Patrick Cantlay’s second-round, 10-under-par 60 was
the lowest score by an amateur in PGA Tour history.
CROMWELL, CONNECTICUT | In case
you’ve wondered about the future of
American golf, it stepped right up and
introduced itself the past two weeks.
Patrick Cantlay, a rising sophomore at
UCLA, made his presence known on the
professional stage.
Cantlay, 19, was low amateur at the
U.S. Open, tying for 21st at even-par
284. And at the Travelers Championship, he shot a 10-under 60 in the
second round and took the lead at the
halfway point. It was the lowest round
by an amateur in PGA Tour history. He
fell down the leaderboard after a third-round 72 but now a lot of people know
his name.
If you can imagine a 19-year-old being
tired, Cantlay was dragging a bit coming
into the Travelers. It was his fourth week
in a row in a tournament field. He won
the individual title at the NCAA Championships in Stillwater, Okla., and went on
to Stanwich, Conn., for the Palmer Cup.
In between, he made the Open field in
sectional qualifying.
He’s taking two weeks off before
playing in the Southern California Ama-
teur at San Gabriel Country Club in Los
Angeles. Two more weeks off and he
will play in a Nationwide Tour event in
Columbus, Ohio. Then on to the Western
Amateur and U.S. Amateur before rep-
resenting the U.S. in the Walker Cup.
Lost in the commotion of Rory McIlroy
winning the U.S. Open in record-setting
form was 24-year-old Kevin Chappell,
who finished tied for third. Chappell, a
rookie on the PGA Tour, shot 67-69-66
after an opening-round 76 to finish at
6-under, 10 shots back of McIlroy.
One PGA Tour player once described
Fredrik Jacobson as looking like “a
14-handicapper having the best day of
Bubba Watson doesn’t eat, breathe
and sleep golf. Even on tournament
weeks, he escapes from the course,
well away from the spotlight’s glare
that shines on someone who has two
victories this season.
“Well, I try to hide as much as possible,” said Watson, the defending champion at the Travelers Championship. “I
went to the Brownstone Water Park on
Monday and was there all day. Tuesday,
I was four hours, five hours at the Hole
in the Wall Gang Camp, had lunch there
with some kids, my whole team with
me, my caddie, my trainer, my wife, we
were all there playing around with the
kids, dancing with them.
“I can’t think about golf seven days
a week. I’d have to quit the game. I
just try to hang low and just take it all
in, the great blessings that I’ve had in
my life.” l
