Michael Brennan returns to defend his Bank of Utah Championship title at Black Desert Resort this week, while Salt Lake City’s Tony Finau finally plays the PGA Tour’s home-state event with his card on the line.
The FedExCup Fall event runs from Thursday, October 1 to Sunday, October 4 in Ivins, Utah, with a 120-player field chasing a US$6 million purse, US$1.08 million for the winner and 500 FedExCup points, according to the PGA Tour.
For Australian viewers, the first round starts overnight Thursday into Friday eastern Australian time. Golf Channel’s US broadcast window of 5-8pm ET equates to 7-10am AEST on Friday.
Brennan back where it started
Brennan won this event a year ago on a sponsor invitation in his first PGA Tour start as a professional, closing with a 5-under 66 to finish at 22 under and win by four shots from Rico Hoey. The PGA Tour’s First Look said he was the first sponsor exemption to win on tour since Nick Dunlap in January 2024.
He has since added the 2026 Wyndham Championship and arrives as the top-ranked player in the field. The 2024 winner, Matt McCarty, is also playing.
Finau’s homecoming, and a FedExCup bubble
Finau is playing the Bank of Utah Championship for the first time. He sits exactly on the FedExCup Fall bubble at No.100, with Billy Horschel at No.101, and the PGA Tour said every player ranked 102 to 126 is also in the field chasing points.
The event also carries Presidents Cup talent from last week’s US win at Medinah, led by 21-year-old Jackson Koivun, who the PGA Tour said was the only player on either team not to record a loss. Internationals Nick Taylor and Christiaan Bezuidenhout are also entered.
Max Homa, Maverick McNealy, Ryder Cup player Rasmus Højgaard, and young guns Luke Clanton, Ben James and David Ford are among the other names in the field.
Australian interest
Cam Davis is the Australian in the field, according to the PGA Tour’s official field list.
A low-scoring lava field
Black Desert Resort is a par-71, 7,421-yard Tom Weiskopf design cut through a lava field, with wide fairways and only two water hazards in play. McCarty holds the 72-hole record of 261 (23 under) from 2024, and Adam Svensson shot 60 in the opening round that year. The PGA Tour’s forecast is for sunny, hot and light-wind conditions all week.
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