Paul Casey hasn’t won since 2021, but he’s on the verge of ending that drought at the Omega European Masters. The LIV Golf star leads the field at 16-under through 54 holes, putting him on the brink of his first title in nearly five years. After Saturday’s round, an emotional Casey opened up about it all in a chat with the DP World Tour.
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It’s been a long, strange road back for Casey, who once climbed as high as World No. 3. Since jumping to LIV Golf, he’s helped Bryson DeChambeau’s Crushers GC bank $31.8 million as a team, but he’s never won an individual event there, losing twice in playoffs. He hasn’t played a major since the 2022 Open Championship, and hadn’t cracked a DP World Tour top-10 since the 2024 Porsche Singapore Classic. Wrist and back trouble haven’t helped, and this week’s start, his only DP World Tour appearance of the year, came on a sponsor’s invite. He’s made the most of it, though, following an opening 67 with a 64 and then a 7-under 63 on Saturday to take the lead.
“The birdie on 18, that was the highlight of the day, with the great Swiss crowd. I love this place, I really do, so it’s a wonderful day,” a very vulnerable Casey said. “I’m 49 now, so I’m not sure how good everything is. There are ailments, for sure. There was a wrist problem earlier in the year, but I bounced back from that and actually played some really good golf when we went to New York a few weeks after.”
Despite that setback, doubts still crept in about how much longer he had left at the top.
“But I wasn’t sure. I thought that could have been the season. This is now home. I now live in Switzerland, so it would mean an awful lot. It feels like a home week for me,” he added in the interview.
Securing his first win in years would undoubtedly be a special moment for Casey. However, his pursuit of victory at Crans-sur-Sierre Golf Club, in the Alpine resort town of Crans-Montana, carries a deeper purpose, one that is far more noble.
“And tomorrow, whatever happens, I hope I win, and I’ll be playing really hard, but I’ll make sure that all my prize money as well is going to the charity and the victims of the fire here in Crans-Montana, so I’ve got a lot to play for tomorrow.”
A fire broke out at the Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, on January 1, during New Year celebrations at the ski resort. The blaze killed and injured dozens of people, many of them young. Investigators believe the fire started after revellers held champagne bottles with sparklers attached too close to soundproofing foam on the basement ceiling, causing the material to catch fire and spread rapidly.
Since the incident, the death toll has risen to 41 after an 18-year-old Swiss national who had been injured in the fire died at a hospital in Zurich on January 31. The victims were between 14 and 39 years old, with most under 25. Another 115 people were injured, many seriously, and patients were treated in hospitals in Switzerland and other European countries.
The tragedy also led to a criminal investigation that has grown substantially since the fire. What began as a probe into the bar’s two co-owners has since expanded to roughly 16 current and former officials and employees, including several past and present members of Crans-Montana’s public safety and fire-safety departments, and, as of this spring, the town’s mayor. All face potential charges tied to negligent homicide, bodily harm, and arson. Still, Casey has to dominate the final round to help those victims and win the event. But from the looks of the first three rounds, it’s clearly not impossible.
That charge began at the venue, where he started the day four shots behind Thriston Lawrence but quickly erased the deficit by making six birdies across seven holes on the front nine, reaching the turn in a scorching 29. The Englishman added another birdie at the 18th after a superb approach shot, finishing at 16-under for the tournament.
His last win came at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, and it would be the 16th DP World Tour title of his career, one to add to the 15 he already has.
This comes after Casey finished tied for 45th at LIV Indianapolis last month, which marked the league’s final event of the season. While many LIV players have been fined for playing DP World Tour events, Paul Casey didn’t suffer the same fate because he gave up his European Tour membership years ago.
It would be interesting to see whether Casey can finally secure his first win in nearly five years and fulfill his promise to help the fire victims.