2026 Butterfield Bermuda Championship: Round 1 Tee Times and Adam Schenk's Gamble

Adam Schenk tees off in Round 1 of the 2026 Butterfield Bermuda Championship at 6:57 a.m. ET alongside Austin Smotherman and Davis Thompson. But the real story this week isn't the tee time — it's the gap between $433,660 and $1.08 million.

I've followed Port Royal Golf Course through many seasons, and one thing has always bothered me: people look at a tee sheet like a train schedule, when it's really a power map of an entire season. Round 1 at Bermuda this year is the clearest example.

Context: A career-changing title, a declining season

Last year, Adam Schenk won the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. It was the first PGA Tour title of his career, and it vaulted him up the FedEx Fall standings, significantly improving his Tour status.

This season is different. Schenk enters the week with total earnings of $433,660 — a modest number for a former champion. If he defends his title, he takes home $1.08 million, more than double what he's earned all year to date.

That's the logic of the FedEx Fall: one week can rewrite an entire financial balance sheet and a professional standing. I've watched this kind of pressure at many late-season events, and it always produces two types of golfer: the one who plays as if he has nothing to lose, and the one who plays as if holding a scalpel.

Which type is Schenk? Looking at his 6:57 a.m. start with Smotherman and Thompson, it's clear the organizers didn't place him in a marquee late group — a small but telling signal about how the media views his chances.

Analysis: The tee sheet as a tactical map

Port Royal is a coastal links course, and wind is the number one variable. The early groups from 6:35 to 8:14 a.m. will face lighter wind and softer greens — ideal scoring conditions. The afternoon groups from 11:05 a.m. to 12:44 p.m. will battle strengthening wind and firming greens.

Looking at the list, several groups stand out:

• 6:57 a.m. (Group 1): Kevin Yu, Cam Davis, Lucas Glover — three names with completely different games. Glover is a former US Open champion with textbook iron play, Davis is a powerful Australian with the driver, Yu is a young golfer still finding his footing.
• 8:03 a.m.: Haotong Li, Christo Lamprecht, Camiko Smith — Lamprecht, the 6'8" South African, made waves at the British Open. Smith is a local Bermuda golfer who will receive the loudest home support.
• 7:52 a.m.: Neal Shipley, Luke Clanton, Austin Lemieux (a) — Clanton is one of the strongest amateurs in America, and pairing him with Shipley, famous from the 2026 Masters, creates the most watchable amateur group on opening day.
• 12:00 p.m.: Rafael Campos, Austin Cook, Ben Martin — Campos won Bermuda in 2026, and he understands the afternoon wind at Port Royal better than anyone.

Schenk's group at 6:57 a.m. is in the second wave (tee 10), meaning he starts on hole 10 and finishes on hole 9 — a route that demands he handle the final three holes well before entering the decisive stretch.

I've asked myself: is an early start really an advantage? Data from previous seasons shows morning groups average about 1.5 strokes lower than afternoon groups at Port Royal. But that's average data — and the exceptions are what matter.

Counter-intuitive angle: Don't trust the FedEx Fall standings

This is where I want to break a familiar textbook. The media will tell Schenk's story as a hero trying to recapture glory. But looking at the $433,660 figure, I see a different problem: Schenk isn't just defending a title, he's defending a career.

A PGA Tour golfer can live with prize-money pressure. But membership pressure is different. If Schenk doesn't produce results in the FedEx Fall series, he could lose full-time playing privileges next year. That's why I don't buy the "play like you have nothing to lose" encouragement.

The reality is he has plenty to lose.

And here's the paradox: that may make him play better. In my own career, I've seen golfers play their best when backed into a corner. The fall at the 350-meter mark in 2026 taught me that sometimes a career's low point is the start of a new direction.

But there's a flip side: those who play out of fear of losing often lose themselves on the closing holes. Port Royal has three holes running along the sea — 16, 17, 18 — where the wind blows crosswise and every mistake is magnified. If Schenk enters them in protection mode, he loses.

Another notable angle: Young names and amateurs

One thing I always watch at late-season events is the amateur presence. This year features Austin Lemieux, Kihei Akina, Mason Howell, Rudy Sautron, Nixon Lauritzen, Miles Russell, Jay Leng and Virgilio Paz.

