19th Hole

‘It happens in every single sport’ – Jon Rahm weighs in on golf’s distance debate with interesting take

Published

3 years ago

Feb 6, 2023

The distance debate in golf has been rumbling on for years, and now one of the most dominant players in the sport has had his say.

According to Jon Rahm, players getting bigger and stronger has been the most important factor when it comes to the steady increase in driving distance on the PGA Tour.

While speaking on the Fore Play Podcast, “Rahmbo” gave his thoughts on the debate in golf: have we gone too far with distance?

Jon Rahm’s take on the distance conversation. Do you agree? pic.twitter.com/OWTZ4i3TwN

— Fore Play (@ForePlayPod) February 4, 2023

“Technology is just a little bit better. I get it, but overall, we’re all better athletes. It happens in every single sport. There’s actually a tech talk about how much better athletes are nowadays for the most part, but then technology is allowing for these things.

“They said, if Jesse Owens and Usain Bolt on their records would have run together, the difference would have been minimal, minimal right, and that was in 1936. So compared to user involvement in 2009 I mean, just think about (American) football players, it’s the same thing. Basketball hasn’t changed since the 80s, so it’s going to happen to every sport. Tennis, you watch McEnroe to how they’re playing Wimbledon. It’s a completely different sport.”

“Now, in our case, I think what they’re doing, which is trying to stretch golf courses, is only going to feed into people hitting it longer, period. It’s getting to a point where if you have long rough and 520 yard par 4s, you’re going to need to hit it 340 because otherwise you’re not going to get to the green in any other way.

“So they’re feeding it into us that we are needing to hit it longer. And I think it hinders the game when they try to roll back the ball and change things, with the technology of the clubs. We’re going to get to a point where I will be the smallest on Tour. You’re gonna get people who are six-foot-five, JJ Watt looking people, who are going to be hitting it 380 down the centre, like it’s eventually going to get to something like that.”

Eddie Pepperell and Padraig Harrington weighed in on Rahm’s comments via Twitter.

I wonder if by rolling the ball back, bigger hitters gain an even bigger advantage as they would be hitting 7 irons into a green where a short hitter will be hitting a 5 iron, and that’ll create a bigger gap in proximity to hole than from the current 9i to 7i, for eg..

(?)

— Eddie Pepperell (@PepperellEddie) February 5, 2023

Distance needs rolling back for many reasons,skill,course capital cost,maintenance cost,keeping great old courses relevant and safety. But it’ll be a big advantage for long hitters. As well as above its much easier to keep the ball in the park at 300 yards verses 330.

— Padraig Harrington (@padraig_h) February 5, 2023

Whether or not you agree with Rahm, the distance debate doesn’t seem to be ending anytime soon.

How much each player won at the 2026 Masters

Published

1 month ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Rory McIlroy made it two wins in as many years at Augusta National, seeing off the challengers on a dramatic Sunday to slip on the green jacket once again. The victory earned Rory a whopping payday of $4.5 million, with Scottie Scheffler his closest challenger earning $2.43 million for his sole runner-up finish.

With a total prize purse of $22.5 million up for grabs, here’s a look at how much each player won at the 2026 Masters tournament.

For players that did not make the cut, they still earned $25k for their efforts at the year’s opening major.

