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CASTLE ROCK, Colo. (AP) — The BMW Championship was one tournament Keegan Bradley never thought he could win, only because he didn’t think he would be playing.

Bradley was a bundle of nerves one week ago Sunday as he sat in a hotel room in Tennessee with his bags packed and his season seemingly over. And then he squeezed into the 50th spot in FedEx Cup in the final hour, the last man in Castle Pines for the next playoff event.

From biting his nails in Memphis to holding a trophy in Denver. What a week.

“I can’t even wrap my head around it,” Bradley said after an even-par 72 gave him a one-shot victory over Adam Scott, Sam Burns and Ludvig Aberg.

He doesn’t have much time to let his seventh career PGA Tour victory sink in. This created possibilities Bradley never imagined a week ago.

He heads to Atlanta for the Tour Championship at East Lake, where Bradley — who went from No. 50 to No. 4 in the standings — will start four shots behind Scottie Scheffler at East Lake with a reasonable chance of winning the FedEx Cup and its $25 million prize.

And that’s not the only cup in play.

Bradley became the first Ryder Cup captain — he was appointed U.S. skipper just over six weeks ago — to win a PGA Tour event in nine years. He is an assistant captain for the Presidents Cup next month in Montreal.

The BMW title moved him to No. 10 in the Presidents Cup standings. Only the top six automatically qualified Sunday, but Bradley is certain to be under serious consideration when Jim Furyk makes his six captain’s picks after the Tour Championship.

“I don’t know where that’s going to go, but I’m happy to play whatever role they want me to play,” the 38-year-old Bradley said. “I hope I didn’t throw a huge wrench in everybody’s plans, but I’m proud to be in consideration.”

Consideration came from winning, and this a rock-solid performance in the mile-high air and in wind that left several players guessing how far the golf ball was flying.

Bradley had some help from the Scott, who was tied for the lead until starting the back nine with three soft bogeys, all with a wedge in his hand. He missed par putts of seven feet, six feet and eight feet to fall three shots behind. But it was the approach shots that hurt him.

“Ten, 11, 12 kind of blew it for me there,” Scott said after his 72. “I was in position with wedges on every hole and made three bogeys. That’s almost unthinkable, really.”

Burns had a Sunday-best 65, nearly holing a bunker shot on the 18th. Aberg was in position to close the gap until posing over a 6-iron into the par-5 14th right up until it splashed down, leading to a bogey from which he couldn’t quite recover. He closed with a 71.

Bradley, who finished at 12-under 276, effectively sealed it with a 5-iron from 227 yards in which he took dead aim behind two bunkers to a back left pin and watched it settle on the firm green 16 feet away, the closest anyone was all day.

“As pure a golf shot as I’ve ever hit,” Bradley said.

He two-putted for birdie and a two-shot lead, allowing him a cushion and time to soak up chants of “U-S-A! U-S-A!” from thousands who encircled the 18th green and paid tribute to the Ryder Cup captain for the 2025 matches. Bradley got a lot of those cheers this week.

Scott’s last chance really ended on the 15th. Bradley was in deep trouble in a back bunker, forcing him to play some 25 feet away from the pin. Scott was in the fairway, 101 yards from the pin, and his wedge sailed the green into deep rough. They wound up with matching bogeys.

The consolation for Scott was moving into the top 30 who qualify for East Lake.

Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., finished in a tie for 13th at 5 under, seven shots behind the winner. Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., finished tied for 22nd at 4 under. And Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., ended up tied for 41st at 3 over.

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.

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.

Bradley and Scott joined Tommy Fleetwood (69) and Chris Kirk (69) who moved into the top 30 to qualifying for the Tour Championship. They bumped out Harman, Jason Day, Davis Thompson and Denny McCarthy.

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AP golf:

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 FedEx Cup 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 FedEx Cup, 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.

Scott, a runner-up at the 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 qualifying 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 Aberg of Sweden, who let another good chance get away with too many Sunday mistakes.

