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GolfWRX Morning 9: The U.S. Ryder Cup Team “still doesn’t get it” | Praising Patrick Reed

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7 years ago

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1. Why the U.S. can’t win a Ryder Cup on the road…maybe
Our Gianni Magliocco places the blame on…insularity
“As far as myths go, the rumors that have circulated across Europe throughout the years over what percentage of United States citizens hold passports is a pretty good one. The number that broadcast was always so far under the actual reality, and it is now common knowledge that more Americans hold passports today than at any other time in their history. Still, the myth was evidence of how the rest of the world saw the United States as living inside its little bubble. While the insistence on declaring the winners of the Super Bowl and World Series as World Champions, despite both competitions only possessing sides from the United States, is another detail that supports the rest of the world’s view that the United States is an inward-looking country.’
“How does this insular culture pertain to this year’s failure at the Ryder Cup?…Well, earlier this year, The French Open was held at Le Golf National. A perfect opportunity for Team USA’s 12 members to play the course in tournament conditions, an experience that would undoubtedly have helped them when they arrived to do battle against Europe in September. How many of the 12 players turned up? One. Just one solitary member decided it was worth the effort to get on a plane, travel across the Atlantic ocean and spend a week in Paris getting accustomed to Le Golf National in championship conditions. That man was Justin Thomas, and funnily enough, he was the USA’s best performer over the three days of action in Paris, collecting four points for his country.’
2. They still don’t get it
The takes are hot on the the other side of the pond! Steve Scott at the Courier says the U.S. Ryder Cuppers continue to fail to understand what it means to be a team.
  • “The difference is that the Europeans get the team dynamic, and the USA clearly still don’t. Tiger Woods returned to the team last week to record an 0-4 record, looking as unengaged and uncomfortable in the Ryder Cup as he ever has.”
  • “Woods can’t even bring himself to wear the team uniform – I don’t blame him entirely for this as the US team clothier dresses them in the wost possible combinations of the world’s most successful colour scheme, red, white and blue.”
  • “But Woods wore his waterproof trousers over his team uniform on both Saturday and Sunday when the temperature was edging towards 20 degrees. It’s a small thing but indicative that he is tolerated as a special case and isn’t a real team player.”
  • “It’s not just the team. The US media encouraged the old hubristic attitude over the last two years that the Hazeltine win and the so-called TASKFORCE! was ushering in period of domination.”
3. DJ & BK dustup?
While details are lacking, multiple reports suggest best bros Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka nearly came to blows in the Ryder Cup team room.
  • Golf Channel report...”The source of the friction was not known, and the dust-up was considered unusual because Johnson and Koepka appear to have a very close relationship. They often work out together at  trainer Joey Diovisalvi’s Joey D Golf Performance Center in Jupiter, Fla.”
  • “Johnson and Koepka partnered in the Saturday afternoon foursomes, when they lost to Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson.”
  • “Johnson’s fiancee, Paulina Gretzky, was reported to have been close by when the alleged incident happened. One of the European players’ wives also was a witness, according to The Telegraph, which also said that “an insider” reported that she was “clearly shocked and upset by the nastiness, which was very threatening.”
4. A defense of Patrick Reed
Rather than being muzzled, Golf Digest’s Joel Beall argues we need more Patrick Reed.
  • “…He seems to embody all the qualities associated with a nemesis. He has now called out Jordan Spieth, one of the most popular players in the sport, on multiple occasions this year. (It’s worth noting here, regarding Spieth’s “ego,” that Jordan was the only American player to watch Bryson DeChambeau in the final singles match after the Ryder Cup had been decided.) That the two have a backstory of a successful partnership is something out of a comic book.”
  • “Reed’s also living up to his “top-five player” proclamation, winning golf’s most prestigious tournament yes but also placing second at the 2017 PGA Championship and nearly winning this year’s U.S. Open. He is only 28, with his advanced stats pointing to further improvement in the years to come. Those hoping Reed would shut up and go away will not get their wish for quite some time.”
  • “You could argue, does golf need a villain? Well, the despised likes of the New England Patriots and New York Yankees have made for richer, fuller narratives in their sport. Same goes for athletes like boxer Floyd Mayweather and tennis player Lleyton Hewitt in individual games. “The more successful the villain,” Alfred Hitchcock once said, “the more successful the picture.”
5. Big bucks for Pelley?
Geoff Shackelford writes…”It has emerged on the eve of the Ryder Cup that European Tour chief executive Keith Pelley earned an extraordinary financial package of £2.78million last year.”
  • “Pelley’s pay is far in excess of that earned by the previous CEO of the European Tour, George O’Grady, who was on £610,717 when Canadian businessman Pelley succeeded him in 2015.”
  • “Sale is pretty tough in his assessment of no new “bumper” sponsors, yet Pelley’s biggest achievement is the current Rolex series of lucrative events. There have been buzz-creating new formats and strong use of social media to market players and events to his team’s credit as well.”
  • “Not so hot has been an attempted website reboot, the at times blatant milking of the Ryder Cup for revenue and an inability to strengthen ties with the PGA Tour, leading to several more young player defections to the PGA Tour. “
6. An argument for POY?
Well the PGA Tour Player of the Year trophy is widely assumed to already have Brooks Koepka’s name engraved upon it, Lance Ringler at Golfweek writes Sagarin scores make a strong case for Justin Rose.
  • “And Koepka doesn’t even have the best head-to-head record among the group of seven names previously mentioned. According to the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, Rose is 49-26 against the other six this season. Koepka is fourth in terms of winning percentage.”
  • Of course, all of this gets at the heart of the POY race. Do we reward consistent high-level play or peak achievements?
7. Spectator hit by Koepka’s ball loses sight
…exploded eyeball. Two words that when joined together create an impossibly gruesome image. Unfortunately, that’s the diagnosis for the woman Brooks Koepka hit with a tee shot at the Ryder Cup. Reportedly, she has lost site in the eye and is considering legal action.
  • BBC report…”Mrs Remande also criticised the Paris tournament organisers for “not making contact” after the incident to find out how she was. She also claims there was “no warning shout from the course official when the ball was heading towards the crowd”.
  • “A Ryder Cup spokesperson told the BBC: “It is distressing to hear that someone might suffer long-term consequences from a ball strike….”We have been in communication with the family involved, starting with the immediate on-course treatment and thereafter to provide support, helping with the logistics of repatriation, including providing a transfer for the family from Paris to Lyon. We will continue to offer support for as long as necessary.”
Awful stuff.
8. Garcia saved a bullet for Faldo
Happily, for the Europeans, Garcia contributed more than just backslapping and banter at Le Golf National: he won three points in four matches, taking down Rickie Fowler 2 & 1 in their Sunday singles match.
  • In doing so, Garcia became the European side’s top point getter. When asked about the accomplishment, the Spaniard couldn’t help but take a shot at the man he passed on the list.
  • “This means a lot to me,” Garcia said. “I have passed some of my heroes today-and Nick Faldo.”
  • Burn! Faldo, of course, captain of the 2008 European team, famously said Garcia had been “useless” in the competition at Valhalla in which he went 0-2-2.
9. Numbers of note
Sean Martin of PGATour.com with a few morsels…
  • Rose’s rise…”He finished in the top 10 in 61 percent of his starts this season, the highest percentage this season (Dustin Johnson was the only other player to finish in the top 10 in more than half his starts)….Rose did it with a well-rounded game. He was the only player to finish in the top 30 in all four Strokes Gained statistics: Off-the-Tee (14th), Approach-the-Green (29), Around-the-Green (7) and Putting (17). He rose more than 100 spots in the Strokes Gained: Putting standings since last season, one of the biggest single-season gains in the history of that metric.”
  • Molinari’s too…”Molinari, 35, has gained nearly 20 yards in the past three years, including a nine-yard gain since last season. He did it by hitting the gym – “I was more of a couch guy,” he said – and tweaking his swing and equipment. Molinari also is hitting his irons about 8 yards farther….How important is an extra 20 yards off the tee? Mark Broadie, the inventor of the Strokes Gained: Statistics, said it can decrease a player’s score by three strokes per tournament.”

