Winning the U.S. Amateur was a rite of passage for Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. Highly touted 19-year-old Patrick Cantlay was ready to join the list Sunday when he rallied from four down to take the lead on 22-year-old Kelly Kraft in the 36-hole final of the U.S. Amateur on Sunday.
Not so fast, my friend.
With a series of mental mistakes, one termed a “brain cramp,” by NBC’s Roger Maltbie, Cantlay unraveled in revealing fashion. Kraft, a recent graduate of SMU, won 2 up.
This is what happened to Cantlay, the world’s top-ranked amateur, on his way to his defeat.
He misinterpreted a rule. He made a horrible club selection. And he three-putted from 15 feet. All three mistakes came on holes lost by Cantlay, the UCLA sophomore who was enjoying the best season by an amateur since 2004, when Ryan Moore won the NCAA championship, U.S. Amateur, U.S. Amateur Public Links and Western Amateur.
Instead Cantlay, who made the cut at the U.S. Open and then shot a 60 in contending for the PGA Tour’s Travelers Championship, now faces questions about his gumption. Yes, he had a great summer, but he also was runner-up at the NCAAs and the Western Amateur.
Cantlay’s most costly mistake Sunday came at the 34th hole. Putting from 15 feet to win the hole and take the lead, he blasted it seven feet past. Shaken, he badly missed the comebacker, going 1 down.
“I blew the tournament right there,” Cantlay said. “Both in the morning and the afternoon.”
Cantlay was referring to his misinterpretation of the rules on the first 18. After leaving a shot in the bunker, he was under the mistaken impression that his caddie had committed a violation, raking the sand. He conceded the hole to Kraft, going 4 down.
Later in the round, at 1 up with four holes left, Cantlay laid up with an 8-iron on the 238-yard par-4 15th, hitting the ball straight down the middle and into a gnarly pot bunker on his way to a bogey on perhaps the easiest hole at Erin Hills in Wisconsin.
Last September Cantlay entered UCLA as a lightly recruited unknown. A year later, his talent is undeniable. All he needs to show in 2012 is that he knows how to win.
– Kevin Dunleavy
