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Morning 9: Kokrak breaks through in Vegas | High-end mini golf on the horizon? | No new tee box for 13 at Augusta?

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5 years ago

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1. Door finally opens for Kokrak
10 years of knocking… AP report…“Jason Kokrak was playing for the 233rd time in his 10th season on the PGA Tour without ever having won, so he didn’t need any reminders Sunday in the CJ Cup at Shadow Creek that anything would come easily.”
  • “He watched Xander Schauffele stuff a wedge to 5 feet for birdie and roll in a 45-foot birdie putt from the thick collar of the 13th green on the next hole to tie for the lead.”
  • “Kokrak never flinched. Holding his nerve to the end and delivering all the key shots, Kokrak matched the low score of the week with an 8-under 64 to overcome a three-shot deficit at the start and win by two shots to finally be able to call himself a PGA Tour winner”
2. El Pirata!
Great win for a man with an equally great nickname. EuropeanTour.com report…“Adrian Otaegui produced a brilliant closing round of 63 to storm to his first 72-hole stroke play victory on the European Tour at the Scottish Championship presented by AXA.”
  • “The Spaniard has shown himself to be an expert at head to head battles, winning both the Saltire Energy Paul Lawrie Match Play and the Belgian Knockout, and he showed all those skills again as it came down to a three man contest at Fairmont St Andrews.”
  • “Otaegui entered the day four shots off the lead of Matt Wallace but eight birdies in 11 holes from the fifth helped him finish at 23 under, four clear of the Englishman.”
 
3. Move over, Bernhard!
Hank Kurz, Jr. for the Associated Press…“Phil Mickelson likes to play aggressively and found the PGA Tour Champions’ stop at The Country Club of Virginia the perfect place to begin his preparations for the Masters.”
  • “Bombing drives like he will have to do against the younger set on the PGA Tour, Mickelson shot a 7-under 65 and became the third player – and second this year – to win his first two starts on the tour for players 50 and older. He slammed the door on Mike Weir with a back-nine surge Sunday in the Dominion Energy Charity Classic.”
  • “It’s fun for me to come out here and play well and this is a good start for me as I try to build a little bit of momentum heading to Augusta in about a month,” Mickelson said.
4. Age brings wisdom…
Humor with a  touch of smugness AKA Phil being Phil. Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine with these remarks from Mickelson prior to the Dominion Energy…
“Even if I beat all 78 guys, it would still be a letdown,” Mickelson said Thursday at Country Club of Virginia. “I made so much more last time I played, that I just didn’t see the benefit. Sorry.”
  • “While the comment was made tongue in cheek, Mickelson believes his road to Augusta best goes through Richmond, Virginia, where he will make his second career PGA Tour Champions start beginning Friday at the Dominion Energy Charity Classic. Mickelson will look to build off his maiden senior win two months ago at Ozarks National while some of the top names on the PGA Tour go at it at the CJ Cup in Las Vegas.”
  • “The 50-year-old Mickelson has missed seven cuts in 15 worldwide starts this year, including most recently at the U.S. Open. He does have a trio of top-3 finishes, including a T-2 in Memphis and T-3 in Saudi Arabia, but outside of that he boasts just one other top-25 showing.”
5. High-end Putt Putt?
Montreal Gazette’s John Meagher…“Times are tough for local merchants coping with the economic fallout of COVID-19, but West Island businessman Lee Naylor says the pandemic also presents new opportunities.”
  • “Naylor is behind a new mini-putt course being constructed at Golf Dorval, an 18-hole public golf course in the West Island.”
  • “..We’re going to have a waterfall and a koi (fish) pond and some other really nice attractions,” he said. “It’s going to be a kind of high-end course.”  After Golf Dorval approved the plan, Naylor chose 18 different holes by going online and researching the best holes at other mini-putt courses.  The playing surface will be made of artificial grass that cost $30,000. “We’re using Pro Putt type of synthetic grass which is very good,” said Naylor, who also plans to add sand traps and water holes.  The course will be lit for night-time use, and players will be able to use  “glow-in-the dark” LED golf balls.”
6. “Look no further than the players on the LPGA Tour”
Ashleigh McLaughlin for LPGA.com…
…”many parents are finding a pipeline of reliable role models in female professional athletes. And it’s not just talent that makes those athletes an ideal choice. The added bonus that comes with their influence is that female athletes inspire girls to take up and stick with playing a sport, an activity that research shows can improve girls’ mental well-being, physical health and academic achievement. Of the sports identified by the Women’s Sports Foundation as the most effective in promoting healthy development, golf sits near the top of the list, giving girls a lifelong game from which they can gain great benefit.”
“Whether girls choose golf or not, they’ll have no issues finding a professional golfer whose story they can connect with. The LPGA is full of bright personalities, beat-the-odds successes, and women whose roads are diverse. One example is LPGA player and major winner Mo Martin. Standing at just 5’1″, Martin’s stature isn’t what you’d expect of a professional athlete, and her path to climbing the ranks wasn’t traditional for a pro golfer either. Growing up, Mo’s family of five lived in a 900-square-foot house next to a Jack in the Box fast-food restaurant. She has fond memories of splitting a spicy grilled chicken sandwich five ways, an exercise in making the best of things she learned growing up. Her father saw golf as a potential outlet for his kids, and what they lacked in financial means he made up for in ingenuity…”
7. No new tee box for 13 at Augusta
Dylan Dethier for Golf.com…“Will, when and should the 13th hole at Augusta National ever be lengthened? Those have been key Masters talking points for years, although recently we’ve gotten some clarity.”
  • …We might have an answer now. Likely not this year.
  • “David Dobbins, the man behind the Eureka Earth Twitter account who snaps aerial photos from a plane, shared a picture of the 13th tee area on Friday, which he said was taken on Monday. “It appears it’s time to press pause on the ANGC No. 13 tee discussion – at least for now,” he wrote.”
8. Neck injury forces a weekend withdrawal for Jason Day
Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…“Jason Day began Sunday’s final round of the CJ Cup just five shots off the lead and playing in the penultimate group.”
  • “He ended it having completed just one hole.”
  • “Day withdrew during the second hole Sunday at Shadow Creek, citing a neck injury. No further details were given. The 32-year-old Australian, who shot 66 on Saturday, tripled-bogeyed the opening hole before calling it quits after hitting his approach shot on the next hole.”
9. Jason Kokrak’s winning WITB
Driver: TaylorMade SIM (9 degrees @8.5)
Shaft: Accra TZ5 85 M5 Proto 
3-wood: TaylorMade M5 (15 degrees @14.5)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke 80
Irons: PXG 0311T Gen2 (3-PW)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM8 (52-12F, 56-14F, 60-08M)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Bettinardi Studio Stock 38
Grips: Golf Pride MCC 
Ball: Titleist Pro V1
 

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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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News

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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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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WITB

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