News

Tour Rundown: All about The Players!

Published

5 months ago

Mar 17, 2025

Players Championship week might be more powerful than the week of any major championship. Can you say, competition shut down? When all the world’s professional golf tours go lights-out and radio silent, that’s saying something. The DPWT, LPGA, Korn Ferry, and PGA Tour Champions all passed on the third weekend in March, out of deference to the electric event, held annually at Pete’s Place in Sawgrass.

The 2025 rendering of the Players Championship had a bit of every seasoning from the pro golf spice rack. We’re going to take a look at each day’s results and unique elements, in this week’s Tour Rundown. We hope that you enjoy this look back at March 13-16, 2025, at The Players Championship. Let’s get started with some heroism from Captain America, Keegan Bradley.

Thursday: Two set the pace at minus-six

Low Rounds: 66, from JJ Spaun, Lucas Glover, and Camilo Villegas

JJ Spaun feels more like a two-win guy than a solo artist. He picked up a win in Texas, in 2022, and has been in the mix on many occasions, ever since. This arena is different, however. Not saying he won’t, but it’s tougher.
Villegas suffered the unthinkable, when he and his wife lost their young daughter to cancer. The Colombian powerhouse won in Bermuda in 2023, after a nine-year hiatus from the winner’s platform. We know that he can win at the nearly-major level, but at age 43, it would have taken all the mental and physical fitness to get it done, and Villegas could not summon both over the final three rounds.
Glover had a dry spell from 2011 to 2021, then nearly made the USA Ryder Cup side in 2023, when he won two playoff events. His game is built for top-fifteen finishes, and odds were in his favor for another in St. Augustine.

High Rounds: 80, from Viktor Hovland and Nick Dunlap

Hovland has expressed the frustrating state of his current game, and he showed no signs of exiting that status on Friday. Viktor teed off on the inward half, and began with consecutive bogeys. He turned in 39, then had a triple-doble sequence at holes five and six, to effectively end his week, just as it began. Admirably, he bounced back on Friday with 68, but missed the cut by five shots.
Dunlap had an agonizing first round on Thursday. He endured the golf equivalent to death by a thousand, tiny cuts. Half of his holes were completed in bogey figures, and he found but one birdie on the day, at the 16th hole. Dunlap uncovered four birdies on friday, but needed twice that many and zero mistakes. He posted 74 on Friday to finish among the five worst over two days.

While Spaun, Glover, and Villegas held the lead after 18 holes, none of the three was a betting favorite in Vegas or on line. Rory McIlroy, Akshay Bhatia, and Min Woo Lee were one shot back, and each had more interest from the the wagerers. McIlroy’s track record is indisputable, and both Bhatia and Lee are ready to move to the big-win level. Billy Horschel also posted minus-five on Thursday.

Friday: 16-stroke improvement highlights day two

Low Round: 62, from Justin Thomas

Kudos to a fellow who plays Sawgrass nearly a stroke per hole better than the day before. JT won’t win this year, but one would think that such a triumph over mental and spiritual adversity, resulting in a made cut, should reap a fruitful harvest, down the road.

High Round: 81, from Maverick McNealy

The middle of the round wasn’t kind to the winner of last fall’s RSM Classic. One under on the day at the sixth tee, McNealy posted two doubles and four single on his subsequent sextet of holes. McNealy went from cut line to missed cut in a bit over an hour, but Pete’s Peril will do that to even the best golfers.

Spaun followed his 66 with a 68, but it was Bhatia who moved into the lead at 133. Moving into the top five was Collin Morikawa, runner-up last week at Bay Hill. His 65 brought him to 135, two back of the leader. Alex Smalley and McIlroy moved to the same number as Morikawa, with Glover and Tommy Fleetwood one behind, at 136. Bidding farewell to their cohort were more than a few surprising names. Hideki Matsuyama, Adam Scott, Ludvig Aberg, Max Homa, and Matt Fitzpatrick went to the sidelines as the field reduced to 72 names.

Saturday: Just call me JJ

Low Rounds: 66, from Bud Caulery, Corey Connors, and Danny Walker

Danny Walker and Corey Connors teed off among the first seven times, before the greens spike up and the winds came.
Credit to local boy Bud Cauley, whose 66 came off a 12:15 tee time, among the final 15 pairings.

High Rounds: 85, from Emiliano Grillo

Grillo opened with 68-70, well inside the cut line and another 70 from top-five after day three. Instead, the Platense finds himself at the bottom of the tournament, after a maddening round of golf. Zero birdies and an insufferable stretch of +8, from holes four through eight.
A chunked approach on four led to a double, and a series of unfortunate pitch shots and putts brought triple at number five.

JJ Spaun reclaimed the lead on a horrendous day for golf. Nearly as many players (five) posted rounds in the 80s, as did (seven) in the 60s. Players like Bud Cauley and Corey Conners signed for 66, and shot meteorically up the leaders’ board. Falling away were Morikawa (77), Fleetwood (75), and Min Woo (78.)

Sunday: And then, came the rains, and then, came the playoff

Low Rounds: 66, from Tom Hoge, Rico Hoey, and Kurt Kitayama

Hoey and Kitayama started well off the pace of the leader, and their 66s vaulted them from way, way back (60s) to the top 35. If you’re going to do it some week, make-bank week is a good one!
Hoge’s minus-six was a much more impressive feat. He began the day in the top twenty-five, which meant that he endured the three-hour rain delay that the other, low-goers did not. Hoge had seven birdies on the day, with his sole blip a bogey on the 11th.

High Round: 81, from Xander Schauffele

The two-time, major winner in 2025 returned from a medical hiatus last week. Bay Hill and Sawgrass did not provide a gentle handshake, but Schauffele managed to make the cut in each. His lack of playing shape was evident at both sites, as he twice struggled on day four.
On Sunday, Schauffele posted one triple, two doubles, and four bogeys. He did have a pair of birdies on a forgettable day, and will look to continue his rehab tour in the near future.

Tom Hoge finished in a three-way tie with Akshay Bhatia and Lucas Glover, at minus-ten. Their efforts earned them the bronze medal this week. After Rory McIlroy got up and down at 18 for par, and JJ Spaun’s birdie effort came up two agonizing inches short, the two at minus-twelve were given a 9 am tee time, for a three-hole, aggregate playoff. The Players went to the three-hole format in 2014, and in 2015, Rickie Fowler defeated Kevin Kisner for our only look at the structure.

On Monday morning, McIlroy took a one-shot advantage with birdie at the 16th hole, the first of the three-hole aggregate playoff. The island 17th decided the winner, for practical purposes. McIlroy found the green, while JJ Spaun was long and wet with his tee ball. From the drop zone, he found the fringe, but was unable to get up and down for five. His triple-bogey six gave McIlroy two more shots in hand. When the Northern Irishman found dry land off the 18th tee, matters were settled. Sapun ultimately made double bogey, and McIlroy’s bogey at the last green secured a second Players Championship.

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)