How a 3 a.m. research session fueled Joel Dahmen’s career-saving day

Joel Dahmen says it was “the freakout of all freakouts.”

It arrived, naturally, at 3 a.m. on the day before (the day of, technically) a career-deciding round. Not quite “cold sweats,” but you get the idea.

But the most impressive piece is what happened after Dahmen’s “freakout”: The greatest golf comeback of his professional life.

Perhaps you’ve already heard the story of Dahmen’s rally at the RSM Classic last month, in which a six-under Sunday 64 clinched his PGA Tour status for 2025 on the number. Dahmen’s round that day — four birdies, an eagle, no bogeys — was rightfully celebrated, including the testy six-footer on the 72nd hole that fell into the bottom of the cup, pushing him inside the all-important top-125 on the PGA Tour and granting him full status for the following season.

But what you didn’t know about that round — the questionable research session two nights before that fueled it — makes it all the more impressive.

Dahmen told the story on this week’s episode of GOLF’s Subpar, which he says begins with an opening round 2-over at the RSM, and the knowledge going to bed on Thursday night that his PGA Tour career might officially be in jeopardy.

“So I went to bed, I probably fell asleep around 10, and I woke up at 2 or 3 a.m., and, like, I wouldn’t say like, night sweats, but the freakout of all freakouts,” he said. “I wasn’t going back to sleep at that point. There was no chance.”

With sleep not in his future, Dahmen decided to do something to combat his terror: He pulled up the PGA Tour’s player website and started scrolling. Before long, he’d figured out what he needed to shoot over the final three days at the RSM in order to keep his PGA Tour card.

“First time in my career, I went on to Tour Links, I clicked on synthetic stuff, and I started scrolling around figuring out how many points I needed and what I needed to pass,” Dahmen says. “I’m like, I probably need [six under]. Five would be close. Seven is definitely a lock. So I knew going out that morning that I needed birdies.”

Dahmen rallied that day to make the cut. But he was just one under par for the tournament when he awoke on Sunday morning, which meant he needed at least five birdies during his final round to feel good about his Tour future. As Subpar host Drew Stoltz pointed out, Dahmen’s decision to arm himself with concrete expectations ran counter to just about every piece of sports psychology advice.

“It was like, I knew what I needed to do,” Dahmen said.

And then, with his career on the line on Sunday afternoon, that’s precisely what Dahmen did, shooting the round of his life to maintain his PGA Tour life.

“The last thing I did was give a fist pound to [swing coach Rob Rashell]. I go, let’s go make birdies. And he goes, just be you,” Dahmen said with a laugh. “I was like, Well, me this year is 124. Let’s tap into Joel has had a nice career and is successful. So I was way more calm on Sunday. I was like, Man, if I just play good golf, I know I can shoot six under out here. And fortunately, I did.”

To hear the rest of Dahmen’s interview with the Subpar gang, including his hopes for life on the PGA Tour in 2025, you can check out the link below.