Things were looking up for PGA Tour rookie Nick Dunlap, who entered the final round of the FedEx St. Jude Championship in sole second place and needed a top-five finish to qualify for next week’s BMW Championship.
Oh, and any player who finishes in the top 50 in the FedExCup standings and advances to the BMW will automatically qualify for next year’s eight signature events, a career-changing opportunity for young players, not just Dunlap.
The final few holes were nerve-wracking because he knew how much was at stake. After a birdie on the par-5 16th hole, Dunlap was at 14 under par, one stroke behind Hideki Matsuyama, Viktor Hovland and Xander Schauffele. He still had a chance to win the golf tournament, but he knew he had to finish in the top five.
He has two tough holes ahead of him and two bogeys will drop him out of the top 50.
“I was a total mess, I’m not gonna lie, it was probably the most nervous I’ve ever been, to be honest,” Dunlap said.
“I didn’t want the season to end. I had a lot of fun and I hit some really good shots. I hit a good tee shot on 12, two good shots on 16 and 17, then I came out on top on 18 and won big. But if it had gone my way, I would have been really proud of myself.”
After finding the fairway on the 17th hole and trailing by one stroke, Dunlap naturally went for the pin, but his approach was blocked and he missed into a bunker on the right. Dunlap then bogeyed on the short side, setting the stage for a dramatic 18th hole, where the par changed his career and the bogey dropped him out of the top 50.
“It was a weird feeling. I was going for the pin on the 17th hole and I thought I still had a chance to win the golf tournament, but I just couldn’t get up and down,” Dunlap said.
“That’s when you start to wonder if you’re in a bubble. It’s very stressful.”
Dunlap then hit a 280-yard missile down the middle of the 18th fairway, one of the hardest to find at TPC Southwind, then smashed his approach shot safely into the back of the green with 180 yards to the flag, then two-putted to seal the victory.
“I’ll be honest with you, I was just relieved,” Dunlap said when asked how he felt after making par on the 18th hole.
“It’s been a very hard practice. I knew what I needed to do this week to keep the season going. Like I said, I’m having a lot of fun. This week is another week to learn and put in the effort to play well.”
What made Dunlap’s year special was that he became the first player to win a PGA Tour event as both an amateur and a professional in the same calendar year. His victory at the American Express in January was the first time an amateur had won on the tour since 1991. The last person to do so was Phil Mickelson. After failing to qualify for the British Open, Dunlap then played in and won the Barracuda Championship in California in July.
But in between those two victories, the rigors and rigors of the PGA Tour took their toll on Dunlap, missing the cut eight times and finishing in the top 10 just four times, but still earning enough FedEx Cup points to qualify for the BMW Championship and beyond.
“I struggled all year, but I still felt like I was improving, I just wasn’t playing as well as I thought I was,” Dunlap said.
“Yeah, it was good to see it coming out the last couple weeks, especially my driving, my 3-wood and my chipping. It was really cool to see it come out at the end.”
But what was really amazing was seeing a young, up-and-coming player who held his own under the spotlight, handled the nerves and triumph when everything was on the line. That’s pretty incredible.
Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation Playing Through. Follow For more golf articles, follow us on Twitter Jack Mirko In the same way.
