Flag IN or OUT: Will Davis Thompson regret decision on 17th hole at La Quinta?
Davis Thompson put up a superb fight against Jon Rahm in the final round of The American Express and he almost forced a playoff with a long-range putt on 17...
Jon Rahm has provided immense excitement with his game in 2023, but another highlight that must be recognised so far is the early performances of the emerging rookies on the PGA Tour.
Two names that spring to mind are Davis Thompson and Taylor Montgomery. Both were in contention on Sunday in La Quinta and both will have learned so much from competing with the best player on the planet right now.
Related: Rahm cracks underrated joke after winning yet again
We'll focus on Thompson who pushed Rahm all the way to his ninth Tour win. Much like his rookie colleague, Thompson suffered from a significant turning point on the par-3 17th hole on the Stadium Course that cost him the tournament.
Montgomery essentially shanked his tee shot into the water in the thick of contention, but Thompson found the heart of the green and faced a 50-foot putt for birdie.
He kept the flag in, which made sense. If he overhit his putt, the flag could save his ball from rolling further and further from the hole. But what happened next was staggering.
It’s a cruel game.
Davis Thompson was THIS close to tying the lead on 17 @TheAmExGolf. pic.twitter.com/Ygj9MURRvJ— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 22, 2023
The 23-year-old hit a super putt which rattled against the pin and stopped inches from the hole. He ended up losing to Rahm by one shot. The commentary team on television begged the question: would the ball have dropped if the flag had been removed?
In 2019, the rules of golf went through significant changes and one change meant you didn't have to remove the flag when putting anymore. This rule change is supposed to speed up play and give players the opportunity of a little buffer for their putts.
After the round on Sunday, Thompson spoke about the "what if" game:
"I usually always leave the stick in from a long distance. I feel like it helps me with my speed," he said.
"I had a great read. I probably hit it too firm. If it had great speed it would have just hit the flag and dropped. But we'll never know. I'm proud of myself for this week."
The putt was perhaps a little firm and you could argue leaving the pin in was a good decision. As the former University of Georgia man said, he always leaves the flags in for long putts. So can he have any regrets?
US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick is known to leave the flag in and former Masters champion Adam Scott has experimented too. There are advantages and disadvantages to these methods, as we saw last night.
There's no doubt there are big things on the horizon for Thompson despite his disappointment at The American Express and he is now owed a bit of fortune when he is next coming down the stretch.
