Knicks fever is ripping through the New York Tri-State area this week. After decades of irrelevance, the Knicks are in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in 25 years. But the fever was tempered by an embarrassing, historic loss to the Indiana Pacers in Game 1.
That crushing loss wasn’t lost on up-and-coming PGA Tour pro John Pak, who finds himself in the lead at this week’s 2025 Charles Schwab Challenge. It turns out Pak took some motivation from the Knicks defeat to spark his stellar opening round.
John Pak inspired by New York Knicks’ loss
Pak, a self-described “die-hard Knicks fan,” hails from Scotch Plains, N.J. With respect to the former New Jersey Nets, most of New Jersey is Knicks land.
In 27 PGA Tour starts so far in his career, Pak has failed to notch a top-10 finish. But a seven-under 63 on Thursday gave him a three-shot lead at Colonial. He’s also five shots ahead of newly-minted PGA champion Scottie Scheffler.
How big of a Knicks fan is Pak? In his post-round press conference Thursday evening at Colonial, he brought up his favorite team unprompted.
When asked what he planned to do following his opening round, Pak revealed that on Wednesday night on the eve of Round 1, he’d struggled to sleep after staying up to watch the Knicks loss, and he was thankful he wouldn’t have to repeat the routine Thursday night.
“Thankfully the Knicks aren’t playing tonight, so I won’t be stressed about that,” Pak said Thursday. “I didn’t sleep well after that loss last night. I’m going to recover, do a little stretching, and then maybe watch the Thunder game later tonight.”
For those who missed it, the Knicks led the Pacers by as much as 17 points in the 4th quarter of Game 1 Wednesday night. They led by 14 with less than three minutes left in the game. They lost in overtime.
Pak then explained his Knicks fandom, and how rather than hurt his game, the devastating experience watching his team lose Wednesday night actually inspired him to his best round on Tour.
“That was historically one of the worst losses I’ve ever seen in my life,” Pak said. “There was a fire lit under me, yeah, this morning. I was a little pissed off about that.”
Why John Pak hasn’t gone to Knicks games
If Pak’s die-hard NBA fandom doesn’t make him relatable enough, his closing remarks about the Knicks in his Thursday press conference should do the trick.
When asked if he’d attended any Knicks games this year, Pak said he hadn’t. His reason? Tickets are way too expensive at Madison Square Garden, the Knicks’ Manhattan home.
“No, it’s too hard,” Pak said of attending games. “It’s Madison Square Garden. Those tickets go for a gazillion dollars.”
With the 18-hole lead at the Charles Schwab Challenge, Pak has a great opportunity to earn his best-career finish this week. And if he does, he’ll also collect the biggest paycheck of his career.
