Less than 24 hours after winning a PGA Tour event, Dunlap needs a breather.
Less than 24 hours after winning the American Express, Nick Dunlap needs a breather.
It was a whirlwind 72 holes in La Quinta, California, for the 20-year-old sophomore in his second season of college golf at Alabama. It was a most intense final round as he made two clutch pars on the final two holes to win by a shot, beating a field of professionals to become the first amateur in 33 years to win on the PGA Tour.
Not only did he win, but he did so in record fashion, posting a 29-under total, the lowest since the event was reduced from a 90-hole tournament to 72.
Dunlap was eligible for the $1.5 million prize due to his amateur status but golf fans won’t soon forget the historical achievement.
On Monday, Dunlap, through the PGA Tour communications office, announced that he will not compete in this week’s Farmers Insurance Open in San Diego.
He was in the field previously as a sponsor exemption. His AmEx win removed that status from him but as was then in the field as a PGA Tour winner, moving Harrison Endycott in as a sponsor exemption.
A further unrelated sequence of events happened when Justin Thomas withdrew. That got Endycott in the field and opened up a sponsor exemption for Hayden Springer.
Nonetheless, Dunlap is stepping back for the week. He is still pondering whether to accept the PGA Tour card and turn pro or stay in school and try to help Alabama win an NCAA title.
“I’ve always wanted to win a ring with Alabama,” he said Sunday. “But no, everything kind of moving forward, and as far as me turning professional, that’s something that it doesn’t just affect me, it affects a lot of people, and that being my teammates and my coach, you know, they, obviously, probably didn’t think that I would ever consider turning pro after this week.”
Phil Mickelson was the last amateur to win on the PGA Tour in 1991.
LA QUINTA, Calif. — From Arnold Palmer’s five tournament wins to David Duval’s iconic final-round 59 to come from behind and win the 1999 event, the American Express has seen history time and time again.
Now, next to Palmer and Duval comes 20-year-old amateur Nick Dunlap.
Looking for most of the day like the magic that had vaulted him to a three-shot lead entering the final round had evaporated, the University of Alabama sophomore Dunlap grinded down the stretch for a one-shot victory.
As Dunlap played his final 10 holes in 2 under, Tour veteran Sam Burns faltered with tee shots into the water on the final two holes Sunday at the PGA West Stadium Course. Burns lost the lead with had consecutive double-bogeys and finished four shots back.
Dunlap’s par and Burns’ double bogey on the rock-ringed par-3 17th were enough to give Dunlap the lead after Burns had played steady, consistent golf throughout the day. But Dunlap still needed to scramble for a par on the final hole to stay one shot ahead of Christiaan Bezuidenhout, who played the final four holes in 3-under for a 65. That put Bezuidenhout at 28 under, one shot behind Dunlap, who managed an up-and-down on the 18th hole including a five-foot par putt.
WOW!
20-year-old amateur Nick Dunlap is a PGA TOUR champion.
Dunlap’s 29-under 259 total is the tournament record since the event switched to a 72-hole format in 2012.
Dunlap’s win will resonate at the American Express and across the PGA Tour. Dunlap matches Mickelson’s 1991 win in the Northern Telecom Open in Tucson, when Mickelson was 20. Dunlap, also 20 and the reigning U.S. Amateur champion just as Mickelson was 33 years ago, becomes the youngest winner on the PGA Tour since 19-year-old Jordan Spieth won the 2013 John Deere Classic.
While Dunlap walks away with no prize money because of his amateur status – Bezuidenhout takes home the $1,512,000 first-place check – it is Dunlap who creates history that won’t soon be forgotten in the desert or on the PGA Tour.
Dunlap is the first player to win as a sponsor exemption since Martin Laird at the 2021 Shriners Hospital event in Las Vegas. In only his fourth professional start, Dunlap made the cut for the first time. He remains only the second player to win the U.S. Junior Amateur and the U.S. Amateur, along with Tiger Woods.
