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Morning 9: Phil: 1, Father Time: 0 | Details on Phil’s driver | Phil WITB

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4 years ago

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Good Monday morning, golf fans.
1. Phil: 1, Father Time: 0
Cameron Morfit for PGATour.com…”A year ago, at the 102nd PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park, Phil Mickelson didn’t contend but made his way to the CBS broadcast booth, where he traded zingers with Nick Faldo and Jim Nantz. He got off a few good lines. Everyone had fun.”
  • “In between then and now, Mickelson won twice on PGA TOUR Champions; lost weight; sold some Coffee for Wellness; partnered with Tom Brady in The Match 2: Champions for Charity, when the world was desperate for live sports amid the paralyzing opening months of the pandemic. “
  • “Always, he entertained, even if his golf game had cooled. Now, though, he has made history.”
  • “Mickelson, 50, held his nerve, kept his focus, and counter-punched a brutally difficult Ocean Course to a draw Sunday, shooting a final-round 73 to win the PGA Championship.”
2. Mickelsonian milestones
Via Golf Digest…“Became, at age 50, the oldest golfer to win a major, breaking Julius Boros’ previous record of being 48 when he won the 1968 PGA Championship at Pecan Valley in San Antonio.”
  • “Claimed a sixth major championship, tying him with Nick Faldo and Lee Trevino for 12th on the all-time men’s list.”
  • “Became the fourth player in PGA Tour history to win a tournament in four different decades (joining Sam Snead, Raymond Floyd and Davis Love III).”
  • “Became the lowest player in the World Ranking (115th) to win a major since Shaun Micheel at the 2003 PGA Championship (169th)”
3. Details on Phil’s driver
From my piece…Phil Mickelson’s Callaway Mavrik Sub Zero has been a mainstay of his bag this season, even with the ebb and flow of the rest of his setup.
The five-time major champion’s surprising ascent up the leaderboard at the PGA Championship has been accompanied by a turnaround in his driving performance. And as those who have checked out our Mickelson WITB already know, Lefty has made a switch at the top of the bag that is aiding his impressive driving performance.
  • Specifically designed for Mickelson, the driver has a Callaway Epic Speed Triple Diamond head that is 6 degrees set at 5.5, and it weighs a very light 189 grams. It’s outfitted with a 47.9-inch Fujikura Ventus Black TX shaft that is tipped two inches.
  • According to Callaway, Mickelson was pursuing both tighter dispersion at cruising and all-out speeds. He needed to be able to work the club both ways and it has to suit his eye at address, or he wasn’t switching out of his Sub Zero.
  • Gerritt Pon, Callaway’s senior club performance analyst, and the man who works most closely with Mickelson, said Phil had initially tested an 8.5-degree head set at 6.5 degrees, but it spun too much. Lefty looks for draw spin under 2,000 rpms and sub-2,400 rpm spin on fades.
  • According to Pon, “When he tested the Epic Speed line there was always something in the mix that didn’t work so we redesigned an Epic Speed head just for Phil with a lower CG and a lower loft (than retail) that supported everything he was looking for.”
4. Low club pro
Cameron Morfit for PGATour.com…“Ben Cook, who splits time teaching at Yankee Springs Golf Course in Wayland, Michigan and John’s Island Golf Club in Vero Beach, Florida, shot a final-round 74 to finish 4 over and win low club professional at the 103rd PGA Championship at Kiawah Island.”
  • “He made a par putt of just over seven feet to make the cut on the number early Friday evening.”
  • “Without that, it would have – none of this would have happened,” he said. “Very, very blessed and thankful that I made that putt for sure.”
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5. 200-1 odds
David Purdum for ESPN…”Phil Mickelson faced some of the longest odds of his career at the PGA Championship, where he was an underdog to even make the cut.”
  • “But the 50-year-old long-shot lefty defied the odds, captured his sixth major title and delivered a blow to some sportsbooks that they hadn’t felt since Tiger Woods last won the Masters.”
  • “Mickelson closed at 200-1 to win at Caesars Sportsbook by William Hill and could be found upward of 300-1 at other sportsbooks. Jeff Sherman, a 20-year bookmaker and golf odds specialist with the SuperBook in Las Vegas, didn’t recall Mickelson ever having longer odds at a major.”
  • “According to ESPN Stats & Information research, Mickelson is the first golfer with odds of 200-1 or longer to win a major since Louis Oosthuizen won the 2010 Open Championship at around 200-1.”
6. Higgs earns Masters spot with strong PGA showing
Max Schreiber for Golf Channel…”In Harry Higgs’ first career major, he played himself into next year’s Masters with a top-4 finish at the 2021 PGA Championship.”
  • “Higgs finished the tournament at 2 under, shooting 70 in the final round. While finishing about 90 minutes before the final results shaped out, Higgs said he’d be rooting for people to make bogeys to ensure he has another chance at a major championship.”
  • “I would assume I would for sure be in Augusta,” Higgs said. “I don’t wish any ill will on anybody, but I would love to finish fourth for sure.”
7. Wie withdraws
Kent Paisley for Golf Digest…”Michelle Wie West withdrew from the Bank of Hope LPGA Match-Play at Shadow Creek Golf Club in Las Vegas this week, the LPGA confirmed, only days after accepting a sponsor’s invitation.”
  • “By doing so, Wie West will have an additional week to prepare for the U.S. Women’s Open at the Olympic Club in her hometown of San Francisco. In her return to the LPGA Tour for the first time since the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, the five-time winner has made three starts and will be looking for her first made cut of the season.”
8. “You stiffed me”
Golfweek’s Adam Schupak…”Koepka has never forgotten the time his dad took him the Masters as a kid. He was about 8 or 9 years old, which would plant the story in the late 1990s, and young Brooks collected around 50 autographs from players that day. Sneaking into the player’s parking lot helped add to the haul.”
  • “I mean, I pretty much got everybody,” He recalled during his pre-tournament press conference at the 2019 Masters.
  • “…I tried to get Phil’s autograph. I was standing by the old range, and somehow found my way kind of right by the parking lot or something like that and asked him for an autograph and he said no, and he turned me down, probably about the only kid Phil’s ever turned down.”
9. Phil Mickelson’s winning WITB
Driver: Callaway Epic Speed Triple Diamond (6 degrees @5.5 , green dot cog)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X (47.9 inches)
2-wood: TaylorMade “Original One” Mini Driver (11.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7 X
4-wood (Sunday only): Callaway Mavrik Sub Zero (16.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 8 X
Irons: Callaway X Forged UT (16) (Thursday-Saturday), Callaway X21 UT Proto (19 degrees @20.5, 25), Callaway Apex MB ‘21 (small groove) (6-PW)
Shafts: (16) MCA MMT 105 TX, KBS Tour V 125 S+
Wedges: Callaway PM Grind ’19 “Raw” (52-12@50, 55-12, 60-10)
Shafts: KBS Tour V 125 S+
Putter: Odyssey Milled Blade “Phil Mickelson”
Grip: SuperStroke Pistol GT Tour
Ball: Callaway Chrome Soft X (Triple Track)
Grips: Golf Pride MCC

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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

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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

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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