Just as you thought things were going smoothly, it all goes south. The 2026 Cadillac Championship is still going as scheduled but Jake Knapp’s plans for the tournament had fallen apart even before he could tee off. But that’s good news for one other individual.

Jake Knapp has withdrawn before his first round of the $20 million signature event because of a sprain in his left thumb. Kristoffer Reitan has replaced him in the 12:35 p.m. ET tee time with J.T. Poston.

Given the time of the update, it would not be wrong to assume he sustained the injury when he was practicing on the driving range at Trump Doral. Knapp would surely be disappointed for missing out on the event. Especially considering the splendid form he has been in all through 2026.

In the nine tournaments he has played, he has finished in the top-10 five times already. Considering his consistency, he was crawling closer to the second PGA Tour win of his career with every event. Notably, this wasn’t his first withdrawal this year. He had also exited the 2026 Arnold Palmer Invitational a couple of months ago to give way to Haotong Li.

Speaking of Reitan, he too has come off two great performances in April 2026. He got a T10 in the Valspar Championship, followed by a T2 in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans last week. But this is his first appearance in a signature event this season. So he will be grateful to Knapp for withdrawing from the tournament.

Knapp’s withdrawal does give hope to another golfer who is waiting on the field at Trump National Doral. And he will be eager to play the signature event.

Jake Knapp’s withdrawal might have gotten Brooks Koepka excited

The list of alternates for the 2026 Cadillac Championship initially had Brooks Koepka at first. However, after the conclusion of the Zurich Classic, Michael Thorbjornsen and Kristoffer Reitan took that spot, putting him in third.

Thorbjornsen had already booked his ticket to the event earlier, after Patrick Cantlay withdrew from it yesterday. Now, Knapp’s exit and Reitan’s entry into the field put Koepka back as the first alternate.

The five-time major winner needs only one more withdrawal to join the signature event. He was already seen waiting to qualify for the 2026 RBC Heritage as an alternate a couple of weeks ago. The 35-year-old is also trying to build his own path into signature events by playing a PGA Tour alternate event next week. Getting a place in the Cadillac Championship will surely help boost his confidence.