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Morning 9: Rahm leads | Rory’s Tiger-inspired driver switch | Bay Hill photos

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2 years ago

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com
March 3, 2023

Good Friday morning, golf fans, as day one of the Arnold Palmer Invitational saw Jon Rahm continue his dominant streak to forge ahead early at Bay Hill.

1. Rahm leads at Bay Hill

AP Report…”Jon Rahm started his round strong and ended it even better Thursday, closing eagle-birdie-birdie for a 7-under 65 and a 2-shot lead in the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

  • Not even the brute test of Bay Hill was a match for golf’s hottest player.
  • “Amazing round of golf,” he said. “I wish all of them were as enjoyable as this one.”
Full piece.

2. Szokol ahead at HSBC Womens

AP report…”Elizabeth Szokol shot an 8-under-64 for a three-stroke lead after the first round of the Women’s World Championship on Thursday.”

  • “Yuka Saso of Japan was second after a bogey-free 67, and a pack of six, including Nelly Korda and former No. 1 Ariya Jutanugarn, carded 68s at Sentosa Golf Club.”
  • “Szokol shot 6 under on the front nine, including four birdies and an eagle on the par-5 fifth. Her only bogey came on the 10th hole but she birdied 14, 16 and 18.”
Full piece.

3. Counterclaim complications

Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…The PIF and its governor, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, have argued that they are nothing more than investors in LIV Golf, which filed an antitrust lawsuit against the Tour last year. Lawyers for the Tour claim the Fund and Al-Rumayyan are deeply involved in the day-to-day operations of LIV and, therefore, must submit to U.S. jurisdiction. A judge agreed with the Tour’s assessment and granted a motion to add PIF, which owns 93 percent of LIV Golf, and Al-Rumayyan as defendants in the counterclaim, making them both subject to discovery.

  • Lawyers representing the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia argued in a brief filed Tuesday that PIF and Al-Rumayyan are immune from U.S. jurisdiction and that forcing a government official, like Al-Rumayyan, to be deposed violates Saudi law.
  • According to the brief, Al-Rumayyan is one of six PIF board members who are also members of the Council of Ministers and subordinate only to the king. Lawyers for the Kingdom also pointed out that disclosure of council deliberations is a violation of Saudi law and punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine that could reach $266,000.
Full piece.

4. Rory’s Tiger-inspired driver switch

Our Andrew Tursky’s item for PGATour.com…”in his next start, at The Genesis Invitational, McIlroy made the rare mid-tournament equipment switch. After using the Stealth Plus driver in the opening round at The Riviera Country Club, McIlroy played the rest of week with a Stealth 2 Plus. He still had the Stealth 2 Plus in the bag when he arrived in Orlando, Florida, for the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard.”

  • “Why did McIlroy make a mid-event audible with his driver at The Genesis?”
  • “I was sick of Tiger outdriving me,” he said with a laugh in his Wednesday press conference from Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club & Lodge.”
  • “McIlroy leads the PGA TOUR in Driving Distance this season (328.7 yards) so it’s easy to think he was joking. But a closer look at the stats reveals a different story. McIlroy’s driving distance average at the Genesis Invitational was 305.0 yards, compared to Woods’ 306.3-yard average on the week.”
  • “I played the (WM Phoenix Open) and noticed that my spin numbers on my driver were a little low,” McIlroy added Wednesday. “So then I went to L.A. and I put my driver up a click in loft. But I’m so particular about face angle when it comes to drivers that when I went up a click in loft, obviously I can see a little more face, it looks a little further left to me. And I didn’t hit one drive out of the middle of the face the first day at Riv. I needed to go and try something else.”
  • “I feel like this Stealth 2 head for me has just got a little more spin on it, but at a more neutral or what I perceive to be a more neutral face angle. I think if other people saw it they would probably see that it sits slightly open, but to my eye it sits square. To me it was all about face angle. …I hit balls on Thursday night at Riv. Started middling that and started to get way more consistent spin numbers, sort of in the range that I like. Then I just went with it from there. Actually felt like I drove it pretty good for the final three days at Riv, and it’s been pretty good in practice over the past week.”
Full piece.

5. Player perspective on Designated Event changes

Evin Priest for Golf Digest…“Adam Scott says there has to be a “give and take” from players on the changes made by the PGA Tour.”

  • “These are not overnight decisions made by the board,” Scott told Golf Digest on Wednesday at Bay Hill. “A lot of things are taken into consideration. There are a lot of positive steps being made on the PGA Tour. You’ve also got to look at the big picture, not just what happens next year. What’s best for the product for the next decade, as it moves beyond this TV contract and, and sponsorship period, and into the next one?”
  • “…Kevin Chappell, a one-time PGA Tour winner in 271 starts who currently ranks 191st in the current FedEx Cup standings, tweeted, “The (carrot) sure has gotten bigger, but it seems to have been moved further away from the majority of those playing professional golf. I believe this could lead to shorter but more lucrative careers like tennis.”
  • “Chappell, who has made $16.7 million on the PGA Tour, also tweeted, “If your LIV, it becomes easier recruit players. Look for players 51-70 on FedEx list to leave and go take the guarantee elsewhere.”
Full piece.

6. …and the scribes debate

Shane Ryan: “The more you learn about tour history, the more you learn about the push-and-pull between benefiting the best and most famous players (a “rich get richer” system) and having a very democratic, merit-based tour with plenty of opportunity for the rank-and-file (dirty, dirty socialism … to some). And, right now, that balance tipped to the better players because there is a really lucrative alternative for the world’s best golfers. So, no, there aren’t enough spots, but I also completely get why the tour is doing this and why it feels like it has to do this—it satisfies the elites while strengthening the fields of the non-designated events … and it does that while maintaining some drama for the guys trying to fight their way into the top level.”

  • Stephen Hennesey: “I understand Max Homa’s and Patrick Cantlay’s points that the new changes don’t alter the schedule from 2023 for the players ranked outside the top 70, but the point they’re ignoring is that 2023 was already such a gigantic change from previous years. Now the rank-and-file players are being alienated even further. Kevin Chappell, a Presidents Cup player not too long ago, said on Twitter, “Look for players 51-70 on FedEx list to leave and go take the guarantee elsewhere. If you’re LIV it becomes easier to recruit players.” That, to me, sums up why this is not a good thing for the majority of PGA Tour players.”
Full piece.

7. Meanwhile, at this week’s Champions Tour stop…

8. Major champ playing Epson Tour opener

Beth Ann Nichols for Golfweek…”Brittany Lincicome was hoping to slide under the radar at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic. But it’s hard for a two-time major winner to blend in at an Epson Tour event.”

  • “Before Lincicome begins her 2023 season on the LPGA later this month in Arizona, the mother of two thought she’d try to regain some confidence at the season-opening event that’s about 90 minutes, without traffic, from her St. Petersburg home.”
  • “It’s her first time playing on the official qualifying tour. The 37-year-old went straight to the LPGA from high school and was a rookie in 2005.”
Full piece.

9. Bay Hill photos

  • Check out our galleries from Bay Hill this week!
Full pie

Related Topics:

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.

1 Comment

1 Comment

  1. Bob

    Mar 6, 2023 at 7:29 am

    TW out driving Rory? Hope the tour is still testing the CT on drivers. Would not be surprised if the serial cheater has a hot driver.

    Reply Report comment

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News

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

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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

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying and join the discussion in the forums.

 

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News

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

Published

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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WITB

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