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GolfWRX Morning 9: Dragging the Tiger | Plenty of Merritt | Brandel gets it done

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7 years ago

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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.

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By Ben Alberstadt (ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com)

 

July 24, 2018

Good Tuesday morning, golf fans. .
1. Plenty of Merritt
Alternate title: “A heavily bearded man wins a shaving cream-sponsored tournament.”
  • AP Report…”Merritt shot a 5-under 67 on Monday to win the rain-delayed Barbasol Championship by one stroke. He led or shared the lead after each round. This was his second career PGA TOUR victory.”
  • “A pretty nice payoff for renewed dedication that helped him keep his TOUR card after struggling to follow up his 2015 Quicken Loans National victory.”
  • “You always ask yourself, is this the time to move on?” said Merritt, who earned $630,000 and 300 FedExCup points with the victory. He also is exempt through the 2019-20 season.”
  • “The win highlights a good run for Merritt, who is 34-under par in his last seven rounds dating back to the second round of last week’s John Deere Classic. He tied for 43rd.”
2. Chamblee walks the walk…into the Senior Open
Love him or hate him, you’ll now be able to watch him in the Senior Open Championship. That’s right, golf fans, Brandel Chamblee has qualified for the Senior Open-and the Golf Channel analyst did so in impressive fashion.
  • The 56-year-old arrived at Scotscraig Golf Club in Tayport, one of the four Senior British Open qualifying sites, the morning after coverage for the The Open concluded. Chamblee was on of 596 entrants trying to fill the 26 available spots.
  • And fill a spot he did, earning co-medalist honors with a 2-under 69.
  • The one-time PGA Tour winner stepped away from the sport in 2003. However, he told Golf Digest, the prospect of a Senior Open at St Andrews wasn’t something he could pass up.
3. Dragging the Tiger
Parsing apart the takes on Tiger Woods’ return to major championship contention is an ongoing process…especially in a week where the scribes have little else to scribble about.
  • If “Tiger’ back” is the perspective at one end of the spectrum, then Tiger blew The Open is at the other end. The AP’s Tim Dahlberg happily represents the latter perspective.

Read excerpts of his harsh take with commentary from Geoff Shackelford…then read the whole darn thing…if you want to. .

4. The “did Tiger choke debate”
I outlined the perspectives on the question of whether Tiger Woods choked away The Open in a piece yesterday. It was largely interpreted as my scathing take on Woods’ performance, which it shouldn’t have been. I was merely pointing out the different camps.
  • I wrote…While it’s fair to say Woods didn’t play his best golf down the stretch, and perhaps he asked too much from shots from the rough at the 11th and 12th, the suggestion that he choked, failed to capitalize, or got nervy when the heat was on is off base.
  • That said, Woods’ legion of detractors will gleefully claim he choked. The Choke Lite take is that while Woods didn’t totally let things slip through his fingers, but the combination of opponents not self-destructing (most did though, Sunday, didn’t they?) and lacking the “step on their necks” gear he displayed so often earlier in his career did him in.
  • More to the point, the 79-time Tour winner hit a few poor shots and tried to do too much on a couple of occasions. He paid the price for both. The larger import we see likely had more to do with our preconceived notions of Woods than anything that happened inside the ropes at Carnoustie Sunday.
5. Feinstein relents (sort of)
Longtime Woods hater, negative take opportunist, John Feinstein, has decided that while Tiger Woods will only be “back” after tasting major glory, he’s back…ish.
  • He writes: “All of that said, it is impossiblenot to be impressed with this latest comeback. I have said, only half-joking, that the comebacks should have roman numerals attached, like Super Bowls, because there have been so many.”
  • …hilarious, John.
If Feinstein is your cup of sour tea, check out the piece…I go no further.

 

6. Slumbers on the issues
The R&A isn’t sleeping on what’s being talked about in the world of golf! Martin Slumbers talked through some of the big-ticket items with Golf Digest.
  • Slumbers on the distance debate…”on distance, this time last year, I made a comment that we were waiting to see what the full year distance numbers look like, but I expressed in this room that we were concerned where the preliminary numbers were going, and that our concern was based upon the balance between skill and technology and whether the balance between skill and technology for the recreational game and the elite game was appropriate. And that’s the concern that I outlined a year ago. We still believe that, and we still believe that what we are looking at is not just an instantaneous where we are today, but very much where are we going and where’s the game going 20 years from now in terms of that balance between skill and technology?”
  • “Golf is a game of skill, and long may it remain being a game of skill. We started the distance report three years ago, driven entirely because I believe that we needed to get transparency, and there was too much Chinese whispers around what data were we looking at, so we published it. And it was fascinating seeing the results and the comments on the published data.”
  • “When we published [the distance report] at the beginning of this year, we were very clear saying that the concern that I had alluded to a year ago was real, and with the USGA, we said that we would now want to start an open and constructive dialogue around the hitting distance. We’ve started that process. We’ve talked to a number of people. From my perspective, I’m in listen mode. I’m listening.”

