Sami Valimaki won the RSM Classic for his first PGA Tour title in the final tournament of the FedExCup Fall season at Sea Island Golf Club while his closest pursuers were battling to earn full status for the 2026 season.
Some played well enough to hold on to their spot in the top 100 of the point standings – previously the top 125 were fully exempt — while others who were close failed to earn enough points to move up.
The first player from Finland to win on the PGA Tour, Valimaki finished at 23 under par on rounds of 66-62-65-66. The victory, which earned him a two-year Tour exemption and $1.26 million, moved him from No. 74 in the Fall standings to No. 51 and from 98th to 40th in the Official World Golf Ranking.
McGreevy Stays Hot, Castillo Comes up Short
Max McGreevy finished one shot behind in second at 22 under. McGreevy got hot at the right time, tying for third the week before in the Butterfield Bermuda Championship to move from No. 100 in the standings to No. 89. His runner-up finish in St. Simons Island, Ga., moved him up to No. 60 in the standings.
“I never felt that nervous,” said McGreevy, who knew his Tour card was already secured. “I felt like I was playing to win. Luckily, my best golf came out at the end of the year.”
McGreevy’s strong finish broke the heart of Ricky Castillo.
Castillo went out in 28 on the front nine Sunday and shot a career-low 8-under-par 62 to finish alone in third at 21 under, his best finish. Unfortunately, he needed to finish in a tie for second or better to finish in the top 100 and retain his Tour card.
The Tour rookie, who finished early, was tied with McGreevy for second. But McGreevy sank a 30-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to move into solo second. That moved Castillo from No. 135 to No. 102 in the fall standings. He and the other players ranked 101-150 will have conditional status for the 2026 season.
Takumi Kanaya of Japan, who finished in a tie for third in Bermuda to move up from No. 120 to No. 99, missed the cut at the RSM but remained at No. 99.
Karl Vilips came into the RSM at No. 100 in the standings and stayed there, shooting 11 under to tie for 51st in the tournament.
So Close, Yet So Far
Lee Hodges had the dubious distinction of finishing 101st in the point standings. He came into the tournament at No. 122, and his tie for fourth after posting a 66 on Sunday was not high enough to move him into the top 100. Hodges just missed a 10-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole that would have moved him into the top 100.
Matt Wallace, who came in at No. 102, finished in that tie for 51st and moved backwards to No. 103. Beau Hossler tied for 64th to slip from No. 103 to 104.
Scheffler Goes for 3-Peat
After a week off for the Thanksgiving holiday, the Tour heads to the Bahamas for the Hero World Challenge, hosted by Tiger Woods. Two-time defending champion and world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who won by six shots over Tom Kim last year, is seeking to make it three in a row.
He’ll be competing against an exclusive 20-player field that includes 2016 champion Hideki Matsuyama and 2014 winner Jordan Spieth. Three players – 2025 U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun, 2025 Genesis Scottish Open champion Chris Gotterup, and Andrew Novak – will make their Hero World Challenge debuts. Also playing are Sepp Straka and Keegan Bradley.
