Patrick Cantlay hopes to finally end a three-year winless run on the PGA Tour after a strong start to the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands, and he has opened on his mindset on the course

Patrick Cantlay is in the hunt heading into the weekend at the Travelers Championship(Image: Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)

Patrick Cantlay is among the most divisive players on the PGA Tour. His meticulous, cold-blooded, and thorough nature can be infuriating for some, but he endeared himself to many Americans with a valiant performance in the face of defeat at the 2023 Ryder Cup.

The 33-year-old, fittingly nicknamed “Patty Ice,” is no stranger to facing a bit of chirping from the galleries when he’s out on the course, particularly after hitting tee shots. But he has given an insight into his mindset when he is inside the ropes, tuning out all the noise to focus on the job at hand.

“Yeah, I don’t hear too much of it. I’m sure they are [saying things], but when I’m out there, I’m just so focused on the golf,” the eight-time PGA Tour winner insisted after his second round at the Travelers Championship on Friday.

California-𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 Cantlay rose to the elite level in the sport in 2021, winning the BMW PGA Championship and Tour Championship in successive weeks to clinch the FedEx Cup title.

He would win the BMW Championship again the following season, but Cantlay is closing in on three years without a victory since. He has fallen from a fixture in the top five of the world rankings to No. 20, and his spot on the Ryder Cup team at Bethpage in September is far from secure.

But he has a good chance to stake his claim at the Travelers after a two-under-par second round at TPC River Highlands to improve to five-under for the tournament. Cantlay climbed into a share of ninth place, and he will start his third round on Saturday four shots adrift of the leading trio of Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas and Tommy Fleetwood.

Cantlay has not won on tour for almost three years(Image: Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)

Windy conditions in Hartford, Connecticut, significantly impacted the scoring on Friday after several players went low in the opening round, leaving the field bunched up and everything to play for heading into the weekend. Cantlay was pleased with how he faced up to the challenge.

“It was a grind out there with the wind the way it was,” he said. “The golf course plays really hard when it’s blowing 20. I thought I played well. All in all, a good round.

“It’s just really tough controlling your distance. It’s kind of swirly. It’s up and down. It’s not necessarily blowing a consistent direction. So just picking the right shot and committing to it was really my game plan. I thought I did it, all in all, pretty well today.”

Another man looking to break a winless run this weekend is Fleetwood, who has earned the most of any player without a PGA Tour victory to his name. The Englishman is closing in on $30 million in PGA Tour earnings, but he has been unable to get over the finish line stateside.

The world No. 17 produced a pair of eagles on his back nine to surge into a share of the lead, and he will hope this is finally his time to enter the winners’ circle on the PGA Tour.

After producing a superb five-under-par 65, he said: “It was really tough, actually. I think early on, you had to make sure you got your head around that it wasn’t a very scoreable day, especially on the front nine. Felt like there were a lot of tough holes. Feel like I scrambled really well.”