“It’s amazing. Actually, I heard his name last year when he won the U.S. Amateur,” Bezuidenhout said. “Yeah, he’s obviously a hell of a player and congrats to him and hopefully he can be out on the PGA Tour soon, and we all can get to play with him.”
Nick Dunlap reacts to winning the 2024 American Express at Pete Dye Stadium Course in La Quinta, California. (Photo: Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Dunlap’s play Sunday was not as stellar as it had been the first three days. Having made only one bogey in the first 54 holes, Dunlap double bogeyed the par-4 seventh with a tee shot in a lake and watched Burns make birdie to tie for the lead.
Burns took the lead alone with a birdie on the par-5 11th just as Dunlap was starting to miss a series of short putts for birdies. Dunlap finally caught Burns with a birdie on the par-5 16th, setting up Burns’ collapse in the final two holes.
“Hitting my ball in the water on 7, it tested everything I had. I missed a couple putts that I thought I was going to make,” Dunlap said. “And just kind of like my sports psychologist, Bhrett McCabe, I went over a scenario for today probably a million times and it’s never going to go how you plan, and it didn’t. I’m so happy to be standing here.”
A flurry of players were still chasing Dunlap and Burns, including Kevin Yu, who tied for the lead at 28 under but bogeyed the 18th hole to finish at 27 under with a final-round 63. Xander Schauffele and Justin Thomas also finished at 27 under to tie for third, with Thomas struggling at times on the way to a 68 and Schauffele just running out of holes in his 65.
“I knew I had to shoot a low weekend, and I was able to,” Schauffele said. “I was too far behind after that round of 3 under at Nicklaus Tournament. In a shootout like this, you can’t afford to shoot 3 under in any round.”
Sam Burns talked with Golfweek’s David Dusek about this week’s LSU-Alabama football game, trash talking Justin Thomas and more.
Sam Burns played his college golf at LSU, a school just 10 minutes down the road from his hometown of Shreveport, Louisiana.
Golfweek‘s equipment guru David Dusek caught up with Burns to talk about the school’s upcoming rivalry football game with Alabama, what it was like playing golf at LSU and what the environment was like in the locker room during his college days.
“Oh, yeah,” Burns said when smiling after being asked if he and Justin Thomas were sending each other texts this week (Thomas played golf in Tuscaloosa). “There’s been many comments exchanged.”
Set your alarms because you won’t want to miss these final matches.
Set your alarms, folks. You don’t want to miss these final 12 matches of the 2023 Ryder Cup.
European captain Luke Donald and American captain Zach Johnson announced their picks for the 12 Sunday singles matches and a handful are appointment television, no matter the time.
Team Europe holds a 10½-5½ lead after the first four sessions, but the momentum appears to have swung back toward the U.S. after the Americans claimed Saturday fourballs, 3-1. The Europeans need four points to win the Cup, while the U.S. needs at least 8½ to retain.
Check out who’s playing who in the final 12 singles matches of the 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club.
After winning the Saturday afternoon fourballs 3-1, the U.S. trails 10 ½ to 5 ½ and will need to erase the largest deficit in Ryder Cup history if it is going to retain the Cup.
But we’re saying there’s a chance, especially after Patrick Cantlay birdied the final two holes, including a 30-foot birdie putt at 18, to flip his match.
“Hopefully have a ray of light and we can build on this session and try and pull off a big victory tomorrow,” Cantlay said.
Two years ago, the U.S. led 11-5 at Whistling Straits before cruising to a 19-9 victory. No team has rallied from more than a 10-6 deficit, but the U.S. only needs to reach 14 points to retain the Cup. In both 1999 and 2012, the winning side earned 8 ½ points in Sunday singles.
The U.S. showed some life winning the first two matches, but the Euros bounced back to win the third match and inch closer to extending the U.S. losing streak on European soil, which dates to 1993. It looked as if it would be a split of the session. That is until Cantlay’s heroics.
“Feels like we have momentum and we go kind of into the locker room laughing a little bit which just feels good,” Max Homa said.
