19th Hole

Morning 9: PGA: Day, Todd lead (-5) | Koepka (-4) | Woods (-2) | Bryson breaks driver

Published

6 years ago

Aug 7, 2020

1. J-Day leads the way (-5, tied with Brendon Todd)

Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard rightly mentions that “backwatch” extends beyond Tiger Woods at TPC Harding Park to the current tournament leader….”Jason Day has been spotted in recent weeks slowly plucking his golf ball from the hole in an attempt to protect against re-injuring his back, and he had his share of concerns heading into what promised to be a frigid round on Thursday. Instead, the sun broke through the fog around midday and temperatures climbed into the mid-60s.”

“It was nice to be able to have the sun for a change. I mean, it’s been kind of overcast and gray here,” Day said. “You’ve got to be careful. It is a lot colder; 50 degrees pretty much to be precise from last week [in Memphis].”

“Whatever concern Day had was quickly eased when he birdied his first hole (he started on No. 10) and made the turn at 2 under. He added three more birdies on his second nine and finished with a bogey-free 65 and the early lead.”

Full piece.

2. Reinvigorated Kaymer (-4)

Excellent framing of the German’s opening-round 66 by ESPN’s Bob Harig…”since that victory at the U.S. Open, he’s had just one top-10 finish in a major, a tie for seventh at the 2016 PGA championship.”

Hence, the lack of expectations before shooting 66 in the opening round of the PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park.

(Kaymer) …”So last night I was watching the U.S. Open actually from 2014, the back nine, trying to get some kind of positivity in my game because it hasn’t been much recently because of no play. On the first tee, I was thinking, obviously this [the 10th] is one of the easier holes right away with a par-5, if I can start off nicely with a birdie, that would be great.

“Watching that video of me winning the U.S. Open, that helped me to believe that my putting was good enough, that my ball-striking was good enough, even though it’s a few years back. But it’s always nice to remember those moments and feel the same that you felt that day.’

Full piece.

3. Quality start for Tiger (-2)

PGATour.com’s Sean Martin…“Woods wore a sweater all day, but the cold, damp conditions at TPC Harding Park didn’t impact his ability to swing freely. He led the field in driving distance when he walked off the course, averaging 313.5 yards off the tee on the two measured holes.”

“He hit just half his fairways Thursday, missing several left after hitting tee shots off the toe. His iron play was strong when he was in the short grass, especially on his back nine.”

“The most part of the day, I missed the ball on the correct sides,” Woods said. “This golf course, you have to hit the ball in the fairway. You get a ball in the rough, into the grain, there’s no chance you can get the ball to the green. I felt like I did a decent job of doing that.”

“Woods was even par after 12 holes, but hen rolled off three birdies in a four-hole stretch.”

Full piece.

4. Brooks (-4)

Golfweek’s Adam Schupak…”Brooks Koepka is sitting pretty in his quest for a three-peat at the PGA Championship. Koepka opened with a 4-under 66, just one off the pace set by former PGA champion Jason Day and fellow first-round co-leader Brendon Todd.”

“Koepka is well aware of the historical significance that is at stake this week as he attempts to become the first in the stroke-play era of the PGA to win three Wanamaker trophies in a row, and the first player overall to win the same major three consecutive years since Australian Peter Thomson achieved the feat at the British Open (1954-56).”

Full piece.

5. How Brooks found his swing

Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner…“Poring over swing video with coach Claude Harmon III, Koepka learned that 70 percent of his weight was on his back foot at impact – a subconscious move to alleviate pressure on his ailing left knee.”

“The fix was simple – dropping back his left foot “a hair” – and while watching video from the past two PGA Championships with caddie Ricky Elliott, Koepka noticed that from that position he was able to drive off his right foot and not feel any twinges of pain.”

“My feet are usually a little bit staggered from a perfect golf swing, too far left,” he said, “but that’s just how we play. It’s nice to feel comfortable over the ball. I’m starting to see it come out of the right pocket, the right window, and that’s exciting.”

Full piece.

