KELOWNA, British Columbia — It was only fitting that Noah Goodwin and Scott Stevens were paired for the final round of the GolfBC Championship. The duo went toe to toe down the stretch in a battle to move higher in the Fortinet Cup standings and in the process become PGA TOUR Canada’s first two-time winner of the season.
Goodwin claimed both Sunday at Gallagher’s Canyon Golf Club. He finished at 23-under after sinking a four-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole. Stevens settled for par when his attempt for a birdie and forcing a playoff caught the low edge of the cup and lipped out. Goodwin improved from 11th to a tie for second in the standings with one tournament remaining.
“It was an absolute dogfight out there between me and Scott,” Goodwin said. “I know we were both loving every second of it.”
The contenders laughed and smiled following birdie putts on No. 15 that kept them deadlocked.
“We were having a blast out there. That’s what golf is. At the end of the day, we all want to win,” said Goodwin, who won the Sotheby’s International Realty Canada Ontario Open in July. “We want it. We want to win playing against guys who are playing just as good as you are. And so, I loved that out there. It was a blast.”
Goodwin added that Stevens definitely pushed him to keep going. He didn’t know how Sunday would have gone without him.
The feeling was mutual.
“It was an awesome day, especially on the back nine. We both got it going,” said Stevens, who moved up a spot in the Fortinet Cup standings, to No. 4, despite the runner-up finish. “It was probably one of the more fun rounds I’ve ever had on the golf course. Just the battle we had. We were making birdies and eagles, and we were both playing really good golf.”
Stevens, though, added that Goodwin definitely won in the end. Goodwin fired a 64 in the final round, recording seven birdies and no bogeys. Stevens, meanwhile, had two eagles and five birdies—helping him overcome a double bogey and a bogey along the way.
In prevailing, Goodwin received $36,000 and 500 points to move into a tie for second with Wil Bateman in the standings. Jake Knapp assumed the overall points lead entering the Fortinet Cup Championship, September 15-18 at the Deer Ridge Golf Club in Kitchener, Ontario. Knapp leads Goodwin, the former Southern Methodist University standout, and Bateman, by 40 points. The Fortinet Cup winner receives a $25,000 bonus, 2023 Korn Ferry Tour membership and an invitation to compete in the PGA TOUR’s 2023 RBC Canadian Open.
“The best part about winning is that each [victory] feels like a brand new one,” Goodwin said. “It feels like it’s never happened before. You never get tired of this feeling. You never get used to this feeling.
“So, it always brings a new story and new memories. That’s what makes it so special,” he continued.
Several players finished within range of Goodwin and Stevens. Cameron Sisk (21-under) was third overall, while Ryan Gerard and James Hervol tied for fourth at 19-under. Luke Schniederjans (18-under) and Dalton Ward (17-under) placed sixth and seventh, respectively. A three-way tie for eighth at 16-under included Knapp, Étienne Papineau and Joey Savoie.
This was the final full-field event of the season for PGA TOUR Canada. The last player to qualify for the top 60 was Joseph Harrison.
Did you know Noah Goodwin is the first player to win two tournaments in the same season on PGA TOUR Canada since 2019 when three players did it? Jake Knapp, Paul Barjon and Taylor Pendrith all were two-time champions that season.
Key Information
How the Canadians fared
Étienne Papineau and Joey Savoie, of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, were the top finishers from Canada of the 12 who made it to the weekend.
| Pos. | Player | Score |
| T8 | Étienne Papineau | 67-66-69-66—268 (16-under) |
| T8 | Joey Savoie | 67-68-68-65—268 (16-under) |
| T11 | Sudarshan Yellamaraju | 69-68-69-63—269 (15-under) |
| T18 | Myles Creighton | 68-67-67-68—270 (14-under) |
| T18 | Jared du Toit | 68-68-66-68—270 (14-under) |
| T18 | Stuart Macdonald | 67-68-69-66—270 (14-under) |
| T28 | Jimmy Jones | 66-66-72-68—272 (12-under) |
| T32 | Wil Bateman | 66-67-70-70—273 (11-under) |
| T45 | Chris Crisologo | 71-66-68-70—275 (9-under) |
| T54 | Max Sekulic | 66-66-68-77—277 (7-under) |
| T56 | Chris R. Wilson | 72-66-72-68—278 (6-under) |
| T60 | Brendan MacDougall | 65-71-72-71—279 (5-under)Fortinet Cup Standings |
(Through the CRMC Championship presented by Gertens)
With 600 points available to the winner at the season-ending Fortinet Cup Championship, these 13 players are still mathematically eligible to win the Fortinet Cup two weeks from now at the Fortinet Cup Championship in Kitchener, Ontario.
