Gerard holds off Van Rooyen in California

Stimpmeter · July 21, 2025, 9:30am

Ryan Gerard held off South Africa’s Erik van Rooyen down the stretch on Sunday to capture his first PGA Tour title at the Barracuda Championship.

The 25-year-old American, whose best previous finish was a runner-up result at this year’s Texas Open, fired two eagles in the final round to edge Van Rooyen 47-44 under the Modified Stableford scoring system at Tahoe Mountain Club in Truckee, California.

“It’s just like a culmination of a lifetime of work,” said Gerard. “I can’t tell you how many hours I’ve spent hitting golf balls dreaming of winning on the PGA Tour. It’s really special.”

Gerard began the final round tied for the lead on 34 points and closed with 13 points on Sunday thanks to two eagles, four birdies and five bogeys.

The Modified Stableford system awards five points for an eagle, two for a birdie, zero for a par, minus one for a bogey and minus three for a double or worse.

Gerard surged ahead early with a birdie at the 2nd and an eagle at the 3rd. Despite dropping shots at the 4th and 5th, he rebounded with another birdie at the 7th and reached 41 points midway through the round – seven clear of his nearest challenger on course, Van Rooyen.

After both players birdied the 10th, Van Rooyen chipped in at the 11th for another birdie. But Gerard responded in style: taking relief from a sprinkler head near the green, he drained a long eagle putt from the fringe to reach 48 points – 10 clear of the South African.

Gerard made bogeys at the 12th and 13th and three-putted the par-three 16th, but a birdie at the 14th proved vital in keeping Van Rooyen at bay.

The 2021 Barracuda champion pulled within three after an eagle at the par-five 15th and a closing birdie at 18, but Gerard held firm with a tap-in par on the last to seal the win.

“I’ve been playing a lot of really good golf,” Gerard said. “I’ve felt like I haven’t been getting the scores out of the shots that I’ve hit. It has been a long time, a long grind. Yeah, it’s pretty cool that I end up on top.”

Van Rooyen, who also finished runner-up at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson in May, was bidding to claim his second PGA Tour title.

Filipino rookie Rico Hoey had started the final round tied with Gerard but dropped out of contention with a double bogey-bogey start.

The Barracuda Championship was played opposite the Open Championship at Royal Portrush, where Scottie Scheffler secured his fourth career Major title.

Photo: Alex Slitz/Getty Images

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