American Express 2021: Si Woo Kim Beats Patrick Cantlay by 1 Stroke for Win
January 25, 2021
Si Woo Kim was crowned the winner of The American Express on Sunday after back-to-back birdies secured him the lead over Patrick Cantlay at PGA West Stadium Course in La Quinta, California.
Entering the final hole with a one-shot lead, Kim made the putt for par to seal his third Tour victory.
Cantlay, who began Sunday in 13th, owned a share of the lead following the front nine, when he recorded a 30 to tie Kim.
That was just the end of his meteoric rise through the ranks. He was tied for 56th place after Friday.
Cantlay shot a 61 for the round, a course record and his second-lowest PGA Tour performance. He collected 11 birdies in the final round and ended the weekend leading the field with 29, but he wasn't able to stave off Kim's victory.
Kim entered the third round tied with Tony Finau for the first spot and continued his dominance on Saturday as he posted his second bogey-free round.
At the end of Saturday, Max Homa, Finau and Kim were atop the leaderboard with a score of 15 under, while there was a tight race to join them in first place, a list that featured 24 golfers shooting 10 under or better.
Homa followed up a birdie-filled Saturday with a four-over round, dropping to a tie for 21st.
After recovering from a double bogey to end the third round in the same place he started—a tie for the lead— Finau struggled again on Sunday. The two-shot lead he once held dissipated into Finau trailing by three shots with seven holes to go following a bogey on 11.
His fourth-place finish extends a historic draught—the 31-year-old hasn't won since 2016, but he's been one of the most successful golfers in that time. He has entered the final round within three of the lead 14 times and collected 34 top 10s since his winning outing at the Puerto Rico Open, but he hasn't been atop the podium.
"I would be lying if I said it doesn't sting to not have another one," Finau said after the third round.
Abraham Ancer and Michael Thompson had similar rises to the top of the leaderboard, finishing in a tie for fifth with Doug Ghim.
After opening the final round in a tie for 25th, Thompson managed to climb his way up to a share of the lead, but his descent began after a triple bogey on No. 13.
He ended the weekend at 15 under (six under in Round 4).
Final Leaderboard and Prize Money Payout
Winner: Si Woo Kim, $1,206,000
2: Patrick Cantlay, $730,300
3: Cameron Davis, $462,300
4: Tony Finau, $328,300
T5: Abraham Ancer, Michael Thompson, Doug Ghim, $247,900
T8: Byeong Hun An, Paul Casey, Francisco Molinari, Brian Harman, $189,275
T12: Henrik Norlander, Sungjae Im, Chase Seiffert, Rory Sabbatini $137,345
Full leaderboard via PGATour.com. Full payouts via GolfDigest.