Former Champion Nick Dunlap Among Three Withdrawals From The American Express

Nick Dunlap, who won The American Express two years ago, has withdrawn from the tournament because of injury

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The American Express has the largest field of the PGA Tour season, with 156 players beginning the California tournament on Thursday.

However, at the halfway stage of the event, which features a cut after 54 holes, three had withdrawn.

Luke Clanton at the Sony Open in Hawaii — Luke Clanton withdrew because of illness

Rico Hoey persevered a little longer. After a five-over 77 on Thursday, he played the front nine of his second round, going one over, before also succumbing to illness.

Like Clanton, Hoey began his season at the Sony Open in Hawaii, finishing T50, and he is also expected to tee it up at next week’s Torrey Pines event, illness permitting.

Rico Hoey at the RSM Classic — Rico Hoey was the second player to withdraw

Nick Dunlap went into the tournament hoping to replicate his success in 2023, when he became the first amateur to win a PGA Tour event since Phil Mickelson in 1991.

Dunlap has since won on the PGA Tour as a professional, when he lifted the Barracuda Championship trophy later that year, but he won’t be adding to that tally with a second win at The American Express after withdrawing following the second round.

Dunlap was five over after a 77 in his first round at the Pete Dye Stadium Course, before improving on Friday with a 74 at La Quinta Country Club, but that was his last action at the event, with an undisclosed injury bringing an end to his challenge after 36 holes.

The 22-year-old, who began his season with a tie for 61st at the Sony Open in Hawaii, is not in the Farmers Insurance Open field.

At the halfway stage of the tournament, Scottie Scheffler and Blades Brown led the way at 17 under. For Brown, there's a chance to make history, because if he makes the cut, he'll become the first player to play eight rounds in consecutive days across the Korn Ferry Tour and the PGA Tour.

Mike has over 25 years of experience in journalism, including writing on a range of sports throughout that time, such as golf, football and cricket. Now a freelance staff writer for Golf Monthly, he is dedicated to covering the game's most newsworthy stories.

He has written hundreds of articles on the game, from features offering insights into how members of the public can play some of the world's most revered courses, to breaking news stories affecting everything from the PGA Tour and LIV Golf to developmental Tours and the amateur game.

Mike grew up in East Yorkshire and began his career in journalism in 1997. He then moved to London in 2003 as his career flourished, and nowadays resides in New Brunswick, Canada, where he and his wife raise their young family less than a mile from his local course.

Kevin Cook’s acclaimed 2007 biography, Tommy’s Honour, about golf’s founding father and son, remains one of his all-time favourite sports books.

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