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And still we talk of Mickelson | Putting truths | Prez on the PGA Tour

Published

7 years ago

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Good morning, GolfWRX members. As most of you are signed up for our newsletters, you likely already know that I’ve been sending this little Morning 9 roundup of nine items of note.

In case you’ve missed it, or you prefer to read on site rather than in your email, we’re including it here. Check out today’s Morning 9 below.

If you’re not signed up for our newsletters, you can subscribe here.
By Ben Alberstadt (ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com)
Happy Fourth of July, golf fans. The patriotic wedges below (made for Wesley Bryan) are a collaboration between Callaway’s maestro Anthony Taranto and Wayne Byrne.
1. Harrington on Mickelson’s U.S. Open “madness”

 

The U.S. Open is growing distant in the rearview and still we (and not just the media) are talking about Phil Mickelson’s antics.
  • “It would have been simpler for him just to come out and say, it got to me and I made a crazy error of judgment.”
  • “You don’t want to defend the indefensible, basically, is what he went about doing.”
  • “It would have been simpler for Phil to just have put up his hands and say, look, the place got to me, moment of madness, I’m getting old. Whatever.”
  • “I wouldn’t advocate it being allowed to happen again, and if necessary, there needs to be a rule change.
  • “If they are happy that you can consciously make a stroke on a moving ball, that should be changed.”
2. Pelz’ putting truths

 

Giving the long-time short game guru the bump to the No. 2 position today because, heck, who doesn’t need help in the putting department? And a good round on the greens is worth more than golf news, right?

 

A few of his 10 truths…
  • Aim is critical….You can’t dominate with your putter if you don’t know how to aim it correctly, or how much break to play. Nail these fundamentals first.
  • Keep your stroke “on-line” through the impact zone…If you hook or cut-spin your putts, your chance of success goes down. If your putts roll off the face in the same direction your putter is heading immediately after impact, that’s good. If your putter moves one way and the ball another, you’ve got problems
  • Face angle > path…And not insignificantly – it’s six times more important. Even if your path is good, unduly opening or closing the face at impact spells doom.
3. 2018-2019 Tour schedule taking shape

 

Per Golfweek’s Brentley Romine…“The PGA Tour is expected to release its 2018-19 schedule in the next few weeks. But on Tuesday, that anticipated schedule continued to take shape.
  • The RBC Canadian Open released its date for next season. The event will be played June 6-9 at Hamilton Golf and Country Club in Ontario, meaning the tournament will fall the week before the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach and follow the Memorial Tournament.”
  • It will continue to hold that spot on the schedule until at least 2023.
  • “The PGA Tour, RBC and Golf Canada have collaborated to ensure this new date is the right fit for players and fans of the RBC Canadian Open,” said Andy Pazder, the PGA Tour’s chief tournaments and competitions officer. “As title sponsor of both the RBC Canadian Open and the RBC Heritage, RBC has been a tremendous partner of the PGA Tour, and we’re thrilled to have this opportunity to move one of golf’s most important and historic tournaments to a new date for the event starting in 2019.”

 

4. Retief Goosen among Open qualifiers

 

The USGA wouldn’t give the Goose a U.S. Open exemption. Now, he’s gone out and earned himself an Open Championship spot…”Goosen, who won the U.S. Open in both 2001 and 2004, made the trip to England for a 36-hole qualifier Tuesday, where rounds of 71-72 at Prince’s earned him the third and final qualifying spot by a single shot. There were also qualifiers held simultaneously at St. Annes Old Links, Notts Hollinwell and The Renaissance Club, with three qualifying spots available at each venue.” (Golf Channel)

Here are the rest…

Prince’s
1. Tom Lewis (-4)
2. Haraldur Magnus (-2)
3. Retief Goosen (-1)

 

Notts Hollinwell
1. Ashton Turner (-6)
2. Oliver Wilson (-3)
3. Rhys Enoch (-2)

 

St. Annes Old Links
1. James Robinson (-12)
2. Marcus Armitage (-10)
3. Jack Senior (-10)

 

Renaissance Club
1. Sam Locke (a) (-7)
2. Grant Forrest (-6)
3. Thomas Curtis (-5)
5. These are the numbers you are looking for…