6. Queue up your Hulk jokes

Multiple Pulitzer Prize winner and GWAA Writer of the Year Ben Alberstadt writes…“In a situation seemingly conceived of as comic fodder for the internet in general, Twitter in particular: Bryson Dechambeau snapped the LA Golf BAD Prototype shaft of his Cobra King SpeedZone driver during the first round of the PGA Championship.”

“Adding to the comic possibilities of the occurrence, which befell DeChambeau on the seventh hole at TPC Harding Park, it was neither American muscle’s vaunted swing speed nor a temper tantrum that caused the fracture.”

“Rather, Bryson DeChambeau snapped his driver shaft by...leaning on it with the force of his recent thickness while picking up his tee.”

Full piece.

7. Tour layoffs

Golfweek’s Tim Schmitt…”As the PGA Championship started at TPC Harding Park this week, the PGA Tour confirmed a number of job cuts to staff personnel.”

“The Tour did not reveal the number of individuals laid off, but PGA Tour Vice President of Communications Joel Schuchmann said the moves will help position the Tour moving forward.”

“As a result of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the PGA Tour – much like many other organizations – has had to identify ways to streamline our operations,” Schuchmann said in a statement.

“While it is never easy to say goodbye to valuable members of the Tour family, this week’s targeted job cuts will allow us to most efficiently deal with the current climate and prepare for 2021 and beyond.”

Full piece.

8. LPGA: Ko, Kang lead

LPGA Communications team…“With a pair of 7-under 64s on Thursday, American Danielle Kang and New Zealand’s Lydia Ko are tied atop the leaderboard at the 2020 Marathon LPGA Classic presented by Dana. Kang went bogey-free around Highland Meadows Golf Club, crediting a strong day with her putter, and is looking to become the LPGA Tour’s first back-to-back winner since 2017.”

“I worked a lot on my putting for the last couple days. Didn’t really like how the ball was coming off my putter,” said Kang, who won last week’s LPGA Drive On Championship. “But I think that I kind of got a good feel out of it; then today my putting worked really well. There are days when the ball goes where you see, and that’s what happened.”

“Ko carded eight birdies and one bogey at a course that has historically been very kind to her. Ko has two victories and two other top 10s in her five previous tournament appearances, with a scoring average of 68 over those 20 rounds.”

Full piece.

9. Euro: Sharvin stands in front

EuropeanTour.com report…”Cormac Sharvin made sure it was worth the wait as he edged into a one shot lead after the first round of the 2020 English Championship.”

“The Northern Irishman teed off in the final group in Hertfordshire and delivered a course record 63 to sit at eight under par, nudging ahead of six players locked at seven under.”

“David Howell rolled back the years and looked to have earned his first 18 hole lead at a European Tour event in 636 appearances as he joined Australian duo Jason Scrivener and Min Woo Lee, Zimbabwe’s Scott Vincent, Hero Open runner up Thomas Detry and Laurie Canter as co-leader.”

“But the 27-year-old Sharvin, who graduated to the European Tour after finishing the 2019 Challenge Tour season in 11th position on the Road to Mallorca Rankings, carded ten birdies and two dropped shots to take the outright lead.”

Full piece.

19th Hole

How much each player won at the 2026 Masters

Published

1 month ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Rory McIlroy made it two wins in as many years at Augusta National, seeing off the challengers on a dramatic Sunday to slip on the green jacket once again. The victory earned Rory a whopping payday of $4.5 million, with Scottie Scheffler his closest challenger earning $2.43 million for his sole runner-up finish.

With a total prize purse of $22.5 million up for grabs, here’s a look at how much each player won at the 2026 Masters tournament.

For players that did not make the cut, they still earned $25k for their efforts at the year’s opening major.

