Beauty in the Struggle

Twenty-one-year-old Nick Dunlap is amidst one of the most admirable seasons I can recall from a young pro. Just a year removed from being in complete control of his game and becoming the first amateur to win on the PGA Tour since Phil Mickelson in 1991, Dunlap is going through deep, deep struggles.

It isn’t an exaggeration to say that Dunlap is currently the worst driver of the golf ball on the PGA Tour by a significant margin. He ranks dead last on Tour in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee by more than a quarter of a stroke and is missing tee shots both hard left and way right. The other pieces of Dunlap’s game remain intact, but his driver is a massive problem right now.  

I walked with Nick during one of his U.S. Open practice rounds at Oakmont a few weeks ago. On the 12th tee, he hit two hard duck hooks well left of the fairway. I considered diving in front of the second one to protect Nick and the rest of the gallery. You could feel the collective wince from the crowd as the second ball began curving hard left immediately after impact. There is a physical pain associated with watching such a talented young player battle full-blown driver yips.  

And yet, Dunlap has handled the most public and severe downturn with a tremendous amount of dignity and class. He hasn’t hidden from the spotlight nor withdrawn from tournaments with cheap excuses to shield himself from the embarrassment of a bad score. He’s played right through it.

Back at the Masters, Dunlap posted an opening round 90, the worst score posted at Augusta since Ben Crenshaw shot 91 in 2015 at the age of 63. Dunlap spent that Thursday night bashing golf balls into the woods behind his Airbnb, searching for his swing in the darkness. With no chance of making the cut, he returned for more on Friday and bounced back with a 1-under 71.

At this week’s John Deere Classic, he finished T-11, a glimpse of light through a stretch that’s included many more encounters with the bottom of the leaderboard than anywhere near the top. The Deere marked Nick’s second top-15 finish in 22 starts dating back to last August. The data does not suggest that Dunlap has turned a corner after this week’s performance at TPC Deere Run. He lost 5.5 strokes to the field off the tee, ranking dead last, while gaining more than five strokes with his irons and nearly 11 strokes with his putter, ranking first in the field. The driver remains unsolved.

Hopefully a positive performance can provide a confidence boost for one of the most talented young players in the sport, whose decorated amateur career shouldn’t be forgotten at this low point in his professional career. Dunlap has ample time to work through his driver issues. Whether or not he fixes them remains the biggest question mark for the PGA Tour sophomore. Regardless of where the ball comes off the clubface, the maturity Nick Dunlap has shown while dealing with setbacks in the public eye is a wonderful example for golfers who face similar struggles to follow.

Amateur Hour

It was a banner weekend for the top-ranked male and female amateur golfers in the world.

On the Ladies European Tour, world No. 1 amateur Lottie Woad lapped the field at the KPMG Women’s Irish Open, winning by six shots at Carton House. Woad dominated the tournament from start to finish, posting four scores in the 60s to comfortably beat out established pros like Madelene Sagstrom and Charley Hull, who also finished in the top five.

With 18 LEAP points to her name, Woad will wait at least until she’s earned her 20th point to turn professional. Whenever she decides to turn professional, the 21-year-old former Augusta National Women’s Amateur champion has the potential to be a legitimate threat on the LPGA with a proven track record of competing in the strongest fields in women’s golf, as evidenced by a T-10 at last year’s AIG Women’s Open.

Elsewhere in impressive amateur performances, Auburn’s Jackson Koivun posted a T-11 at the John Deere Classic. The No. 1 amateur on the men’s side, Koivun fired one of the low rounds of the week, a bogey-free 7-under 64 on Friday to shoot up the leaderboard. He closed with 68-67 on the weekend to post his best finish in six PGA Tour appearances.  

As far as stats go, Koivun ranked third in the field off the tee for the week and second in Strokes Gained: Putting. His ball speed with driver consistently hovered between 175-177 mph, topping out at 179. Those numbers don’t place Koivun among the game's speediest, but it’s plenty to compete in pro golf. Just ask Brian Campbell. For reference, Koivun’s ball speed puts him right in the range where Scottie Scheffler lives.

Koivun was held back by his iron play, losing more than five strokes to the field. As he acknowledged after Sunday’s round, the approach play is an area he’ll need to tighten up moving forward.

The next time we’ll see Koivun will be at the ISCO Championship this upcoming week, where he’s set to compete once again as an amateur. His timeline for turning professional is to be determined, but there is no doubt the back-to-back SEC individual champion is currently one of the most exciting prospects in the game.

‍This piece originally appeared in the Fried Egg Golf newsletter. Subscribe for free and receive golf news and insight every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.