Amateur Nick Dunlap Wins PGA Tour Event But Everyone Missed This Unbelievable Part of The Story

[@coobay4786]

Good catch for Darkstar on Dunlap ranking. And yes, yall are the first ones to pick up on this that I've seen.👍

[@ThinkingManShow]

Thx Coo. Yep snaps to Darkstar - he was all over that element of the story.

[@tybo9]

I wish everyone who loves golf would watch this episode!! When Rahm falls out of the top 50 this will have to change!

[@JohnNiemsMusic]

It is amazing to hear this about this guy TMS! In fact how can he be ranked anyway as an amateur as he still is not a pro officially yet is he?

[@ThinkingManShow]

Not a pro John. Further undresses the OWGR for what it is - simply a scheme for the Majors to control pro golf.

[@oswjim]

OWGR is a joke

[@oahujuniorgolfassociationc6656]

It’s MORE than just a joke. It’s a tool for anti competitive practices. It’s like the most not American thing I’ve seen in a long long time.

[@biglittlebirdie450]

Nick should go to the PGA Tour. He will be playing in the elevated events and b/c the OWGR is flawed, his ranking is sure to climb even higher. He can then make the leap to LIV when his bid is higher. The other big factor is endorsements. He will make more money from endorsements on the PGA Tour and until that changes with big team sponsors is another big factor

[@CraigMoxey-b1g]

Great show guys.

[@MrHobbs-lm8jn]

Very good point on OWGR ranking basically a popularity pole. PGA needs to clean house in C suite and get LIV deal done

[@dinglbarry1275]

Oh wow! I didn't know Nick was home schooled. No wonder why he acts/seems so mature for his age

[@dinglbarry1275]

He's almost certainly going pro in that case, because he's not going to be one of those clowns who believes in the so called "education" propaganda. The degree is about the piece of paper in the event golf doesn't work out, but getting qualifiers into every event for 2 years... with sponsors... your set... no degree paper needed. I get a kick out of these muppets who go back to school to finish up their degree after they've already been successful, because they've bought into the propaganda and think they will be more "educated" for doing so. Actual education is a lifelong journey and is up to you and being home schooled, he'll get it. However, being on a campus living with friends, may be an experience he longs for above all else, so in that regard i could see an ever so slight chance, but he'll almost certainly take it. I'm sure he's aware of the grind many top pros have had to go through to get to the PGA.... at this point he gets to bypass that whole process and qualify for every event.

[@ag358]

Watched his win, he has total game he's gonna be great that's for sure.

[@booger65man]

The PGA is going to make a fine junior varsity league where up and comers earn their stripes!

[@w.martin9992]

I watched Nick win the USGA junior am in person, and I can tell you he's the real deal. He's an exceptional talent, and had a great summer in the elite Am series. I agree, a deal between the PGA Tour and LIV is going to inevitably happen, so if he happens to get a LIV offer, why not take it? I don't think those big signing bonuses will be around forever. Strike while the iron is hot.

[@DanielSong39]

Nick could very well become a successful PGA Tour pro However we've seen 4 of these in the last 4 years with widely disparate results (Wolff, Higgo, Tom Kim, Aberg) No idea how he'll turn out (to be fair the book is not closed on those 4 either)

[@SiLoMixMaster]

When amateurs are winning on the PGA Tour you know the fields are incredibly weak, Champions Tour players probably have a really good shot at winning on the regular PGAT events again

[@russellhoguephd7925]

It’s true, you could do away from champions tour and let them play in regular pgat events.

[@ThinkingManShow]

Excellent point SiLo. True.

[@alexsamain812]

Once Tiger turns 50, the Champs tour will be more popular than the PGA.

[@grahamsampson769]

Tell Phil Mickelson the field was weak when he won as an amateur in Tucson 33 years ago.

[@johnpaton8047]

Hell yeah, I wanna play golf under Jon Rahm!! Global up your golf. Yeah, baby. Let's go...!!

[@alexsamain812]

I agree with DS, i think he turns pro in June after trying to win NCAA with Bama. Let him get his team organized first, no rush.

[@robertbrown7470]

By the way, Andy Ogeltree is on the LIV Tour now!

[@springleaf1035]

Dunlap should work out a Name Image Likeness contract with Liv, be invited to play their events as an amateur and stay in college at the same time, and maybe rake in some more endorsement money along the way.

[@senorcornersatx]

I know the implication is questioning how the LIV guys are falling down the rankings…but Dunlap is better than 68th in the world. The dude can move it, and he stared down 2 time Major Champion and a 5 time winner and finished on top.

