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Morning 9: Sawgrass: An acquired taste | State of the PGA Tour is strong? | Coronavirus is trouble for caddies | Brandel drags PGL

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5 years ago

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1. Rory on TPC Sawgrass: It’s an acquired taste
Golf Channel’s Randall Mell…“It’s a little like how he came to appreciate beer…That’s how Rory McIlroy describes the way he learned to like Pete Dye courses.”
  • “An acquired taste,” McIlroy said Tuesday as he prepared to defend his title at The Players Championship. “They’re like beer when you’re younger. You sort of don’t like it, but then you think it’s cool to drink it, and then you sort of acquire a taste for it.”
  • “I turned a corner,” McIlroy said. “I turned up there … and I hated it.
  • “I really did not like it. I had to tell myself, `Look, you just need to like it for one week. Just get your head around liking this place for one week and embracing the fact that it’s different and the fact that it’s visually a little funky.'”
  • “I never liked how [Dye] made you feel on the golf course, in terms of hiding things and angles,” McIlroy said. “It makes you a little bit uncomfortable, which is obviously his plan. He’s a wonderful designer of golf courses, but that was the week where I had to embrace what Pete tried to put into his golf courses.”
2. State of the Tour
Per Golfweek’s Adam Schupak….“the business of the PGA Tour appears as healthy as ever.”
“It’s clear to me we have a winning formula,” said Monahan, who noted the Tour has 18 tournaments under contract for seven or more years. “We’re growing in virtually every metric, and it’s not because the winning formula remains the same. We listen, and we respond.”
  • “On Monday, the Tour announced a nine-year renewal with TV partners CBS and NBC/Golf Channel and established a new relationship with Disney and ESPN+. While the financial terms weren’t disclosed, Monahan said it will help the Tour secure $12 billion in revenue through 2030.”
  • “The purse for the Players jumped to $15 million this year, with the winner awarded $2.7 million on Sunday, and he predicted that when the new TV riches kick in, the purse of the Players would reach $25 million. The FedEx Cup, which has doubled from a season-long pot at the end of the rainbow of $35 million to $60 million as of last season (plus $10 million for the Wyndham Rewards Top 10), also will receive a turbo-charge.”
  • “Perhaps $100 million or more,” Monahan said. “That’s not a commitment, but that’s, generally speaking, the kind of growth that I expect for us to see for our athletes.”
3. Impact of coronavirus
Shane Ryan penned an interesting piece on the negative ramifications of COVID-19 for a particular group: Tour caddies.
  • “As the global death toll from coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, rises past 4,000, the primary concern is the health and welfare of those infected. The secondary impact on the economy, however, will be enormous, and those most affected will be workers without full-time positions who are dependent on day-to-day or week-to-week work.”
  • “Caddies typically fall into that category. With rare exceptions, there is no guaranteed money, even for those who work on the PGA Tour. As Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee said on Tuesday, a caddie can be fired because his golfer doesn’t like his pants. Literally.”
  • …”Financial security lasts only as long as a caddie can work, and the extent to which a long absence from the Tour could affect a given looper varies depending on his situation.”
4. Ban PGA Tour players who play in PGL?
Geoff Shackelford weighs in on commissioner Monahan’s decision not to draw a line in the sand and declare any players who participate in the PFL will be banned…
…”Yet, the reluctance to go public with a ban policy prompts questions about the possible reasoning:”
  • “A) Gives the PGL legitimacy. Coming out with an unprecedented ban focused on one particular Tour certainly validates the PGL. Monahan’s stance of just waiting for a player to leave is probably the wise strategy. Unless a large group of players joins forces at once.”
  • “(B) Contradicts Rory.  Rory McIlroy’s recent praise of independent contractor life, as opposed to a league requiring full participation, would suddenly sound less realistic under such a PGL ban. Particularly if a precedent is set that could be applied to other existing tours. Restraint of trade could be claimed.”
  • “C) Bad optics. Protecting the PGA Tour and its beneficiaries should not create a bad look, but the world is a funny place when it comes to perception. If a few top players or legends are threatened, they might get in a public war that benefits no one.  Cutting off a long time star for good, while protecting the Tour, could also upset fans of that player.”
5. Brandel drags PGL
Adam Schupak at Golfweek…“Golf Channel commentator Brandel Chamblee is never one to hold back with his opinions. But he delivered a doozy, even for him, while discussing Rory McIlroy and his recent comments about the Premier Golf League, a potential rival league to the PGA Tour with financial backing tied to Saudi Arabia.”
