Patrick Cantlay Even Proved Jon Rahm Wrong With Gutsy Bogey Save

When Patrick Cantlay’s ball nestled in between two wood planks on the 14th hole at Harbour Town, commentators were convinced he would take a drop from the penalty area. One of those confident announcers happened to be the No. 1 player in the world and last week’s Masters champion, Jon Rahm.

Following his final round 3-under 68, Rahm graciously joined CBS’s broadcast for more than 20 minutes. The Spaniard provided in-depth course analysis and unmatched insight into the games of the players in the tournament’s final pairing: Jordan Spieth, Cantlay and Matt Fitzpatrick. 

After his chip shot on the par-3 14th found the bulkhead, Cantlay spent almost five minutes discussing how to proceed with his caddie. 

All the while, Rahm, Trevor Immelman and Ian Baker-Finch had a lengthy conversation in the booth about how risky—and unnecessary—it would be for Cantlay to attempt to hit the shot. 

“There’s no way he’s playing this. I seriously doubt him giving this a shot,” Rahm said. 

“Because it’s sitting down, if he goes and hits it, it might kick backwards and then drop down into the water,” Immelman added.

Close-ups of Cantlay’s lie conjured memories of Will Zalatoris in the 2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship playoff. Zalatoris took a drop from a similarly dangerous position, avoided the possibility of his ball ricocheting back into the water, and ultimately won the tournament.

“If you’re two behind, and now you’re in this situation, are you going to take a bit more risk because you’re trying to keep pace with Spieth?” Immelman asked Rahm. 

“No, you can’t,” Rahm said. “Take a drop, hopefully make a four and try to go on a tear on the last few holes, that’s all you can do.”

“It’s massive risk over something that you’ve never practiced. There are too many unknowns in this situation,” the two-time major champion continued. 

After another minute went by it was clear that Cantlay and his caddie weren’t thinking so conservatively. 

The eight-time PGA Tour winner took out a wedge and expertly escaped the treacherous lie, leaving himself a four-foot putt for bogey—which he later made. 

The team in the booth—including Rahm himself—were both taken aback and impressed as Cantlay’s ball found the putting surface, seemingly with ease. 

“Everything we said just meant nothing,” Rahm said.