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Tour Rundown: Choi’s time arrives | Vegas comes up aces again | Coughlin breaks barriers

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1 year ago

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It nearly feels like the old days, when another men’s major remained after the Open championship. There’s a reason, but it only comes to pass every four years. The Olympic golf event will take place at Le Golf Nationale, and just like that, August will matter again. Golfers will ascend the podium and listen to the playing of national anthems. It’s unique to the game and it counts as much as any other, major title. Don’t listen to those who say otherwise. They’ve long since fossilized in the ways before evolution.

The final full week of July brought five wonderful events to the attention and screens of the world’s golf fanatics. The PGA Tour traveled to the North Country, to Minnesota. The LPGA went farther north, to Alberta. The senior men played in their most recent major event, the Senior Open, while the Korn Ferry Tour found glory in Chicagoland. Finally, the PGA Tour Americas joined the LPGA above the 49th parallel, in Ottawa. Although it was a decidedly, western-hemisphere week, the golf was stellar.

It’s time for another Tour Rundown, so lace up those kicks and take your mark.

The Senior Open: Choi’s time arrives

Choi Kyung-Ju, known for the entirety of his career as K.J. Choi, is a tank. He looks to be capable of powering through, or knocking down, any wall that stands in his way. One wall that seemed to get the better of him for nearly 30 years, held the inscription of the game’s four major events. Choi achieved seven, top-ten finishes in regular-tour majors, including three at Augusta National. The final ascent eluded him, and when he came to the senior tour in 2021, the same pattern returned.

This week, the tank broke through the wall. At storied Carnoustie, itself a tank among golf links, Choi grabbed the lead from Stephen Ames on day two, then held it through day three. He wobbled a bit on Sunday, playing his first six holes in plus-three numbers. From holes nine to fourteen, however, the champion returned, four birdies, capped by an eagle at the long 14th, brought him to double-digits under par and the ladder’s top rung.

Choi’s closest pursuer, Richard Green of Australia, wasn’t quite finished. His birdie at the last, paired with Choi’s safe bogey, made the margin of victory appear smaller than it truly was. After three decades of competition, K. J. Choi is finally a major champion, and the history page at Carnoustie has another, deserving titleist.

PGA Tour @ 3M Open: Vegas comes up aces again

Venezuela’s Jhonattan Vegas came to Texas in the mid-2000s, graduated from the University there in Austin, and embarked on a professional’s playing career. He gathered three PGA Tour wins during the 2010s, including consecutive wins at the Canadian Open. The decade of his 30s hasn’t brought quite the same glory, so there’s no better way to say Hello to your 40s (in three weeks) than with a fourth tour title.

Vegas and the field found themselves chasing Canada’s Taylor Pendrith, after the Toronto-area native opened with 130 through two rounds. On Saturday, the birdie well dried up for Pendrith, and his 73 opened access to all of his pursuers. Vegas capitalized with 63, and seized the lead. On Sunday, three bogies threatened to offer opportunity to his pursuers, but Vegas’ resolve stiffened. He reached the final hole in a tie for the lead. With more water than dry land between him and glory, Vegas found the fairway and then, the green, of the par-five closer. Facing a ho-hum, 95-feet putt for eagle, Vegas nursed the massive stroke to within three feet, then found the hole with his fourth, for a one-shot margin of victory.

LPGA @ Canadian Open: Coughlin breaks barriers

Lauren Coughlin is featured on the wikipedia page under grit and grinder. That’s not actually true, but it certainly cound be. The Virgina native and UVA alumna has toiled on the professional golf tours since 2016. Her lone win came in 2018, at the Symetra Tour’s PHC Classic. Earlier this year, Coughlin earned a career-best finish in a major, when she place third at the Chevron.

This week in Calgary had a different vibe. Scores in the 60s were hard to come by, at the Earl Grey golf club. Coughlin’s 68 took the day-one lead, and her 70 on Friday held it. Day three saw the leader collect an unheard-of, eight birdies. A brace of bogies brought her to 66 on the day, a number that should have sealed the win with 18 holes to play.

Out of nowhere, Japan’s Mao Saigo blistered the course with nine birdies and a scintillating, eagle two at the tenth hole. Her inconceivable 61 vaulted her from nine shots back, to just four in arrears. On Sunday, Saigo did her best to close the gap, but her 69 came up two shots shy of Coughlin’s 71. With no more moves under way from the field, Coughlin at long last had her maiden LPGA victory. It was time for tea.

Korn Ferry Tour @ N5 Invitational: A Rosenmueller by any other name, is a champion

One week can change a golfer’s life. That platitude happens more often than one might anticipate. In the case of North Texas alumnus Thomas Rosenmueller, this week was that week. When he teed off on Thursday at The Glen Club, the Munich-born traveler stood 54th on the KFT money list. The notion of making it to the tour championship was within site. 72 holes later, Rosenmueller has his eyes focused on a more prestigious prize, that fits in a wallet.

Fifteen golfers reached 20-under par or better in Illinois. If you weren’t collecting birdies by the bushel, you weren’t in contention. Rosenmueller gathered 27 from the fields, capped by a scorching eagle two at the antipenultimate hole. Even a bogey at the last wasn’t enough to undo 71 stellar holes, and the German had his first KFT title, by two shots over Australia’s Karl Vilips. And that aforementioned prize? Perhaps a PGA Tour card, the kind that fits in a wallet, is in the offing. Rosenmueller shot up to the 15th ranked spot on the yearlong money list.

PGA Tour Americas @ Ottawa Open: Double-B Barend Botha wins big

It’s an interesting journey, from South Africa to Toledo, Ohio. That’s the one that Barend Botha made, for his classroom and golf course educations. Botha graduated from the Buckeye state institution in May, and made his way onto the PGA Tour Americas soon after. He traveled north again, this time to Ottawa, to achieve unexpected success: 26 shots under par and a one-shot victory.

Botha opened 63-65, suggesting that he might have some sort of arcane knowledge of the Eagle Creek layout. He cooled to 67 in round three, but preserved his advantage. On Sunday, Botha found six birdies against a solitary bogey, and closed with another 67. There were chasers, but would they have enough? George Markham and Connor Creasy came the closest, reaching 25-under par each.

After opening seven-under through his first 13 holes, the tank was empty for Markham. Pars all the way in left him one excruciating shot shy of the leader. As for Creasy, his finish was elite, but one last birdie at the long closer eluded him, and he joined Markham at station T2.

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Ronald Montesano writes for GolfWRX.com from western New York. He dabbles in coaching golf and teaching Spanish, in addition to scribbling columns on all aspects of golf, from apparel to architecture, from equipment to travel. Follow Ronald on Twitter at @buffalogolfer.

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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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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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