This week’s Golf Legends profile features Patrick Cantlay, a player who can be divisive for golf fans and media alike.
Who is Patrick Cantlay?
Patrick Cantlay is currently the world’s #9 ranked golfer despite his worst season of recent years in 2024. We look at the thirty-two-year-old’s glittering career and ask, will he shortly be back to his best? Read on before you go place your bets at the top sportsbooks!
How It All Began for Cantlay
Born in Long Beach, California, Patrick Cantlay was earmarked for the top of his sport from an early age when his talent set him apart in junior and collegiate golf.
His freshmen year at UCLA saw Cantlay win four tournaments, including the Haskins Award as the most outstanding collegiate golfer. Cantlay became the world’s #1 ranked amateur, an honor he held for 54 weeks, which was a record until Jon Rahm beat it in 2016.
Cantlay also holds the record for the lowest round of an amateur player on the PGA Tour when he shot a 60 at TPC River Highlands in the Travelers Championship of 2011. He also lost the final of the American Amateur Championship during the same year earning him a Masters Tournament debut in 2012 at Augusta National, where he placed in 47th to take the low amateur honour.
Cantlay’s Professional Career
Unsurprisingly, Patrick Cantlay was one of the most highly touted amateurs to turn professional, and much was expected from him. So much so that in 2012, Cantlay chose to forfeit his final two years of college and take an invitation into the 2012 Open Championship.
Prior to turning pro, he was signed up by Tiger Woods agent Mark Steinberg, and his professional debut was the 2012 Travelers Championship a year on from that record low round as an amateur at the Connecticut track.
Cantlay’s first professional win came on the feeder KFT Tour at the 2013 Colombia Championship and by the end of that season, he earned his full playing privileges for the PGA Tour.
Derailed by Injury and Tragedy
That 2014 season was a write-off for Cantlay as he was only able to tee it up on five occasions due to a back injury. The PGA Tour granted him a medical exemption for 11 events, but he was unable to play in 2015 and 2016.
To compound those issues, he was hit further by the tragic loss of his caddy and best friend, Chris Roth in a hit-and-run accident in Newport Beach.
The PGA Tour Career Begins
With those medical exemptions still to use Cantlay locked up his PGA Tour card on his second start of 2017 when he was runner-up at the Valspar Championship. A hugely consistent year resulted in Cantlay qualifying for the Tour Championship.
It was not until 2018 that he won his maiden PGA Tour title at the Shriners Open, an event played in the fall of 2017 to start the wraparound season.
Cantlay has gone on to win eight PGA Tour events and is a two-time champion at the Memorial Tournament and BMW Championship.
Winless During 2023 and 2024
Despite being world-ranked #9, Patrick Cantlay will have much to prove during the new PGA Tour season.
His 2024 season was worse than 2023 after he lost a four-stroke 36-hole lead early in the year at the Genesis Invitational, which undermined his confidence, resulting in his form tailing off for the remainder of his campaign with his iron play unusually letting him down.
Controversial Cantlay
As mentioned on our intro, Patrick Cantlay has become a rather divisive figure in professional golf, recently for his board member status on the PGA Tour players committee that has been resisting the Saudi advances to take over men’s golf.
Prior to that, there was the hat incident at the Ryder Cup in Rome when Cantlay felt the golfers should be paid for representing the United States.
His deadpan demeanor and slow pace of play have also seen him criticized by the media and fans on occasions throughout his PGA Tour career.
Where Does Patrick Cantlay Go from Here?
We think next year will be a huge one for Patrick Cantlay to retain his place at the top table of professional golf. The Californian will need to rededicate himself to the sport and block out all the white noise that surrounds professional golf.
He has been through tough times before and shown huge resilience and strength of character, so he is more than capable of turning things around and taking the next step in his career of winning a major championship in 2025.