[@DanielSong39]

Everyone was making LIV Golf jokes the moment he withdrew from the Farmers

[@oahujuniorgolfassociationc6656]

I do believe this guy is a top 50 pro Right now; as he is actually better than many guys who are in the top 5o now. He should go. I think Harvey said: A great putter is a match for anyone. And yes future injuries have to be considered. Zalatoris. I think the suits felt immediately the same way Rory felt about Rahm needing to be in the event. But can any golf show one time avoid Rory altogether ? Guys like nick can find mentors anywhere. Jack would mentor nick. I do agree with you about the concerns of the golf demographic. But I will say as happens often a friend of mine just got the golf bug big time in his 40s. He now plays a lot, keeps up, is getting his kids into the sport. Point is: golf may struggle to get young people but eventually those people become old; and many times golf starts to appeal to them later in life. Golf needs to get younger but it does also need to maintain that sophistication that makes older folks move away from the nba and nfl and other sports to follow golf more; as has been happening for decades. That being said it is a constant undeniable issue that the average golf viewer has two years of life left on average. Mentors is big but money is waaaaay bigger; for the reasons DS likes to talk about: frees you up. Not sure how Alabama feels today about LIv but Y’all did not mention this kids agent has a ton of players on his roster that play on LIV. I do think the kid should do what B team says. But At the end of the day DS is probably spot on: he plays as an amateur through the Masters and the NC double As and then stays on the owgr prison system of sorts that is the pga tour so he can play more majors. Ironically Majors which are diluting themselves of top talent by choice. But that’s not here nor there.

[@DanielSong39]

I think the kid has a ton of potential but from what I've seen he would be a slightly below average PGA Tour pro right now His other 3 appearances are MC His driving is not quite there His short game is below average He looks like he would be ~2 strokes a round worse than the top pros right now

[@oahujuniorgolfassociationc6656]

@@DanielSong39He has to keep developing like everyone else. He’s a kid. But he clearly knows how to take advantage of opportunities and win.

[@ThinkingManShow]

Great great effort and win. Not 68th in world. Should go pro now. Fairytale putting likely does not last.

[@oahujuniorgolfassociationc6656]

⁠@@ThinkingManShowas you likely heard he is going to the pga tour now. We shall see how playing FOR $$$ changes things if at all. We couldn’t agree more: I’m glad to hear he will start his financial security now while the iron is hot because whether it’s putting amazing or sublime driving or health …nothing is guaranteed tomorrow.

[@ThinkingManShow]

True Oahu. And yes, we later today EST saw the news that he announced for PGAT. We expected he would not follow our advice to LIV in this video because of “Majoritis” but at least he’s going pro now as he should. Good for him.

[@robertbotelho7223]

Nick Dunlop should go to LIV because as a member of a team he will get monitoring and advice that can not be had anywhere else. See how David Puig who was the #2 amateur in the world at 20 when he joined LIV as an amateur. He is now a force in LIV to be reckoned. The PGA tour is every man for himself league. The landscape is littered with great amateurs that didn't last long on tour even with great expectations out of college. Remember this win was in a very weakened filed not like the filed that Phil beat to win as an amateur.

[@davidbrennan3161]

The John Deere is not a hit and giggle event. Don't demean that field just because it might be considered weak. You still have to play good golf to win & if you look at its history, no matter if you were at Oakwood CC, or the TPC Deere run; the winner that week still beat 155 other golfers and includes players that went on to win major events not in the Quad Cities.

[@ThinkingManShow]

Thanks David..........our point is: how many of the top 30 play in the Deere vs going to the UK to prepare for The Open? "Hit and giggle" in this show's context is a weaker field and or course setup. We are aware that pro player #200, for example, is still a heck of a good player compared to even a scratch weekend golfer.

[@jersam7262]

I heard he has joined Bryson management team

[@melvinsilver2674]

4 American players from the most recent Ryder Cup team lost to an amateur in a 72 hole stroke play event. Zach Johnson truly believes life is like a box of chocolates.

[@jimmerhardy]

Dunlap's amateur winnings must be put into an annuity, right? He can't accept it now, but there's no way he didn't earn it. How's that setup?

