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GolfWRX Morning 9: International Crown | No recourse for blinded spectator? | Ted Bishop speaks

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7 years ago

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1. Likely little legal recourse for spectator hit by Koepka
USA Today’s Steve DiMeglio reports on what’s likely to be the unfortunate reality for Corine Remande.
  • “The reason it is so hard to even get this in front of a jury is because in most states, there’s an assumption of risk defense in these types of cases,” said Marc Diller, a Boston-based lawyer who sued the Boston Red Sox on behalf of a fan injured by a foul ball. “Any patron who goes to a golf match or a baseball game assumes the risks of those hazards. Those known risks, for baseball, would be foul balls. At a professional golf tournament, it’s errant golf balls.”
  • “Legal experts told USA TODAY Sports had such an incident happened in the U.S., Remande would be hard pressed to even get the case to trial — let alone win a verdict. Each state has its own laws that govern personal injury and in some jurisdictions merely warning fans of danger – including in the small print on tickets – is enough to thwart litigation.”
  • “In the U.S., the law is pretty clear,” Chicago-based attorney Robert Clifford said. “Being on a golf course – either as a player or spectator – there’s an obvious danger.”
Any legal experts on the French justice system care to weigh in? I assume the guillotine is no longer in vogue?
2. “For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack.”
Our Gianni Magliocco with a final word on the Ryder Cup: a reminder of the significance of the competition for Europeans.
“Europe continuously considering themselves as underdogs has no doubt helped to banish any sense of complacency. From the dominance of both U.S. politics and culture on the rest of the world, there has always been a special pride and sense of achievement for those outside of the U.S. in downing the sporting superstars from the land of milk and honey. This motivation only heightens when it’s at a sport where the U.S. has been so dominant throughout history, such as they have in golf. It’s an embedded mindset that both the European team and supporters possess year on year, while it seems likely that the U.S. Ryder Cup side is more susceptible to complacency, and perhaps, motivated more by defeat.”
“The attention for the twelve members of the defeated U.S. side will now turn to the new PGA Tour season, where they will be hoping for major championship triumphs, FedEx Cup success and even qualification for the Presidents Cup. It may be two years away, but much of the motivation for the European players will be to make the next Ryder Cup side and to keep that trophy in Europe until 2022 at the very least.”
“Francesco Molinari won the Open Championship earlier this year, which was his first ever taste of major championship glory. Years of sweat and perseverance culminating in the most memorable moment of his career, right? Not according to Francesco, who described this year’s Ryder Cup victory with his teammates as a far more significant achievement than his Open Championship success…”It means so much. So much more than majors, more than anything… It’s been an incredible week. It’s about the group. It’s incredible. It is the best feeling I have ever had in golf.”
3. Speaketh the Toski
The great Bob Toski, 92, chatted with Golf Digest.
  • The stamina!…”Today I woke up and felt like I was 27 again,” he said from his South Florida home….This after a long day by anyone’s standard, much less a nonagenarian. A legendary teaching pro and the PGA Tour’s leading money winner in 1954, Toski was at Atlantic National Golf Club in Lake Worth, Fla., on Tuesday, playing a nine-hole scramble, then teaching the rest of the day. He was on the lesson tee about 10 a.m., he said, and finished around four.”
  • Beating death!…”I was halfway to heaven,” he said. “But He sent me back. Said ‘I’ll call you later.’ They put two stents in my heart. They were delivering me to ICU and my heart stopped. It stopped five times. They had to regenerate my heart. The answer they gave me when they put the two stents in, the heart flow became so great that blood was rushing too fast. It was like the heart was drowning. They were able to control that so that my heart beat consistently.”
May he live forever. Full article.
4. Mixed start for Americans at International Crown
AP Report…”The United States had a mixed start on the opening day of the UL International Crown team golf tournament on Thursday, splitting the fourballs against Sweden, while favorite South Korea collected a maximum four points with two wins over Taiwan.”
  • “Cristie Kerr and Lexi Thompson gave the U.S. a winning start in the eight-nation, 32-player tournament against Pernilla Lindberg and Madelene Sagstrom to win 2-up.”