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

Taylor Pendrith (73) of Richmond Hill, Ont., tied for 13th at 5 under. It’s expected that he’s the only Canadian to advance to next week’s Tour Championship. Corey Conners (73) of Listowel, Ont., tied for 22nd at 4 under and Adam Hadwin (72) of Abbotsford, B.C., tied for 41st at 3 over.

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. Aberg and Scott remained closed. 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.

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.

Bradley and Scott joined Tommy Fleetwood (69) and Chris Kirk (69) who moved into the top 30 to qualifying for the Tour Championship. They bumped out Harman, Jason Day, Davis Thompson and Denny McCarthy.

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AP golf:

VANCOUVER – Canada’s men’s rugby team suffered a humbling 55-28 defeat at the hands of Japan to open its Pacific Nations Cup tournament Sunday.

The quick, offensively dominant Brave Blossoms first struck in the fourth minute with a try from Malo Tuitama.

Warner Dearns touched twice for 14th-ranked Japan, while Dylan Riley, Kani Shimokawa, Seungsin Lee and Tomoki Osada also contributed tries. Lee also booted six conversions and a penalty in the victory.

Andrew Coe, Lucas Rumball and twins Talon and Takoda McMullin each had a try for No. 21-ranked Canada, while Peter Nelson added four conversions.

The Canadians will continue the tournament in Carson, Cali., on Aug. 31 when they face the United States.

Both sides will head to Japan for the semifinals and fifth-place game in Tokyo on Sept. 14 and 15. The championship game and third-place matchup are set to go Sept. 21 in Osaka.

Japan jumped out to an early lead Sunday when Tuitama broke through the Canadian line and ran in for a try just four minutes into the game.

Lee added his first convert of the game and the visitors grabbed a 7-0 lead.

Three minutes later, Dearns muscled his way through traffic and touched to boost the Brave Blossoms’ advantage to 12-0.

Canada’s offence responded, working its way deep into scoring territory, but were unable to finish.

Japan padded its advantage in the 22nd minute. Canada’s Nic Benn missed a tackle, giving Yoshitaka Yazaki an opportunity to dish off to Shimokawa, who touched to put the Japanese up 19-0.

Lee added a conversion, then a penalty kick that boosted the lead to 24-0 in the 26th minute.

Dearns struck again in the 28th minute, escaping a series of Canadian tackles and sprinting in for his second try of the day.

The officials took a long look at video of the preceding ruck, but eventually decided the try was good and, after Lee booted another convert, Japan went up 31-0.

Play had barely restarted when Japan added to the damage.

Japan’s Nicholas Mccurran slipped through the Canadian line, then dished off to Riley as he was being hauled to the ground. Riley dashed down the field for a try and, with Lee’s convert, Japan took a 38-0 lead in the 31st minute.

The Canadians finally got on the board before the half thanks to a loose ball booted by Jason Higgins. Coe chased it down and leapt on top of it for a try and Nelson made the ensuing convert, cutting Canada’s deficit to 38-7.

Japan’s offensive outburst continued early in the second half. Three minutes in, Dearns handed off to a teammate who was taken down by Canada’s Cooper Coats just ahead of the line. Lee collected the ball and manoeuvered around the mass for a try.

Canada responded with a gritty effort at the other end of the field. After grinding through an extended series of rucks on the line, Rumball — the Canadian captain — touched. Nelson booted the convert and shrunk Japan’s advantage to 45-14 at the 46-minute mark.

The home side scored again four minutes later off a line out. Andrew Quattrin handed off to Talon McMullin, who evaded a Japanese defender and rushed in to touch before Nelson added another convert.

Canada turned over the ball in the 68th minute and Japan took advantage. Jone Naikabula collected it midfield and dashed down the field, ducking out of the way of flying tackles before leaping in over the line to give the Brave Blossoms a 50-21 lead.

The Canadians added to the score line on an advantage in the 80th minute. Nelson booted the ball and Takoda McMullin got a hand on it for the try.

Tomoki Osada ran in an 82nd-minute try for Japan, sealing the score at 55-28.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 25, 2024.

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