News

Morning 9: Langers take PNC | Tiger: I can still win | How good is Charlie Woods?

Published

2 years ago

Dec 18, 2023

Ben Alberstadt

By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com

Good Monday morning, golf fans, as the last work week of the year for many has arrived.

1. Langer and son win PNC Championship

AP report…”Tiger Woods was an 18-year-old senior in high school when he made his first cut in a professional event at a European Tour event in Thailand. That also was the first time he played with Bernhard Langer.”

“Thirty years later, the ageless Langer is still going strong.”

“Langer capped off his memorable, record-setting year when he teamed with his son Jason to produce a 13-under 59 in 30 mph wind for a 2-shot victory over David Duval and his son.”

“Langer tied the PNC Championship record with his fifth title — three with Jason, two with older son Stefan — held by Raymond Floyd.”

Full piece.

2. Q-School final round postponed

Golf Digest’s Ryan Herrington…”Competitors at PGA Tour Q-School can put the Pepto Bismol on hold for another day as officials announced Sunday morning that the final round had been postponed until Monday.”

“TPC Sawgrass’ Valley course and Sawgrass Country Club, the two courses jointly holding the event in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., received more heavy rains overnight after getting several inches on Saturday. With more wet weather in the forecast, along with gusts expected to blow in the 40 m.p.h. range, the decision was made to wait a day partially out of fairness to the competitors who are playing for the livelihoods in 2024 and partially because of the work needed to get the courses back into playing shape.”

Full piece.

3. The “How good is Charlie Woods” question

Jay Coffin for Golf Digest…”it’s also wise to pump the breaks and realize how far Charlie has come in a relatively short time. Afterall, he mostly played soccer growing up in South Florida and it wasn’t until 2020—when COVID-19 locked down the world—that Charlie found a deeper passion for golf and started to take the game more seriously. That was only three years ago.”

“People need to quit comparing him to other kids who have been playing competitive golf for more time,” said a Golf Digest Top 50 Teacher in America. “People need to wait and see where he is in five years, 10 years.”

“…This was Charlie’s first year playing a full competitive junior schedule, playing mostly state and regional competitions.”

“Junior Golf Scoreboard, which has ranked junior golfers since the late 1990s, has Charlie ranked No. 1,326 out of a database of 10,616 juniors.”

Full piece.

4. Woods on Rahm’s LIV move

Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…”Jon Rahm’s defection to LIV Golf last week certainly wasn’t a surprise to Tiger Woods. It also wasn’t a surprise to anyone who’d been paying attention to social media, but that didn’t ease the blow for the15-time major champion.”

“There’s been a lot of talk over the years of certain players going [LIV Golf], and it was speculation until it happened because there’s been rumors of names going and not going, and whether they materialized or not,” Woods said Saturday following a soggy round at the PNC Championship. “We assumed it was just speculation until it happened.”

Full piece.

5. LIV Promotions event player takes on Q-School

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”No matter the tour [Martin] Trainer begins on next year, he’s not expecting to miss any events because of suspension. He said he was denied a media release for the Promotions event because he missed the 45-day deadline. (LIV didn’t announced the Promotions dates until Oct. 26.)”

“Another form of punishment, however, is a likely outcome, Trainer added.”

“We talked about it,” Trainer said. “We’ll see what happens. They might fine me, who knows. … I don’t think it will be a suspension.”

“As Trainer stood outside the scoring area, on the upstairs patio of Sawgrass Country Club’s clubhouse, he reckoned that the two Q-Schools, LIV and PGA Tour, were not all that different – “Just golf with names that I’ve never heard of,” Trained said of LIV’s qualifying event. “It’s actually kind of amazing how many great players there are all over the world.”

“The PGA Tour hasn’t publicly commented on details of past LIV Golf-related punishments.”

Full Piece.

6. LIV Golf returning to Trump Doral

AP report…”Trump posted on the Truth Social site that his Trump National Doral near Miami would host a LIV Golf event in April. He did not mention the date, but the only opening on LIV’s schedule is for April 5-7, the weekend before the Masters.”

“LIV Golf did not immediately confirm Trump’s post that his Doral course had signed a deal. “The event they had at Doral in October was a major success!” he posted.”

Full Piece.

7. Kisner to make broadcasting debut

Adam Woodard for Golfweek…”Kevin Kisner is putting down the club and picking up the mic.”

“The four-time winner on the PGA Tour will serve as an analyst for NBC Sports at the Tour’s first event of the 2024 season, The Sentry, at the Plantation Course at Kapalua Resort in Maui, Jan. 4-7. Kisner will also cover the WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale, Feb. 8-11.”

Full Piece.

8. Tiger: I know I can still win

BBC report…”Tiger Woods believes he can still win on the PGA Tour but will only play one event per month in 2024 as he continues his recovery from ankle surgery.”

“The 15-time major champion has had a limited schedule since suffering a leg injury in a car crash in 2021.

“He carded a final-round 61 alongside his 14-year-old son Charlie at the PNC Championship in Orlando on Sunday.”

“If I’m able to practice and do the things I know I can do, and prepare, I know I can still do it,” Woods said.

Full Piece.

9. Winning WITBs: Team Langer

Presented by 2nd Swing

Bernhard Langer

Driver: Ping G400

3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus

Hybrid: Adams Idea Pro

Irons: Tour Edge Exotics CBX (4-6), Tour Edge Exotics Pro 723 (7-PW)

Wedges: Cleveland 588 RTX (56), Titleist Vokey Design Prototype (60)

Putter: Odyssey White Hot 2-Ball Long

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

Jacob Langer

Driver: Ping G400

3-wood: TaylorMade M1

Irons: TaylorMade P750 (3-PW)

Wedges: Callaway MD3 (56), TaylorMade MG (60)

Putter: Odyssey Metal X Milled No. 1

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord

Full WITBs.

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)