The First Look: FedExCup Fall reaches halfway point at Butterfield Bermuda Championship

The run through the FedExCup Fall continues with the eighth edition of the Butterfield Bermuda Championship.

There is plenty on the line for most in the field this week as the Tour returns to the island.

Here’s everything else you need to know.

FIELD NOTES: Adam Schenk is looking to become the first golfer to successfully defend his title in Bermuda. Schenk, who finally broke through for his first PGA Tour victory in more than 240 starts, will need some more magic this time around – he sits No. 163 in the FedExCup standings. … Ben James is looking to continue his tidy fall streak of good play. He comes into the week having notched three straight top-five finishes and has four top fives in his last six PGA Tour appearances. He is the second-highest-ranked golfer in the FedExCup standings in the field after Austin Smotherman. … Smotherman broke through for his first Tour title at the Bank of Utah Championship. … Corey Conners is the top-ranked golfer in the world in the field (No. 61). Conners, who was part of the International Team for the third time at the Presidents Cup, has one top-10 finish so far this year. … Star-in-waiting and U.S. Walker Cup member Kihei Akina is in the field after finishing inside the top 10 at the Baycurrent Classic in Japan. … Monday qualifying was completed last week with Adam Long, Willie Mack III, Matt Anderson and Austin Lemieux (son of hockey legend Mario) earning their way into the field. … Lee Hodges will tee it up on the bubble of the FedExCup standings at No. 100. There are plenty of other ‘bubble boys’ in action, including Max Greyserman at No. 99, last year’s runner-up Chandler Phillips at No. 98, past champ of this event Seamus Power at No. 103 and International Team Presidents Cup assistant captain Taylor Pendrith at No. 96.

SPONSOR EXEMPTIONS: A pair of rising stars lead the way in Bermuda with both Miles Russell and Mason Howell set to tee it up via sponsor exemptions. Russell, 17, has made two of three cuts on the PGA Tour so far this season and did the same on the Korn Ferry Tour. Russell is the No. 6-ranked amateur in the world. … Howell, 19, won the 2025 U.S. Amateur. He’s still looking for his first made-cut on the PGA Tour so far this season, however. … Nick Jones and Camiko Smith are local Bermuda golfers who are in the field of their home country’s Tour event. … Other sponsor invites include Nixon Lauritzen, fellow U.S. Walker Cup team member, along with Russell, Jay Leng, Virgilio Paz and Rudy Sautron.

STORYLINES: The Butterfield Bermuda Classic is the fourth of eight events in the FedExCup Fall. … Players are already set to jockey for position in the standings as Nos. 51-60 in the FedExCup Fall standings will make up the Aon Next 10 for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and The Genesis Invitational. … Thanks to their efforts at the Baycurrent Classic, both Michael Kim (No. 64 to No. 60) and Ricky Castillo (No. 61 to No. 59) jumped inside the top 60 in the standings. … After his T2 in Japan, Keith Mitchell moved from No. 53 to No. 51. … Jordan Smith, who finished T4 in Japan, made a hearty move from No. 70 to No. 61 and is now on the bubble.

COURSE: Port Royal Golf Course in Southampton, Bermuda, is a par 71 that measures 6,828 yards. … This is the eighth year for Port Royal to host the PGA Tour (it also hosted the Grand Slam of Golf from 2009 to 2014 and underwent a hearty renovation leading up to the first iteration of that event to prepare for the best in the world’s arrival). … It’s short by Tour standards but is the longest course on the island. Weather will, once again, play a big factor in scoring.

72-HOLE RECORD: 260, Brendon Todd (2019), Camilo Villegas (2023)

18-HOLE RECORD: 61, Taylor Pendrith (Round 2, 2021), Alex Noren (Round 1, 2023), Wesley Bryan (Round 3, 2024)

LAST TIME: Adam Schenk’s even-par 71 was good enough for him to hold on to a one-shot victory at the 2025 Butterfield Bermuda Championship, his maiden Tour title coming in his 243rd PGA Tour start. It was a wildly windy final day in Bermuda, but Schenk’s one birdie, one bogey effort was good enough – especially as he made some key par-saving efforts down the stretch. Schenk, who was No. 134 in the FedExCup standings heading into the week (which, last year, was the penultimate event of the season), moved up 67 spots in the standings to avoid having to re-qualify for PGA Tour status. His nervy 5-foot par putt on the final hole was the difference maker.

Schenk at 12 under topped Chandler Phillips by one and five golfers a shot further back at 10 under.

How to follow (all times ET)

Television:

• Thursday-Sunday: 1-4 p.m. (Golf Channel)

PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and free at PGATOUR.com/liveaudio:

• Thursday-Sunday: 11 a.m.-4 p.m.