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Morning 9: Bird-flipper won’t appeal | Strong starts for Scott, Mickelson | The (golf) beard returns

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6 years ago

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By Ben Alberstadt
Email me at ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com and find me at @benalberstadt on Instagram

October 4, 2019

Good Friday morning, golf fans.
1. Kim won’t appeal 
Golfweek staff report on the middle-finger-giving Kim…”South Korean golfer Bio Kim will not appeal the three-year ban or fine he received from the Korean Tour, according to a report by ESPN.”
  • “…On Monday, Kim apologized for his actions, telling ESPN’s Michael Collins he was “sincerely sorry” and “takes full responsibility.” Kim said he raised his middle finger toward a spectator after the fan’s cellphone camera went off during his backswing on the 16th tee.”
  • “Kim will not appeal the suspension because he believes a fine and punishment are warranted, according to ESPN. He also said he chose not to appeal either disciplinary action because it might give the appearance that his apology was not genuine.”

Full piece.

2. Shriners round one leader: Nick Taylor
AP…”Nick Taylor had to scramble for par on his opening two holes Thursday, and then he couldn’t miss in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.”
  • “Taylor ran off a six-hole stretch at 6-under par, including a drive on the 314-yard 14th hole at the TPC Summerlin that stopped 5 feet away for eagle. He birdied all the par 5s, kept bogeys off his card and opened with an 8-under 63 for a one-shot lead over Brian Harman.”

Full piece.

3. Not knowing where the ball is going is working out well
 
Steve Dimeglio for Golfweek…”The 2013 Masters champion, former world No. 1 and one of the game’s best players for more than 15 years isn’t exactly sure where the ball is going these days.”
  • “Somewhat baffled as he stands over the ball, he said he just has to trust what he’s doing and hope that gets the job done.”
  • “Well, it did on Thursday in the first round of the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open at TPC Summerlin. The winner of 29 titles worldwide shot a bogey-free, 5-under-par 66 to stand three shots behind pace-setting Nick Taylor.”
  • “My score,” Scott laughed when asked what he was most pleased with about his play in the opening round.

Full piece.

4. Vegas, babies!
Golf Channel’s Nick Menta…”Matt Wolff, Collin Morikawa and Joaquin Niemann are a combined 64 years old.”
  • “…For reference, Niemann is 20, Wolff is 20, and Morikawa is 22.”
  • “…This trio of newly minted PGA Tour winners was in the spotlight and in front of the cameras on Thursday at TPC Summerlin, strolling around as a late-afternoon featured group at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.”
  • “Wolff and Morikawa both opened with 67, Niemann with a 69.”
5. Spanish Open
With round 2 underway, here’s a quick round one update from Spain…(AP report) “Kristian Krogh Johannessen of Norway shot a career-best 8-under 63 to match the course record and take a two-shot lead after the first round of the Spanish Open on Thursday.”
  • “Johannessen birdied four of his last six holes at the Club de Campo Villa de Madrid for the lowest opening round in the event’s history. The only bogey for the Norwegian came on the par-4 16th hole, right after he made an eagle on the par-4 15th.”
  • ”It was a good round,” Johannessen said. ”I didn’t hit it perfectly but hit it in the right spots, even when I missed, and I holed some good putts. I’m out there having fun and playing smart. It’s a tricky course … I just need to keep cool and play my own game.”

Full piece.

6. Meadow in front
AP report…”Stephanie Meadow had five straight birdies on the front nine and shot an 8-under 63 in hot and humid conditions Thursday to take the first-round lead in the LPGA Tour’s Volunteers of America Classic.”
  • “Sticky. I’m pretty hot, but it was a great day,” Meadow said. “I hit the ball really well, putted really nicely, so it’s a good start. “
  • “Seeking her first tour victory, the 27-year-old former University of Alabama player from Northern Ireland began the birdie run on the par-5 second and capped it on the par-5 sixth in mid-90-degree heat at Old American Golf Club.”

Full piece.

7. DeLaet’s back
Good to see one the coolest PGA Tour pros inside the ropes again
Golf Channel’s Nick Menta...”Making his first PGA Tour start in nearly two years, Graham DeLaet admitted he was uncomfortable.”
  • “During a front-nine 40, one that included a triple bogey just three holes into his return, he was gripping his putter too tightly and trying to guide his ball around TPC Summerlin.”
  • “And yet, DeLaet realized he was enjoying himself.”
  • “I was 5 over through four [holes] ... but it didn’t even matter,” he said after a Thursday 75 at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. “I was out there having fun. I’m back on the PGA Tour again.”

Full piece.

8. Cardi B’s next album…
Golf Digest’s Alex Myers...”During an Instagram Live chat on Wednesday, the rapper announced she’s going to name her upcoming album “Tiger Woods.” No, not in honor of the 15-time major champ, but literally after Tiger Woods. As in, at some point in the near future, kids will be able to walk into a Tower Records and buy Cardi B’s new CD, “Tiger Woods.” Wait, kids don’t buy CDs these days? And Tower Records doesn’t exist anymore?! Sigh.”
“…Anyway, here was Cardi B’s reasoning for the title…”I think I’m going to name my album Tiger Woods,” she said. “I’m going to name my album, I think, Tiger Woods, because, remember when everybody was talking sht on Tiger Woods […] and then he fcking came and won that green jacket? That’s what I’m going to name my album.”

Full piece.

9. Back, backing it up
Golf Digest’s Brian Wacker on Phil Mickelson’s strong start to the Shriners…”Last week, he played in the Safeway Open, a tournament he’s competed in the previous three seasons. This week it’s the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, an event he hasn’t teed it up in since 2005. That’s only the beginning.”
“Before shooting of his opening-round 65 at TPC Summerlin on Thursday, Mickelson said he also will be competing at the CJ Cup in South Korea in two weeks. He added that there’s a “good chance” he will be at the WGC-HSBC Champions in China two weeks after that. The last time Mickelson played the WGC-HSBC was two years ago. Before that, you’d have to go back to 2013 when he also played in the CIMB Classic in Malaysia the week before.”

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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. Michael Saxe

    Oct 4, 2019 at 1:44 pm

    Please make an effort to indicate WHO you are talking about. These summaries are so vague. I shouldn’t have to read to the end of the section or google “2013 Masters champ” to figure out who you are talking about.

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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

Published

4 weeks ago

on

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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News

BK’s Breakdowns: Kurt Kitayama’s Winning WITB, 3M Open

Published

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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