News

5 things we learned: Saturday at the Rocket Mortgage Classic

Published

6 years ago

Jul 5, 2020

It’s a day of independence across the United States of America. In a time of pandemic, quarantine, isolation, this means a great deal to all citizens. Some view independence as an opportunity to live their best lives, be their best selves, and place others first. Others view it as an opportunity to live their best lives, be their best selves, and place their own wants and needs first. One of these will lead us down the road to perdition. The PGA Tour stop in Detroit is one of the most significant events of this young restart to the season. The Detroit Golf Club is located in a decidedly-urban setting. The neighborhoods that surround it are diverse, with a largely-black population. The health bubble that the PGA Tour hopes to create this summer, should not add a societal bubble to the agenda. Golf, along with humanity, needs to embrace diversity, respect the other, and welcome the uninvited. Raise your glass to a celebration of the entire populace, that fights for freedom and independence.

On that note, here are five things that I learned on day three, Saturday, July 4th, of the Rocket Mortgage Classic.

5. Wolff has owned the closing stretch for two days

The run of holes that have caused fits for the competition this week have been Matthew Wolff’s playground. Glance at the majority of scorecards, and the under-par work through the 14th green becomes apparent. It’s the final four holes that put the brakes to record-low rounds over the past three days. Wolff played the closing five holes in birdies on Friday, to shoot into the mix. On Saturday, he played them in minus-four, thanks to a jump-start eagle on 14. If the former Oklahoma State Cowboy reaches the turn in minus-three on Sunday, he might run away with the trophy. Wolff currently resides in the high-rent district at minus-19, three shots clear of Ryan Armour and Bryson DeChambeau.

4. Simpson and Kirk kinda-sorta fell away

The final pairing didn’t blow up, but they didn’t play the type of golf needed to keep or extend the lead. Webb Simpson’s other-worldly long game fell back to earth, and he was unable to compensate with stellar putting. He went ’round in minus-one, and sits on 13-under par, six back, in a tie for 8th. Chris Kirk continued his average week of ball striking, but his interstellar putting joined Simpson’s long game on the sidelines. Kirk was one better than his playing partner, and occupies 4th place at -14, five behind the leader.

3. Big moves

Detroit Golf Club is not the type of course where big moves are likely, this late in the game. Four golfers inside the top ten made an upward move of more than five spots. Troy Merritt is tied for fourth at -14. His 67 featured a clean card of five birdies and zero bogies. Merritt’s day was an all-around success, from driving the ball in the fairway, to hitting 17 of 18 greens, to decent putting. Based on the long-game numbers alone, he should have gone lower. Former trick-shot phenom Wesley Bryan had eight birdies against one bogey for 65, and 34-spot elevation. Bryan’s round was similar to Merritt’s, with the exception of better putting. Both will need 64 or better on Sunday to have a chance.

Two golfers jumped up 12 spots, from 20th to 8th. Luke List and Viktor Hovland began the day at minus-eight, and each posted 67. List had six birdies plus one bogey, while Hovland counted five birdies against zero bad’uns. Both are long hitters, so accurate iron play on Sunday will give them a chance to go low and make a run.

2. The Big Bang Theory

El fuerte, Bryson DeChambeau, is hanging around. He’ll tee off in the 2nd-last group with Merritt. He may drive into the anti-penultimate group of Mark Hubbard and Seamus Power, so amped will the big fellow be. One of these rounds, his putting will finally emerge as a weapon. As long as it’s not used for saving par, DeChambeau should take the battle directly to Wolff, and he should do so early. DeChambeau has played the first four holes of the front nine in minus-two each day. His front-nine struggles have happened on holes five through nine. Two or three under early, followed by stable play toward the round’s middle, will give him an opportunity to compete. Anything less will leave him with another top-ten finish and loads of questions.

1. The predictions are in

Most likely pairing to offer a 60: The 1:25 tee time of Luke List and Viktor Hovland. Both made decent Saturday moves, and they might carry each other to an historic Sunday.

Guy I’d like to see win: Ryan Armour. His career was derailed when the heavy favorite lost the 1993 USGA Junior Amateur final to Tiger Woods (maybe Woods was the favorite, we don’t remember.) He’s a grinder, an early-forties sojourner, and he deserves a second tour victory.

Holes that will determine the finish: 8 through 11. This four-hole stretch is quite demanding, featuring two long par-three holes, a long four, and a tricky, short four.

Low round of the day: Rickie Fowler. The host is mired in a tie for 40th, and has done absolutely nothing, beyond making the cut. On Sunday, he brings it all together for 62, reaches 19-deep, and earns a top-five finish. 62 for nearly anyone else on Sunday will mean victory, but not for Rick.

News

WITB Time Machine: Phil Mickelson’s winning WITB, 2021 PGA Championship

Published

24 hours ago

May 13, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

Phil Mickelson made history at the 2021 PGA Championship on Kiawah Island’s Ocean Course. At 50, he became the oldest player to win a major, breaking Julius Boros’s record. Starting the final round with a slim lead, Lefty faced tough competition from Brooks Koepka and Louis Oosthuizen. He pulled ahead with key birdies and a standout 366-yard drive on the 16th hole. Finishing 6 under par and two shots ahead, Mickelson claimed his sixth major and second PGA Championship. Many saw his win as an inspiring comeback, showing that experience and determination can still lead to victory in professional golf — and, sometimes, age is just a number.

Driver: Callaway Epic Speed Triple Diamond (6 degrees @5.5 , green dot cog)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X (47.9 inches)

2-wood: TaylorMade “Original One” Mini Driver (11.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7 X

4-wood (Sunday only): Callaway Mavrik Sub Zero (16.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 8 X

Irons: Callaway X Forged UT (16) (Thursday-Saturday), Callaway X21 UT Proto (19 degrees @20.5, 25), Callaway Apex MB ‘21 (small groove) (6-PW)
Shafts: (16) MCA MMT 105 TX, KBS Tour V 125 S+

Wedges: Callaway PM Grind ’19 “Raw” (52-12@50, 55-12, 60-10)
Shafts: KBS Tour V 125 S+

Putter: Odyssey Milled Blade “Phil Mickelson”
Grip: SuperStroke Pistol GT Tour

Ball: Callaway Chrome Soft X (Triple Track)

Grips: Golf Pride MCC

More photos of Phil Mickelson’s WITB here.

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

3 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.