News

GolfWRX Morning 9: McIlroy: Golf isn’t the most important thing in my life | Greenbrier’s military history | Year of the Irishman

Published

8 years ago

Jul 5, 2018

Good morning, GolfWRX members. As most of you are signed up for our newsletters, you likely already know that I’ve been sending this little Morning 9 roundup of nine items of note.

In case you’ve missed it, or you prefer to read on site rather than in your email, we’re including it here. Check out today’s Morning 9 below.

If you’re not signed up for our newsletters, you can subscribe here.

By Ben Alberstadt (ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com)

July 5, 2018

Good Thursday morning, golf fans. Hopefully, nobody is feeling the effects of one too many hot dogs and a late night watching fireworks today.

1. McIlroy: ‘There are other things in my life that are more important than golf’

Rory McIlroy was his usual candid self ahead of the Irish Open (presented by his foundation). While some might say the remarks below were a calculated attempt to draw attention ahead of the tournament which benefits his charity, it’s more likely the Ulsterman was merely speaking his mind.

“Nothing is going to change in my life whether I win a major or not,” said McIlroy on the eve of the Irish Open. “I’d be disappointed if I didn’t but I don’t panic. It doesn’t keep me up at night.”

“Look, if I didn’t win another major for the rest of my career, nothing is going to change in my life whether I win one or not, but obviously I don’t feel like I’ll have fulfilled my potential,” he said.

“But at the same time, you know, there’s other things in my life that are more important than golf.

“I’d be disappointed but again, it‘s not going to change things. I don’t panic. It doesn’t keep me up at night.”

While you have to applaud his sincerity, can you imagine Woods or Nicklaus saying the above in the prime of their careers?

2. The Greenbrier and the military

“We’ve always tried to find some way to have that military tie-in and I think we just decided it was time to take it a step further and really show that commitment,” says Cam Huffman, director of communications for The Greenbrier.

And take it a step further they did with one of the morse interesting tournament names of on the PGA Tour: A Military Tribute at the Greenbrier

While their will be plenty of interesting takes on the military tie in, Helen Ross drops some knowledge about the Greenbrier’s military history.

“The military connection at The Greenbrier dates back to the Civil War. The Old White Hotel, which stood on the property before The Greenbrier was built, was actually used as a hospital for both Confederate and Union soldiers at one point or other during the Civil War.

“The Army even bought the hotel during World War II and used it as a hospital for the wounded. Known as the Ashford General Hospital from 1942-’46, it was dubbed “The Shangri-La for Wounded Soldiers and Airmen” as service members were able to use all the facilities while they recovered. German POWs tended to the grounds and worked in the mess hall, among other duties.

“…Eisenhower later decided that The Greenbrier would be the perfect place to build a secret facility to house Congress in case of a nuclear attack. So construction on what was called “Project Greek Island” began in 1958.”

“Workers were told it would be a conference facility, and in fact, some of it was used for that purpose. Beyond those concrete walls that were 3 feet thick, though, was a facility that could house more than 1,000 government officials – complete with metal bunk beds and its own communications system.”

3. Remembering the year of the Irishman

The year: 2008. The golf world: dominated by a man from the Emerald Isle Jeff Shain of the NYT reflects.

“One began with a wrist injury painful enough that it nearly prompted him to withdraw. The other featured a bout of dehydration that left him flirting with the cut line.”

“In both cases, Padraig Harrington came away with a major championship.”

“Things fell into place,” the Irish pro, 46, recalled with a wry smile. “But you know, that’s what happens in this game. Those wins kind of find you.”

“It’s been 10 years since Harrington swept through the British Open and the P.G.A. Championship, grabbing the limelight in a summer void of Tiger Woods once reconstructive knee surgery followed Woods’s epic United States Open triumph.”

“Historical looks at Woods’s 19-hole playoff victory at Torrey Pines in San Diego were a staple of last month’s U.S. Open run-up. Now as Harrington sets for his 23rd consecutive Irish Open, which begins Thursday at Ballyliffin Golf Club, his double conquest commands attention.”

Shain does an excellent job of the aforementioned: read it.

4. Back to the espresso machine…

Sam Locke, who works in the cafe at Paul Lawrie’s academy, qualified for The Open. He was back to his post behind the counter the next day.

James Corrigan writes...”Sam Locke did not have time to allow his Open dream to percolate. A little more than 12 hours after qualifying for Carnoustie, the 19-year-old amateur was back making coffees in the café where he works in the Paul Lawrie Academy.”