Miles Russell, 17, drew attention as the youngest player to make a cut on the Korn Ferry Tour. He plays with Nick Hardy and Denny McCarthy at 12:11 p.m. — a group worth watching if you want to see the future of American golf.

But I won't sugarcoat it. Amateurs at PGA Tour events are often swallowed by pressure and green speed. Port Royal's greens are faster than any college course these kids have played. The lesson from previous years: only amateurs with genuinely stable putting survive the cut.

Full Round 1 tee times

Morning groups (tee 1):

6:35 – Brice Garnett, Dylan Frittelli, Kevin Streelman

6:46 – Lee Hodges, Aaron Baddeley, David Lingmerth

6:57 – Kevin Yu, Cam Davis, Lucas Glover

7:08 – Camilo Villegas, Ben Kohles, John Parry

7:19 – Troy Merritt, Jonathan Byrd, Zac Blair

7:30 – Erik van Rooyen, C.T. Pan, Vince Whaley

7:41 – Adam Svensson, Tyler Duncan, S.Y. Noh

7:52 – Neal Shipley, Luke Clanton, Austin Lemieux (a)

8:03 – Haotong Li, Christo Lamprecht, Camiko Smith

8:14 – Hayden Springer, Willie Mack III, Kihei Akina (a)

Afternoon groups (tee 1):

11:05 – Tom Hoge, Justin Lower, Rico Hoey

11:16 – Seamus Power, Joel Dahmen, Will Gordon

11:27 – Aldrich Potgieter, Andrew Novak, Corey Conners

11:38 – Chris Kirk, Aaron Wise, Charley Hoffman

11:49 – Patton Kizzire, Ryan Brehm, Max McGreevy

12:00 – Rafael Campos, Austin Cook, Ben Martin

12:11 – Max Greyserman, Hank Lebioda, A.J. Ewart

12:22 – Patrick Fishburn, Paul Peterson, Mason Howell (a)

12:33 – Alejandro Tosti, Trace Crowe, Ren Yonezawa

12:44 – Isaiah Salinda, Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Virgilio Paz (a)

Morning groups (tee 10):

6:35 – Harry Higgs, Greyson Sigg, Chandler Phillips

6:46 – Cameron Champ, Robert Streb, Eric Cole

6:57 – Austin Smotherman, Adam Schenk, Davis Thompson

7:08 – Mackenzie Hughes, Kevin Roy, Ben Silverman

7:19 – Austin Eckroat, Luke List, William McGirt

7:30 – Matthieu Pavon, Taylor Moore, Chan Kim

7:41 – Brendon Todd, Takumi Kanaya, Danny Walker

7:52 – Jesper Svensson, Jeremy Paul, Rudy Sautron (a)

8:03 – Zecheng Dou, Davis Chatfield, Matthew Anderson

8:14 – Taylor Montgomery, Marcelo Rozo, Nixon Lauritzen (a)

Afternoon groups (tee 10):

11:05 – Emiliano Grillo, Adam Hadwin, David Skinns

11:16 – Chez Reavie, Chad Ramey, Martin Laird

11:27 – Davis Riley, Taylor Pendrith, Bill Haas

11:38 – Mark Hubbard, Henrik Norlander, Dylan Wu

11:49 – Nick Dunlap, Peter Malnati, Adam Long

12:00 – Nick Hardy, Denny McCarthy, Kristoffer Ventura

12:11 – Ben James, David Ford, Miles Russell (a)

12:22 – Kensei Hirata, John VanDerLaan, Nick Jones

12:33 – Chandler Blanchet, Pontus Nyholm, Jay Leng (a)

12:44 – Jimmy Stanger, Jeffrey Kang, Greg Koch

Takeaway

The Bermuda Championship isn't a major. But it's where careers are saved or buried. Adam Schenk enters Round 1 with $433,660 in the bank and $1.08 million hanging in front of him. The question isn't whether he has the skill to win — it's whether he dares to play as if he has nothing to protect.

I believed the textbook for five years — the 2026 World Cup shattered all of it. And at Port Royal this week, that textbook may be shattered once more, by a 33-year-old golfer trying to find himself again amid sea wind and numbers that lie.

All data can lie; my job is to catch it in the act. And the $433,660 figure is whispering something very different from what the FedEx Fall standings want you to believe.