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Morning 9: Monahan stresses safety, testing | More Euro Tour cancellations

Published

5 years ago

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1. Monahan stresses safety, testing
Steve DiMeglio for Golfweek…“Commissioner Jay Monahan said Friday one thing is critical for the PGA Tour to resume play in mid-June…Testing for the coronavirus.”
  • “We need to have widespread, large-scale testing across our country. We are going to need to test players, caddies and other constituents before we return,” Monahan said on NBC Sports Networks “Lunch Time Live” hosted by Mike Tirico. “But we need to do so in a way that’s not going to take away from the critical need that we are currently facing. But we feel confident based on the advice we are getting from medical experts that we will be in that position.
  • “We’re thinking about what it’s going to take in advance of a player getting on property, to every single movement that a player or a caddie might have over the course of the week and thinking about what can we do to make that the safest environment possible.”
2. 1 million tests? 
A word about the (potential) magnitude of that testing, via Ewan Murray at The Guardian…
  • “The PGA Tour hopes to take delivery of up to one million Covid-19 test kits to assist with the completion of its season from 11 June. President Donald Trump’s desire to use sport as a key vehicle to accelerate a return to normality in the United States is emphasised by a plan to allow those involved in PGA Tour events into the country under the auspice of essential travel. The Tour remains confident of pushing forward with tournaments given the scale of government backing.”
  • “A revised schedule was announced last week, featuring 14 tournaments running until 7 September. At least the first four, starting with the Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas, will be closed to spectators. Estimates are that between 700 and 800 personnel will still be needed on site at events.”
  • “The rigorous testing procedures will involve players, caddies and officials being sent testing kits – already on mass order – to their homes, with a further and immediate check required if anyone has travelled to a tournament by air. Daily tests will subsequently be undertaken by each individual in tournament week, with anyone returning a positive result asked to self-quarantine for 14 days”
3. More European Tour cancellations
Golf Digest’s Joel Beall…“On Friday, the European Tour canceled the BMW International Open and Open de France, while postponing the Scottish Open. The events were slated consecutively on the European calendar, beginning with the BMW on June 25 and ending with the Scottish Open on July 9.”
“Because the Scottish Open is one of eight Rolex Series events, there is hope the event, scheduled to visit the Renaissance Club in North Berwick, can be rescheduled at some point later in the year.”
“The decision to cancel the BMW International Open, which has been a cornerstone of the European Tour calendar for three decades, and the Open de France, one of our most historic national Opens, was made in consultation with our long-term partner BMW and the French Golf Federation respectively with public health and well-being the absolute priority for all of us,” European Tour CEO Keith Pelley said in a statement. “Both Germany and France have been significantly impacted by Coronavirus, and our thoughts go out to everyone affected in both countries, as well as elsewhere around the world.”
4. Koepka on playing without fans
Our Gianni Magliocco…”Four-time major champion Brooks Koepka expects higher scores when golf returns to the PGA Tour in June, believing that players won’t be so fortunate in finding errant tee-shots without the aid of spectators on-site.”
  • “Koepka was speaking on the ‘Pardon My Take’ podcast where he made it clear how important fans are for professionals in regards to minimizing the damage of their wild shots.”
  • “Every once in a while, we just hit some foul balls and the fans help you find it. Guys are going to lose balls because of that.”
  • “Golf on the PGA Tour is set to resume mid-June at the Charles Schwab Challenge, and the 29-year-old also revealed that he believes that playing in front of no fans will be “awful”, and is expecting a “weird” experience.”

Full piece.

5. NGF: 48 percent of courses are open
Golfweek’s Jason Lusk…”The National Golf Foundation reported on Friday that 48 percent of golf courses in the United States were open over the past week, up from 44 percent the week prior.”
  • “The figures in the NGF’s latest COVID-19 update are based on phone surveys of 1,753 golf facilities conducted April 7-10 and are accurate to plus or minus 2 percent.”
  • “The numbers of open courses vary greatly by region (shown in the map above with percentages of open courses). The southern U.S. had the greatest percentage of courses open, with 81 percent. On the West Coast, only 14 percent of courses are open in California, Oregon and Washington.”
6. New beginning? 
Cameron Morfit at PGATour.com…”Monahan addressed interviewers from a makeshift set in THE PLAYERS Championship media room foyer at the TOUR’s Headquarters. In a sign of the times, there was dais, no satellite truck, no teams of producers or A/V experts. Instead, he sat on a stool and spoke into an open laptop or via phone. It was a partly cloudy day, some golfers playing TPC Sawgrass outside, everyone adhering to social distancing protocols.”
  • “People were starving for inspiration,” Monahan said as he addressed the lineup of shows. “Golf provides that, and sports provide that. We’ve been working day and night with local, city, state and federal officials to determine the right sequence to come back in the safest and most responsible way possible for players, caddies and constituents.”
  • “Feedback has been positive, no surprise. Players had buy-in; Monahan estimated there have been 10 conference calls with the PGA TOUR Policy Board and Player Advisory Council.”

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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.

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Tour Rundown: Bend, but don’t break

Published

3 weeks ago

on

Aug 4, 2025

By

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

By

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

on

Jul 28, 2025

By

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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WITB

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