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Morning 9: British Open qualifiers | Backstory to Lashley’s spot in Rocket field | Tiger Woods’ special delivery

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7 years ago

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

July 3, 2019

Good Wednesday morning, golf fans, and happy Independency Day eve.
1. Open qualifying
Keith Jackson at Sky Sports…
Three amateurs were among 12 players to book their places at The 148th Open after Final Qualifying on Tuesday.
The day began with 288 players bidding for just 12 places in the field at Royal Portrush later this month, with three places up for grabs over 36 holes at the four venues in England and Scotland.
Golf Channel’s Will Gray put together a rundown that includes, well, more than just the names of who punched a ticket to Portrush, but here are just the names…
  • Notts Hollinwell...Who’s in: Andrew Wilson (-7), Thomas Thurloway (a) (-6), Ashton Turner (-5)
  • Prince’s…Who’s in: Curtis Knipes (a) (-9), Callum Shinkwin (-9), Austin Connelly (-8)
  • St. Anne’s Old Links…Who’s in: Garrick Porteous (-10), Jack Senior (-10), Matthew Baldwin (-9)
  • Fairmont St. Andrews…Who’s in: Brandon Wu (a) (-9), Connor Syme  (-6), Sam Locke (-4)

Full piece.

2. Brandon Wu 
Golf Digest’s Ryan Herrington on Wu’s impressive feat…“The 22-year-old, who qualified for last month’s U.S. Open and made the cut at Pebble Beach-only to have to miss his college graduation at Stanford because it was also being held on Father’s Day Sunday-went overseas to take a shot at Final Qualifying for the Open Championship. On Tuesday, 72 golfers finished up 36 holes at four different U.K. sites, all hoping to grab one of three spots available at each course. Wu, competing at Fairmont St. Andrews, shot 64-67 to finish at nine under, taking medalist honors by three strokes over Scotland’s Connor Syme and earning a trip to the British Open at Royal Portrush.”
3. From NFL linebacker to PGA Tour rules official 
Stellar piece from Sean Martin at PGATour.com profiling rules official Mark Dusabek…
  • “…He blew out his left knee in the first game of the 1991 season, tearing his ACL and meniscus. Surgery and rehab were unsuccessful.”
  • “After the fourth operation, I just realized that I couldn’t pass a physical and my knee wouldn’t come around,” he recalls. “I had to retire.”
  • “He worked in finance for a few years, but golf kept pulling him back. He made a move after reading a book entitled, “Do What You Love and the Money Will Follow.” To gain industry experience, he moved to Southern California and spent a year as a volunteer with the Southern California Golf Association. One of his early mentors told him that a knowledge of the Rules of Golf would be useful in a variety of positions.”
  • “His unpaid tenure with the SCGA led to a job with the PGA of America’s Metropolitan Section. He returned to Southern California in 2001, spending four years with the SCGA before being hired by the PGA TOUR.”

Full piece. 

4. Tough decisions ahead for captain Inkster
No Wie, Lincicome, Lewis, Piller, Creamer, Stanford, and more…
  • Golf Channel’s Randall Mell…”With an influx of young players who have little international team experience, Inkster is looking at a major overhaul of the American roster fans have grown accustomed to seeing in the event.”
  • “The turnover’s a bigger deal with the United States traveling to Scotland for a road game with the Europeans.”
  • “Inkster likes the young talent she sees emerging, but . . .”I also have to think about who will be able to handle the pressure of playing a road game,” she wrote Tuesday in her Solheim Cup captain’s blog. “It’s going to be really hard playing overseas. The fans are going to be loud and loyal behind Europe, and I need to find players who can handle that situation. It takes a special player who can take the cheers for her opponent and turn them to something that motivates her and not distract her.”
5. Unselfish act, unlikely victory
Nate Lashley was an alternate, not a qualifier, for the Rocket Mortgage Classic, and as it turns out, David Berganio, Jr. was the player between Lashley and a start, and, well… this weird bit of providence
  • AP report…”Berganio has been on a medical extension since 2004 because of a bulging disk in his back that took 11 years to be diagnosed as a problem in his hip. He has played only 28 times in the last 15 years on the PGA Tour.”
  • But…”His golf clubs never made the connection in Dallas and Berganio didn’t get them until Tuesday night. The course is occupied all day Wednesday with the pro-am.”
  • “I wasn’t able to play a practice round,” Berganio said. “A friend of mine always says, ‘Fail to prepare, prepare to fail.’ I’m 50. I know some kid behind me was waiting to get in, and I didn’t want to take up a spot. And then this happened. He’s a former Wildcat, as well. The situation couldn’t have been better.”
 
6. Garrigus: PGA Tour marijuna policy is too strict 
Golf Digest’s Joel Beall...”In March, the tour announced that the 41-year-old had violated its Anti-Doping Program. Although the tour used the term “drug of abuse,” Garrigus-who overcame substance issues to become a PGA Tour winner in 2010 and finish T-3 at the 2011 U.S. Open-confirmed he had tested positive for marijuana in a statement of his own. Speaking to the Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis, Garrigus said that marijuana should not be considered in the same category as other performance-enhancing items.”
  • “I wasn’t trying to degrade the PGA Tour in any way, my fellow professionals in any way. I don’t cheat the game,” Garrigus told the Golf Channel. “I understand HGH [Human Growth Hormone], anything you are trying to do to cheat the game you should be suspended for 100 percent. Everything else should be a discussion.”
7. A check on the field in Tahoe…
Golfweek’s Adam Woodward…”For the 30th year, some of the biggest names in the sports and entertainment worlds will flock to Lake Tahoe’s Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course for the 2019 American Century Championship.”
  • “The field of 93 players in headlined by Golden State Warriors star and two-time NBA MVP Steph Curry (seventh appearance), former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and CBS NFL analyst Tony Romo (sixth appearance) and Grammy Award-winning musician and actor Justin Timberlake (fourth appearance).” 

