News

Tour Rundown: Koepka ascends to No. 1

Published

7 years ago

Oct 22, 2018

October passed its midway point with four tournaments spread across the globe. The LPGA Tour’s Asian Swing continued, while Spain hosted the European Tour, and the PGA Tour visited Korea. The Champions Tour stayed stateside, in Virginia, to complete the slate. It was a mildly interesting week, as a new name ascended to the top of the official world golf rankings, and a major champion revealed an affinity for home cooking. For all the news. have a glance at this week’s Tour Rundown.

Koepka turns on the afterburners for win at CJ Cup

There was a point, midway through the final round on Jeju Island, when Brooks Koepka and Gary Woodland both sat at -14. Koepka was struggling, with loads of pars and a mix of birdies and bogeys. Woodland was in great form, with birdies on six of his first nine holes. Just when it seemed that all was lost, and that Kopeka would be resigned to winning majors alone, the Floridian turned on the afterburners and fired a back nine for the ages. Five birdies and a glorious eagle at the 18th gave him 29 on the inward half and -21 for the tournament.

Woodland attempted to keep up with everything he had, but two bogeys on the inward half offset five homeward birdies, and Woodland finished in second place with 63 and -17. The win elevated Koepka to world number one, the 23rd golfer to reach Olympus since the rankings debuted in 1986. Third place belonged to Ryan Palmer, who birdied his final seven holes for 62 on Sunday and -15 overall.

MIC DROP. ????@BKoepka holes it!#LiveUnderPar pic.twitter.com/baP7yIT9qy

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 21, 2018

Kang is Kueen in Shanghai

Danielle Kang celebrated her birthday on Saturday with a cheer and a dance at the first tee. On Sunday, she sped past the overnight leaders to claim her second career LPGA Tour title at the Buick LPGA. Both Carlota Ciganda of Spain, and Sei Young Kim of Korea, had designs on adding to their personal victory columns, but neither could resist a ride on the bogey train. Ciganda had five birdies on Sunday, but more than matched them with four bogeys and a double. She finished tied for ninth at -10. Sei Young counted three birdies on Sunday, and an otherwise-clean card would have earned victory. Thee bogeys dropped her to -11, into a seven-way tie for second at -11. Danielle Kang was nearly flawless on Sunday, with one bogey at the fourth to count against her. Like Koepka above, she ignited the engines late, with four birdies over her final eight holes, to ease past the pack and reach -13. A year after making the Women’s PGA her first tour title, Kang added a second with calm play down the stretch in Shanghai.

Join us for a great big birthday cheer for Danielle Kang! pic.twitter.com/xZZlDUmf2q

— #CMEFinalStretch (@LPGA) October 20, 2018

Valderrama Masters is third for Garcia on European Tour

Sergio Garcia does it soooo well. He hosts and he mosts. He also wouldn’t mind if the Ryder Cup returned to Valderrama every … other year. Garcia claimed his third victory, and second consecutive, in the Valderrama Masters, by four strokes. Despite a bit of a struggle in the Sunday/Monday final round, Garcia’s second round brilliance was enough to hold off Ireland’s Shane Lowry, who finished solo second at eight under par. Unlike round two of the rain-shortened event, when the Iberian champion was brilliant with seven birdies against zero bogeys, the final round demanded his best patience. Garcia had a four-shot lead at the 11th hole, but made two immediate bogeys. He regrouped and birdied two of his final five holes to afford a comfortable walk down the final hole.

Sergio Garcia drives off 11th tee with a four-shot lead.

Live Blog: https://t.co/zUANtr20bf #ValderramaMasters pic.twitter.com/Bk6EytKVmA

— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) October 22, 2018

Virginia is for Austin this week, as Schwab Cup playoffs begin

Kip Henley, a PGA Tour looper, predicted on Friday that Woody Austin would win this event. Austin wasn’t on page one of the leaderboard on Saturday night, but the prescient Henley was correct. His reasoning? His younger brother, Brent, was on Austin’s bag for the first time in eight years. Austin drained a birdie putt on 18 to outlast Bernhard Langer by one stroke. He finished on -11 after closing with 69 on Sunday.

Third-round leader Jay Haas, normally a solid closer, went somewhere else with 74, tumbling to a tie for third, two behind the winner. Haas was in the thick of things when he double-bogeyed the 14th hole. His only birdies on the final day came at the 1st and the 18th, too little and too late for victory.

What a day for Woody Austin at the @DECCGolf. ???? pic.twitter.com/aGZDQEM4yb

— PGA TOUR Champions (@ChampionsTour) October 22, 2018

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)