TOUR REPORT
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1) Jon Rahm wins
the U.S. Open
This one had everything – the "unknowns"
(Richard Bland and Russell Henley) leading
for much of the way, the defending champion
Bryson DeChambeau entering the fray on the
final day only to suffer a major meltdown on
the back nine (two bogeys, a double and a
quad!), and a scenic, challenging course (Tor-
rey Pines South) to test the best.
In the end, you had Jon Rahm, only 26
years old but a top-3 player who had yet to
win a major, dueling with Louis Oosthuizen,
who had the tournament in his grasp – and
then didn't. In a jump-off-your-sofa conclu-
sion, Rahm drained two hard-breaking birdie
putts on 17 and 18 and Oosthuizen tugged
two heartbreaking drives on the same two
holes, which handed the U.S. Open to Rahm.
u u u
2) Patty Ice outlasts
Bryson to win the BMW
I'm not enamored with the FedEx Cup
playoffs because to me it's little more than a
glorified cash grab, but the 2021 BMW
Championship won me over.
For sustained drama, nothing in the 2020-
2021 PGA Tour season could touch this tour-
nament, when Patrick Cantlay, he of the
Hogan-like, icy demeanor, pipped Bryson
DeChambeau, he of the Hogan-like headgear
and sometimes-volcanic demeanor, on the
sixth extra playoff hole.
DeChambeau was at the height of his pow-
ers, bludgeoning the course with rocket
launcher drives and wedges dropped close. In
the playoff, however, he couldn't convert any
putt he absolutely needed, while the unflap-
pable Cantlay reeled off a succession of gigan-
tic drained putts at the end of regulation and
again in the playoff.
The tension between the two was palpable,
the quality of golf remarkable. Awesome.
u u u
3) Lefty shocks the
world at the PGA
Can you really catch lightning in a bottle? I
can't, but Phil Mickelson did at the PGA
Championship in May.
There was wind, there were waves and Ki-
awah Island's Ocean course was playing firm
and fast. One of the best setups in years meant
par was a good score. None of this favored
Phil. Not helping either was his age, 50, nor
his current form – he hadn't sniffed a top 10
finish all year.
No matter. Improbably, Lefty's instincts
FedEx Cup champion
Patrick Cantlay drove
off with the BMW
Championship in
the penultimate
event of the season.
Keep reading
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