda — Severe Atlantic gales reaching up to 40 mph forced tournament officials to cancel the final round of the Butterfield Bermuda Championship, reducing the PGA Tour event to 54 holes at Port Royal Golf Course, The Associated Press reported. Austin Smotherman and Ireland’s Seamus Power finished regulation play deadlocked at 16-under par 197, setting the stage for a sudden-death Monday playoff to crown the champion.
The weather disruption began early Sunday morning when gusts made unplayable conditions across the coastal course. While organizers initially hoped to salvage the final round, the severity of the weather and an equally unfavorable forecast for Monday led officials to invoke PGA Tour regulations, making tournament results final through 54 holes and postponing the playoff to Monday morning.
Monday Playoff Drama on the 16th Hole
Returning to the course on Monday, October 26, 2026, Smotherman and Power faced off on the brutal par-3 16th hole. The pair went toe-to-toe through the first two extra loops, both carding calm pars while the wind whipped off the ocean. On the third extra hole, Power blinked and made a bogey, allowing Smotherman to comfortably two-putt his way to his second victory in less than a month.
According to Golf.com, the victory earned Smotherman a $1,080,000 payday and added to his maiden PGA Tour win at the Utah Championship earlier in the month. Smotherman finished tied for first in Strokes Gained: Total (10.684), ranking seventh in SG: Off The Tee (2.821) and 10th in SG: Approach to Green (4.143) while maintaining an 80.00% scrambling clip.
Chasing Pack and Tournament Stakes
Before the weather halted play, the leading duo had established a comfortable cushion over the rest of the field. Smotherman carded a five-under par 66 on Saturday, while Power shot a four-under 67, highlighted by a crucial birdie at the wind-blown 17th hole that pulled him level atop the leaderboard. American Taylor Moore and Canadians Corey Conners and Ben Silverman finished two strokes back at 14-under par.
For Seamus Power, who entered the week just outside the top 100 in the FedExCup Fall at No. 103, a victory would have secured his card through 2028 and propelled him into the elite PGA Tour Championship Series under the new schedule. Meanwhile, Smotherman’s second victory within a month earned him an exemption into next year’s U.S. Open, capping off a remarkable stretch of form as both players prepare for upcoming events on the tour schedule.