Bryan Bros battle
Wesley Bryan checked his phone 25 times during round of 64 in Bermuda and had the best excuse for it
Wesley Bryan swears he pulled out his phone at least 25 times on Friday while playing in the second round of the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. It’s something the PGA Tour might frown upon, but he didn’t care. “I knew there was one guy in my crosshairs,” he said, “and he’s standing right next to me.”
At that moment, Wesley and George Bryan IV were doing a post-round interview together at Port Royal Golf Course. They had completed their first 36 holes ever playing in the same PGA Tour event, and the most beautiful thing about it was, in this battle royale of brotherly love and a lifetime of competitive one-upmanship, they stood … tied at five under overall. That got them into the weekend by making the cut on the number.
After George, in the field on a sponsor’s exemption, shot two-under 69 in his PGA Tour debut at the age of 35 on Thursday, Wesley, 33, had four shots to make up on Friday. And, of course, he erased that deficit by firing a fantastic seven-under 64. George kept pace with a 68 that included an eagle at the par-5 17th.
So, safe to say, it was a very good day for the Bryan Bros, who first got attention for their trick shot posts on YouTube.
Asked in their interview who had won the day, Wesley said, “Oh, I won today. Mentally, he's done for the rest of the week.”
Said George: “Even if there's not a ’rest,’ we're going to leave this island tied or we're going to head to the weekend together in my first PGA Tour event. In my eyes, he needs to make the cut, get FedEx Cup points.”
Countered Wesley, who entered the week at a not-great No. 192 in the FedEx Fall standings: “I'll be honest, I don't really care that much.”
The brothers from Columbia, S.C., were both amateur stars, but while Wesley is making his 112th PGA Tour start this week and has one tour victory to his credit, George never experienced a professional playing breakthrough. George did, however, make it through a recent First Stage of Korn Ferrry Tour Q School, and the two will play together in Second Stage.
“I had zero expectations coming into this week,” George said. “I know the game is good and I'm playing well, but again, I've never played in a PGA Tour event. I didn't know what my body and my head and my mind was going to feel like, and to be sitting right now fiver under, 69-68, both rounds in the 60s in my PGA Tour debut with a chance—like a good chance to make the cut—it still is, like, wild.”
Wesley made eight birdies in his second round, including one at the ninth—his closing hole—that began with a driver toss that scared the heck out of his playing partner.
The Bryans were finished so early on Friday that they had a lot of time to ponder the cut line.
“I’ve been looking forward,” George said, “to sitting and looking at the ocean and drinking a seltzer or a bubbly and just … ”
As younger brothers do, Wesley interrupted with, “Dark ’n’ stormy.”
That’s an adult beverage—dark rum and ginger beer—and far from the description of their current state of mind.