Chandler Phillips has two tournaments left to keep his PGA Tour card, but the stress of trying to keep his job is dwarfed by other emotions that golf generally evokes.
Frustrated.
“Can you say it’s over?” Phillips said Friday at the Butterfield Bermuda Championships.
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Phillips, 28, had an unforgettable year on the PGA Tour. In 26 tournaments, Phillips has only finished in the top 10 once, at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, a team event. What was his personal best finish? CJ Cup T15 Byron Nelson. He finished the PGA Tour regular season in 124th place in the FedExCup, leaving him with only six FedExCup fall tournaments to keep his card.
Phillips missed the cut at Pro Core, finished T44 at Sanderson, missed the cut at Utah State and Mexico, and fell to 139th in the FedEx Cup fall standings with two tournaments remaining. That means golf is on his side in 2025 and he’s ready to find out his fate.
“There have been so many times this year where I’ve missed the fairway by a yard and completely messed it up. It’s unbelievable,” Phillips said. “It’s not the course, it’s my problem. I don’t know if I should aim a little more left or a little more right.”
Phillips kept his card and arrived in Bermuda on a narrow path to remaining on the PGA Tour.
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If he wins, he will be granted a two-year exemption. A runner-up finish will put them in the top 100 bubble, and they will qualify for next week’s season finale, the RSM Classic. Otherwise, Phillips will return to the Korn Ferry Tour. His dream will at least be postponed and he will now have the task of re-climbing the KFT mountain on the PGA Tour in 2026.
Reality set in for Phillips. He accepted the steep climbs that required him to stick to the top circuit. He’s happy with what his game has brought this year and plans to let the chips fall where they may. In life and golf, sometimes you just have to fight the inevitable for a long time.
Then on Friday, Phillips shot a 7-under 64 to move into second place heading into the weekend. Just like that, his card and future were within reach. But a good round and a glimmer of hope did not give Phillips any respite. One good round won’t fix what has been a frustrating year in golf.
But it at least gave him clarity. Phillips has everything and nothing to lose. He has to do his best to keep his job. If not, you need to reset, fix your game, and find your way back to the PGA Tour.
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“I don’t know how to explain it, but it’s like this week I’m not thinking like I have to be in the top 20 or just make it through,” Phillips said. “Well, I mean, even if you’re in a very good position to hold the cards and stuff, that’s never a good mindset. You’ve got to have the mindset of trying to win every week, and if you’re not, you might as well not even come to the game.
“The truth is, this year is over,” he said. “It seems difficult, but I’m waiting for the finish line.”
Phillips played at Port Royal Golf Course on Saturday and shot a 1-under 70. He will enter Sunday’s final round in a tie for third place, one stroke behind co-leaders Braden Thornberry and Adam Schenk. Phillips is expected to be put to bed inside the Top 100 bubble on Friday. He dropped more than 20 spots in his FedExCup fall predictions and left the course on Saturday.
Every shot matters, but Phillips primarily just keeps making it, no matter what it is, until he can exhale, put the club away, and face whatever comes next.
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A good Sunday will wash away a frustrating year for Phillips. He knows exactly what he has to do and is going to work on it to make sure his good week in Bermuda doesn’t end in the frustration he has felt so many times in 2025.
“I only have one choice and that is to go out there and try to win because if I don’t I won’t be able to keep my card,” Phillips said. “There’s not much of an answer to that. There’s only one answer: Just go out there and try your best. If it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen. If it doesn’t, you know, just try to go and fix what went wrong that year.”
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