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Morning 9: Gold medal hopes shift to Japan’s women | Harris English’s turnaround | Should caddies get medals?

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4 years ago

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By Ben Alberstadt
For comments—or if you’re looking for a fourth—email me at ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com.
August 3, 2021
Good Tuesday morning, golf fans. Welcome to another day of the Olympic golf ball header image.
1. Now the Japanese women eye the gold medal
Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…“Last week, Nasa Hataoka played a nine-hole practice round with Hideki Matsuyama at Kasumigaseki Country Club. The round included the predictable small talk along with a few shared bits of course information, but what wasn’t discussed was the unique pressure the members of Team Japan face this week.”
  • “While there’s a great deal of pride among the Japanese players to compete in an Olympics at home there’s also heightened expectations, particularly for Matsuyama, who was poised to complete a dream season following his victory in April at the Masters with a medal-winning performance in Tokyo.”
  • “…He mentioned that because he couldn’t win the medal on the guys’ side, he sent me a good luck message on the girls’ side,” Mone Inami said.”
2. What’s more valuable to an American female golfer: a major victory or a gold medal?
Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols…“This week in Tokyo, three of the four players representing Team USA are major winners, with World No. 1 Nelly Korda claiming her first in June at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. Lexi Thompson and Danielle Kang have one major title apiece. Jessica Korda still awaits her first.”
  • “I would’ve loved to have been able to compete for a gold medal,” said LPGA Hall of Famer Juli Inkster, who won seven majors. “You can win majors, a lot of people have majors, but very few people have gold medals. To have one of those, it’s something really special. That’s something that you can pass onto your kids and your grandkids. I think it’s an amazing thing.”
  • “Inbee Park, another seven-time major winner, has said on numerous occasions that her notoriety in South Korea went to another level after she won gold in 2016. When Park was vying for her fourth major in a row in 2013, former LPGA commissioner Mike Whan said the TV rating in South Korea was about an 8, which is similar to when Tiger Woods won the Masters in 2019. When Park won the Olympics in 2016, the TV rating in South Korea was a whopping 27.1.”
3. Feeling the pressure…sort of
Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…“Jessica and Nelly Korda were at Kasumigaseki Country Club preparing for this week’s women’s competition as Schauffele was grinding out a par at the final hole to claim the gold medal. It was Schauffele’s moment, but the pressure was felt by everyone on Team USA.”
  • “My Whoop [fitness strap] registered an activity during his last hole,” Jessica Korda laughed. “I think we’re really feeling it for him, it was just so clutch coming down the stretch and that last hole and with the putt and everything, that it’s bigger than us and golf.”
  • “Jessica Korda lives in South Florida and often practices with PGA Tour players, including Justin Thomas who finished tied for 22nd in Japan and had plenty of Olympic insight to offer.”
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4. Park pursues another gold
Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…“I mean, 2016 was far more pressure-filled than I’ve ever felt in my life. I don’t know if I could do that again,” Park laughed on Monday at Kasumigaseki Country Club. “If I felt it once again this year, I don’t think I would be able to play.”
  • “For all that she has accomplished in the game, it was her performance in The Games that Inbee Park is most proud of.”
  • “That’s not to say Park isn’t looking forward to this week. In fact, she made a return trip a priority following her victory in 2016 and because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which postponed the Olympics one year, she landed an intensely contested spot on the South Korean team.”
5. Hero World Challenge returns
Golf Channel digital team…”The Hero World Challenge will return after a year’s absence because of the global pandemic.”
  • “The event, hosted by Tiger Woods, will have an increased field of 20 players. It is scheduled to be contested Dec. 2-5 in Albany, Bahamas, and broadcast on Golf Channel and NBC Sports.”
  • “While Tiger Woods tweeted out the information on his personal account, he did not say if he would be able to compete. Woods, who was in a single car crash in Feb., was spotted last week on crutches, putting weight on his surgically repaired right leg.”
6. An alternate was one of the great stories at the USWO
Max Schreiber with a very cool tale…”Dana Ebster made the most of her time at this year’s U.S. Senior Women’s Open as the tournament’s first alternate, and she’ll be able to do it again after a T-10 finish got her into next year’s tournament.”
  • “Ebster, whose only LPGA start came at the 2000 U.S. Women’s Open, got a chance to play at Brooklawn Country Club after current NBC Sports and Golf Channel commentator Kay Cockerill withdrew from the major to cover Olympic golf in Tokyo, Japan.”
  • “…Ebster, 51, runs the junior academy and is a shop assistant at Turlock Golf and Country Club in Turlock, California. The club raised the money to send her to Connecticut, where she said she was on cloud nine with her son, Chris, on her bag.”
7. Harris English’s turnaround
Sean Martin PGATour.com…“How did English turn his career around? By returning to the swing that helped him have so much success earlier in his career. English started working with swing coach Justin Parsons in the spring of 2019.”
  • “He just kind of brought me back from getting lost in this whirlwind of different swings and different mechanics and swing positions,” English said. “He simplified it so much that I can know what I’m doing. (Golf) is actually a game now. I’m not worried about how my swing looks.”
  • “Below, Parsons explains how English unlocked his old swing and returned to the game’s elite:”
  • “It’s difficult to hit your target if you’re not aimed at it. Parsons described English’s alignment as “erratic” in their first session together. “I asked Harris to hit an 8-iron to five or six different targets and it was clear that he did not aim at the changing targets in the same way,” Parsons said. “As we discussed his desire to be a more consistent ball-striker, we agreed that without the process and execution of good alignment being in place, the golf swing was never going to be consistent.”
Seriously — check out the spread above. Subscribe to the Golfer’s Journal (or give it as a gift to the golf aficionados in your life!).
8. Should caddies get medals? 
9. Women’s Olympic competition tee times
Check out who’s teeing off when, via Golf Channel.
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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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1 Comment

  1. Brian

    Aug 4, 2021 at 12:30 am

    Caddies don’t get green jackets.

    Reply Report comment

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News

Tour Rundown: Bend, but don’t break

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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

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4 weeks ago

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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

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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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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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