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GREENSBORO — You might never see another birdie like the one Carl Pettersson made on the first hole Sunday at Sedgefield Country Club.

The Swedish Whirlie — he won a high school state championship as a Grimsley senior — snap-hooked his tee shot into a cluster of flower pots filled with yellow mums. Volunteers sifted through the pots and, lo and behold, found Pettersson’s golf ball.

PGA rules official Mickey Bradley helped Pettersson place his ball in the rough, and Pettersson hacked out, hitting his approach into the fairway but short of the green.

No matter. He chipped in from 55 feet for an unlikely birdie.

Pettersson, by the way, shot a 63 in the third round when he went 14-for-14 in hitting fairways off the tee. It was the only bogey-free round among the 74 played Saturday.

THE NEW CHAMP: With his Wyndham Championship victory Sunday, former Wake Forest golfer Webb Simpson moves to No. 3 in the FedExCup points standings.

Players in the top five heading into the fourth and final playoff event control their own FedExCup destiny; any player inside the top five who wins the Tour Championship will win the FedExCup and the $10 million first-place prize.

• Simpson is the 16th first-time winner in Greensboro’s PGA Tour history and the third in as many years, following Ryan Moore in 2009 and Arjun Atwal in 2010. Simpson is the 12th first-time winner on the PGA Tour this season.

• Simpson was 13 under par on Nos. 10-18 at Sedgefield. He was 10-under on the par-5s.

• Simpson is the seventh Greensboro winner from an ACC school. The most recent before Sunday was Grimsley alumnus Carl Pettersson (N.C. State) in 2008.

• Simpson is the third Wake Forest graduate to win in Greensboro (Lanny Wadkins, 1983, and Scott Hoch, 2001).

• Simpson is the 13th player (14 total wins) in his 20s to win on the PGA Tour this season.

CHRIS PAUL SAYS HI: From @CP3 on Twitter: You guys PLEASE go tell @webbsimpson1 congrats on his 1st PGA Tour victory...gr8 guy!!! #GoDeacs

Contact Jeff Mills at 373-7024 or jeff.mills@news-record.com