“Locke could have taken the day off after seeing off experienced professionals and earning one of three spots on offer in the 36-hole shoot-out at The Renaissance Club. But Lawrie, his fellow Scotsman, who, of course, lifted the Claret Jug at Carnoustie in 1999, was not surprised to see the Aberdonian across the counter….”He makes a mean latte does our Sam,” Lawrie tweeted. “He’s got loads of time to prepare… He’s a top lad who deserves all the plaudits coming his way.”

5. (Some) pros celebrate the 4th as you’ve come to expect

Is Justin Thomas’ photo above refreshing? Fun? Funny? Inspirational? I don’t know. I guess I’m getting old.

Applaud the pros’ patriotism, yes, but I’m not sure how life-enhancing images of red-white-and-blue beachside brofests are from the Fowlers and Thomases of the world are. Good to see them letting loose in the collegiate fashion, enjoying their lives, and proud to be Americans, I suppose.

Am I being more cynical than usual? Pass me a red Solo cup…

6. Lincicome prepares to battle the boys

Lincicome will tee it up in the Barbasol Championship in two weeks time, where she hopes to make the cut (something no woman has ever done on the PGA Tour).

Golfweek’s Forecaddie wrote this of her preparations…”Brittany Lincicome recently played Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Fla., from the tips at 7,470 yards. She hit hybrids into half the greens, three-putted twice and shot even par. During off weeks Lincicome typically plays from the back tees with her husband, a long-drive competitor, and club pros. That’s all she knew from high school, too, playing No. 1 on the boys’ team.”

“Lincicome has no plans to visit Keene Trace Golf Club outside Lexington, Ky., before competing in the PGA Tour’s Barbasol Championship on July 19-22, opposite the British Open. She once did an early visit for a U.S. Women’s Open and felt like she put more pressure on herself as a result. The eight-time LPGA winner plans to arrive Tuesday and play a nine-hole practice round, as she would for any other tournament. She hopes to be included in the Wednesday pro-am.”

7. Composite course fun: Most difficult major test

Golfweek’s Brentley Romine wonders…”What if a golfer had to play a round on the 18 toughest holes in recent major history?”

“Using scoring averages from the last 25 years of majors and a par-70 template (35-35 with 12 par 4s, four par 3s and two par 5s), here is arguably the most difficult “composite” major venue.

“Grab your clubs – and some Tylenol plus a few Band-Aids – and we’ll see you on the first tee. And don’t sweat being over par – the composite total score for these holes in majors since 2003 is 78.65 (versus a par of 70)”

His first selection.…1st Hole: No. 1, Oakmont Country Club…Par 4, 482 yards…U.S. Open (2007, ’16)…Scoring average: 4.515 in 2007

For the other 17, click.

8. For your listening/viewing pleasure

GolfWRX dropped a pair of tasty media morsels yesterday, ICMYI in the course of your 4th of July revelry.

First, Johnny Wunder talked with company engineer Marty Jertson about Ping’s new i500 irons…as well as the incredible fact that Jertson qualified for this year’s PGA Championship.

Listen.

Second, Andrew Tursky talked with David Edel about the making of Bryson DeChambeau’s U.S. Am-winning single-length irons…and got an in-hand look.

Watch

9. Place your bets!

The favorites for the Greenbrier (c/o Bovada)

Tony Finau: +1200
Bubba Watson: +1400
Phil Mickelson: +1600
Russell Henley: +1800
Webb Simpson: +1800
Xander Schauffele: +2200
Joaquin Niemann: +2500
J.B. Holmes: +2800
Brian Harman: +3300
Charles Howell III: +3300

News

Testing Lorem Ipsum

Published

8 hours ago

May 13, 2026

Pro Shop

What is Lorem Ipsum?

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Why do we use it?

It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy. Various versions have evolved over the years, sometimes by accident, sometimes on purpose (injected humour and the like).

News

2026 PGA Championship betting odds

Published

2 days ago

May 12, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Scottie Scheffler leads the betting ahead of the second major championship of the year, with the World Number One a +345 favorite to get his hands on a second PGA Championship.

Rory McIlroy who won the Masters back in April is a +800 shot to complete half of the calendar slam at Aronimink Golf Club this week, while Jordan Spieth can be backed at +5900 to become a career grand slam winner.

Here is the full betting board for the 2026 PGA Championship courtesy of DraftKings.

