Pro had a chance to win — and four-putted. His response was great.
Michael Gellerman hits his tee shot on Sunday on the 1st hole at Lakewood National.
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If you must know how Michael Gellerman’s Sunday went, just listen to the couple hundred folks stationed around the 18th green at Lakewood National. And if you don’t know who Gellerman is already, just listen to him at 7:25 a.m. the next morning.
On Saturday, Gellerman finished the third round of the Korn Ferry Tour’s LECOM Suncoast Classic with a one-shot lead. On the 17th hole on Sunday, Gellerman birdied, then-leader Byeong Hun An bogeyed up ahead, and when Gellerman was home in two on 18, he had a 30-foot bender to win. Two putts would get him into a playoff. The crowd will take it from here.
“Get in the hole.” “Get in.” “Get in.” And when the first putt slid to the right of the hole and finished about 6 feet past? “Ohhhh.”
The putt to get into the playoff, a 6-foot, nervy, right-to-lefter, stayed on the high side and missed. “Oh noooo,” someone cried.
The putt to finish tied for second, from about 2 feet away, lipped out. The gallery, again, moaned, “Ohhhh.” The fourth putt on 18, to finish tied for sixth, found the cup. And the gallery clapped.
And that was that. Or it could have been. The Korn Ferry Tour shared coverage of the 18th hole on its Twitter feed, so the 7,000 or so who have watched it as of Monday afternoon, along those around the 18th green, know what happened. And now you also do. But know this, too. It will be your most important takeaway.
Gellerman grabbed his iPhone on Monday morning and thumbed in five sentences.
“It was a tough sleep last night,” he wrote. “That one hurt to let slip away. I was simply not good enough. I appreciate all the kind texts/messages and all the support. I’ll be back! @TurtlesonTour @SrixonGolf”
Michael Gellerman did not have to say a word to describe to you how Sunday went. The couple hundred stationed around the 18th green at Lakewood National, after all, had already done that for him. Gellerman spoke anyway.
That should tell you the type of player he is.
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