Speaking to SiriusXM’s Taylor Zarzour, Burns recounted – TMI alert – how U.S. Captain Zach Johnson called him with the good news that he was one of six captain’s picks for the U.S. 12-man team.
Johnson sent him a text Sunday night after the Tour Championship letting him know that he should expect a call the following day. After a restless night of staring at the ceiling, Burns was waiting to for his phone to ring and told his wife, Carolyn, that they should get out of the house to pass the time. When they got back, Burns felt the call of nature, and – of course – that’s when his phone rang.
“Literally as soon as I sit down, Justin (Thomas) started texting me, like, ‘Have you heard anything yet?’ While I’m responding to him, Zach called me,” Burns recounted.
Burns, who received a call that he didn’t make the team two years earlier, said he was “mid poop” when Johnson invited him to be a member of his team and he started crying.
“While I’m on the phone, I’m trying to wipe, I’m trying to tell Carolyn, she came around the corner and I gave her a thumbs up,” Burns said. “That’s real life right there.”
Indeed, it is.
Words don’t really do it justice. You can watch Burns tell his story from the throne here.
If you needed another reminder that time is a flat circle, the mullet has made an incredible comeback over the last year or so.
Cameron Smith has been rocking one for a few years now, and another LIV Golf member has joined him in the club.
Brooks Koepka, who is set to represent the United States at next week’s Ryder Cup in Rome at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club from Sept. 29-Oct. 1, debuted his new look in Chicago at Rich Harvest Farms on Friday at LIV’s 12th event of its season.
Koepka will be the lone LIV player at this year’s Ryder Cup, earning one of Zach Johnson’s captain’s picks thanks to a T-2 finish at the Masters, a fifth major championship win at the PGA Championship and a T-17 performance at the U.S. Open.
Sam Burns, another captain’s pick from ZJ, will also be rocking a mullet in Rome.
Sam Burns becomes the third LSU golfer to appear in a Ryder Cup.
Former LSU and current PGA Tour golfer [autotag]Sam Burns[/autotag] will be representing the United States at the 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome, where the US team will take on the European Team.
US captain Zach Johnson announced the selections on Tuesday.
“There’s no higher honor than to represent your country. To be a part of this Ryder Cup and tee up alongside these world class players is extremely exciting,” said Burns to the media at the captain’s picks announcement, according to an LSU release.
It will be Burns’ rookie appearance on the 12-man Ryder Cup roster, though he did represent his country at the Junior Ryder Cup in 2014. He’ll be the third overall LSU golfer to compete in a Ryder Cup, joining David Toms (2002, 2004, 2006) and Fred Haas (1953).
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Get to know the 12 players on Team USA for the 2023 Ryder Cup.
Ladies and gentlemen, meet Team USA.
After the conclusion of the 2023 BMW Championship the six automatic qualifiers for the U.S. team bound for Marco Simone Golf and Country Club and the 2023 Ryder Cup were confirmed. Following the Tour Championship, captain Zach Johnson announced his six captain’s picks that would join the team near Rome, Italy.
Of the 12 players on the roster, four will make their debut in the biennial event against the Europeans, who haven’t lost on home soil since 1993.
Get to know all 12 players and the captains who will represent the red, white and blue in the 44th playing of the Ryder Cup.
Does Justin Thomas get the nod on past performances? Will Brooks Koepka or any other LIV players be selected?
Zach Johnson has some choices to make.
On Tuesday the U.S. Ryder Cup captain will make his six selections and complete the 12-player team bound for Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, Sept. 29-Oct. 1.
Locked in as automatic qualifiers are world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark, Open champion Brian Harman, Patrick Cantlay, Max Homa and Xander Schauffele.
But who will join them? Does Justin Thomas get the nod based on past performances? Will Brooks Koepka or any other LIV players be selected? How about a 43-year-old debutant in Lucas Glover?
Let’s make the case for the potential captain’s picks for the 2023 Ryder Cup.
Sam Burns Freedom Flow 
