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Morning 9: Wallace, Villegas lead RSM | Team Woods coming to PNC Father-Son | Players longing for Masters as usual

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By Ben Alberstadt
Email me at ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com; and find me on Twitter and Instagram.
November 20, 2020
Good Friday morning, golf fans.

1. Wallace, Villegas in front 

AP report…”Moving on from a devastating summer of losing his child, Camilo Villegas made a 10-foot birdie putt on his final hole Thursday for a 6-under 64 and a share of the lead with Matt Wallace in The RSM Classic.”
  • “Villegas and Wallace each finished on the Seaside course at Sea Island with big putts. Villegas capped off a bogey-free round on the ninth hole for his lowest score on the PGA TOUR in four years. Wallace hit into a hazard on the 18th and saved par with a 30-foot putt.”
  • “They were a shot ahead of eight players, a group that included Sea Island resident Patton Kizzire and Robert Streb, who won his only PGA TOUR title at Sea Island five years ago. They each had 5-under 67 on the Plantation course, which played about three-quarters of a shot harder.”

2. Popov leading Pelican 

AP report…”Women’s Open champion Sophia Popov left top-ranked playing competitor Jin Young Ko and everyone else behind Thursday in the Pelican Women’s Championship.”
  • “Popov shot a 6-under 64 in windy conditions to take a two-stroke lead over Ashleigh Buhai, with Ko eight shots behind after a 72 in her first LPGA Tour start of the year.”
  • “Popov was the surprise winner at Royal Troon in August.”
  • “I think I’m playing with a different confidence level,” Popov said. “You know, the shots are there. I always had them I felt like. I think mentally I’ve never felt as freed up as I do now. I don’t know if that’s from winning the tournament or just overall just having more fun out here. Having obviously an exemption for the next couple years just frees up the swing a little bit, my mindset, I can be a little bit more aggressive, and I think I just took advantage of that.”

3. Charlie Woods’ TV debut

Our Gianni Magliocco…“Tiger Woods’ season isn’t quite yet finished, as on Thursday the PNC Championship announced that the 15-time major champ would team up with 11-year-old son Charlie for the father-son event.
  • “The PNC Championship is a tournament that began in 1995 which pairs major champions with their sons and will take place from Dec. 19-20 at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club Orlando in central Florida.”
  • “The Associated Press first reported the news, and speaking on pairing up with Charlie for the event, Tiger said”
  • “I can’t tell you how excited I am to be playing with Charlie in our first official tournament together. It’s been great watching him progress as a junior golfer, and it will be incredible playing as a team together in the PNC Championship.

4. Players longing for the inverse of November Masters

Martin Dempster at The Scotsman…”What little bit of golf I saw after the rain was like throwing darts,” observed six-time winner Jack Nicklaus of the opening circuit in a post on Twitter.
  • …”It’s just not the same, though, when it’s playing more like courses do week in, week out on the PGA Tour and it spoke volumes hearing some players yearning for it to be back to, well, normal in April.”
  • “I feel like there’s a lot of shots I hit this week where I hit my number and it would spin back off a green or it just wouldn’t do what you expect it to do,” said Rory McIlroy…
  • “Echoing that view, Jon Rahm said: “I hope they make it as firm as possible, the complete opposite of what we saw this week. I was joking with Patrick Reed walking down the last few holes saying, ‘it’s like you almost have to hit the delete button from what you learned this week because it’s never, ever going to play the same way again’. So I kind of hope we see a more challenging Masters in April.”

5. ‘I’m just going to follow along and try to keep throwing kerosene on the fire’

Golfweek’s Adam Schupak on the decision to enlist the services of Gary McCord for the Match 3…”The producers of Capital One’s The Match: Champions for Change deserve a raise for plucking Gary McCord out of retirement to serve as one of the on-course commentators for the upcoming made-for-TV match pitting Phil Mickelson and Charles Barkley against Peyton Manning and Steph Curry…”
  • “This is right up my alley. The format is four guys trying to get it in the hole while bitch-slapping each other verbally. That’s fun,” he said. “Those four guys will do it. If we can get them going, which shouldn’t be hard to do, it will be quite entertaining. You know that Phil will find something and just like a scab he’ll start picking at it until he can get somebody to come back with something. He’s probably the best guy out there with the biggest needle.
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6. Stewart Cink hires son, Reagan, as permanent caddie ahead of RSM Classic

Golfweek’s Adam Schupak quoting Cink…“He’s not just a guest caddie, he’s not just a family member out there carrying the bag. He understands golf really well and he understands me and he’s been a real asset to me in maybe like a little bit of an intangible kind of way,” Stewart said. “I just feel really calm out there with him. I know that when he’s standing across with the bag and after we’ve made our decision, I know that he has like full trust and 100 percent confidence that I’m going to be able to do what we just talked about doing.

7. Ogletree turns pro

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…Andy Ogletree has competed for the final time as an amateur.”
  • “The Georgia Tech graduate, who last Sunday earned a trip to Butler Cabin as the low amateur of the 84th Masters, announced Thursday that he has turned professional.”
  • “My amateur golf career was an absolute blast and last week at the Masters is the perfect way for it to end,” said Ogletree, who fired three rounds of par or better to tie for 34th at Augusta National. “I’ve had so much fun, met so many great people and have so many incredible memories, but it’s time for me to test my game at the next level, against the best of the best.”

8. “Golfers are driving farther by swinging faster. But only Bryson DeChambeau combines hard hitting with a lofty trajectory”

So writes the Economist staff in the presentation of this fascinating graphic.

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

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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

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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

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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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