1: Rory McIlroy, $4.5 million
2: Scottie Scheffler, $2.43 million
T3: Tyrrell Hatton, $1.08 million
T3: Russell Henley, $1.08 million
T3: Justin Rose, $1.08 million
T3: Cameron Young, $1.08 million
T7: Collin Morikawa, $725,625
T7: Sam Burns, $725,625
T9: Xander Schauffele, $630,00
T9: Max Homa, $630,00
11: Jake Knapp, $562,500
T12: Jordan Spieth, $427,500
T12: Brooks Koepka, $427,500
T12: Hideki Matsuyama, $427,500
T12: Patrick Reed, $427,500
T12: Patrick Cantlay, $427,500
T12: Jason Day, $427,500
T18: Viktor Hovland, $315,000
T18: Maverick McNealy, $315,000
T18: Matt Fitzpatrick, $315,000
T21: Keegan Bradley, $252,000
T21: Ludvig Aberg, $252,000
T21: Wyndham Clark, $252,000
T24: Matt McCarty, $182,083
T24: Adam Scott, $182,083
T24: Sam Stevens, $182,083
T24: Chris Gotterup, $182,083
T24: Michael Brennan, $182,083
T24: Brian Campbell, $182,083
T30: Alex Noren, $146,250
T30: Harris English, $146,250
T30: Shane Lowry, $146,250
T33: Gary Woodland, $121,500
T33: Dustin Johnson, $121,500
T33: Brian Harman, $121,500
T33: Tommy Fleetwood, $121,500
T33: Ben Griffin, $121,500
T38: Jon Rahm, $105,750
T38: Ryan Gerard, $101,250
T38: Haotong Li, $96,750
T41: Justin Thomas, $92,250
T41: Sepp Straka, $87,750
T41: Jacob Bridgeman, $83,250
T41: Kristoffer Reitan, $78,750
T41: Nick Taylor, $74,250
46: Sungjae Im, $69,750
47: Si Woo Kim, $65,250
48: Aaron Rai, $61,650
T49: Corey Conners, $57,600
T49: Marco Penge, $57,600
51: Kurt Kitayama, $55,250
52: Sergio Garcia, $54,000
53: Rasmus Hojgaard, $52,650
54: Charl Schwartzel, $51,300

19th Hole

CBS’s Sunday Masters coverage slammed by golf fans

Published

1 month ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

While Sunday was a dramatic day at the Masters, many golf fans were left feeling frustrated by the CBS final round coverage.

There were plenty of moments that golf fans took to social media to air their frustrations on Sunday over, including a lack of shots being shown throughout the day, being behind the live action, confusion over the approach shots of the final group on 18, and providing an angle for the winning putt where the cup couldn’t be seen.

Here’s a look at some of the criticisms that were directed at the CBS coverage throughout the day on X:

This has been a brutal broadcast for CBS. When the folks from Augusta sit down with them this year, you can bet they’ll talk about this 15 seconds where we have no idea where Rory’s ball went, and Dottie moans. #TheMasters pic.twitter.com/ak3mkpIN7V

— Ryan (@PossiblyRy) April 12, 2026

It’s rare criticism coming in for CBS, who are usually heavily praised for their Masters coverage each year.

19th Hole

The surprise club Tommy Fleetwood says is key to his Masters chances

Published

1 month ago

Apr 7, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Tommy Fleetwood goes in search for the first major victory of his career again this week, with the Englishman proving to be a popular pick at Augusta National.

Fleetwood’s best showing at Augusta came back in 2024 where he finished T3, and while speaking at his pre-tournament press conference, the 35-year-old emphasized the importance of his 9-wood in his pursuit of the green jacket.

Speaking on Tuesday to media, Fleetwood said:

“It’s a great 9-wood golf course. I think it’s always been — I can’t remember when I first put like a 9-wood in or a high lofted club, but it’s a perfect like 9-wood golf course. I’ve had that in the bag for a few years.”

The Englishman continued, revealing that his strategy for the week won’t just be to hit driver off the tee as much as possible:

“Yeah, it’s funny really because I know Augusta is probably associated with being fairly forgiving off the tee in a way, so you think you can whale around driver a little bit. But I don’t necessarily think that’s always the play for me. I think there’s holes that set up really well where I can draw it with the mini driver if I’m feeling less comfortable with the driver and things like that.”

That strategy he believes will make his TaylorMade Qi10 9-wood extra critical this week in Georgia:

“The biggest thing is the 9-wood for me. If I can put myself in position on the par-5s or the 4th long par-3, like it — for me, I can’t really hit that high 4-iron, so 9-wood helps me a lot.”