News

2016 Masters Rd. 1: Spieth leads again, Day stumbles late

Published

9 years ago

Apr 7, 2016

Jordan Spieth might be forgiven for making people think they had called up the 2015 Masters on their DVR. The defending champion posted three birdies on each half of the Augusta National course and evaded bogey’s snare on Day 1 of the 2016 tournament. No other golfer could say the same at the end of the day, and Spieth stands atop the leaderboard on Thursday evening, two shots clear of Danny Lee and Shane Lowry.

Jordan Spieth doing Jordan Spieth things. https://t.co/iHyKFmYHoo

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) April 7, 2016

More Downs Than Ups

The most uneven round belonged to Rickie Fowler, who appeared to dash hopes with a first-hole double bogey, only to bounce back with three consecutive birdies to get into red figures. The Californian then fully crushed all pre-tournament expectations for a first major title by playing a wretched back nine of 44. Fowler’s implosion included an additional four bogeys, a double and a triple.

Of golfers still in contention, Angel “El Pato” Cabrera went birdie-quad-birdie on the stretch from holes 14-16, somehow finishing at one-over par 73. Scott Piercy was nearly as up and down as Fowler, but found a way to avoid the really big numbers. Piercy had an eagle and three birdies on his day, but gave them all back with three bogeys and a double. Cabrera, Piercy and Fowler, however, avoided the misfortune of being Ernie Els. Els began his day by six-putting the first green for a quintuple-bogey nine. The Big Easy had a par putt from three feet, missed it, then missed four more times before a final stab dropped the ball into the hole.

The Chasers

Behind Lee and Lowry was a host of familiar names, all of whom had successes and failures over the hills of the Augusta National course. The English trio of Paul Casey, Ian Poulter and Justin Rose stood three strokes behind the leader at minus-three. Casey had as many birdies (6) as the leader, but dropped shots on 11, 12 and 17 to finish at 69 on the day. Poulter and Rose matched their countryman’s six birdie-three bogey performance in a bizarre showing of coincidence.

Watch @TheSergioGarcia hit his second shot close for a birdie on No. 14, to move to 1-under par. #themasters https://t.co/sLcXijs95e

— Masters Tournament (@TheMasters) April 7, 2016

Showing signs of rejuvenation and teasing his fans with a run at a first major was Spain’s Sergio Garcia. Competing in his 67th consecutive major championship (tops among active players) Garcia etched four consecutive birdies onto his scorecard to turn a banal performance into an admirable one. The great iron master was flawless from holes 13 through 16 as he moved onto the leaderboard’s first page. El Niño almost gave some back on eighteen with a drive into the woods, but a miraculous recovery from the right-side timber to the home hole’s green surrounds allowed him to sign for his own 69. Also at 69 was Soren Kjeldsen of Denmark, whose son set a standard for post-birdie celebration during the Par Three Contest, that his father has yet to emulate.

The Other Favorites

A hole that normally gives tidings of great joy, the par-5 hole No. 15, was a round-wrecker for some. Jason Day had reached five-under when he hit an off-target wedge to a distant part of the green. He three-putted for bogey, then followed with triple bogey and another bogey on the next two holes to drop to even-par 72 on the day. For Rory McIlroy, it wasn’t 15, but 16 that began the downfall. The world’s No. 3-ranked golfer had pushed his needle to four-under when he found previously-uncharted territory on the green at Redbud. The four-time major winner, just a green jacket away from a career grand slam, three-jacked to give one stroke back, then followed on the last with a bailed approach to a buried lie in a greenside bunker. Unable to get up and down for the par, McIlroy penciled in another bogey for a round of 70.

A day after his record-setting performance in the Par Three Contest, Jimmy Walker embarked on the difficult mission of winning the undercard and the main event in the same year. Walker got to two-under on three separate occasions, but was unable to go deeper, eventually settling for a 71 on the day. As for this year’s hot amateur, Bryson DeChambeau putted like one. The defending U.S. Amateur and NCAA Division 1 champion hit 13 of 18 greens in regulation, but made only one birdie on the day. Kudos to him for exhibiting patience, as his only miscue came on the suddenly stingy 15th hole, where he made bogey for 72.