 

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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.

7 Comments

7 Comments

  1. Shane

    Oct 3, 2018 at 9:31 am

    The responses to Walters post – just back up his point.

    Reply Report comment

  2. David Lehmann

    Oct 2, 2018 at 1:30 pm

    You can use this type of talk when you country ponies up ALL the back dues that you owe to the UN.!!!!!

    Reply Report comment

  3. Walter

    Oct 2, 2018 at 10:40 am

    “US team clothier dresses them in the worst possible combinations of the world’s most successful colour scheme, red, white and blue.”

    LOL, ” The Worlds most successful color scheme, RED, WHITE and BLUE. Comments like this are part of the big picture problem with Americans. You guys need to get off your high horses and joint the rest of the real world and stop telling the rest of the world that you guys are the best at everything you do, because you’re just simply not. And the funny part about it is the rest of the world knows this but you guys don’t seem to. Everything Americans do they are world champions, even if it only exists in the USA, it’s like the USA is the WORLD and rest of the planet doesn’t count! It’s pretty obvious that Americans as a whole are stuck on themselves.

    And you guys wonder why the rest of the world laughs at you and doesn’t really care for or like you most of the time. Hey I know lots great Americans but they get it, as a whole your country just doesn’t get it, period!

    Reply Report comment

    • Scott

      Oct 2, 2018 at 12:37 pm

      Thanks for that valuable comment, Brit/Canuck/Aussie/Kiwi. You morons all spout the same talking points. It’s the world champion Commonwealth jealousy team. And you truly are “world” champions.

      Reply Report comment

    • CG

      Oct 2, 2018 at 3:56 pm

      Hey Walter, how about we play each one of your countries individually? Or do we really want to go back to nobody else having a chance every two years?

      Reply Report comment

      • freowho

        Oct 3, 2018 at 7:22 am

        The US has about 5 times the number of registered golfers that Europe has. Europe are still the underdogs. The US didn’t plan properly or pick their players properly.

        Reply Report comment

    • DaveJ

      Oct 3, 2018 at 9:51 am

      “The Worlds most successful color scheme, RED, WHITE and BLUE.”
      That quote was directly from a UK writer, not an American, so I’m not certain how it reflects poorly on the USA. Perhaps it was veiled sarcasm, but that certainly isn’t clear in the article.

      Reply Report comment

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Tour Rundown: Bend, but don’t break

Published

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.

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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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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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