The beginning is always the hardest, but in his 243rd start, Adam Schenk is officially a PGA Tour winner and can finally say the hard part is over. Schenck dominated and outmaneuvered the field on the rough and tumble Port Royal Golf Course to beat Chandler Phillips by one stroke at 12 under par and win the 2025 Bermuda Championship.
Schenck was forced to make a 5-foot par putt on the final hole to fend off Phillips, becoming the 16th first-time winner on the PGA Tour in 2025. In the midst of a week of hitting a few putts with one hand and recoil in discomfort from a golf ball, Schenk mustered the fortitude, battled his demons and joined a new class.
With his first win, Schenck secured playing privileges on the PGA Tour for the next two seasons. The 33-year-old entered this week 134th in the FedEx Cup standings and was in serious jeopardy of losing his full-time status. He has missed the cut in 15 games this season, including eight of his past 14 starts, and is the first player to finish outside the top 20 since Byron Nelson at the C.J. Cup in May.
Instead, he will compete in full-field events in 2026 as well as tournaments such as the Players Championship, PGA Championship and RBC Heritage. He has moved up to No. 67 in the FedEx Cup standings and could qualify for the first two major events if he finishes within the top 60 by the end of next weekend’s season finale, the RSM Classic.
“I’ve been playing a little bit better golf over the last four months,” Schenk said. “I’ve always had a little bit of faith. I’ve worked really hard. I have a lot of people to thank. I wish my family was here. Of course I won from abroad, but my wife can’t be here.”
Schenck’s Sunday walk through Bermuda wasn’t an easy one, as his tee time was moved up due to the weather. Forced to deal with wind gusts up to 40 mph, the players struggled to hit the right golf shots and withstand Mother Nature’s plans.
But that wasn’t the case for Schenck, who had a relatively average start to the day with one birdie and eight pars on the front nine. Scoring chances were rare, but the overnight leaders managed to keep themselves out in front and avoid costly mistakes.
At the front of the golf course, Alex Smalley and others charged to put pressure on the leaders. Smalley moved up to 11 under, but needed a three-putt from about 15 feet at the end, dropping him to 10 under for the tournament. Meanwhile, Frankie Capan III reached the same 12-under before dropping shots on the par-3 16th and par-5 17th and settled for a tie for third place.
Schenk had a chance to get more comfortable late, but his putter had other ideas. Schenck played the par-5 17th perfectly thanks to a few needles that barely touched the ground, but missed a close-range birdie chance on the 72nd hole that would have given him a two-stroke lead.
When Phillips made par and Schenk’s playing partner Takumi Kanaya missed the legal 18th green, he knew he needed one final par to break through. But as fate would have it, without that final five-foot tickle, unlike the previous hole, Schenk stepped up, stroked the beauty, exorcised the demons, and became a PGA Tour winner in one fell swoop.
“I knew I was going to win. I just had to execute each shot and deal with the situation I was in,” Schenk said. “I can’t believe it’s over. It felt like the longest day ever.”