 

7. Golf is a tease
Shane Ryan penned a piece for Digest, as he does on occasion.
  • “There was a moment when Rory McIlroy drained a prayer of a putt on 14 for eagle when it looked like the tournament might come down to him, Tiger Woods and Jordan Spieth. A hectic, unpredictable Sunday had gradually built toward its climax, and this seemed like the last piece of build-up. What came next, I thought, might actually go down in history as one of the greatest major finishes ever. And with due respect to Molinari, a comparatively dull two-shot win was not what I had in mind. Like it or not, a sporting event is defined by its ending, and the 2018 Open Championship was like a movie that keeps you on tenterhooks for 90 minutes and then sputters through the conclusion…”
  • “I should have known better. Golf is a tease.”
  • “There is little debate about the greatest rivalry in the sport’s history: It’s Jack vs. Arnold. In 1962, they met in a two-man 18-hole playoff at Oakmont. With the pro-Palmer crowd taunting him the entire way, Nicklaus prevailed. Only 22 years old, it wasn’t just his first major-it was his first professional win. It was also the peak of the rivalry, and it happened before anyone really knew the rivalry existed!”
  • “In the ensuing decades, as they fought for supremacy, they never again met in a what anyone would call a true “duel.” Golf is a tease.”
  • “Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson have never really fought it out mano-a-mano in a major. Golf is a tease.”

Full piece.

8. Furyk/Woods Ryder Cup
Captain Jim Furyk is mum on handing Tiger Woods a captain’s pick for the Ryder Cup.
  • “I’m going to handle him the way I do everyone else…I’ll ask my top eight guys. The way he’s playing, he might be one of them. I’ll ask the vice captains, collectively, and I think we’ll do the best we can to round out the team. We want the guys playing the best.”
  • “We had a lot of guys in pretty good form,” Furyk said. “Flip over to Tiger, you look at him because he’s Tiger, and he’s earned a lot of attention. … I loved seeing him play well. I loved seeing him jump to 20th. It’s fun to watch. But we’ll handle him like everyone else.”
  • That’s a nice thought, Jim, but considering Woods has already expressed his ambition to be a playing assistant captain, is there really a chance Furyk would tell him no and deal with the awkwardness? Plus, there’s zero chance Furyk passes on Woods’ starpower…do you think any of the vested interests would stand for a healthy Tiger Woods sitting on the bench?
9. Bob battles a troll
I have great respect for ESPN’s longtime golf voice Bob Harig. Surely, Harig has dealt with his share of nonsensical under-bridge dwellers in his time because, well, #internet. But I was amused to see Harig fire back at some particularly stupid remarks on Twitter.
Apologies for Tom’s language, but when you’re in an ALL-CAPS RAGE, you’re beyond the point of self-censorship

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.

2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. Shanks Happen

    Jul 24, 2018 at 5:10 pm

    This series has the possibility to be great, but keeps falling flat. Try to make these stories into 4-5 sentences that tease the story.

    And quit with the bullet points that are the same quote but from different sections of a story.

    Reply Report comment

  2. Mark Harr

    Jul 24, 2018 at 8:13 am

    Ben; if I may offer a couple comments, both (of course) relating to Tiger:

    Re; Furyk/Woods Ryder Cup. Yes, Tiger said a few weeks ago he hoped for/was trying to be a playing vice-captain for this years Ryder Cup.
    But that had to be expressed as a goal, not an ambition. Do you not think, that Tiger as a vice-captain that Furyk will consult with, and as much as Tiger reveres the Ryder Cup matches and traditions, he will not recommend, or even accept, a playing position if he truly does not believe he is one of the 12 best at the time. He is working that as his goal this year, but you gotta believe that he will be objective as to recommending the 12 best players for the team.

    And my second point: It has only been noted briefly that Tiger’s finish in The Open now qualified him for the Bridgestone at Firestone CC. I think it sets up to a HUGE story, Tiger at one of his best courses, where he has won 8 times (most of anyone(=), and the site of his last win (2013), AND the last year PGA will have a tournament at Firestone CC (after a run of 65 years of PGA and Firestone CC together). This would be quite a fitting event for Tiger’s Comeback.

    And to tie it together, would there be any question about Tiger playing the Ryder Cup when he does win at Firestone?

    Reply Report comment

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Tour Rundown: Bend, but don’t break

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3 weeks ago

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Aug 4, 2025

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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

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4 weeks ago

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Jul 29, 2025

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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

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

 

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

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4 weeks ago

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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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