GOLF: Wyndham Clark brings elite form into Travelers Championship

Wyndham Clark has made winning PGA Tour events look effortless over the past few weeks.

After going more than two years without a victory dating back to the 2024 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Clark has now won two of his last four starts, highlighted by his second U.S. Open title in four years.

His strong run also includes a third-place finish at the Memorial Tournament and a tie for 11th at the RBC Canadian Open, along with his victory at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. The results have propelled him to fourth in the FedEx Cup standings entering this week’s Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Connecticut.

Although he missed the cut at the PGA Championship the week before his CJ Cup win, Clark said that stretch marked the beginning of a turning point in his form.

“I was a little bummed (when I missed the PGA cut) because I thought, man, this could be our week. I went and fixed that at CJ and then I hit a ton of fairways and then won,” Clark said during his Wednesday press conference. “So that was the momentum kind of started just before the PGA. And then obviously any time you break through and win and make all those putts you just believe you’re going to keep playing good golf and that’s kind of what I’ve done.”

Clark also reflected on the atmosphere during his U.S. Open victory at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, where he began the final round with a six-shot lead but faced a charged crowd eager for a dramatic finish. His lead was reduced to as little as one stroke at points, though he never relinquished it.

While some observers, including defending Travelers champion Keegan Bradley, have suggested that golf’s growing popularity can bring more intense and sometimes disruptive crowds, Clark took a more positive view.

“I don’t really see any negative in more people coming to the golf,” Clark said. “I jokingly think of Happy Gilmore when he first came out and they had all those crazy fans in that movie. But I think that’s good. It brings new audiences. I think it’s great for the game of golf.

“Golf is cool right now. That’s going to bring cool people, and they’re going to want to watch golf and they might react differently. I think maybe it’s a little different in New York than maybe other places, but, no, I think it’s all good.”

Clark also voiced support for the PGA Tour’s planned restructuring of its competitive system, which will introduce a promotion-and-relegation model beginning in 2028, along with a new Championship Series and Challenger Series. He also endorsed the idea of the season-ending Tour Championship shifting to a match play format.

“I think it’s going to be easier for fans to understand, like, all right, when you’re watching a PGA Tour Championship Series you’re going to see all the best players,” Clark said. “And then I love the idea of the relegation and promotion. I just think that will add so much excitement for the fans. Then, yeah, the match play. I think that’s going to be a really exciting thing for the Tour Championship.

“I just have to applaud Brian Rolapp and the advisory board for all the great work they’re doing for us. It seems like golf’s in a great place and that our team and representatives are making the necessary changes that are going to lead the Tour into an amazing place for the future. So I’m all on board. I think it’s awesome.”

— Field Level Media/Reuters