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Morning 9: WGC-HSBC Champions canceled | Feinstein: How to put the “playoffs” in the FedEx Cup Playoffs | Molinari: I’m not burnt out | What is GolfWRX BST?

Published

5 years ago

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1. HSBC Champions canceled 
AP report…”The International Federation of PGA Tours on Wednesday canceled the HSBC Champions World Golf Championships event in China.”
  • “The tournament was scheduled for Oct. 29-Nov. 1 at Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai. The Chinese government announced in July that because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the country would not host international sports events for the rest of 2020.”
  • “We have worked extensively with all tours, international officials, the China Golf Association and other local parties to find a solution to host the WGC-HSBC Champions,” Ty Votaw, PGA Tour executive vice president, international, said in a statement. “In line with Chinese government guidelines and being mindful of the logistical implications, we collectively made the difficult decision to cancel the 2020 event.”
2. Feinstein: How to make the Playoffs a playoff
Leave it to John Feinstein to offer guidance as to how to put the “playoff” in the FedEx Cup Playoffs…
…”increase the payoff for regular-season performance, and then start everyone at zero for the three-tournament playoff series You can use the current formula going from 125 players to 70 to 30 in each successive event, or you can give more players the chance to play the first week, say 150 (it was 144 the first year of playoffs) and then drop to 100 and, finally, send 64 players to Atlanta. This gives the TV guys the chance to warble about guys on the bubble both weeks, and it makes it less likely that stars will be cut before the final weekend.”
…”Play 36 holes of stroke play and let the top 16 advance to match-play bracket. If there are ties for the final spot or spots, play off. That creates real drama early in the week. Then, have four matches on Sunday afternoon: the two finalists for the title, the two losing semifinalists playing for third place, and the four quarterfinalists playing for fifth and seventh. Make the money difference from third down at least $1 million. Plenty of drama there. Championship match goes off last so, barring a rout, it’s the last one to finish.”
…”If you can’t convince the networks to go for match play, then you go back to stroke play and pick the number you feel best about sending to Atlanta. But everyone starts at zero when you get there. The first two tournaments are strictly about qualifying. No one starts with a lead, Sands can retire his white board for good and there’s just one winner.”
3. Molinari cites moving, not burnout 
ESPN’s Bob Harig…”the Italian star, who won The Open in 2018 and was the 54-hole leader at the 2019 Masters won by Tiger Woods, said Tuesday that he is not injured, nor are there any burnout issues keeping him from playing.”
  • “In a series of tweets written in Italian, Molinari, 37, said it was more about a family move to California that has kept him away.”
  • “I see a lot of questions,” he wrote. “I didn’t hang up the bag. I took a break to manage a life change with my family. I have no physical problems. I don’t feel burned out, but only time will tell.”
  • “It will be hard to get back to the levels of 2018, no doubt; it wasn’t easy the first time. I am the only one who has not returned. I am well aware of it, but it is not the first time that I have made different or unpopular choices (see Rio 2016).”
4. Rahmbo stops by Winged Foot 
Only 23-25 minutes with reasonable traffic, 23-25 hours at rush hour, away from me!
Josh Thomson of The Journal News…”As Jon Rahm strode off the 18th green Tuesday afternoon at Winged Foot, what appeared to be a handful of members and workers were gathered along the gravel path to the clubhouse. A few filmed the scene on their cellphones and one called out a word of encouragement, telling Rahm that he hoped to watch the world’s No. 2-ranked player sink a putt on the final green later this month.”
  • “Rahm grinned….”I hope I don’t need to,” he said.”
  • “Rahm visited the notoriously tough West Course Tuesday to prepare for the U.S. Open, which will be played at Winged Foot Golf Club on Sept. 17-20.”
5. How the 2020-2021 PGA Tour schedule is stacking up
Golfwek’s JuliaKate Culpepper…“Less than one week after the Tour Championship at East Lake wraps, the 2020-21 season kicks off with Safeway Open at Silverado Resort and Spa North in Napa, California, Sept. 10-13.”
  • “Notable changes to the 2020-21 schedule include last season’s Masters Tournament (Nov. 12-15) and U.S. Open (Sept. 17-20) being moved to the new season’s schedule and the removal of A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier after 10 years. With the Masters and the U.S. Open officially a part of the 2020-21 season, there will be six majors during that campaign.”
  • “The Zozo Championship has also moved from Japan to California to become part of a three-event West Coast swing.”
6. Adler on Winged Foot in general, its pratice range in particular
Max Adler at Golf Digest…”First-timers to Winged Foot Golf Club are often surprised to find the practice range is what it is: a single strip of artificial turf with a net towering on an angle above a row of pine trees some 200 yards away, a sign displaying a stern warning of disciplinary action should one hit over it. Up to this point in the experience-the winding entrance past imperial iron gates, a gracious greeting from the busy caddiemaster, the cool smell of history wafting from the metal lockers-every element befits what might be the greatest collection of 36 holes in one place. And so the warm-up strikes some as discordant.”
“…The Golden Age refers generally to courses built from 1910-’39, though this period coincided with the Stone Age of practice facilities. A good place to hit balls was simply not a priority then, and masterful layouts with “afterthought” ranges are a mark of A.W. Tillinghast, who built both of Winged Foot’s courses in 1923. Today, the West is No. 11 on Golf Digest’s list of America’s 100 Greatest Courses, and the East is 52nd. Quaker Ridge Golf Club, Tilly’s design across the street, is No. 71 and has no range. For big events, you hit balls down the 17th fairway, where they’re quickly gathered before the first group comes through. Tilly’s Baltusrol Golf Club, part of any discussion for greatest collection with its Lower and Upper courses ranked 41st and 61st, creates a range when major championships stop in.”
7. Zac Blair’s Buck Club golf course finally going ahead? 
Adam Lawrence for Golf Course Architecture…“PGA Tour player Zac Blair’s long-held ambition to create his own golf course, to be known as the Buck Club, has moved a step closer after he closed a deal to acquire a site for the course, outside the city of Aiken in South Carolina.”
  • “Blair will co-design the course with design firm King-Collins, who will also supervise construction. The 407-acre property, described by architect Rob Collins as “sandy, rolling terrain and in the ‘don’t mess it up’ category” is an existing tree farm.”
  • “When Zac and I first toured the property, the names he and I were thinking about were Pine Valley, Morfontaine and Pinehurst No. 2,” said Collins. “Given its current usage, the course will have trees on it, but we’ll clear out under the trees and we’ll have very natural transitions from fairway to unmaintained ground.”
8. Vinsanity at the Tour Championship? 
PGATour.com staff report…“TOUR Championship officials and the PGA TOUR announced today the creation of the ‘Golf With A Purpose’ Charity Challenge, a televised nine-hole charity exhibition to benefit the East Lake Foundation and the TOUR Championship’s other charitable beneficiaries.”
  • “The match, which will be played in a scramble format, will take place Thursday, Sept. 3, on the back nine at historic East Lake Golf Club on the eve of the TOUR Championship. Newly retired NBA legend and recent member of the Atlanta Hawks Vince Carter will team with four-time PGA TOUR winner Ryan Palmer, while former Pittsburgh Steelers running back, NFL Hall of Fame member and Super Bowl XL champion Jerome Bettis will join forces with 2020 Payne Stewart Award recipient, East Lake Golf Club course record-holder and 12-time PGA TOUR winner Zach Johnson.”

