While the cream of the PGA Tour had decamped to Scotland and were battling the elements and a charging Xander Schauffele, there was much on offer for the supporting cast who were taking on the modified stableford format and Tahoe Mountain at the Barracuda Championship.
Nick Dunlap’s 2024 had already reached dream-like status with his victory at the American Express Championship back in January, becoming the first amateur since Phil Mickelson back in 1991 to win on the PGA Tour, but his transition into the pro ranks was always going to be a challenge with expectation sky-high.
A T12 at the Memorial Tournament and then his first top-10 as a pro at the Rocket Mortgage Classic were signs that he was ready to take the next step and he delivered in style with a final round 62, good for 19 points, seeing him come from behind to take a second PGA Tour victory by two points.
Seven birdies and an eagle without a blemish on the card was enough to see him overtake Vance Whaley, Patrick Fishburn and Mac Meissner, and it was a 55-foot eagle putt on the 15th that saw him hit the front for the first time having started the day nine points adrift of 54-hole leader Meissner.
Eagles are worth five points, and it was Dunlap’s first of the week, and a birdie on 17 extended his advantage, meaning that closest challenger Whaley needed to hole out from the fairway on the last to deny Dunlap a second slice of history.
Whaley would have to settle for birdie, meaning Dunlap now becomes the first player ever to win as both an amateur and a pro in the same season and he admitted that his struggles after turning pro had led to him questioning if his memorable win at Palm Springs had been a flash in the pan.
“I never thought that I would have my name next to that, but it’s definitely an honor,” Dunlap said about the amateur-pro double. “It’s been a little tough after AmEx. You kind of lose a little bit of confidence and wonder if you can do it again.”
Players receive eight points for an albatross, five for eagle and two for birdie. A point is deducted for bogey and three for double bogey, so the eagle at 15 was worth more than it typically would be in a strokeplay event.
“I hadn’t made an eagle yet this week, so that was kind of the goal, and just play aggressive, not reckless,” Dunlap said. “This course, it allows you to make a lot of birdies if you’re in position.”
Despite having his playing rights already secured through 2026 thanks to the victory back in January, as an amateur and non-PGA Tour member at the time, no FedEx Cup points were awarded, so the Barracuda win was a big windfall and the 300 points on offer sees him climb to 63rd in the rankings and inside the top-70 cut off point for the FedEx playoffs.
But he can’t afford to celebrate too much as the finish line is looming quickly and he’s back on the horse again next week at the 3M Open in Minnesota.
“The only sour thing about this is that winning moment goes quickly,” Dunlap said. “It doesn’t stay as long as you may think, just because tomorrow I’m flying to Minnesota and trying to repeat and do the exact same thing.”
Leave a comment