Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Testy DeChambeau Silent on Losing BMW Golf Playoff to Cantlay
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 3 years ago on
August 30, 2021

Share

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — The golf world will have to wait to know what was on Bryson DeChambeau’s mind after he had four putts to win, three of them in the playoff, in his runner-up finish at Sunday’s BMW Championship.

The former Clovis East High School standout, who has refused to speak to media except for PGA Tour broadcast partners, chose not to speak to anyone Sunday.

It wasn’t the only time he appeared bothered. He rolled his eyes each time eventual winner Patrick Cantlay marked a short par putt along the front nine. And then on the 14th hole as DeChambeau was preparing to hit, he backed off and said, “Patrick, can you stop walking?”

“We had just been told by the rules officials to kind of speed up, and I’m not always the fastest walker, so I was trying to get ahead and do my part,” Cantlay said. “No big deal.”

Cantlay’s Nerves of Steel

On a Caves Valley course that suited the biggest hitters, facing the biggest masher of them all in DeChambeau, Cantlay delivered a moment that will be remembered for the ice in his veins and nerves of steel. His fantastic putting secured the BMW title and his PGA Tour-leading third victory of the season.

Cantlay moved to No. 1 in the FedEx Cup, news he met by saying, “I know.” That means Cantlay goes to the Tour Championship next week with a two-shot lead over Tony Finau in the FedEx Cup finale with $15 million to the winner.

Cantlay really only smiled after he made the last of six pivotal putts on the final nine holes — six of them in a sudden-death playoff.

“I’m just as focused as I can be. If I look the way I do, it’s because I am locked in and focused,” Cantlay said. “And I felt like that today.”

Even more remarkable is that Cantlay had plenty of occasions to believe he wouldn’t be winning the BMW Championship, yet it only crossed his mind once.

That came on the second playoff hole when he hit his approach heavy and came up 55 feet short of the hole. DeChambeau, who had a 30-yard advantage off the tee on the 18th hole, hit wedge into 6 feet.

“I liked Bryson’s chances of making that 6-footer up the hill,” Cantlay said. “I thought he was going to make that putt. That was maybe the only time that I really thought I was done. But he didn’t make it. That’s golf.”

As for the other times? Right when Cantlay looked to be done, he was clutch.

DeChambeau Took Lead on 16th Hole

DeChambeau took a one-shot lead on the par-5 16th with a 12-foot putt, and Cantlay still faced an 8-foot par putt to avoid falling two behind. He made it.

On the next hole, Cantlay’s tee shot bounced short and right and into the water, with DeChambeau in the rough just short of the green, about 25 feet from the hole. Cantlay removed his cap and slowly tugged it over his head. Surely, it was over.

But then DeChambeau muffed his chip and missed his 12-footer for par. Cantlay hit lob wedge from 100 yards away in the drop area and slid in the bogey-saving putt from 8 feet.

“I got to thinking, ‘Let’s try and make 4 here and at least not take all the pressure off of him.’ We both had 4s on that hole, and that really kept me in the golf tournament, kind of switched the momentum a little bit,” Cantlay said. “It would have been almost insurmountable if I would have went down two going into 18.”

The biggest was the 20-foot birdie putt he made on the 18th in regulation, the only reason he got into a playoff with a 6-under 66 to match DeChambeau’s score for the round and the astounding total of 27-under 261.

And even then, there was no relief.

DeChambeau Fails to Close the Door

Cantlay missed the 18th green to the left in the playoff and had to make a 6-footer for par to extend the playoff. He made the 7-footer on the next hole. And on the fifth extra hole, DeChambeau looked like a winner again when he hit wedge to 6 feet.

Cantlay hit 8-iron to 2 feet. On they went until Cantlay ended it with his 18-foot birdie putt, two fist pumps as he walked to the hole and perhaps his biggest of five victories.

He won earlier this season at the Zozo Championship in California, making up a four-shot deficit to beat Justin Thomas and Jon Rahm. He won the Memorial for a second time in early June with a 25-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole that led to a playoff win over Collin Morikawa.

