theglobalsun – JJ Spaun secured the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth after Manuel Elvira suffered a heartbreaking collapse on the final hole.
The American, who won the 2025 US Open, became only the third player from the United States to claim the prestigious title. Spaun joins Billy Horschel and the legendary Arnold Palmer among American winners of the tournament.
The roll of honour also includes major champions such as Tony Jacklin, Sir Nick Faldo, Seve Ballesteros, Jose Maria Olazabal and Rory McIlroy.
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However, the dramatic conclusion was largely defined by Elvira’s painful finish. The 30-year-old Spaniard had entered the final hole with a genuine opportunity to claim the biggest victory of his career.
Ranked 294th in the world, Elvira had produced an outstanding performance throughout the tournament. He reached the 18th tee immediately after producing a spectacular eagle on the 17th hole.
That result gave him considerable momentum as he approached the closing par five.
Elvira Had Victory Within Reach
Elvira had already shown that he could attack the final hole effectively during the tournament. The Spaniard had recorded two birdies on the par five earlier in the week.
Another birdie would therefore have been entirely realistic, particularly after his excellent eagle on the previous hole. Spaun had already completed his round and sat at 17 under par in the clubhouse.
That meant Elvira needed a birdie to win outright, while a par would have been enough to force a play-off. Instead, his conservative decision from the tee created an unexpected problem.
Elvira chose an iron rather than taking a more aggressive approach. His tee shot ultimately found a fairway bunker, leaving him with a difficult position for his next shot.
The problems continued when his approach missed the green and came close to reaching the grandstand. A free drop gave him another opportunity, but his next shot went badly wrong.
Elvira duffed his fourth shot into a bunker, leaving himself with another difficult challenge. After eventually escaping the sand, he needed two further putts to complete the hole.
His final score of seven resulted in a double bogey and ended his hopes of winning the championship. The mistake also meant Elvira failed to finish the tournament outright second.
Spaun Celebrates Another Major Achievement
While Elvira struggled to process the dramatic ending, Spaun was able to celebrate another significant victory.
The American had already secured the 2025 US Open before adding the BMW PGA Championship to his growing list of achievements.
His victory at Wentworth places him among a select group of American players who have won the prestigious tournament.
Spaun’s success also came after a final round in which he established a challenging target for the players behind him. Elvira ultimately came closest to matching that score, but his final-hole disaster left Spaun as the clear champion.
The Spaniard admitted that his decision on the 18th had proved particularly costly. He described the moment as devastating because he believed he had chosen the wrong shot when laying up.
That decision left him facing what he considered the toughest possible shot from the fairway bunker. Elvira was unable to execute the recovery and saw his hopes disappear within a matter of minutes.
Despite the disappointment, he remained proud of his performance throughout the tournament.
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Elvira Reflects on Difficult Finish
Elvira said he had played some of the best golf of his life during the week. His comments reflected the contrast between his impressive overall performance and the painful conclusion.
For much of the final round, the Spaniard appeared capable of completing a remarkable breakthrough victory. Instead, a sequence of errors on the final hole changed the entire outcome.
The collapse inevitably brought memories of other dramatic moments in golf history. Jean Van de Velde’s famous struggles during the 1999 Open Championship remain among the sport’s most notorious final-hole collapses.
Jordan Spieth’s difficulties at the 2016 Masters also provided another recent example of how quickly a promising position can disappear.
Elvira’s finish did not reach the same level of historical drama as those incidents. Nevertheless, the closing sequence proved particularly difficult to watch after he had worked so hard to put himself in contention.
For Spaun, the same moments produced a memorable championship triumph. His victory at Wentworth adds another prestigious title to his career just one year after his US Open breakthrough.
Meanwhile, Elvira will leave the BMW PGA Championship with the disappointment of what might have been, but also with a performance that demonstrated his ability to compete at the highest level.
