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Morning 9: Match Play Day 2 | Does it matter if Tiger doesn’t make the weekend? | “Dormie” is dead

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6 years ago

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

March 29, 2019

Good Friday morning, golf fans.
1. Day 2
Doug Ferguson at the AP with the items of note from the second day of the Match Play…
  • “Bubba Watson, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Patrick Reed and a host of others who have to return Friday morning to Austin Country Club with no chance of advancing out of their group.”
  • “The Match Play began to take shape, more because of 20 players from the 64-man field mathematically eliminated than who can still reach the weekend.”
  • “Jordan Spieth is still alive after building a 6-up lead through 12 holes on Kevin Na, but not winning until four holes later when Na missed a 4-foot birdie putt. Jim Furyk and Henrik Stenson emerged with 2-0 records from the group of FedExCup champions. They play Friday after knocking out Mickelson and Jason Day.”
2. Meanwhile, in the Dominican Republic…
AP Report…“Joel Dahmen birdied five of his last six holes Thursday for a 6-under 66 and a share of the first-round lead in the PGA Tour’s Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship.”
  • “Dahmen rebounded from a bogey on the par-4 third with four straight birdies and closed with another birdie on the par-3 ninth. Winless on the PGA Tour, the 31-year-old former University of Washington player was tied with Matt Jones and Paul Dunne.”
  • “Slow start,” Dahmen said. “I bogeyed the par 5 early, but knew that the front was gettable. The wind was pretty consistent all day, which was nice. Then just made a couple nice putts.”

Full piece.

3. …and in India
EuropeanTour.com report…”Julian Suri roared home in 30 to open up a three shot clubhouse lead on day two of the Hero Indian Open.
  • The American entered the second round at DLF Golf and Country Club with a share of the overnight lead but played his first nine holes in one over to slip a shot behind fellow first round leader Stephen Gallacher.”
  • “He then produced a stunning run of scoring, picking up six shots in as many holes to get to ten under with a second consecutive 67 and lead the way from England’s Callum Shinkwin.”

Full piece.

4. Does it matter if Tiger makes it to the weekend?
ESPN’s Bob Harig answers the question…
  • “Not necessarily. As Woods said after the Players Championship: “It’s kind of nice knowing that I’ll be able to get at least three good rounds in, possibly more if I play well, and that’s basically like a tournament.”
  • “If anything, it might be good for Woods‘ Masters prep if he gets a couple of days at home. Unlike a year ago, when he was coming off two top-five finishes and seemingly in good form heading to Augusta, there are some flaws he’ll need to address. And a trip to Augusta National this week might be in order either way.”
5. Romo
Digest’s Alex Myers reporting on Tony Romo’s opening-round effort…
  • “Making his second PGA Tour start, the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback fired an opening 79. Romo is currently in last place. Matt Jones is the early leader after carding a 66 to start the opposite-field event to the WGC-Dell Match Play.”
  • “If having last year’s start in the same event under his belt helped settle Romo’s nerves on Thursday, it didn’t show. The NFL on CBS analyst bogeyed three of his first four holes before adding a triple bogey on No. 8. Romo failed to record a birdie during the round, but managed a respectable back nine of one-over-par 37.”
6. By the way…
A revisitation of the explanation for why Skechers dude Tony Romo doesn’t violate the Rules of Amateur Status, per Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner…
  • “Asked for an explanation on why the two cases differed, since both Li and Romo are amateurs, a USGA spokesman said that the amateur status rule (6-2) specifically discusses whether an amateur golfer is one of golf skill or reputation – and since Romo is known first as a professional football player, and thus his reputation is not solely based on his skill as a golfer, the rule does not apply.”
  • “While Romo is an amateur golfer, it appears his football celebrity motivated this advertisement,” said Craig Winter, the USGA’s senior director of rules and amateur status. “Additionally, the Rules of Amateur Status prohibit an amateur golfer from being part of such promotions only when he or she has ‘golf skill.’ In the case of Tony Romo, while he plays at a high level, he is not considered to have ‘golf skill’ as they are defined in the rules.”
7. Death of dormie
In addition to “halve” biting the dust in favor of “tie,” apparently dormie is dead as well…
  • “The Forecaddie has since learned of another casualty of the simplified language: dormie. A word floating around the sport since the days of Mary Queen of Scots and first seen in an 1847 dictionary, dormie has been used to describe an insurmountable lead and was often misunderstood by broadcasters if an event was going extra holes to settle matches.”
  • “Sadly, “dormie” has been dropped from the rules of golf, perhaps less due to its lack of accessibility and more to its relative uselessness. But as this week has shown, it’s still acceptable to use the word, if necessary.”
8. A peek behind the curtain
Our Ryan Barath examined some tour issue irons of the past and present in a peak WRX feature.
  • Discussing Tiger Woods’ irons…”When Tiger moved to Nike Golf, he was introduced to Mike Taylor. There’s no need to really go too deep on MT’s impact on the game of golf, since so much has already been said, but a quick refresher: his roots run deep with shaping clubs to perfection, from Hogan, to Impact Golf Technologies (Tom Stites post-Hogan Company, which in essence became Nike Golf overnight), to now Artisan Golf. Together, they worked on a number if irons from the original forged blades to the MM Proto.”
  • “With Nike’s departure from the equipment space and now being a part of TaylorMade’s staff, Tiger has the ability to work with their entire R&D team, while also benefiting from Mike Taylor’s work at Artisan Golf in Ft Worth Texas, to create the original masters for what are now the P7TW irons.”
  • “There was always speculation about this relationship until recently when it was confirmed by PGA Tour.com’s Equipment Writer, Andrew Tursky, during an interview with Tiger
  • “Yeah, he ( Mike Taylor ) worked on all these irons. He worked on all my wedges. I talk to him probably every few weeks, giving updates on how I feel, things that I think could be better. He’ll bounce a few ideas off me, what I think, what direction we need to go down the road, how can we make them any better than what they are. And this is the same process I went through all those years when I was working with him at Nike. But now working with him at TaylorMade, it’s a lot more seamless.”
9. ICYMI: Tiger’s lefty bushwacking
If you didn’t see TW’s tidy little escape yesterday, here’s the context, per Dan Kilbridge at Golfweek…
  • “Woods’ approach shot from 162 yards out sailed over the green and settled into a cluster of bushes just in front of a hospitality tent. It looked to be dead with no chance of getting up and down from there.”
  • “But Woods decided he could take a swipe at it. He got down on one knee and assumed a modified left-handed stance, the toe of the club pointed toward the ground. With a flick of the wrists, the ball popped out of the bushes and rolled onto the green just 4 feet from the cup.”

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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.

2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. Lee Kocanda

    Mar 29, 2019 at 8:05 pm

    any tournament that gives tony room a sponsors exemption should be ashamed for taking a spot away from a player that does this for a living bad move

    Reply Report comment

  2. Paul Starr

    Mar 29, 2019 at 3:38 pm

    Just goes to show you how bad Woods is. He shouldn’t be in that bush.

    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

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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