Beau Hossler has to win to reach
postseason. He opens with 61 to lead Ben James at Wyndham
[August 07, 2026]
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — Turns out Jackson Koivun isn't the
only player trying to go from college to the PGA Tour postseason.
Virginia grad Ben James made eagle on both the par 5s on Thursday
and only a soft finish with a pair of bogeys kept from sharing the
lead with Beau Hossler in the Wyndham Championship.
The final tournament of the regular season determines the top 70 in
the FedEx Cup who advance to the postseason.
James, the No. 1 player in the PGA Tour University ranking that came
with a tour card, has to win to reach the top 70. He was tied for
the lead until a bogey-birdie-bogey finish for a 62, both bogeys
coming after he missed 6-foot par putts.
Koivun earned his card from the accelerated PGA Tour University
program for underclassmen — he clinched his card as a sophomore and
deferred it one year — and is in much better shape at No. 70. Koivun
missed some birdie chances coming in and shot 67.
Hossler is at No. 122 in the FedEx Cup and also has to win to
reached the first playoff event next week. He ran off four straight
birdies early in his front nine at Sedgefield Country Club, and
played the the final holes in 4 under with a 30-foot eagle putt on
the par-5 15th.
“Try and win a golf tournament,” Hossler said. “That's all there is
to it.”
James, the 36-hole leader at the Canadian Open in his professional
debut before crashing on the weekend, made a 15-foot eagle putt on
the 15th that allowed him to catch Hossler.
With the chance at another 59 at Sedgefield, he three-putted from
just inside 25 feet on the par-3 16th, birdied the 17th and then
came up short of the green from the first cut on the 18th, chipped
to 6 feet and missed the par putt.
Still, it was an impressive start at a tournament where so many
players know they have to go low and finish high if they want to
advance.
“Every week someone always shoots anywhere from 63 to 60 or 59 the
first day, so it’s always there. You just try to put yourself in
position, play the best you can,” James said.
No one had a more bizarre round than Sahith Theegala, whose
postseason is safe at No. 43. He didn't make a par on the front nine
— eight birdies and one bogey. And then all he could manage were
pars on the back nine until stuffing his approach tight on the 18th
for a birdie and a 62.
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“Pretty wild,” Theegala said. "I've never had a
round like that. I think historically I’ve always struggled to start
rounds really well, so that was the first time I ever started a
round with six (birdies) in a row. That was an incredible start. It
didn’t feel like a fluke or anything, either.
“Got to the back nine and just stopped hitting
fairways,” he said. “And really that cost me a lot of opportunities.
Yeah, it was an interesting round.”
Eric Cole shot 63 and was in fourth, and the six players at 64
included five of them who are outside the top 70 in the FedEx Cup.
The exception is Matti Schmid at No. 67, far from safe.
“I feel like I’m in a decent position if I play the golf that I know
that I can play,” Schmid said. “I don’t really think about it. I
just want to put three more good rounds on the board.”
Brooks Koepka, who returned to the PGA Tour this year after four
years at LIV Golf, needs a high finish to reach the postseason and
had to settle for a 67, which was closer to the cut line than the
lead on a course that yielded 36 rounds of 66 or lower.
The focus is on those who risk finishing out of the top 70. That
wouldn't be the end of their seasons, but most would need to play in
the FedEx Cup Fall to make sure they finish in the top 100 to simply
keep a full card for 2027.
James doesn't face those prospects because his No. 1 ranking in PGA
Tour University makes him exempt through 2027. Even so, it would be
a big feat to go from the library to the postseason in just over two
months. Koivun put himself in that position by winning the 3M Open
two weeks ago.
Hossler knew he had to win if he wanted to play next week in the
playoff opener, but he is trying to keep it all in perspective.
“There's lots of players that this week’s performance does impact
moving on or not or whatever,” Hossler said. “Obviously, every week
that we play out here has implications for future years. I think if
you let that consume you, it’s a dangerous thing.
“I'm going to go try and play great golf and kind of see where the
cards fall.”
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