[@alexsamain812]

He only got invited because he was an amateur. What he lost in winnings, will more than make up for in endorsements. Plus he secured a job until 2026. I just hope he gives his caddie a 100k I O U

[@dinglbarry1275]

I'd be shocked if LIV was interested in Nick. Nothing against the guy, I like him, but he still needs to prove himself. That was Nicks 4th time playing in a pro event and he missed the cut the other 3 times. His price tag is fluff at this point. Obviously LIV initially brought in some weaker players to fill the field... however they were essentially walk ons. This play would make no sense for LIV. He's a cinderella story, however the general public as a collective has a tendency to get obsessed in the moment. I wouldn't be surprised if Nick misses the cut in his next pro event and then all of a sudden the general public thinks he's a bust. But as "we" should know... golf doesn't work that way. Which is exactly why the OWGR ranking Nick 63 is ridonculous. I'm rooting for Nick going forward, but I theorize that the course they played was favorable to Nick's game. I theorize the tougher courses maybe more challenging for Nick vs the field. I''m just not going to get ahead of myself. A player who I theorize may be a good prospect relatively early on going forward is Aberg, but he's had several good finishes in a short period of time. With Nick we just have one on an atypical pro course.... his amateur stats are impressive though

[@DanielSong39]

I think LIV should give this kid a phone call just to troll the PGA Tour and ensure that he gets an 8 figure bag from the Tour

[@oahujuniorgolfassociationc6656]

It’s simple dude: he won as an am on the pga tour. It would be a devastating blow. But personally I also do think he has the goods.

[@andreastusch2526]

My favourite thinkers….are you already debating Adrian Meronks move to LIV?

[@ThinkingManShow]

Happy Saturday Andreas. Happy to. What’s your take on Meronk?

[@billmoyer3254]

Dunlap....heads you win, tails you win.

[@Gottaloveit468]

Anyone who wins a professional golf tournament is a professional. I like to see amateurs in the field but there should be some risk. If they win, it’s an automatic advancement to professional status. An amateur doesn’t have the same approach to a tournament as a pro-there’s no downside to going for broke on every hole. Pro’s have to consider the money from shot to shot.

[@larryverdugo3553]

I think LIV would be a easier transition to go pro. Team to another team. Team support to being solo.

[@DanielSong39]

If he avoids relegation sure James Piot, Turk Pettit, Andy Ogletree all got dropped at some point

[@jimmerhardy]

Guess who got Dunlap's winnings: 'Christiaan Bezuidenhout might not have won, but it was still his lucky day. He cashed the $1.5 million “winner’s” check even though he finished second.' And that is a royal rip-off.

[@Kevin-l4]

Dunlap is under same management as most that have gone to LIV. Just saying 😊

[@ingolfurhreiarsson8838]

3 or 4 millions if Nick plays well on the pga tour..."If he plays well" Exactly, that´s a one thing you do not need to do in LIV... play well.

[@DanielSong39]

Relegation is brutal You lose the timing for PGA Tour Q school Back to the Asian Tour for you! (To be fair Asian Tour is a lot better than it was even 2 years ago)

[@dalvinaverill6802]

this is how the owgr has skewed all the points towards the pgat. Dean B. won 12.6 and 11.9 points for his wins at Joburg open and SA open. Louis won 11.0 and 14 points for his two wins. Joaquin N. won 14.7 points for the Aussie open. Christian B., who was in 3/4 of the South Africa events that the pgat trolls declared were weak fields, took 2nd at Amex and got 33.4 points. The winner, Nick got 55 points which is more than half of the majors (100 points for a major). I'm not sure how he jumps 4000 spots with 55 points in one tournament, but that's another subject. Bottom line is the owgr needs to be flushed down the toilet.

[@ThinkingManShow]

Good data Dalvin, thx! And yes.

[@cwmcclintock5757]

The kid doesn't have an official Agent yet (still a USGA violation?) so Yasif must be calling his Dad directly. lol. In the ultimate final facial to never screw with LIV again, Nick spends a year on LIV, then claims his PGA years. The kid could be the poster boy for the transitional love fest of PGA and LIV. PGA couldn't turn him down because the Sponsors are leaving skidmarks avoiding talks to up the cost on their tournament deals. In other Q's, Is there anybody who isn't rechartering their money-funnel LLCs in Dubai? I actually still know people who think PIF is going to be happy as a mere Revolving Credit Facility for the PGA. BTW, Herlihy is getting impatient. Little known fact from the WSJ in 2008. He brought $100B in M&A to his firm. He sat quietly in the room when Bernanke and Paulson were squeezing the CEOs. For his attendance, he got the sale of Bear Sterns crumbs to JPM and the sale of Merril Lynch with their horrifying debt assets to Ken Lewis with zero due diligence. Didn't work out very well for Ken. It's been about a century and half, but the North hammered the South again.

[@GoldGunsandGolf]

Problem is, he did it WITHOUT a technical full field.... a lot of the top players were NOT THERE!! they are on LIV!!!!

[@wodenoftheangles3339]

Its a valid point - but not even the pga top players were there!

[@donnachalyons6460]

Nick Dunlap is still only ranked 3rd in the Amature rankings behind Gordan Seargent, shouldn't he be ranked 1st whe he's 68th in the OWGR?

