ATLANTA, GEORGIA | Go back a couple of weeks and Patrick Cantlay was seen as a top-level talent whose personal story was more about what he has overcome than anything defining he has achieved.
Not anymore.
Through the course of two dramatic weeks, Cantlay did more than win the FedEx Cup. He re-engineered his place in the game.
His spectacular putting performance in beating Bryson DeChambeau in a six-hole playoff at the BMW Championship showed the quiet Cantlay at his best, earning him the “Patty Ice” nickname along the way.
Staked to a lead before hitting his first shot at East Lake, Cantlay stayed in front for 72 holes, sealing the FedEx Cup with a textbook birdie on the last hole after escaping the 71st hole with a bogey that could have been worse.
Does it make Cantlay the PGA Tour player of the year?
Cantlay won four times, more than anyone else. His victory at the Memorial Tournament came at Rahm’s expense – the Spaniard led by six after 54 holes but had to withdraw after a positive COVID-19 test on Saturday. And his Tour Championship victory came with a built-in lead.
Still, he won more trophies than any other player throughout the 50-event season and Cantlay planted himself solidly among the core of players captain Steve Stricker will count on most heavily when the Ryder Cup is played later this month at Whistling Straits.
Rahm, meanwhile, has his own case for player of the year. He won the U.S. Open, had 15 top-10 finishes in 22 starts (including all four majors and the Players Championship) and he led the tour in scoring average.
How close were Cantlay and Rahm?
Through the three playoff events, they both shot 50-under par. The difference is Cantlay staked himself to a lead entering the weighted scoring Tour Championship. While Rahm shot 14-under par in four days at East Lake, tying Kevin Na for the lowest 72-hole score, Cantlay started the last event four strokes clear of Rahm.
It’s the nature of the playoff finale. Just as it happened a year ago when Xander Schauffele had the lowest four-round total but Dustin Johnson won the FedEx Cup, Cantlay walked away with the bonus prize of $15 million.
“Patrick played great golf, and he was four shots ahead of me, and even though I might have been the better man over the week, he earned it,” Rahm said. “He played amazing. That up-and-down after missing from 17, the second shot from 18 to almost make it is even more impressive. I think you can say he won this. He played amazing golf.”
Less than a decade ago, Cantlay considered giving up golf and returning to school. He had a stress fracture in his back and when his spine doctor asked him what caused him pain, Cantlay – who had been the top-ranked amateur in the world – told him it was playing golf. “When did it feel better?” the doctor asked. “When I don’t play,” Cantlay said.
In time, Cantlay overcame his back issue but he also lived through seeing his caddie and friend Chris Roth killed when he was struck by a car in 2016.
Good, bad and heartbreaking, all of it led Cantlay to where he found himself Sunday evening.
“The biggest thing is it’s given me great perspective,” Cantlay said. “For a long time everything just went great growing up.
“Life got better and better and then it got as bad as it could have been, as low as it could have been for a while. Coming out of that I feel like I am a better person. It makes me very grateful to be in the position I am today. It wasn’t always a sure thing.”
Ron Green Jr.