News

Morning 9: Donald: Sergio understands omission | Women’s college history maker | Rory rues bad swings

Published

2 years ago

Sep 12, 2023

Ben Alberstadt

By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com

Good Tuesday morning, golf fans, as we turn our attention to the Fortinet Championship with the Ryder Cup right around the corner.

1. Fighting for their cards this fall

Brentley Romine at Golf Channel rounds up a list of 10 players to keep an eye on, including…

“Jimmy Walker: The 2016 PGA champ is playing on his top-50 career-money exemption this season after ending up No. 202 in points last season (the LIV defections actually moved him up nine spots on the career money list). He’s not cracked the top 150 in the past four seasons, though his PGA win has allowed him to keep his card while he’s struggled with his game and health (he was diagnosed with Lyme disease shortly after that win at Baltusrol). This season has been Walker’s best since 2017-18 as he’s compiled six top-25s, though no top-10s.”

“Scott Piercy: Despite being a full PGA Tour member since 2009 and four-time winner, Piercy sits No. 69 in career money, so he doesn’t have the career-money lifelines at his disposal like other veterans. This season marked the first in which Piercy didn’t log a top-10 since 2013-14, when he played just 12 events because of an arm injury.”

Full piece.

2. UK golf going strong

Johnny Leighfield for Golf Monthly…”Almost half of all adults in the United Kingdom and Ireland engaged with golf in some capacity over the past year, a report commissioned by The Professional Golfers’ Association has found.”

“…They found that 22.4 million people – equating to 40 per cent of the UK and Ireland – are involved with golf at any level – whether it be playing a full round outside or trundling through an adventure golf course with friends or family.”

“Almost 5 million people reportedly play golf on a course, while 16.3 million take to the driving range, indoor simulators, or the shortest forms of the game for their golfing fix.”

Full piece.

3. Summerhays earns a Fortinet spot

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”Arizona State junior Preston Summerhays is having himself quite the month.”

“Summerhays went 2-1-1 two weekends ago at the Walker Cup to help the U.S. to victory at St. Andrews, and on Sunday he punched his ticket to the Fortinet Championship.”

“A spot in this week’s PGA Tour field at Silverado Resort in Napa, California, was up for grabs for the individual winner of the Sahalee Players Championship, the first college event of the fall for the participating teams. Summerhays used a 5-under 67 in Saturday afternoon’s second round to shoot 5 under for 54 holes. He then ousted Illinois freshman Max Herendeen in a playoff to earn the Tour invite.”

“Illinois, though, got the upper hand in the team portion, carding 1 under at Sahalee Country Club in Sammamish, Washington, to edge the third-ranked Sun Devils by eight shots. Host Washington finished third, followed by Arizona, Duke, and co-sixth-place teams Texas and Texas Tech.”

Full piece.

4. Rory rues “bad swings”

BBC report…”Rory McIlroy has lamented some “bad swings” which proved costly in denying the Northern Irishman a potential second Irish Open win of his career.”

“The world number two was well in contention to repeat his 2016 success at the K Club but found the water four times on the final day.”

“McIlroy ended on nine under par, five behind winner Vincent Norrman.”

“The two balls in the water at 16, that was my race run,” reflected McIlroy of his lost opportunity on Sunday.

“Just a couple of bad swings. Seven and 16 this week have kind of been my bogey holes. I’ve hit six balls in the water in those two holes this week,” added the four-time major winner.

“That’s basically what did me in this week, but there was some good stuff in there, positive signs.”

Full piece.

5. The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat

6. “Shark hunting”

Our Matt Vincenzi…”On Sunday, Sir Nick Faldo took a swipe at LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman on his X account.”

“In the video, Faldo is wearing a shirt that says, “Shark Fishing”. The six-time major champion was asked by his wife, Lindsay, when was the last time he went shark hunting.”

“1996”, Nick responded. “April, ’96 was my last shark hunt”, he added with a sheepish grin.

“How’d it go?” Lindsay replied.

“I did well. I didn’t need a bigger boat if you know what I mean.”

“Faldo was clearly talking about the famous 1996 Masters where Greg Norman famously blew a six-shot lead in the final round of which Faldo took advantage to win a green jacket.”

Full piece.

7. History maker

Beth Ann Nichols for Golfweek…”North Carolina State’s Lauren Olivares Leon made college golf history in the opening round of the Cougar Classic, becoming the first woman to shoot 60. The round of 11 under at Yeamans Hall Club included 13 birdies and two bogeys. A total of 17 men have shot 60 in collegiate events.”

“Golfstat’s live scoring originally had Olivares Leon down for a 59 – a number that no male or female collegiate player has ever shot. There was a scoring error, however, on the seventh hole. Golfstat had Olivares Leon down for a birdie, though she’d made par. The score was noted correctly on her official card.”

Full piece.

8. Donald: Sergio understands omission

AP report…”It’s been more than a quarter century since Sergio Garcia wasn’t part of Europe’s Ryder Cup team.”

“The energetic Spaniard, who joined the Saudi-backed LIV Golf tour, knew what was coming, though, when captain Luke Donald called recently to let him know that he wouldn’t be taking part in this year’s event.”

“Not as one of Europe’s 12 players. Nor as one of Donald’s five vice captains.”

“We’ve chatted a little bit and he certainly wishes the team all the best. It’s different for me (too),” Donald said Monday after his entire team practiced at the Marco Simone club outside Rome that will host the Ryder Cup from Sept. 29-Oct 1.”

Full piece.

9. Fortinet photos

Check out all of our galleries from this week’s Tour event!

Full piece.

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)