[@DanielSong39]

I remember when Ratchanon Chantananuwat had a decent OWGR

[@fusemunk]

Nick turn pro, get a big sponsorship deal - because your swing is not an Aberg (that will last) - it's just ok. You won on a no name tour against a few good/great players who are just warming up.

[@Surfsaus]

Embarassing. Owgr should change it's name to the american pga tour ranking system. To call it worldwide is laughable. Might be time for a real worldwide ranking system run by LIV.

[@catgolfer1]

Stay an amateur. Win the Masters.😺

[@peterbarnes547]

If he's home schooled how does he have a college golf coach

[@alexsamain812]

High school home schooled

[@hjplano]

hey whats wrong with the couuntry clubbers coming up thru AM golf to pro golf, this burn hits too close 🤣

[@ThinkingManShow]

Sorry Jim! Cheers to the club kids who climb the ladder. 👍

[@78tag]

The fact that the PGA has only a glimmer of its original shine kinda takes away from this accomplishment. Who was he competing with? The PGA is peeing their pants to get a new super star (for super ratings = $$$$)

[@wodenoftheangles3339]

Why turn down a guaranteed sum of dollars that may take him 10 years to earn on the pga, when who knows - in a couple of years they will be co-sanctioned 'global tour' anyway...?

[@billbkr32ify]

LIV would be a mistake he would have to LIV with the rest of his life.

[@seanmawson6286]

I'm sure he'll be fine if he goes to l i v as they are in the driver's seat have you been listening to what's going on because it's certainly going l i v why the PGA needs pif to survive and believe me there will be a deal done then the best players in the world will come together once again that will be a great day😊

[@billbkr32ify]

@seanmawson6286 nothing like seeing a bunch of Americans backing and supporting terrorists blood money. Same terrorists and money that backed 911. How quickly do people forget, though, right? As long as they can wear shorts and listen to music who cares? All forgotten

[@78tag]

You would ask him where he sees video games fitting into the competitive landscape as a person coming from middle/high school ???? Didn't you just say he is home schooled? Are you really saying you think his parents had him playing video games? He might have competed with kids that age but he obviously won't have the same mentality as them.

[@ThinkingManShow]

Thanks 78.........every kid in first world countries plays video games. Yes, extremely interesting to us how Nick, at his age, views the competition between video games and sports (of course golf in particular) for young audiences.

[@dereckguilfoyle1219]

The only interesting thing is he withdrew from the Farmers which lead to LIV questions. Otherwise now that hes qualified for the signature events. Id recommend he stays on the pgatour and im a massive LIV fan. The pgatour will rally around this youngster and get him sweet sponsorship deals. Hes only 20, pgatour fields are the weakest in decades, big money events are available to him and the pgatour will market him like Jordan Speith as the new blue eyed boy. Unless LIV offers him a huge multi year deal

[@mauricemoore6679]

by WHO what a load of crap lets see some worthwhele

[@jimmerhardy]

LIV won't count or match up until they change their name and adopt the TOUR's 72 holes. Sorry.

[@seanmawson6286]

I get what you're saying but what you're saying is wrong the pif have all the money and the PGA have none sorry

[@DanielSong39]

Tournament golf is traditionally a 36 hole event, 3 rounds of 12 holes each, played in a single day

[@jimmerhardy]

@@DanielSong39 That was then (before TV) and this is now.

[@DanielSong39]

@@jimmerhardy Well people are saying the same thing about the 72 hole format The current TV model is slowing being phased out

[@jimmerhardy]

@@DanielSong39 Not in our lifetime.

[@Duh_Huh_24]

Other than your ranking comments you're just dreaming up gripes. In his interviews he talks about the pga players that have mentored him so you have zero idea what you're talking about. you go on about mentoring as if you know something lol. He'll be set with sponsorships. you're broke and have limited earning potential. He isn't. He talks about taking his opportunity to go on the PGA tour and whether he will take it or go back to school. He isn't going to play on the LIV golf tour and travel the world, silly.

[@ThinkingManShow]

Thank you Diel for tuning in. Nick may well get some advice from JT as an Alabama guy - and Nick has announced for the PGAT as we thought he likely would. But that’s not even close to a LIV team situation with a Jon Rahm and the close ranks of so many Major winners with different styles and skills. From Norman on down to Koepka, DJ, Sergio (best ball striker alive), Cam Smith, Phil and the list keeps going. Traveling the world is a ton of time to get tight with the other guys.

[@chezchezchezchez]

Why would you say something stupid like he’s the 68 best player in the world when everyone knows the OWGR is a joke because of all the great players on the LIV, now why would you say that? Do you want people like me to subscribe to your channel or not? Start saying the right thing.

[@ThinkingManShow]

Ahhhh. Are you commenting on our video Chez? 4:20 mark sums up our OWGR view.