1: Rory McIlroy, $4.5 million
2: Scottie Scheffler, $2.43 million
T3: Tyrrell Hatton, $1.08 million
T3: Russell Henley, $1.08 million
T3: Justin Rose, $1.08 million
T3: Cameron Young, $1.08 million
T7: Collin Morikawa, $725,625
T7: Sam Burns, $725,625
T9: Xander Schauffele, $630,00
T9: Max Homa, $630,00
11: Jake Knapp, $562,500
T12: Jordan Spieth, $427,500
T12: Brooks Koepka, $427,500
T12: Hideki Matsuyama, $427,500
T12: Patrick Reed, $427,500
T12: Patrick Cantlay, $427,500
T12: Jason Day, $427,500
T18: Viktor Hovland, $315,000
T18: Maverick McNealy, $315,000
T18: Matt Fitzpatrick, $315,000
T21: Keegan Bradley, $252,000
T21: Ludvig Aberg, $252,000
T21: Wyndham Clark, $252,000
T24: Matt McCarty, $182,083
T24: Adam Scott, $182,083
T24: Sam Stevens, $182,083
T24: Chris Gotterup, $182,083
T24: Michael Brennan, $182,083
T24: Brian Campbell, $182,083
T30: Alex Noren, $146,250
T30: Harris English, $146,250
T30: Shane Lowry, $146,250
T33: Gary Woodland, $121,500
T33: Dustin Johnson, $121,500
T33: Brian Harman, $121,500
T33: Tommy Fleetwood, $121,500
T33: Ben Griffin, $121,500
T38: Jon Rahm, $105,750
T38: Ryan Gerard, $101,250
T38: Haotong Li, $96,750
T41: Justin Thomas, $92,250
T41: Sepp Straka, $87,750
T41: Jacob Bridgeman, $83,250
T41: Kristoffer Reitan, $78,750
T41: Nick Taylor, $74,250
46: Sungjae Im, $69,750
47: Si Woo Kim, $65,250
48: Aaron Rai, $61,650
T49: Corey Conners, $57,600
T49: Marco Penge, $57,600
51: Kurt Kitayama, $55,250
52: Sergio Garcia, $54,000
53: Rasmus Hojgaard, $52,650
54: Charl Schwartzel, $51,300

19th Hole

CBS’s Sunday Masters coverage slammed by golf fans

Published

1 month ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

While Sunday was a dramatic day at the Masters, many golf fans were left feeling frustrated by the CBS final round coverage.

There were plenty of moments that golf fans took to social media to air their frustrations on Sunday over, including a lack of shots being shown throughout the day, being behind the live action, confusion over the approach shots of the final group on 18, and providing an angle for the winning putt where the cup couldn’t be seen.

Here’s a look at some of the criticisms that were directed at the CBS coverage throughout the day on X:

This has been a brutal broadcast for CBS. When the folks from Augusta sit down with them this year, you can bet they’ll talk about this 15 seconds where we have no idea where Rory’s ball went, and Dottie moans. #TheMasters pic.twitter.com/ak3mkpIN7V

— Ryan (@PossiblyRy) April 12, 2026

It’s rare criticism coming in for CBS, who are usually heavily praised for their Masters coverage each year.

19th Hole

The surprise club Tommy Fleetwood says is key to his Masters chances

Published

1 month ago

Apr 7, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Tommy Fleetwood goes in search for the first major victory of his career again this week, with the Englishman proving to be a popular pick at Augusta National.

Fleetwood’s best showing at Augusta came back in 2024 where he finished T3, and while speaking at his pre-tournament press conference, the 35-year-old emphasized the importance of his 9-wood in his pursuit of the green jacket.

Speaking on Tuesday to media, Fleetwood said:

“It’s a great 9-wood golf course. I think it’s always been — I can’t remember when I first put like a 9-wood in or a high lofted club, but it’s a perfect like 9-wood golf course. I’ve had that in the bag for a few years.”

The Englishman continued, revealing that his strategy for the week won’t just be to hit driver off the tee as much as possible:

“Yeah, it’s funny really because I know Augusta is probably associated with being fairly forgiving off the tee in a way, so you think you can whale around driver a little bit. But I don’t necessarily think that’s always the play for me. I think there’s holes that set up really well where I can draw it with the mini driver if I’m feeling less comfortable with the driver and things like that.”

That strategy he believes will make his TaylorMade Qi10 9-wood extra critical this week in Georgia:

“The biggest thing is the 9-wood for me. If I can put myself in position on the par-5s or the 4th long par-3, like it — for me, I can’t really hit that high 4-iron, so 9-wood helps me a lot.”