The most expensive four-putt you might ever see, from Nate Lashley

We’ve all had moments on the golf course where we hit a bad putt, or even have a bad putting hole. I don’t think any of us have come close, or even seen before, a four-putt like Nate Lashley had on Sunday at Pebble Beach.

Heading into the par-4 16th hole during Sunday’s final round at Pebble Beach, Nate Lashley was in a great spot. He was tied for the lead, and had a chance to win his second career PGA Tour event. Leaving the 16th hole, he had left behind at least half a million dollars.

Yup, you read that right. Nate Lashley and his four-putt cost him at least half a million dollars.

I’m not going to say that Lashley would’ve won the tournament. He would’ve needed to make his first putt at the 16th for par, and then had a birdie-birdie finish. That would’ve put him into the eventual tie for the lead at -18. Maybe it wouldn’t be so hard to believe that Lashley was going to make that first putt on 16.

Up until that point in the tournament, he was leading the entire field in SG: putting. So, seeing him line-up the 17-footer, a make wasn’t out of the question.

The last thing in anyone’s mind, and something that no one would expect to see, especially on the PGA Tour, is what happened next.

Nate Lashley would blow the first putt past the hole, leaving himself around a four-footer. Not a great result for a pro from just 17 feet, but still makeable for bogey.

Instead, he would blast it by again. And again. He would then finally make the fourth attempt, from just inside four feet, for the rarely seen four-putt triple bogey. It wasn’t just that, as he would slam his putter into the green, which looked like it left a noticeable mark on the putting surface.

Woof.

It dropped Nate Lashley completely out of contention, and cost him in more ways than one. Let’s go ahead and say that he finishes the same way that he did with a par-birdie. This would’ve seen him at -17, good for a solo second place finish, 300 FedEx Cup points, and $850,200.

Instead, he finished T-5th, with 105 FedEx Cup points, and $301,275.

Luckily for him, he made that birdie on 18, or else he would’ve been down to $228,930. I understand that it is still a lot of money, but it pales in comparison to $850,000.

Maybe he will be able to look back on this as a learning experience. We do know for certain that a four-putt cost Lashley $500,000, and fans are going to remember that for a long time.