American Express: Michael Gellerman Hits 4 Balls in Water on 2 Holes

Many people in the golfing world may not have heard of Michael Gellerman. But on Friday at the American Express, Gellerman made a name for himself in a way that he probably wished he hadn’t.

For those who have not heard of him, Gellerman is 28 years old and is playing his second season on the PGA Tour. This week marks his 21st career start, during which he has made eight cuts.

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On Thursday at the American Express, Gellerman shot a 72 in the first round of the event. Not a great round, but not awful, either. He was in a tie for 103rd heading into Friday’s round, needing to make something happen in order to make the cut and to be around for the weekend.

His Friday round started off quite nicely. On the par-4 first hole, Gellerman hit his drive in the fairway and stuck his second shot about five feet from the cup. He made the putt to get to 1-under par on the day. It was a nice start for Gellerman.

He would par the second and third holes, remaining at 1-under par on his round. While he wasn’t making a charge at the cut line, he wasn’t falling any further away from it.

On the par-3 fourth hole, Gellerman suffered his first bogey of the day. His tee shot went right and he pitched from the rough onto the green, about eight feet from the cup. But his par putt missed, and Gellerman fell back to even par on his round.

Then, his round fell completely apart on the fifth hole.

The par five is the toughest hole on the course and Gellerman certainly made it seem that way. His tee shot landed in the water. After a drop, his third shot also landed in the water. You probably see where this is going.

His fifth shot actually came to rest on dry land, but he was still about 275 yards from the green. His sixth shot, you guessed it, in the water. After dropping in the fairway, Gellerman’s eighth shot, from 140 yards out, landed about 11 feet from the hole.

His putt for a nine rolled past the cup. Gellerman would tap in for a 10, essentially ending any hope he had of making the cut.

But just in case there was even a glimmer of hope left, Gellerman took care of that on the sixth hole. Playing the par three, his tee shot landed, as you may expect, in the water. He dropped, pitched onto the green and two-putted for a double bogey, leaving him at 7-over on his Friday round.

Four balls in the water on just two holes is hard to do. But we saw it from Michael Gellerman on Friday.