Nick Dunlap, who started the year at 4,121 in the Overall World Golf Ranking, and finished at No. 35 as the season ended reflected on his whirlwind PGA Tour season.
In an interview with Alex Miceli of the Morning Read, the Alabamian confessed that going into the second round of the FedEx playoffs, he was a mess.
“I was a train wreck. I’m not going to lie to you, I was arguably the most nervous I’ve ever been, to be honest,” Dunlap said after the final round of the FedEx St. Jude Championship, which got him a spot in the second playoff event. “I just didn’t want the season to end. I’ve been having so much fun, and I was just — I hit some really good shots, a good tee shot on 12, two really good ones on 16 and 17, and then got up there and smoked it on 18. However that would have shaked out, I would have been super proud of myself.”
The first winner of both the U.S. Junior Amateur and the U.S. Amateur since Tiger Woods did it in the 1990s won the American Express as an amateur last January. He turned pro shortly afterwards.
He also became the first player in history to win on Tour as an amateur and professional in the same season.with his win at the Barracuda Championship in July.
Miceli, a veteran observer of the PGA Tour, labels Nick Dunlap as a favorite to be named the Tour’s Rookie of the Year.
Winning $2,878,325 in his rookie year, which didn’t include the $1.5 million for winning the AMEX since he was an amateur, the year could not have gone better for Dunlap,” Miceli wrote.
“He is clearly no longer a rookie, and that became clear as he navigated the PGA Tour with aplomb,” Miceli wrote.
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Featured image of Nick Dunlap and caddie: NBC Sports screengrab