What’s In Store For Round 2

Will Spieth be able to repeat his first-day magic act with a Friday afternoon tee time? Odds say no, as he will face windblown greens with footprints and other imperfections. Who can bounce back from a first-round triple bogey? If anyone can, it’s world No. 1 Jason Day. The 2015 PGA Champion will have an ideal, morning start time and needs to go into the mid-60s to make Spieth and the other contenders take notice. The same goes for Phil Mickelson, who played around all day in plus figures until he went Garcia on us for a time. Lefty got to one-under on 17, then gave the stroke back at the last to finish even on the day. Our prediction for biggest mover on day two is … Brandt Snedeker. The Nashville native has finished top-10 twice at Augusta and dipped to minus-three on Thursday through nine holes. Standing at minus-one after 18 holes, Snedeker has an ideal, 9:04 tee time, when greens should still be soft from overnight showers.

News

Tour Rundown: Bend, but don’t break

Published

3 weeks ago

Aug 4, 2025

Ronald Montesano

I’m going to gush in this intro paragraph, to get the emo stuff done early. I’ve not pulled harder for a professional to win, than Cameron Young. I coach golf in New York state, and each spring, my best golfers head to a state championship in Poughkeepsie. I first saw Cameron there as a 9th grade student. I saw him three more times after that. I reconnecected with Coach Haas from Wake Forest, an old interview subject from my days on the Old Gold and Black, the Wake newspaper. He was there to watch Cameron. After four years at Wake Forest, Young won on the Korn Ferry Tour, made it to the big tour, almost won two majors, almost won five other events, and finally got the chalice about 25 minutes from the Wake campus. Congratulations, Cameron. You truly are a glass of the finest. #MotherSoDear

OK, let’s move on to the Tour Rundown. The major championship season closed this week in Wales, with the Women’s Open championship. The PGA Tour bounced through Greensboror, N.C., while the PGA Tour Americas hit TO (aka, Toronto) for a long-winded event. The Korn Ferry lads made a stop in Utah, one of just two events for that tour in August. The many-events, golf season is winding down, as we ease from summer toward fall in the northern hemisphere. Let’s bask in the glory of an August sunrise, and run down a quartet of events from the first weekend of the eighth month.

LET/LPGA @ Women’s Open: Miyu bends, but she doesn’t break

Royal Porthcawl was not a known commodity in the major tournament community. The Welsh links had served as host to men’s senior opens, men’s amateurs, and Curtis and Walker Cups in prior years, but never an Open championship for the women or the men. The last-kept secret in UK golf was revealed once again to the world this week, as the best female golfers took to the sandy stage.

Mao Saigo, Grace Kim, Maja Stark, and Minjee Lee hoped to add a second major title to previous wins this season, but only Lee was able to finish inside the top ten. The 2025 playing of the Women’s Open gave us a new-faces gallery from day one. The Kordas and Thitikulls were nowhere to be found, and it was the Mayashitas, Katsus, and Lim Kims that secured the Cymru spotlight. The first round lead was held at 67 by two golfers. One of them battled to the end, while the other posted 81 on day two, and missed the cut. Sitting one shot behind was Miyu Yamashita.

On day two, Yamashita posted the round of the tournament. Her 65 moved her to the front of the aisle, in just her fourth turn around a women’s Open championship. With the pre-event favorites drifting off pace, followers narrowed into two camps: those on the side of an underdog, and others hoping for a weekend charge from back in the pack. In the end, we had a bit of both.

On Saturday, Yamashita bent with 74 on Saturday, offering rays of hope to her pursuing pack. England’s Charley Hull made a run on Sunday closing within one shot before tailing off to a T2 finish with Minami Katsu. Katsu posted the other 65 of the week, on Saturday, but could not overtake her countrywoman, Yamashita. wunderkind Lottie Woad needed one round in the 60s to find her pace, but could only must close-to’s, ending on 284 and a tie with Minjee for eighth.

On Sunday, Yamashita put away the thoughts of Saturday’s struggles, with three-under 33 on the outward half. She closed in plus-one 37, but still won by two, for a first Major and LPGA title.

PGA Tour @ Wyndham: Young gathers first title near home

Cameron Young grew up along the Hudson river, above metro New York, but he also calls Winston-Salem home. He spent four years as a student and athlete at Wake Forest University, then embarked on tour. This week in Greensboro, after a bit of a break, Young opened with 63-62, and revved the engine of Is this the week once more. Runner-up finishes at the Open, the PGA, and a handful of PGA Tour events had followers wonder when the day would come.

