The Starter: Wyndham Clark Reminded Everyone What He’s Capable Of
In this week’s “The Starter,” the PGA Tour carried the full spotlight, and Wyndham Clark made sure nobody looked anywhere else. At THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson, Clark closed with a stunning final-round 60 at TPC Craig Ranch to chase down Si Woo Kim and outduel world No. 1, Scottie Scheffler. In a tournament filled with birdies from the opening round on, Clark still managed to separate himself when it mattered most.
The PGA Tour: Clark Finds Another Gear In Texas
There are low rounds, and then there are the kinds of rounds players remember years later.
Wyndham Clark’s Sunday in Texas felt like one of those.
Standing on the range before the final round, you had the sense this tournament was still wide open despite Si Woo Kim holding the lead. TPC Craig Ranch was giving players opportunities all week, but someone still had to be willing to keep pressing the accelerator for 18 holes. Clark did exactly that.
His 11-under 60 pushed him to 30 under for the week and delivered his first PGA Tour victory since 2024. It also reminded golf fans that Clark’s ceiling remains incredibly high when the driver, irons, and putter all start syncing together.
Watching Clark when he gets rolling is fascinating because the energy changes quickly. Birdies start stacking. He walks faster. The confidence grows visibly from shot to shot. We saw that version of him during his U.S. Open victory a few years back, and we saw flashes of it again Sunday.
The thing about shooting 60 on Sunday is that it usually requires more than just making putts. It requires staying aggressive even after the nerves arrive. Most players eventually shift into protect mode. Clark never really looked like he wanted to protect anything.
He looked like he wanted to go win the golf tournament.
Si Woo Kim Deserved Better Than A Runner-Up Storyline
It is easy after a Sunday charge to forget how much of the week Si Woo Kim controlled.
He was brilliant for long stretches at Craig Ranch, including his second-round 60 that vaulted him into the lead. Even after a slightly quieter Saturday, he still entered the final round with the tournament in his hands.
Honestly, this felt less like Kim losing the tournament and more like Clark simply refusing to stop making birdies.
That is sometimes the harsh reality of these ultra-low scoring weeks on the PGA Tour. You can play great golf for four days and still run into somebody who goes nuclear on Sunday.
Kim continues to be one of the more fascinating players in professional golf because when he gets comfortable, his game has real teeth to it. He shapes shots beautifully, can get streaky with the putter, and never seems intimidated by big names around him.
This week only reinforced that.
Scheffler Still Loomed Over The Entire Tournament
Even when Scottie Scheffler is not leading, he still somehow feels like the center of the tournament.
That was definitely the case again this week.
Scheffler entered as defending champion and local favorite after last year’s ridiculous 31-under performance at Craig Ranch that tied the PGA Tour scoring record.
You could feel the attention shift every time his name popped up on a leaderboard board or a roar echoed somewhere across the property.
Players know it too.
When Scheffler hangs around on Sunday, tournaments feel heavier. Even if he is not doing anything outwardly dramatic, there is still this constant sense that he could post three or four birdies in a short stretch and suddenly take control.
Clark never let that happen.
That may have been the most impressive part of the victory.
He beat the guy leading the tournament and held off the best player in the world at the same time.
What We’ll Remember From This Week
What I think I will remember most from this Byron Nelson is how aggressive the best players stayed all week.
Sometimes birdie-fests can feel repetitive after a while. This one did not.
The final round had energy because Clark kept forcing the issue. Kim kept answering. Scheffler kept lurking. It felt like everybody understood that pars were not going to get the job done.
For Clark, this win feels important beyond just adding another trophy.
Professional golf moves fast. Narratives change quickly. A player can go from major champion to forgotten storyline in less than a year if the results cool off.
Sunday was a reminder that Wyndham Clark is still very much part of the conversation when his game sharpens.
And when it does, he is capable of making even a 60 look strangely comfortable.