Henley stays in the hunt all day at Tour Championship, solid round leads to tie for second
By Michael A. Lough
The Sports Report
centralgasports@gmail.com
When Tommy Fleetwood has led on Sunday, there has been an inevitability that he would come back to the field.
It didnât happen.
May be updated
He pulled ahead after the first hole Sunday, and held off challengers like Russell Henley breathing down his neck to close out his first PGA Tour win, taking home $10 million and the Tour Championship as well as the FedEx Cup title.
Henley was in a crowded group atop the leaderboard for 14 holes, but couldnât manage a second birdie in time to put any pressure on Fleetwood or Patrick Cantlay.
Henley finished tied for second with Cantlay, who just missed a 12-footer on 18 for sole possession of second and $5 million himself.
As it is, Henley â after his 10th top-10 finish in 2025 - and Cantlay take home $4.35 million.
Henley was close almost all day, with his longest putt of only four feet. He finished the day with 90 feet, 2 inches of putts made.
His putter may have been tired.
After covering 207 feet, four inches of made putts in the first round, Henley had 152 feet, 6 inches of made putts in the next three rounds.
Sunday, he didnât go backward until No. 15, but spent the day coming close to going forward, finally managing a second too-late birdie on No. 17 that only pulled him within three of Fleetwood and in sole possession of third.
Itâs the first time this year that Henley has had a two-birdie/one-bogey round.
Since missing the PGA Championship cut in mid-May, Henleyâs worst finish is a tie for 17th last week at the BMW. And in 28 rounds since then, he has shot 70 or better 18 times.
Henley opened last yearâs Tour Championship with a 61 and closed with a 69 for a 17-under â adjusted with normal scoring â 269 to tie for fourth.
He opened this yearâs Tour Championship with a 61, and concluded with a 69 for a 15-under 265.
Fleetwood and Cantlay were the final group, just after Henley and Keegan Bradley. The four were together on the leaderboard most of the day, with Scottie Scheffler lurking, joined by Cameron Young and Corey Conners and Bradley falling behind late.
Henley had company with Cantlay and Bradley in a tie for second much of the afternoon, with Scheffler trying to join them.
Cantlay dug a hole with a double bogey on No. 2 after opening with a bogey and Fleetwood got off to a solid start and marched out a 3-shot lead within a few holes,
Henley played it fairly close to the vest, getting a birdie on No. 3 and pars the rest of the way through the front nine, highlighted by another sweet sand save for par on No. 8.
He and Bradley made the turn tied at 15 under for the tournament.
Bradley dropped from the trio with a bogey on 10, Henley leaving himself a short par putt after a 59-5 shot was close to a birdie.
Fleetwoodâs tee shot on No. 10 went into the left rough amid trees. He escaped safely, but was left with 69 yards to the pin on the par 4. His 12-footer for par was just right, dropping him to 17 under and one up on Cantlay, who birdied the hole for sole possession of second.
Henley just missed a birdie putt on 12 to tie for second.
At that point, Fleetwood led Cantlay by one, Henley by two, and Bradley, Scheffler, and Young by three.
That didnât last long, Cantlay bogeying No. 11 after a tee shot to the bunker, dropping him into a tie for second with Henley, two back.
Schefflerâs 17-foot birdie putt on 14 lifted him into a tie with Henley and Cantlay.
Still in need of a birdie or two, Henley missed one on 13 by an inch.
The leaderboard cleared by a spot when Scheffler stunned the crowd by going too far left on the par-3 15 and going straight into water. His bogey putt of 12 feet was just left for the double bogey.
Conners was the first among contenders to finish, going in with an 8-under day and tying for fifth, while the other contenders were on 15 or later.
Cantlayâs 23-foot birdie on 12 put him back in second by himself, Fleetwood restoring the lead to two with a birdie moments later.
Henleyâs sharp 5-iron approach from the right intermediate left him an 8-footer for birdie, but he was just right, settling for his 11th straight par.
It was still Fleetwood, Cantlay, and Henley, with Bradley, Young, and Conners tied for fourth, Henley through 14.
Henleyâs contention then came to an end when his tee shot over the water on No. 15 sailed, and rolled off the green and down a hill, resting on the fringe of the low rough and intermediate, a tough lie.
Just before that, Fleetwood took a 3-shot lead with birdies on 12 and 13, and three players were right behind Henley.
Henley didnât hit his second shot well, and it landed barely on the edge of the green, a not-so-smooth 17-footer left for par. It peeled off to the right for a bogey, and a temporary four-way tie for third, two back of Cantlay.
And five behind Fleetwood with three to play for Henley.
He slipped into a tie for second moments later with a birdie on 17 and when Cantlay bogeyed No. 16, putting them three behind Fleetwood.
His chance for sole possession of second, perhaps at least temporarily, lipped around the left side of the hole on 18, leaving him with a par to finish.
A little time off is next before Henley â in the top 5 in both the FedEx Cup and Official World Golf Rankings - begins preparing for his Ryder Cup debut. That is September 26-28 in New York.