LA QUINTA, Calif. — When Chris Gilley’s head hit the pillow Friday night, the head golf professional at La Quinta Country Club had no clue that he would be a part of living history the next morning.
And then, in the overcast dawn before Saturday’s third round of the 2024 American Express, his phone rang.
“At 7:45 in the morning, I got the call that Will Furr withdrew,” said Gilley, “and was asked if I wanted to play some golf, which I’m always prepared for.”
Such prep has ample precedent as Gilley has received American Express withdrawal marker fill-in calls on four previous occasions across his eight years as La Quinta’s head pro.
This fill-in iteration, however, was unlike any which preceded it.
“The way it was said to me was, ‘the amateur you’re playing with is in the top five,’” Gilley said. “And I thought, ‘the amateur, in the pro-am, was having a good couple of days, and that he or she was in the top five.’ But when I went and looked at the tee sheet it was, ‘No. I’m playing with Nick Dunlap, the amateur who’s tied for third! This is gonna’ be great!’”
Nick Dunlap hits his tee shot on the seventh hole during the third round of the 2024 American Express at PGA West Stadium Course in La Quinta, California. (Photo: Ray Acevedo-USA TODAY Sports)
Gilley’s early morning enthusiasm proved an ultimate understatement. He soon had a front-row seat to one of the most magical rounds in the event’s 65-year history.
Dunlap, a 20-year-old sophomore from the University of Alabama and reigning U.S. Amateur champion, shot a bogey-free 12-under 60 at La Quinta, giving him a three-shot lead over Sam Burns heading into Sunday’s final round at the Pete Dye Stadium Course.
As Gilley fast assessed that Dunlap’s caddie had never seen La Quinta Country Club, he concurrently learned it was also the player’s maiden voyage on the grounds.
“So, I had to catch myself from sharing anything about the course,” smiled Gilley. “I just left it at: ‘It’s all right there in front of you.’ And boy was it.”
Preceding Dunlap’s superb 30-30 card on Saturday, the brass at La Quinta Country Club sent out a message blast informing members of Gilley’s participation. The resulting, initial gallery for the 9:36 a.m. tee time, starting on the grounds’ back nine, was heavy with Gilley-backed enthusiasm, if not modest in heft.
Such volume would soon change.
“I had the tee box on 10, I had the tee box on 11, and, after my birdie on 11, I had the tee box on 12,” Gilley said. “And then, he (Dunlap) went nuts.”
The 20-year-old carded four consecutive birdies on Nos. 11-14, before tallying two more on 16 and 17.
It didn’t take Gilley long to recognize the field’s lone amateur owned some serious talent.
“On the second shot on the (par-5) 13th, I laid-up with a 5-iron and he hit some sort of 5-iron onto the green and made birdie,” Gilley said. “And then on 17, I hit a decent drive and caught the right bunker and he outdrove me by 71 yards. And I’m like, ‘This doesn’t seem right,’ but this is the 20, 21, 22-year-old generation of great player, and this is what they do.”
As Dunlap kept making birdie, the gallery grew larger. A buzz moved across the property’s fairways as Dunlap grabbed the event’s solo lead, with the burgeoning fanbase a mix of those angling to view the phenom, coupled with club members eager to see Gilley keep some pace with the kid.
“Everywhere I look, I see different members,” said Skeeter Holt, a La Quinta Country Club member and resident since 1980, and himself a participant in the AmEx pro-am on 27 occasions. “It’s like they’re coming out of the woodwork. It’s unbelievable. And Chris, the guy hardly gets to play at all, and you’re seeing how good he is. The guy could fall off a log and play.”
The gallery’s vibe, enthusiasm and positive energy toward Gilley undoubtedly rubbed off on Dunlap, who began an earnest march toward a historical golf number with further birdies on holes 1, 4 and 5.
“My caddie and I were walking down holes 2, 3 and 4 and starting to try and figure out if there was a shot that he (Dunlap) missed,” Gilley said. “We couldn’t think of a single shot where he didn’t hit his line. And, obviously, he putted great today to make all those birdies, but I was floored how talented he was. And his demeanor, he didn’t get up, he didn’t get down – for anything.”
Come the 527-yard par-5 sixth hole and Dunlap’s slightly askew drive, those both inside and beyond the ropes were soon in awe at the youngster’s tradecraft.
Nick Dunlap watches his tee shot on the sixth hole during the third round of the 2024 American Express at La Quinta Country Club in La Quinta, California. (Photo: Ray Acevedo-USA TODAY Sports)
“When he hit his second shot, under the trees from the right rough on the sixth, I thought he muffed it, he hit it so low,” said Gilley. “And that 5-iron, it was just the perfect shot. I couldn’t believe how low he kept it, and ran it all the way up onto the green and he made the eagle. So creative. That was one of the greatest shots I’ve ever seen in-person.”
With a 59 watch and a tie of the tournament/course record officially in play, the head pro and the pairing’s two pro-am participants gave Dunlap a little distance.
“By the middle of our second nine, it was like the pitcher with the no-hitter going,” Gilley said. “We want to still engage, but we also wanted to be out of his way.”
With three holes to go, Gilley still had 59 in mind.
“We had three holes to go and he needed two (birdies) out of three,” said Gilley, “and I was like, ‘You gotta’ be kidding me,’ because the rain started to spit and the wind was just strong enough to affect the ball.”
Following the eagle, the ensuing par-3 presented what Gilley viewed as Dunlap’s lone setback of the round.
“The (birdie) putt on No. 7 was really the only one he missed all day. That’s a tough read to the back corner,” Gilley said. “That was the only putt that didn’t arrive at the hole with confidence. He and his caddie were going back-and-forth on that putt, maybe 25 feet, but that’s just a tough read. But other than that putt, the guy was flawless.”
After Dunlap opted to lay-up from the box on the eight hole and make a two-putt par, the notion of a 59 started to fade.
“Look, you never expect a guy to hole-out a wedge from the ninth fairway, but we were all rooting for it,” Gilley said.
After Dunlap’s aggressive approach over the bunker-guarded pin, Gilley saw the 20-year-old’s first raw emotion of the round.
“His demeanor didn’t change from the first tee until his guard went down when he made his last birdie putt to shoot 60,” said the head pro, who would card his own, even-par 72 for the day, “and then the big smile showed up.”
With Sunday’s final round of the American Express finding Dunlap in pole position to be the PGA Tour’s first amateur winner since 1991, Gilley sees little reason to doubt his chances.
“That’s the unknown, but, look, the guy has won a lot of tournaments, which is gonna’ help because you can’t fake experience,” Gilley said. “I can tell you that he’s a phenomenal putter, he’s got a good head on his shoulders and he hits the living daylights out of the ball, with no curve.”
As for Dunlap owning the wedge prowess generally needed to win a Tour event, the head pro paused.
“I don’t know if he can chip or hit a bunker shot,” Gilley quipped, “because, today, he never missed the green.”
“It was, honestly, just cool just to see the support from this country club kind of come out and support me, and obviously playing with the head pro was kind of cool too,” Dunlap said.