Full field for the July 12-14 event, here.

8. How to improve at golf
Matt Strube at True Motion Sports advances his “it takes a village to really improve at golf” theory…
…”Each part of your Village can be thought of as a cog in a machine, and if you remove a cog, or it gets rusty or doesn’t fit right…you get the picture, your Village won’t help you hit the ball straight or score well. While adding additional villagers is important, to improve, you need to have exposure to every one of the following
factors.”
“1. Find a Coach – My Golf Coach, Tim Overman, is my friend and has a diversified set of golf knowledge from various sources, aka a high #Golf-IQ. He’s also someone with good communication skills and has a ‘Village Philosophy’ as opposed to a “My Way” of doing things. He is a voracious researcher of the golf swing, is agnostic to one “swing theory”, and isn’t afraid of the process of creative destruction, which means he’s constantly searching for ways to get better and utilize input from a multitude of sources. [Don’t get me wrong, he isn’t wavering and doesn’t change my move each week, he is simply a knowledge sponge.] He listens more than he speaks, has a training plan that is focused on making students “do the reps”, and participates in playing lessons and situational practice routines with each of his students. Tim also explains the “why?” of what he’s teaching, and arms me with the knowledge to be my own coach when he isn’t around. Be selective because unfortunately, Tim is part of a small subset of quality instructors, so do your homework! Tim is also a huge contributor to this, and future, articles by the way.”
9. Special delivery!
Clad in his green jacket, Tiger Woods hoisted the Masters trophy on that now-famous Sunday in April. He did not, however, take home the Masters trophy… winners receive a replica, and apparently it takes a while to arrive!

 

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.

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How much each player won at the 2026 PGA Championship

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Aaron Rai upset the odds to win his first major championship on Sunday at Aronimink, firing a final round of 5-under par to see off his competitors and claim the winner’s check for $3,690,000.

Jon Rahm and Alex Smalley were the best of the chasing pack, with both men sharing runner-up spot which was good enough for each to receive a check for $1,804,000.

With a total prize purse of $20.5 million up for grabs, here’s a look at how much each player won at the 2026 PGA Championship.

Players who missed the PGA Championship cut each received $4,300 each.

1: Aaron Rai, $3,690,000

T2 : Jon Rahm, $1,804,000

T2 : Alex Smalley, $1,804,000

T4: Justin Thomas, $843,866

T4: Ludvig Aberg, $843,866

T4: Matti Schmid, $843,866

T7: Cameron Smith, $637,050

T7: Rory McIlroy, $637,050

T7: Xander Schauffele, $637,050

T10: Kurt Kitayama, $496,707

T10: Chris Gotterup, $496,707

T10: Justin Rose, $496,707

T10: Patrick Reed, $496,707

T14: Matt Fitzpatrick, $364,762

T14: Scottie Scheffler, $364,762

T14: Max Greyserman, $364,762

T14: Ben Griffin, $364,762

T18: Maverick McNealy, $229,128

T18: Jordan Spieth, $229,128

T18: Stephan Jaeger, $229,128

T18: Padraigh Harrington, $229,128

T18: David Puig, $229,128

T18: Harris English, $229,128

T18: Min Woo Lee, $229,128

T18: Joaquin Niemann, $229,128

T26: Nick Taylor, $125,523

T26: Alex Noren, $125,523

T26: Cameron Young, $125,523

T26: Andrew Novak, $125,523

T-26: Daniel Hiller, $125,523

T26: Tom Hoge, $125,523

T26: Sam Burns, $125,523

T26: Hideki Matsuyama, $125,523

T26: Bud Cauley, $125,523

T35: Christiaan Bezuidenhout, $78,805

T35: Patrick Cantlay, $78,805

T35: Ryo Hisatsune, $78,805

T35: Daniel Berger, $78,805

T35: Ryan Fox, $78,805

T35: Haotong Li, $78,805

T35: Aldrich Potgieter, $78,805

T35: Si Woo Kim, $78,805

T35: Martin Kaymer, $78,805

T44: Chris Kirk, $53,743

T44: Matt Wallace, $53,743

T44: Shane Lowry, $53,743

T44: Jhonattan Vegas, $53,743

T44: Denny McCarthy, $53,743

T44: Chandler Blachet, $53,743

T44: Taylor Pendrith, $53,743

T44: Dustin Johnson, $53,743

T44: Nicolai Hojgaard, $53,743

T44: Michael Kim, $53,743

T44: Kristoffer Reitan, $53,743

T55: Collin Morikawa, $34,186

T55: Corey Conners, $34,186

T55: Andrew Putnam, $34,186

T55: Brooks Koepka, $34,186

T55: Mikael Lindberg, $34,186

T60: Sami Valimaki, $29,218

T60: Sahith Theegala, $29,218

T60: Rico Hoey, $29,218

T60: Rickie Fowler, $29,218

T60: Brian Harman, $29,218

T65: Casey Jarvis, $26,900

T65: Jason Day, $26,900

T65: Rasmus Hojgaard, $26,900

T65: Keith Mitchell, $26,900

T65: Sam Stevens, $26,900

T70: Luke Donald, $25,070

T70: Ryan Gerard, $25,070

T70: John Parry, $25,070

T70: William Mouw, $25,070

T70: Kazuki Higa, $25,070

T75: Elvis Smylie, $24,158

T75: Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, $24,158

T75: Alex Fitzpatrick, $24,158

T75: Daniel Brown, $24,158

79: John Keefer, $23,970

80: Ben Kern, $23,930

81: Michael Brennan, $23,910

82: Brian Campebll, $23,900

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