News

Morning 9: Captain Weir | Homa’s LIV trolling | Norman-Tiger: History of the feud

Published

3 years ago

Dec 1, 2022

Ben Alberstadt

By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco and Matthew Vincenzi.

For comments: ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com. On Twitter: @benalberstadt

December 1, 2022

Good Thursday morning, golf fans, as day one of the Hero gets underway at Albany and December is upon us.

1. Captain Weir, officially

Golfweek’s Adam Schupak…“To no surprise, Canadian Mike Weir was officially named captain of the International Team on Tuesday for the 2024 Presidents Cup, which will return to Royal Montreal Golf Club in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, for the first time since 2007.”

“Presidents Cup has become such a big part of my career, so to be here in this moment announced as captain of the 2024 International Team is surreal,” said Weir.”

Full piece.

2. Homa’s LIV troll

Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…“Homa was asked Wednesday at the Hero World Challenge if he was offended by the lack of rumors that have linked him to LIV Golf.”

“Yeah, yeah, huge insult,” he joked. “No, I guess it would have been cool to be a part of that so I could live the life of, you know, it felt like a reality TV series for a bit.”

“Homa went on to explain that, as a joke, he tried to have his name linked to LIV Golf, which has wooed some of the game’s top players away from the PGA Tour with guaranteed contracts and a limited schedule, by tinkering with his Twitter profile.”

“Brooks [Koepka] changed his bio and everyone figured out he was going [to LIV],” Homa laughed. “I was like, oh, I’m going to get in on this and see if people catch on, but didn’t realize that my Twitter bio doesn’t get a ton of traction.

Full piece.

3. New LIV location details

Mark Schlabach for ESPN…”The LIV Golf League will play tournaments in Australia, Mexico, Singapore and Spain as part of its 14-event schedule in 2023.”

“LIV Golf announced Wednesday that it will stage events at Mayakoba’s El Camaleon Golf Course (Feb. 24-26), Sentosa Golf Club in Singapore (April 28-30) and Real Club Valderrama in Spain (June 30-July 2). LIV Golf had previously announced it would play at The Grange Golf Club in Australia (April 21-23).”

“LIV Golf is also expected to return to The Centurion Club outside London, which was the site of its inaugural event in June.”

Full piece.

4. History of Norman-Woods

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”In many senses, a friendship of sorts had formed between the two players, who are 21 years apart. But whatever bond there was, it was broken by the latter half of 1996.”

“That September, Woods listed Norman’s Shark Shootout on the remainder of his playing schedule, but tournament reps quickly responded, saying that Woods had yet to be invited. When a formal invitation did come, Woods declined it, opting instead to compete the following week in the Australian Open, which Norman also played.”

“Woods shot 79 to open that first start Down Under and ended up tied for fifth. Norman then told reporters, “We play very difficult courses here. He got a shock when he shot 79. Perhaps he will appreciate why Australians play so well when they leave home.”

“Two years later, at the 1998 Presidents Cup, Woods requested to play Norman in singles.”

Full piece.

5. How is Tiger playing?

Our Jason Daniels…”Although likely to appear in the remaining two events on his 2022 schedule, it’s of massive interest to discover how Tiger was playing before the breaking news of his latest injury?”

In an interview with Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis, the five-time Masters champion revealed the answer to be ‘pretty well, thank you!’

“I was playing at home quite a bit, playing 18 holes shooting 65s and 64s, and walked one nine holes and shot 5-under, I was playing well,”

However, as many have feared, the pressure and toil of a four-day competition might be too much:

“But it’s the added load, the back-to-back days, in a tournament situation of four days in a row. My planner just didn’t like it. The only thing I can do for it is to rest it. Obviously scrape it, ice it, stretch it, it just takes time.”

Full piece.

6. Cam fumes at opening Australian Open round

Damien Ractliffe for the Sydney Morning Herald…“Cameron Smith went straight from his post-round press conference to the practise range after a “pretty shitty” first round at the Australian Open, where he finished with a one-over 71.

Smith described his round at Victoria was “as bad as I’ve played in a long time”, but said he simply needed to get back to work after a whirlwind two weeks which left him under-prepared for the feature event.

“I don’t think it was a mixed bag, I think it was all rubbish to be honest,” Smith said post-round.

“That is as bad as I’ve played in a long time. It was pretty shitty. I think the course was pretty difficult, the conditions were pretty difficult, but I need to be better than that.

“Maybe some delayed tiredness, maybe. I did feel a little bit foggy out there at times, but it’s not really an excuse, it’s my job to do all that stuff.”

Full piece.

7. Rahm on Tiger: He can’t walk any faster

Rex Hoggard for Golf Channel…”Tiger Woods has delicately made his way around Albany this week with a focus on hosting the Hero World Challenge after a bout with plantar fasciitis in his right foot led him to withdraw from the competition. The late WD put the 46-year-old’s season in perspective.

“Following multiple procedures on his right leg as he continues to recover from a 2021 car crash, Woods returned to competition this year with mixed results. He managed to play just three events – the Masters, PGA Championship and Open Championship – with the highwater mark coming in his 47th-place finish at Augusta National.”

“Woods was paired with Jon Rahm during the final round at this year’s Masters, but it wasn’t the 15-time major champion’s play that stood out for the Spaniard.”

“I think the fact that we got put on the clock on [hole No.] 7 and he was somehow trying to speed up, we all looked at the official, like, he can’t walk any faster, let’s be honest. Like he was already doing an amazing job trying to move up and down those hills,” Rahm said Wednesday at the Hero. “We all joked around with the official and then when he turned around, Tiger takes off and I’m looking at my caddie, like, well, this is incredible.”

Full piece.

8. All quiet on the western front

9. Hero World Challenge photos

Check out our photos from Albany.

Full Piece.

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News

Tour Rundown: Bend, but don’t break

Published

3 weeks ago

Aug 4, 2025

Ronald Montesano

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.

Card III and Bacha both miss their birdie tries on the first playoff hole.

We’ll play 18 again @OspreyOpen. pic.twitter.com/vNpHTdkHDg

— PGA TOUR Americas (@PGATOURAmericas) August 3, 2025

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2025 Wyndham Championship

Published

4 weeks ago

Jul 29, 2025

GolfWRX Staff

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.

News

BK’s Breakdowns: Kurt Kitayama’s Winning WITB, 3M Open

Published

4 weeks ago

Jul 28, 2025

Brian Knudson

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)