Billy Horschel holds steady for BMW Championship victory
Billy Horschel played a safe fourth round at Cherry Hills Country Club in Colorado on Sunday, shooting a 1-under 69 to hang on and win the BMW Championship.
Horschel (-14, 266) held off a surging Bubba Watson (-12 268) and Morgan Hoffmann (-11, 269), who shot a 4-under 66 and 7-under 63, respectively, Sunday. With a strong first three rounds, Horschel had enough of a cushion to play a conservative round, scoring 13 pars to three birdies and two bogeys and making par on every hole on the back nine.
The victory is just the second of Horschel's career and should push him upwards from his No. 45 rank in the World Golf Rankings. His last victory game in April of 2013 at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, but he had a near-miss at last weekend's Deutsche Bank Championship, finishing in a tie for second.
Cherry Hills played largely to the top talent over the weekend, with the top 10 containing primarily top names.
| POS | Player | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Billy Horschel | -14 |
| 2 | Bubba Watson | -12 |
| 3 | Morgan Hoffmann | -11 |
| T4 | Jim Furyk | -9 |
| T4 | Sergio Garcia | -9 |
| T4 | Rickie Fowler | -9 |
| T4 | Ryan Palmer | -9 |
| T8 | Adam Scott | -8 |
| T8 | Rory McIlroy | -8 |
| T8 | Jordan Spieth | -8 |
Also notable Sunday was Russell Knox, who shot the day's best round with an 8-under 62 to finish at -3 for the tournament. That round ties Hoffmann's third round as the weekend's best. Horschel's best round came Saturday, when he played bogey-free golf on his way to a 7-under 63.
With the win, Horschel moves into second in the FedEx Cup playoff standings, just behind Chris Kirk and up from his pre-tournament spot of No. 20. For a player who had just two top-10 finishes entering the Cup, this momentum is surely cherished ahead of next week's Tour Championship.