  • “The defending champion’s other pairing, Michelle Wie and Jessica Korda, had a disastrous start, however, and was 4 down after five holes against Anna Nordqvist and Caroline Hedwall. The American pair rallied to become all square by the 13th hole, only to lose 2-up.”
5. Does climate matter for young golfers?  
Our Brendan Ryan crunches the numbers on where top golfers come from.
A few of his conclusions…
  • “Ideal Climates: While you have the best opportunity based on the weather and course conditions to shoot a good score, it is important to invest in developing different shot shapes and trajectories, as well as learning to play in the rain / wind when it comes; next time it’s raining in Southern California run to the first tee and get in 9 holes. When the weather is idea, consider playing different games to sharpen your skills. For example, play with just irons, or ever other iron, or the rough out of bounds or play where your competitor names the shot shape you need to hit each shot.”
  • “Less than Ideal Climates: While you have less opportunity to shoot low scores in perfect weather and conditions, you have great opportunities to invest in skills that will serve you in the long run. In my experience the best players from these climates use cold months very carefully to refine technical skills through lots of block practice. They are also diligent about the time they have on the course, keeping careful stats and making sure nice days are spent at the course engaged in competition. When the weather is not ideal, don’t be afraid to play from a much shorter yardage to ensure you can still shoot good scores.”
6. The International Crown’s moment?
Keeley Levins writes…”On the heels of the Ryder Cup, the LPGA hosts a team event of its own: the UL International Crown. In the third edition of the biennial event, four women from the eight top-ranked countries will play four days of team play in Incheon, South Korea-the first time the event is being held outside the United States.”
  • “Women’s golf has seen success already in team competitions; the Solheim Cup draws large crowds-more than 120,000 in Des Moines in 2017 and solid TV ratings (2017 numbers in the U.S. surpassed those seen for majors). Add in the fact that it will be held in one of the global hotbeds for women’s golf, and the potential for the International Crown to develop an identity of its own appears high.”
  • “We built this event with one goal, let’s build something that’s never been done before,” LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan said in a Golf Channel interview. “We knew when we launched it there’d be some critics along the way, but it’s proven it’s different and fun.”
7. But where were the crowds?
Randall Mell…”The Korean fans didn’t live up to the hype in Thursday’s opening round. The Korean players did, though.”
  • “With the bleachers around the first tee nearly empty when England and Australia were introduced as the opening match, the UL International Crown got off to a decidedly underwhelming start.”
  • “There wasn’t a hint of electricity in the air in a surprisingly low voltage opening, with none of the new energy promised for this event’s first staging overseas. But the late-arriving Korean fans picked things up when their team teed off, 90 minutes after the first ball was struck.”
Odd.
8. Not exactly reaffirming your faith in humanity…
The woman blinded by Brooks Koepka‘s tee shot spoke with the media for the first time since the incident.
  • While she discussed her plans to take legal action and her grim prognosis, this remark was particularly disturbing.
  • “What shocked me too was that the spectators were taking pictures of me, but no one was calling for help.”
Unreal.
9. For your listening pleasure…
  • Former PGA of America CEO, Ted Bishop, joined Michael Williams on his 19th Hole podcast to talk about what went wrong for the U.S. side at the Ryder Cup and more.

 

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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.

1 Comment

1 Comment

  1. Stixman

    Oct 4, 2018 at 4:20 pm

    I don’t believe for one moment the Euros regarded themselves as ‘underdogs’. I think they, and we, all take with a very liberal pinch of salt the overblown BS about ‘the Best Players in the World’ from ‘the Best Tour in th World’.It all depends who your audience is when you’re delivered the BS, fine if it’s domestic, but outwith that arena it doesn’t actually carry much weight.

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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.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

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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Jul 28, 2025

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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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