News

Golf gifts I enjoyed from the 2024 holidays

Published

8 months ago

Dec 30, 2024

Most media outlets offer you a series of products from September to November, touting them as must-have products for you and others, during the holiday season. My vibe is a bit different. Now that the flurry and fury of the holidays has ended, you have some time to kick back and determine what you need. Yes, you.

It was a generous, eye-opening year for golf gifts in 2024. Thanks to a late-year birthday and some gifting holidays in December, a few fantastic products came my way. I’d be remiss if I didn’t share their value with you. There’s a chance that you might have some New Year money to spend on yourself for a change, and these items might be the ones that you knew (or didn’t know) that you needed.

Sun Mountain golf bags

Thinking about all the items that I toss into my golf bag, it’s a wonder that I’m not brought up on charges for disrespecting luggage. From protein bars to fruit leavings, from lint to bunker sand, most elements from the periodic table have found their way into the pockets of my golf bag.

Sun Mountain makes great golf bags. I swore to never carry again when I turned 50. When I hit 55, mortality cut me off and said “No one lasts forever.” I decided to eschew the push cart for a few more years and throw my bag back on my shoulders, with one caveat: lighten the load.

The Eco-Lite series of bags from the aforementioned company suited my shoulders to a t. I’m toting the stand bag, and in typical Sun Mountain fashion, it’s fashionable. Whether you prefer the foamy seas of the blue to the verdant greens of the mountains is your call, but either way, you’ll love the lighter load. With space for balls, tees, valuables, water bottles, umbrellas, clubs, and outerwear, I’m stunned each round that it lifts so easily.

Sqairz

There will be, I pledge, two pairs of footwear that accompany me to each and very golf course that I visit in 2025. One will be a comfortable pair of Crocs for pre and apres golf, while the other will be the incredibly-stabilizing framework of the Squairz Speed2. I was first intrigued by Sqairz a few years back, and then, in 2024, GolfWRX ran an, ahem, footrace for its community members, to secure their valuable opinions on the value of Sqairz.

In December, a pair of the Speed2 arrived on my threshold, and I could not wait to take them out for a lap. As snow had arrived in western New York, I had to wait until the holidays. Fortunately, one of my former varsity golfers was in town, a fellow who had played D1 at the Naval Academy, and we headed to a dome for some swings. I arrived early, put on the Speed2s, and loosened up. Wowzers. He noticed the kicks immediately and asked how they felt. Response was, locked in.

From The laces (I can’t describe them justly, but they matter!) to the soles, to the uppers, to the tongue, every element of Sqairz is elite. My walkabout shoes are Hokkas, and I would judge the Sqairz to be their equal in golf shoes. If they ever had a love child, I’d buy stock. For now, I’m square with the Squairz, no cap.

Feetures

I didn’t mention it above, but the Squairz folk sent me one of those shoe bags (I’ve never used one, but I’ll try this time) a cap, and four pairs of incredible socks that I love. I love them almost as much as my first find of the festive season, two pairs of Feetures slips (if sneakers are kicks, then socks must be slips?)

There are so many sock companies around, and for me, there’s no middle ground. You’re as likely to find me at a dollar store, purchasing a ten-pack of ankle-height slips for $7, as you are to find me trying something at the other end of the ~~food~~ foot chain. Feetures don’t fight your dogs. They deliver the same pedal embrace each time, and they survive the rigors of both wash and dry cycles with determination.

If someone ever shoe-jacked me, walking down the street, and made off with my arch covers, I’d make it home just fine in the Feetures. They’re that comfortable and that durable. It’s love and it’s sigma.

The Four Foundations of Golf

It’s funny how the more lessons you take from legitimate golf professionals, the more an instruction book makes sense. I find myself revisiting my Dave Pelz collection on wedges, thanks to my most recent lesson with Joe Lusardi in Rochester. I understand what Dave uncovered, thanks to what Joe explained to me.

Think about the last time you played 18 holes with your well-intentioned, undereducated golf buds. How many tips did they give you? Did it reach double digits? Now imagine the reduction of that plethora (meaning excessive) of advice nuggets to four pillars. Four cardinal points on a compass, from which you won’t waver, that will lead you toward your goal of better golf. Jon Sherman will frame your house with this tome.

This is no Stonehenge, where some pillars are missing, others are toppled over, and others are arranged illogically. This is streamlined, effective instruction. Pair it with a living PGA professional (via video or in person) and you’ll be the talk of the tee in twenty-five.

Seed Golf Balls

When Nike went away from hard goods (balls and clubs) in 2016, consumers were all a-titter about who might fill the void. A sagacious voice in the industry shared this wisdom with me: a new company wouldn’t need to garner the entirety of Nike’s share in the hardgoods-verse. Instead, a shockingly small percentage of market share would suffice to make a name and earn a living. A number of companies have attempted a number of strategies for direct-to-consumer golf balls. We even have one based in my hometown, doncha know!

Seed balls made their way into my bag as an early birthday present, so I did have the opportunity to tee them up and play them down in 2024. Let me put to rest the notion that any golf ball will give you massive distance or accuracy gains upon adoption. It isn’t so. You gain distance when your boday develops from kid to adolescent, and you gain distance when you start to hit the ball on the center of the club face. You gain accuracy when you repeat a proper swing with efficiency, and when you don’t strive for distance beyond your command.

Your golf ball purchases should be based solely on how the ball FEELS to you. If you like the auditory feel and the tactile feel (the sound and the fury?) then you will play the ball as well as you can play a golf ball. I liked the sound and the touch of the Seed golf balls that I received for my turn around the sun. I’d have no difficulty replacing all golf balls in my shag and play bags with Seeds. The company offers trial packs and subscription services, and is worth checking.

Chui Wan

The jury is out on this game, as I have not completed the reading. That’s entirely on me, as we are not speaking of a monumental lift for the eyes. However, I’ve come across this idea that golf did not originate uniquely in Scotland, specifically in St. Andrews. Stick-and-ball games are a part of human evolution, and it’s really the why were they so attractive to earlier us that should be discussed. We use sticks to make noise, which translates to music, so that’s an element. We like to hide and preserve things, so digging holes in the ground and knocking a ball into them is parallel to that characteristic. We like to compete (some more so and more unhealthy than others) and so matching and scoring are a logical evolution.

Chui Wan is a game first played, probably, during the 1200s in China. It was played over a smaller playing field than those found in Scotland, not even the size of Park Golf, which is the rage in Japan these days. I’m told that the Romans played paganica, and that cambuca/chambot were played in England and France, before the dawn of the links of Scotland. It matters and it doesn’t. Chui Wan will give me a greater sense of origin. I’ll file away what I learn, and continue swiping at the ball.

Check out GolfWRX’s other (pre-)holiday gift guides below

Golf gifts for the purist
Golf gifts for the value seeker
Gifts for the stylish golfer
Gifts for the golfer looking to improve
Golf gifts for the gearhead
Golf gifts for the big spender

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)