 

Golfweek’s David Dusek examines the numbers you should be targeting off the tee.
  • He writes…'”I think everybody thinks that there is one optimal launch and one optimal spin rate,” said Nick Sherburne, Club Champions’ co-founder and master fitter. “They don’t understand that different speeds require different launches and spins.”
  • “While a few other variables can come into play, such as attack angle, most golfers who swing slowly need to launch the ball higher and generate more spin. That combination keeps the ball in the air longer, increasing carry and overall distance. On the other side of the spectrum, fast-swinging golfers would rob themselves of distance if they over-spin the ball and hit it too high, so their ideal launch angle is slightly lower.”
6. Trump on Tour

 

When the President comes to a PGA Tour stop, it’s a noteworthy occasion. Donald Trump spoke at the Salute to Service event at The Greenbrier.
  • “These are PGA players. These are unbelievably talented people. They’re talented in their mind and in their body,” Trump said. “Their muscles are strong but their mind has to be stronger. It’s tough. And these are tough people.”
7. Frequent critic, Brandel Chamblee likes Woods’ chances in final 2 majors (relatively speaking)

 

On the same Golf Channel podcast in which he outlined his plans to prepare for Senior Open Championship qualifying, Brandel said he likes where TW’s game is at ahead of the final two majors of the year.
  • “Tiger has shown an inability to be versatile with his tee shots and an inability to finish off rounds, but I think everyone expects him to get over that. It’s almost like he’s putting the pieces of the puzzle back together again as much mentally as he is physically or technically.”
  • “This was some of the best he’s driven the golf ball, at D.C., all year. So if he shows up at Carnoustie and drives it even a little bit better, well, then you look at the PGA Championship and you think, well, there are only just a few people that can beat him when he’s playing his best golf. I’m convinced of that. The world rankings in no way right now tell you who he is as a player. He’s far better than those world rankings.”
8. Another Woods take

 

This time, it’s PGA Master Professional Dennis Clark sounding off on Woods’ comeback.
  • “This might be the first time that golf is anything resembling difficult for Tiger Woods. And clearly, it is the very first time he cannot beat the competition almost at will. If that seems unusual to us, one can only imagine what it must be like to Woods. At the ripe golfing age of 42, the greatest winner the sport has ever known no longer wins. At times, he does not even seem competitive.”
  • “The real questions to be answered about his comeback is this: How long can Tiger accept not winning, not dominating? How much inner drive does he still have to get back to the top? Or near it. How long can he actually tolerate golf being a struggle? Can he accept being a middle of the pack PGA Tour pro? Does he have the level of self-belief he once had, or has all this new adversity diminished it to an “also ran”level? We don’t know, and he doesn’t know because this situation is new to everyone.”

 

9. Octopus pants, redux

 

Billy Horschel teamed up with sponsor Ralph Lauren/RLX to create a collection of golf duds. Fortunately, a variant of the octopus pants Horschel wore at Merion in 2013 are in the collection.
  • “This was the perfect time to bring the octopus pants back,” Horschel told Golfweek. “I wanted to do something that represented me. This was a perfect opportunity, because the octopus pants are really what skyrocketed me into the golf fashion world.”

Related Topics:

Ben Alberstadt is the Editor-in-Chief at GolfWRX, where he’s led editorial direction and gear coverage since 2018. He first joined the site as a freelance writer in 2012 after years spent working in pro shops and bag rooms at both public and private golf courses, experiences that laid the foundation for his deep knowledge of equipment and all facets of this maddening game. Based in Philadelphia, Ben’s byline has also appeared on PGATour.com, Bleacher Report...and across numerous PGA DFS and fantasy golf platforms. Off the course, Ben is a committed cat rescuer and, of course, a passionate Philadelphia sports fan. Follow him on Instagram @benalberstadt.

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News

Tour Rundown: Bend, but don’t break

Published

3 weeks ago

on

Aug 4, 2025

By

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.

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2025 Wyndham Championship

Published

4 weeks ago

on

Jul 29, 2025

By

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.

 

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News

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

Published

4 weeks ago

on

Jul 28, 2025

By

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)

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WITB

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