This was special, and a couple of fans spotted it from outside the ropes by shouting out to him, “Patty Ice.”

He was ice, all right.

 

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

Crescent View West High Celebrates New Clovis Home

DON'T MISS

Fresno Man Sentenced to 29 Years for Sexually Assaulting Children and Dog

DON'T MISS

Bulldogs’ Two-Position Standout Tommy Hopfe Signs With Rockies

DON'T MISS

Artists, Vendors Plan to Defy City’s ArtHop Crackdown

DON'T MISS

Former Bulldog QB Jake Haener: I Have a ‘Rare Form of Skin Cancer’

DON'T MISS

The Many Names of GOP Vice Presidential Nominee JD Vance

DON'T MISS

‘Fed Up’ Dyer, Councilmembers Unveil Plan to Crack Down on Street Campers

DON'T MISS

House Republicans Slam Trump’s ‘Worst Choice’ for VP Pick JD Vance

DON'T MISS

Companies Cut Prices to Boost Sales, Consumers Respond

DON'T MISS

Stay Cool, Fresno!

UP NEXT

Artists, Vendors Plan to Defy City’s ArtHop Crackdown

UP NEXT

Former Bulldog QB Jake Haener: I Have a ‘Rare Form of Skin Cancer’

UP NEXT

Warner Bros. Discovery Sues NBA for Not Accepting Its Matching Offer

UP NEXT

Will Bonta Election Lawsuit Reverse the Will of Fresno County Voters?

UP NEXT

Opening Ceremony Floats Down Seine as Paris Investigates Rail Sabotage

UP NEXT

PINC Donation Gives Big Boost to Fresno’s Neediest Kids

UP NEXT

Looking for a New Best Friend? Fresno Animal Center Waives Fees on 100 Puppies

UP NEXT

US Viewers’ Olympic Interest Is Down, Poll Finds, Except for Simone Biles

UP NEXT

Dylan Cease Throws Second No-Hitter in San Diego Padres History

UP NEXT

Is 49ers’ Kittle the NFL’s Best Tight End?

Artists, Vendors Plan to Defy City’s ArtHop Crackdown

7 hours ago

Former Bulldog QB Jake Haener: I Have a ‘Rare Form of Skin Cancer’

8 hours ago

The Many Names of GOP Vice Presidential Nominee JD Vance

8 hours ago

‘Fed Up’ Dyer, Councilmembers Unveil Plan to Crack Down on Street Campers

8 hours ago

House Republicans Slam Trump’s ‘Worst Choice’ for VP Pick JD Vance

9 hours ago

Companies Cut Prices to Boost Sales, Consumers Respond

9 hours ago

Stay Cool, Fresno!

9 hours ago

Warner Bros. Discovery Sues NBA for Not Accepting Its Matching Offer

9 hours ago

Tanker Plane Crash Kills Firefighting Pilot in Oregon as Western Wildfires Spread

10 hours ago

Will Bonta Election Lawsuit Reverse the Will of Fresno County Voters?

10 hours ago

Crescent View West High Celebrates New Clovis Home

The arch of colorful balloons over the doorway of a storefront on Shaw Avenue in Clovis was a clue that something exciting was happening on ...

6 hours ago

6 hours ago

Crescent View West High Celebrates New Clovis Home

7 hours ago

Fresno Man Sentenced to 29 Years for Sexually Assaulting Children and Dog

7 hours ago

Bulldogs’ Two-Position Standout Tommy Hopfe Signs With Rockies

7 hours ago

Artists, Vendors Plan to Defy City’s ArtHop Crackdown

8 hours ago

Former Bulldog QB Jake Haener: I Have a ‘Rare Form of Skin Cancer’

8 hours ago

The Many Names of GOP Vice Presidential Nominee JD Vance

8 hours ago

‘Fed Up’ Dyer, Councilmembers Unveil Plan to Crack Down on Street Campers

9 hours ago

House Republicans Slam Trump’s ‘Worst Choice’ for VP Pick JD Vance

MENU

CONNECT WITH US

Search

Send this to a friend