FedExCup Fall update: Wesley Bryan is bubble boy with one event remaining

Wesley Bryan hasn’t finished inside the top 125 on the FedExCup standings since his rookie PGA TOUR season in 2017, which included a victory at his home-state RBC Heritage on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.

After a few lean years competitively, Bryan will enter The RSM Classic in the crucial 125th spot on the FedExCup Fall standings, with the top 125 after The RSM Classic earning fully exempt status on the 2025 PGA TOUR. Bryan, 34, finished T17 at this week’s Butterfield Bermuda Championship, moving up three spots from No. 128 to No. 125 on the FedExCup Fall into the season’s final week.

Bryan entered the final round in Bermuda in fourth place on the leaderboard, well positioned to shore up his spot inside the top 125, but he fell victim to a windy Port Royal Golf Course on Sunday with a triple bogey at the par-4 fourth and a double bogey at the par-3 16th (his day also included four birdies and two bogeys). He closed in 3-over 74, the culmination of a volatile week that included scores of 67-72-61 in the first three rounds, respectively.

This means that Bryan will assume a central role in the PGA TOUR's 2024 season finale. He’s the bubble boy.

The RSM Classic’s host venue, Sea Island Golf Club in coastal Georgia, is roughly 100 miles down the Atlantic coast from Harbour Town Golf Links, the site of Bryan’s breakthrough TOUR title seven years ago. That came fresh off a three-victory season on the 2016 Korn Ferry Tour; the world was his oyster. (“The world keeps spinning, and @wesleybryangolf keeps on winning,” the Korn Ferry Tour wrote on X in 2017.)

Injuries slowed Bryan’s competitive progression for some time, but his game has moved closer to those old heights throughout the FedExCup Fall. He’ll look to draw on comforting feels as he vies for a coveted spot inside the top 125 at The RSM Classic, but he’ll tee it up with limited breathing room. He’s less than nine points ahead of No. 126 Henrik Norlander; for context, Norlander could surpass Bryan with a 49th-place finish if Bryan were to miss the cut.

There are scenarios where Bryan could maintain his top-125 position with a missed cut at The RSM Classic, but he knows those are limited. He likely needs to produce another solid week, as he has done throughout the FedExCup Fall. He’s now 5-for-5 in made cuts in the FedExCup Fall, including four top-25-finishes, after entering the FedExCup Fall at No. 156 on the standings.

For Bryan, it has been a strong, steady rise into a top-125 position. Now it’s time to finish the job.

Moving in

Rafael Campos (moved from No. 147 to No. 80): It was an emotional victory for Puerto Rico’s Campos at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship, and it couldn’t have come at a more opportune time. Entering the week, Campos was in serious jeopardy of falling outside the top 150 on the FedExCup Fall and losing TOUR status entirely, which could have meant a return to the Korn Ferry Tour (on which he has made 136 career starts). Now he’s exempt on TOUR through 2026, qualifies for The Sentry, THE PLAYERS and the Masters among other perks, and can forever tell himself that he is a PGA TOUR winner.

Sam Ryder (moved from No. 135 to No. 122): The Stetson alum knew his chances were dwindling to keep exempt status for 2025, and he delivered in the clutch with a tie for fifth in Bermuda, his week highlighted by a second-round 62 at Port Royal Golf Club. It marked his season-best showing and, although a spot inside the final top 125 is no sure thing, he’s in a much more enviable position than this time a week ago.

Wesley Bryan (moved from No. 128 to No. 125): It was a volatile week for Bryan in Bermuda, as he carded rounds of 67-72-61-74 en route to a T17 finish, ranking second for the week in Putts per Green in Regulation. Although that final-round 74 left something to be desired, the week was a net positive for the seven-year TOUR veteran as he readies for the season finale.

Moving out

Henrik Norlander (moved from No. 122 to No. 126): The Swede made the cut in Bermuda but tied for 57th, falling four spots on the FedExCup Fall into the season finale. The silver lining is he can draw on positive vibes at Sea Island, having finished runner-up at The RSM Classic in 2016.

Daniel Berger (moved from No. 124 to No. 127): The four-time TOUR winner made the cut in Bermuda but finished a distant T62 for the week, meaning he has some work ahead at The RSM Classic to retain exempt status. Berger trails No. 125 by less than 13 points into the season finale, the equivalent of a top-43 finish at Sea Island Golf Club.

Hayden Springer (moved from No. 125 to No. 128): The TOUR rookie stood inside the top 10 on the Butterfield Bermuda leaderboard into Sunday, but a 4-over 75 dropped him into a tie for 37th place. That meant a three-spot slide outside the top 125 into the season finale.

Notable movers

Georgia Tech alum Vince Whaley finished T5 at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship, jumping 10 spots from No. 123 to No. 113 on the FedExCup Fall standings, a massive stride toward earning 2025 exempt status … After missing the cut at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship, Joel Dahmen fell three spots to No. 124 on the FedExCup Fall standings with one event remaining … Belgium’s Adrien Dumont de Chassart tied for third in Bermuda, a career-best TOUR finish, to ascend from No. 175 to No. 142 on the FedExCup Fall standings. Even if he finishes outside the top 125, the top 150 is also a critical number, as Nos. 126-150 on the final FedExCup Fall standings will retain conditional TOUR status in 2025, if not otherwise exempt.

“Obviously I've been struggling a little bit this year, but to come out this week and just stay patient and give myself a lot of good looks and kind of be inside the top 20 all week is something really satisfying,” Dumont de Chassart said afterward.