Full piece.

9. GolfWRX BST (Buy-Sell-Trade)/Classifieds
If you’re unfamiliar, in addition to offering a “forum” for your opinions and the perspectives of the most plugged-in folks/golf equipment degenerates, the GolfWRX forums are a place to buy, sell, and trade your golf wares.
  • In the spirit of introducing our BST to a larger audience, I’ll occasionally be including some of what you can find there.
Member Arnoldc22 – Mizuno MP-32 iron set…The Mizuno MP32’s are still one of the most loved sets of irons ever made by the popular Japanese, and finding them in good shape continues to get harder and harder. Here’s your chance to scoop one of those good sets up.

Member mpstein – Miura CB-57 set heads only...If you have golf shafts, we have club heads! This is a 4-PW set of Miura CB-57 irons in fantastic shape and ready to be built. Plus if you check out the listing you might find a few more goodies.

 

 

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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

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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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WITB

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Peter Malnati WITB 2025 (August)

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Cameron Young’s winning WITB: 2025 Wyndham Championship

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Camilo Villegas WITB 2025 (July)

Camilo Villegas WITB accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. Villegas was undecided on a 3-wood when we shot his bag. ...
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Brandt Snedeker fired a final-round 65 at the 2018 Wyndham Championship to outlast Webb Simpson and C.T. Pan. His 5-under...

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