When the final round of the 2025 FireKeepers Casino Hotel Championship began, Samantha Wagner was two shots back of the 36-hole leaders, Yana Wilson and Samantha Vodry. By the end of the day, she was two shots clear of Sophia Schubert and hoisting her first Epson Tour trophy on the 18th green. For the majority of the day, it was anyone’s tournament to win, but Wagner was the one who took it and ran.
The veteran started off slow, making a bogey on her first hole for the day. That would be the only one, however, with the next 17 holes being almost flawless. It started immediately, rolling in her first birdie of eight on hole two. Three pars followed, and then the next birdie came, with another coming two holes later just before the turn.
At the turn, Wagner was in the hunt, but not in control of the lead. A disappointing par on the Par-5 10th was followed by another par on the 11th. The 12th hole was when everything started to click for the 28-year-old, making her first birdie of the back nine.
She followed it up with three more birdies, making it four in a row before a par on the difficult Par-3 16th broke the streak. At this point, Wagner held the solo lead, chasing down the clubhouse lead at 11-under set by Sophia Schubert. One more birdie came on 17, extending her lead to two coming down 18. It was business as usual for Wagner, hitting the fairway and then a green in regulation. A two-putt sealed the two-shot victory for her first win on the Epson Tour.
“It’s finally sinking in, this is awesome,” said Wagner after her win. “I think for me, a lot of it was taking a step back and really trying not to think about winning and just really focusing on my process. I’ve been told by many people that if I keep doing that, eventually it’ll pay off, so I really just had to lean in and trust that. It’s been a long time, so it’s nice to see that finally come through. It just feels great moving forward.”
Schubert pushed Wagner till the very end, making three birdies in her last four holes to try and close the gap. This is the second time this year the Tennessee native has put together a final-round push, coming up just short both times. At the Atlantic Beach Classic presented by Access Golf in March, she posted a 63 in the final round to finish runner-up as well. Schubert continues to impress, now sitting at No. 2 in the Race for the Card, despite not finding a way into the winner’s circle just yet.
“I think it’s just the chase for me. I play better when I’m trying to chase,” said Schubert. “I’ve been in contention a couple times this year in the last group, and I don’t know, it was a lot of pressure, and I feel like just not be the last group trying to chase the leader is where I love to be, and so I’m competitive that way, and I seem to play better that way.”
The Epson Tour heads to Harbor Springs, Michigan, next week for the inaugural playing of the Great Lakes Championship. Tournament play will begin June 13th, with play concluding on Sunday, June 15th. Both Wagner and Schubert will be in the 144-player field, looking for another opportunity to find themselves in the winner’s circle.
Provided by: Epson Tour Communications
