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Saturday on Tour: 5 things we learned
The Korn Ferry Tour completed its second post-quarantine event on Saturday, rather than Sunday. No reason was given, other than, perhaps, the high holy day of fatherly adulation. The PGA Tour has no such consideration for pater familius, it appears. Its tournament will conclude on Sunday.
As such, we have learned five things about winning and not winning, and another five things about positioning. Live from St. Augustine and Hilton Head Island, it’s 5 things we learned.
The King and The Bear Classic
Top billing must be given to the concluded contest, ergo Korn Ferry before PGA Tour. This one ended traumatically, but let’s not give it away.
5. As if written by Wodehouse
If you haven’t read P.G. Wodehouse on golf, you must. If you have, you understand that the unkind end to Vince India’s week might have been written by the master himself. The golfer who could do no wrong through the end of 54 holes, could suddenly do no right over the final 18. There was no calamitous flub, no gargantuan spasm. The shots simply ebbed away with the wind. Four bogies, 14 pars. That’s it. How to explain? No manner. The birdie well simply dried up. The pitcher of eagles was emptied on Saturday. The game simply left him, and he tumbled from a four-shot advantage to a tie for sixth position, five behind the winner.
4. Zalatoris edges closer
Will Zalatoris moved closer to a first, important professional triumph. He did so by shooting his highest round of the week. Thing was, his high round was a 68, and a 68 rarely inflicts collateral damage. The Calixan (Californian Texan) had a foozle at the 10th, where he made bogie. He offset that mistake with five birdies, and tied for 3rd, a slim 3 shots back of the champion. Was -26 within reach? Yes. With the exception of a very few in golf’s competitive history, winners have lost far more often than they have won. It is these almosts and if onlys that forge the inner strength. Our money’s on the Demon Deacon over the course of the summer’s schedule.
3. Joseph Bramlett rises
It’s tempting to write about Joseph Bramlett’s performance these last two weeks, in the context of something bigger, owing to his ethnicity. If something is there, it is Joseph Bramlett’s place and right to inform the golf world, and not for the golf world to project and extrapolate. Instead, we consider his 128 over the final 36 holes. The Stanford alumnus was cruising along through 71 holes, probably happy to be at minus-20, inside the top 15. And then, lightning struck. With two flicks at the orb, Bramlett had holed for an albatross, a double eagle at the last. The rarest of birds vaulted him into a tie for 3rd with Zalatoris. Not even Wodehouse wrote so fine an ending.
2. Lower goes higher
That low-hanging fruit was irresistible. Justin Lower closed with birdies at four of his final five holes, to make Chris Kirk sweat. By going lower, Lower moved all the way to solo second, one shot behind the champion. Nerves were unsteady all around the course on day four, and Lower was no exception. He followed an eagle three at the fifth with a bogey six at the seventh. As mentioned, his inward half was settled and stellar. Like Zalatoris, he’ll be one to watch in the coming weeks.
1. Captain Kirk in command
As mentioned yesterday, Chris Kirk has been there and done that. For Vince India and the rest of the field, that was the worst combination in the top 15. True to form, Kirk played like a breed apart. He was four under par through nine holes, before an inexplicable double at the 10th gave the field a sliver of hope. Alas, it was to be dashed, as the Georgia Bulldog steadied and played his final eight holes in minus three. It was just enough to win, and for a man trying to return to the high echelon of the PGA Tour, the proper medicine.
RBC Heritage
I can’t tell you how many times I looked at the Hilton Head leaderboard and thought, “We’ll have a playoff, for sure.” I would then recall that it was only day three for the major leagues, and that today’s heroics would mean next to nothing on Sunday.
5. Goodbye, Ernie and Bryson
At Sea Pines, scores in the 70s simply will not due. Ernie Els teased us with matching 67s, then ballooned to a 72 on Saturday. Farewell, Big Easy. DeChambeau seemingly defied the odds of a bomber winning at the Heritage, then tossed a beanbag of a 70 on day three. The Big Bang Theory was reduced to a fine powder explosion. Adios.