| Rank | Player | Points |
| 1 | Jake Knapp (U.S.) | 1,094 |
| T2 | Wil Bateman (Canada) | 1,054 |
| T2 | Noah Goodwin (U.S.) | 1,054 |
| 4 | Scott Stevens (U.S.) | 972 |
| 5 | Ryan Gerard (U.S.) | 845 |
| 6 | Danny Walker (U.S.) | 743 |
| 7 | Brian Carlson (U.S.) | 679 |
| 8 | Thomas Walsh (U.S.) | 669 |
| 9 | Ian Holt (U.S.) | 666 |
| 10 | Joe Highsmith (U.S.) | 663 |
| 11 | Parker Coody (U.S.) | 630 |
| 12 | Trent Phillips (U.S.) | 518 |
| 13 | Jeffrey Kang (U.S.) | 502 |
When the week began, James Hervol was 120th in the Fortinet Cup standings. His showing this week proves what one good week can do for a player, especially at the right time. Hervol fired four sub-70 rounds to finish at 19-under, good for a tie for 52nd. He vaulted 68 spots on the points standings, ensuring his place in the season-ending Fortinet Cup Championship and maintaining his playing privileges for 2023.
Here are the players who moved into the top 60 in the Fortinet Cup standings this week and those who dropped from the top 60 outside after the GolfBC Championship.
| Previous Pos. | Current Pos. | Player |
| 120 | 52 | James Hervol (U.S.) |
| 69 | 57 | Easton Paxton (U.S.) |
| 89 | 58 | Taylor Funk (U.S.) |
| 90 | 59 | Tyler Strafaci (U.S.) |
| 57 | 62 | Drew Nesbitt (Canada) |
| 58 | 63 | Lukas Euler (Germany) |
| 59 | 64 | Van Holmgren (U.S.) |
| 60 | 66 | Benjamin Shipp (U.S.) |
Joseph Harrison started the final full-field event of the season 56th on the Fortinet Cup standings. He hung on, dropping four positions but capturing the 60th and final spot and qualifying for the Fortinet Cup Championship. He knocked out Alexander Herrmann, who started at No. 61 and ended in the 61st spot, seven points behind Harrison.
It was a 1-2 finish in a bid to become PGA TOUR Canada’s first two-time champion of the season. Noah Goodwin (23-under), who won the Sotheby’s International Realty Canada Ontario Open, edged Victoria Open champ Scott Stevens (22-under) for the distinction. Here’s how the other tournament champions fared this week: Ryan Gerard (19-under, tied for fourth), Jake Knapp (16-under, tied for eighth), Parker Coody (15-under, tied for 11th), Wil Bateman (11-under, tied for 32nd), Danny Walker (11-under, tied for 32nd) and Brian Carlson (10-under, tied for 36th) round out the group.
Harrison Ott, who tied for ninth at the Prince Edward Island Open presented by IMP Solutions earlier this season, remained the highest finisher for a Monday qualifier. Cole Madey (14-under) and Max Sekulic (7-under) were on pace to upend Ott but struggled down the stretch. They tied for 18th and 54th, respectively.
Sunday’s top climber was Sudarshan Yellamaraju. The Canadian fired a 63 in the final round to move up 30 positions. Yellamaraju finished at 15-under and in a tie for 11th. place. The next highest mover was Parker Gillam, who wound up 12-under and improved 23 spots and into a tie for 28th with a 65 in the final round.
Stuart Macdonald (14-under) recorded the second hole-in-one of the tournament. He connected from 188 yards on No. 13. Aaron Beverly had an ace on No. 8 (187 yards) in the second round. Both used 8-irons, Macdonald became the 10th player on PGA TOUR Canada this season to find the cup on one swing. Besides Beverly, the others to do so were Josh Hart, John Duthie, Noah Woolsey, J.T. Griffin, Charles Wang, Luke Schniederjans, Jake Knapp and Ryan Gerard.
Stuart Macdonald made his second career PGA TOUR Canada ace when he posted his hole-in-one Sunday, His first ace came in 2017, at the CentrePoint Canada Rail Park Manitoba Open, also in the final round, on No. 7 at Pine Ridge Golf Club.
From the Locker Room…
“It was a blast in a lot of ways.” — Noah Goodwin
“The goal is always to win. It was an awesome week. I had a chance at the end, and that’s what you ask for every week out here.” — Scott Stevens
“The main goal for the week was obviously to win. But to get into the top 60 was kind of my main focus. It was very stressful out there.” — Tyler Strafaci on his move from No. 90 to 59 in the Fortinet Cup standings
“To put four rounds together here felt good. Obviously I didn’t play great today.” — Taylor Funk, who still jumped 31 Fortinet Cup standings’ positions to qualify for the Fortinet Cup Championship
“I needed a good finish this week to make sure I locked up my spot for the final. I definitely gave myself a chance.” — Gulliaume Fanonnel, who ultimately ended at No. 55 to qualify for the season-ending tournament
“This course doesn’t suit my game very well. Last week was way better for me. I did my job pretty well for the first three days, played some solid golf, and just today wasn’t my day.” — Alexander Herrmann about his week and finishing No. 61 in the Fortinet Cup standings
“Going into the week, I just told myself ‘I came up here to play 72 good holes—100 percent in the moment. I did a good job of that.” — Easton Paxton
Final-Round Weather: Partly cloudy and mild. High of 28. Wind WSW at 8-10 kph.