“I think he just pointed out the flaws in what it would mean to take the money, and the flaws would be that these Tour players are called independent contractors. If you’re lucky enough to ascend to a place on the PGA Tour, I can’t think of another – I can’t think of anything else in life where nobody gets to tell you what to do,” Chamblee said. “The Tour can’t tell you what to do. You can fire your caddie if you don’t like the pants he’s wearing, and they do it. Ed Fiori famously fired his caddie. ‘Why did you do it?’ (He said), ‘I don’t know, I just got tired of looking at him.’ Managers kowtow to you, the Tour kowtows to you, caddies kowtow to you. Nobody tells a Tour player what to do.”
6. CBS removing the clutter?
Credit to Geoff Shackelford for pointing out this quote from CBS Sports chair Sean McManus in a Q&A with Adam Schupak…
“Q.  With CBS having to pay significantly more in rights fees, should viewers be concerned that you’re going to have to add additional sponsorship and promotional elements to make up that difference?”
“SM: Definitely not. In fact, we have regular conversations with the Tour about eliminating some of the clutter, so I would say if anything you’re going to see fewer interruptions than more. We’re going to continue to try to do more CBS Eye on the Course, the double box, so you don’t miss live golf action. We and NBC, although sometimes we get criticized, we and NBC run basically the same commercial load. You will not see that expanding in this deal, and if anything we’re going to try to reduce the clutter a little bit. We’ve already reduced the amount of on-air promotions we do for other programs, and I think we and the Tour are really cognizant of the fact that you want to show as much golf as you possibly can, and the two box is one way to do that, and less clutter is another way to do it. But no, there’s not going to be increased sponsorship or increased commercial inventory in the new deal.”
7. Inside BK’s GQ profile 
Helen Ross at PGATour.com…“There was not this sort of precious sense of maintaining the temple of his body as hard as he works out and everything,” Riley says. “There’s definitely a looseness there. It’s fun hearing stories about his life down there and going out on the boat.
  • “He loves fishing, he has all his buddies. It just seems loose, and fun in that way.”
  • “Koepka, for his part, seemed to enjoy the experience. He called the GQ photo shoot a “blast” and said he enjoyed doing something so different from his “normal day job.”
  • “I don’t know anybody that doesn’t want to be in GQ, let’s put it that way,” Koepka said. “I mean, when they approached me, I was excited about it. I thought it would be something cool, something different, show a little different side of me that you don’t get to see on the golf course.”
8. Chainsmokers x TPC Sawgrass
Golf Digest’s Christopher Powers on the very interesting pre-Players entertainment decision…“For the unaware, The Chainsmokers are one of the more well-known DJ duos in the world, which has to be true since even I know who they are. You’ve probably heard a few of their songs on the radio, and you’ve definitely heard their No. 1 hit “Closer,” the one about the roommate in Boulder with the mattress, or the Range Rover or whatever. You know, this one.”
  • “I’m not old by any means, so I don’t want to call myself old and piss off people who are actually old and would kill to be 27 again. But I’m an old 27, which is something a lot of 27-year-olds go through. Going out is no longer fun. Crowded bars are hell on earth. Does the music really need to be THAT loud? Can’t we just hang home, drink Bud Lights and play Monopoly? Is that so much to ask?”
  • “I could go on and on. I had my concert days in college. Electric dance music concerts to be more specific (RIP Avicii. That show at URI was dope freshman year). It’s a phase. A fun phase, sure, but a one that couldn’t have ended soon enough. Some people hang on as long as they can, attending festivals, camping out in mud, failing to cleanse their bodies for days at a time. I saw the Fyre Fest documentaries. Not for me.”
9. A pro sports bettor on betting on The Players
I talked to my old friend, Dave of Top Market Sports about betting strategy and how he’s punting on The Players this week…
“Q. You seem to never bet on the big marquee names like Rory McIlroy to win. Why?”
“A. Betting single-digit futures is bankroll suicide. Single-digit futures are anyone with shorter odds than 10/1. In fact, I’m actually making a conscious effort this season to not touch anything lower than 25/1.”
“The sports betting market, as a whole, underestimates the possibility of an unexpected event happening. For example, the St. Louis Blues won the Stanley Cup last year after being priced at 250/1 midway through the season. Leicester City won the Premier League as a 5000/1 long shot a few years ago. Five thousand to one! My point is that in sports, the unexpected happens all of the time. And in golf, this phenomenon is amplified even more.”
  • “If you’re feeling strongly about a player at the top of the board like McIlroy, just bet him in matchups. Then all you have to do is beat one guy, not a full field of 143 killers. Pretty much everyone in this Players Championship field is capable of tasting God Mode on any given week. You want to bet against an army of 143 with a 6/1 shot? Be my guest, but you’re in the wrong business.”

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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

on

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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WITB

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