Scottie Scheffler +345 – (Check 0ut his WITB here)

Rory McIlroy +800 – (Check out his WITB here)

Jon Rahm +1300
Cameron Young +1500
Bryson DeChambeau +1700
Xander Schauffele +1850
Matt Fitzpatrick +1950
Ludvig Aberg +2000
Tommy Fleetwood +2600
Collin Morikawa +3500
Brooks Koepka +3900
Justin Rose +4300
Russell Henley +4600
Si Woo Kim +4700
Justin Thomas +4800
Robert MacIntyre +5300
Patrick Cantlay +5300
Viktor Hovland +5400
Tyrrell Hatton +5500
Jordan Spieth +5900
Sam Burns +6000
Hideki Matsuyama +6200
Adam Scott +6400
Rickie Fowler +7000
Chris Gotterup +7400
Patrick Reed +7400
Min Woo Lee +7800
Ben Griffin +8000
Sepp Straka +8400
Shane Lowry +9000
Akshay Bhatia +9200
Maverick McNealy +9200
Joaquin Niemann +9200
Jake Knapp +9200
Jason Day +9600
Kurt Kitayama +10000
J.J. Spaun +10000
Harris English +10500
Nicolai Hojgaard +11000
Gary Woodland +11000
David Puig +11000
Michael Thorbjornsen +12000
Jacob Bridgeman +12000
Keegan Bradley +12500
Corey Conners +14000
Alex Fitzpatrick +15000
Sungjae Im +15500
Sahith Theegala +15500
Harry Hall +15500
Alex Noren +16000
Thomas Detry +16500
Marco Penge +16500
Kristoffer Reitan +17000
Alex Smalley +17000
Wyndham Clark +17500
Sam Stevens +17500
Keith Mitchell +17500
Daniel Berger +18500
Ryan Gerard +20000
Nick Taylor +20000
Rasmus Hojgaard +21000
Dustin Johnson +21000
Pierceson Coody +23000
Aaron Rai +24000
Jordan Smith +24000
Angel Ayora +24000
Bud Cauley +25000
Matt McCarty +26000
Jayden Schaper +26000
Brian Harman +27000
Taylor Pendrith +27000
Ryan Fox +27000
J.T. Poston +27000
Cameron Smith +29000
Ryo Hisatsune +29000
Michael Kim +29000
Max Homa +29000
Denny McCarthy +29000
Tom McKibbin +30000
Rico Hoey +32000
Matt Wallace +32500
Ricky Castillo +33000
Haotong Li +33000
Michael Brennan +34000
Max Greyserman +36000
Stephan Jaeger +37500
Christiaan Bezuidenhout +37500
Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen +39000
Aldrich Potgieter +40000
Andrew Novak +42000
Patrick Rodgers +42500
Daniel Hillier +42500
Max McGreevy +46000
Billy Horschel +48000
Chris Kirk +48000
Ian Holt +49000
Casey Jarvis +49000
William Mouw +50000
Steven Fisk +50000
John Parry +50000
Nico Echavarria +52500
Garrick Higgo +52500
John Keefer+55000
Matthias Schmid +57500
Austin Smotherman +57500
Sami Valimaki +60000
Andrew Putnam +60000
Lucas Glover +62500
Daniel Brown +62500
Jhonattan Vegas +75000
Emiliano Grillo +80000
Mikael Lindberg +85000
Adrien Saddier +100000
Bernd Wiesberger +100000
Elvis Smylie +110000
Stewart Cink +130000
Kota Kaneko +130000
David Lipsky +150000
Chandler Blanchet +150000
Andy Sullivan +150000
Joe Highsmith +180000
Adam Schenk +200000
Travis Smyth +200000
Davis Riley +225000
Martin Kaymer +400000
Brian Campbell +400000
Padraig Harrington +450000
Kazuki Higa +450000
Jordan Gumberg +450000
Ryan Vermeer +500000
Austin Hurt +500000
Tyler Collet +500000
Timothy Wiseman +500000
Shaun Micheel +500000
Y.E. Yang +500000
Michael Block+500000
Mark Geddes+500000
Luke Donald+500000
Bryce Fisher+500000
Jimmy Walker +500000
Jason Dufner +500000
Jesse Droemer +500000
Jared Jones +500000
Garrett Sapp +500000
Francisco Bide +500000
Zach Haynes +500000
Paul McClure+500000
Derek Berg +500000
Chris Gabriele +500000
Braden Shattuck +500000
Ben Polland +500000
Ben Kern +50000

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 PGA Championship

Published

2 days ago

May 11, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX is on site for the second major of 2026: The PGA Championship from Aronimink in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania.

The tournament’s location, just outside Philadelphia, and its status as a major championship mean GolfWRXers are in for a treat: WITBs from a strong field, custom gear celebrating the PGA Championship, and the rich culture of the City of Brotherly Love — we have noted a relative absence of cheesesteak-themed items thus far this week, but most of the rest of the usual suspects are well represented.

Check out links to all our photos below.