4. Hello, Carlos, Joaquin, Daniel, Joel, and Chris
There are simply no odds for a quintet to shoot 63 on the same day and move within two shots of the lead. Yet, here we are, with Carlos Ortiz, Joaquin Niemann, Daniel Berger, Joel Dahmen, and Chris Stroud as star witnesses. Each found a method to slice and dice the Sea Pines Plantation’s signature course to the tune of eight under par. Carlos, Daniel, and Joel currently sit at 14 under, while Joaquin and Chris are one shot further back. Odds suggest that at least one of them will replicate form and be in the mix tomorrow, so I’ll go out on a limb and choose the guy whose first name ends in a consonant.
3. 15 golfers within two shots?
Yep. Turns out there are six more golfers at 13 under along with four golfers at 15 under, the ladder’s bustling top rung. Sergio Garcia, first-round leader Ian Poulter, and my prediction (Matthew Fitzpatrick) found their way into contention. Sunday will demand perfection from any of them, in order to win. Bogeys will derail each of their locomotives, so dig deep, lads.
2. A quartet at the top
Tyrrell Hatton, Abraham Ancer, and Ryan Palmer joined 36-hole leader Webb Simpson atop the heap. Will Sunday bring fireworks? No doubt. Will one of these gents repeat his Saturday heroics? I’m going to say no. The winner will come from behind (see footnote on Matthew Fitzpatrick).
1. Prediction hour
Most likely to win: Matthew Fitzpatrick. I’m sticking with him.
Most likely to fade away: Webb Simpson. 26 putts on Saturday, but most were to save par. The long game is off, and the putter won’t save him forever.
Most likely to be mistaken for Gael Garcia Bernal: Abraham Ancer. Honestly, they’re like twins!
Most likely to grind his teeth to dust while smiling: Tyrrell Hatton. Someone hurt him, but who?
Most likely to do something bizarre: Sergio Garcia. It has simply been too long.
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
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
- 2025 Wyndham Championship – Tuesday #1
- 2025 Wyndham Championship – Tuesday #2
- 2025 Wyndham Championship – Tuesday #3
WITB Albums
- Chandler Phillips – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Davis Riley – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Scotty Kennon – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Austin Duncan – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Will Chandler – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Kevin Roy – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Ben Griffin – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Peter Malnati – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Ryan Gerard – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Adam Schenk – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Kurt Kitayama – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Camilo Villegas – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Matti Schmid – WITB – 2025 Wyndham Championship
Pullout Albums
- Denny McCarthy’s custom Cameron putters – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Swag Golf putters – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Karl Vilips TM MG5 wedges – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- New Bettinardi putters – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Matt Fitzpatrick’s custom Bettinardi putters – 2025 Wyndham Championship
- Cameron putters – 2025 Wyndham Championship
See what GolfWRXers are saying and join the discussion in the forums.
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)
‘Why would anybody want to change that swing?’ – Brandel Chamblee says PGA Tour star was wrong to change his swing
‘The stupidest freaking thing I’ve ever heard’ – Billy Horschel slams Open idea suggested by Padraig Harrington
WITB Time Machine: Brandt Snedeker’s winning WITB, 2018 Wyndham Championship
Golfer proudly posts photo of ball mark on iron, receives immediate roasting
WITB Time Machine: Matthew Wolff’s winning WITB, 2019 3M Open
Oakmont Country Club bans Wyndham Clark over locker incident; Reveals specific conditions to earn reinstatement
Adam Scott puts Callaway blades in the bag at Wyndham Championship
Report: LIV star fires caddie and coach in shock shake up
Rickie Fowler makes equipment change to ‘something that’s a little easier on the body’
The championship formula: How 3 key stats separate winners from the field
Peter Malnati WITB 2025 (August)
Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here. Driver: Titleist...
Cameron Young’s winning WITB: 2025 Wyndham Championship
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting) Buy here. Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX 3-wood: Titleist...
Camilo Villegas WITB 2025 (July)
Camilo Villegas WITB accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. Villegas was undecided on a 3-wood when we shot his bag. ...
WITB Time Machine: Brandt Snedeker’s winning WITB, 2018 Wyndham Championship
Brandt Snedeker fired a final-round 65 at the 2018 Wyndham Championship to outlast Webb Simpson and C.T. Pan. His 5-under...
Ken
Jun 21, 2020 at 12:30 pm
Bryson was sweating profusely and seemed to be struggling with the heat. Perhaps not comfortable with an extra 40 lbs and affected his game.
Benny
Jun 21, 2020 at 7:08 am
Hahaha awesome