On Saturday, Young continued his torrid pace with 65, giving him a five-shot advantage over his closest pursuer. Sunday saw the Scarborough native open with bogey, then reel off five consecutive birdies to remind folks that his time had, at last, arrived. Pars to the 16th, before two harmless bogeys coming home, made Young the 1000th winner of an official PGA Tour event (dating back to before there was a PGA Tour) throughout history. What’s next? I have a suspicion, but I’m not letting on. Mac Meissner closed with 66 to finish solo 2nd, while Mark Hubbard and Alex Noren tied for third.

Korn Ferry Tour @ Utah Championship: Are you Suri it’s Julian?

Who knows exactly when the flower will bloom? Julian Suri played a solid careet at Duke University, then paid his dues on the world’s minor tours for three years. He won twice on two tours in Europe, in 2017. Since then, the grind has continued for the journeyman from New York city. At age 34, Suri broke through in Beehive state, outlasting another grinder (Spencer Levin) and four others, by two shots.

Taylor Montgomery began the week with 62, then posted 64, then 68, and finally, 70. That final round was his undoing. He finished in that second-place tie, two back of the leader. Trace Crowe, Barend Botha, and Kensei Hirata made up the last of the almost quintet. As for Suri, his Sunday play was sublime. His nines were 32 and 31, with his only radar blip a bogey at ten. He closed in style with one final birdie, to double his winning margin. Hogan bloomed late…might Suri?

PGA Tour Americas @ Osprey Valley Open presented by Votorantim Cimentos – CBM Aggregates

Some tournament names run longer than others. This week in Toronto, at the Heathlands course at TPC Toronto, we might have seen the longest tournament title in recorded history. The OVOPBVCCBMA was a splendid affair. It saw three rounds of 62 on Thursday, but of those early risers, only Drew Goodman would stick around until the end. 64 was the low tally on day two, and two of those legionnaires managed to finish inside the top three at week’s end. Saturday brought a 63 from Patrick Newcomb, and he would follow with 64 on Sunday, to finish solo fourth.

Who, then, ended up winning the acronym of the year? It turns out that Carson Bacha had the right stuff in TeeOhhh. Bacha and Jay Card III posted 63 and 64, respectively, on day four, to tie for medalist honors at 23-under 261. Nathan Franks was one shot adrift, despite also closing with 63. If you didn’t go low on Sunday, it was about the check, not the championship.

Bacha and JC3 returned to the 18th hole twice in overtime. Card nearly chipped in from the thick stuff for birdie, while Bacha peeked and shoved a ten-feet attempt at the win. On the second go-round, Card was long with his approach, into the native grasses once more. He was unable to escape, and a routine par from the fairway was enough to earn the former Auburn golfers a first KFT title.

Card III and Bacha both miss their birdie tries on the first playoff hole.

We’ll play 18 again @OspreyOpen. pic.twitter.com/vNpHTdkHDg

— PGA TOUR Americas (@PGATOURAmericas) August 3, 2025

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2025 Wyndham Championship

Published

4 weeks ago

Jul 29, 2025

GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX is live this week from the final event of the PGA Tour’s regular season, the Wyndham Championship.

Photos are flowing into the forums from Sedgefield Country Club, where we already have a GolfWRX spirit animal Adam Schenk WITB and plenty of putters for your viewing pleasure.

Check out links to all our photos below, which we’ll continue to update as more arrive.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying and join the discussion in the forums.

News

BK’s Breakdowns: Kurt Kitayama’s Winning WITB, 3M Open

Published

4 weeks ago

Jul 28, 2025

Brian Knudson

Kurt Kitayama just won his 2nd PGA Tour event at the 3M Open. Kurt is a Bridgestone staffer but with just the ball and bag. Here are the rest of the clubs he used to secure a win at the 2025 3M Open.

Driver: Titleist GT3 (11 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD VF 7 TX

3-wood: Titleist GT1 3Tour (14.5 degrees, A3 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI 8 TX

7-wood: Titleist GT1 (21 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI 9 TX

Irons: TaylorMade P7CB (4), TaylorMade P7MB (5-PW)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (52-12F, 56-14F), Vokey Design WedgeWorks (60-K*)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Putter: Scotty Cameron Studio Style Newport 2 Tour Prototype
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy 1.0PT

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet

Ball: Bridgestone Tour B XS (with Mindset)

GolfWRX

2016 Masters Rd. 1: Spieth leads again, Day stumbles late

News