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Tour Rundown: Poston’s second win on tour | Irish Open champion hails from a new land

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3 years ago

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A true fan of professional golf tournaments commented this week on how valuable the perceived-as-lesser events truly are. They may not measure greatness in the way that major events do, but they measure survival and achievement in the way that quarterly bonuses and interviews can. These events change the lives of tour players. That made cut leads to another chance next week. That late-Sunday birdie leads to exempt status next year. The measuring stick is different but, just as meters are to yards, it still measures something that matters … a lot. With that in mind, let’s run down what we saw this week on Tour Rundown. And, Happy Independence Day to those of you in the USA.

PGA Tour: John Deere Classic is Poston’s second win on tour

J.T. Poston came out like a man possessed on Sunday in Silvis, Illinois. He reeled off birdies at the first three holes, to reach 22-under par. No other golfer would approach that number, although Emiliano Grillo tried. The Argentine arrive at 19-deep with a birdie at the 10th hole. He would make bogey at 12 and 14, but recover with one final birdie at 18, and tie for second with Christian Bezuidenhout of South Africa.

A bit before Grillo’s arrival at Station 19, Poston had slipped to 20-under with consecutive bogeys at five and six. The needle would not move for the 2019 Wyndham winner for another 11 holes. Inconceivably, Poston made 10 pars in a row, and remained atop the field. No one took a run at him until late, and by then, it was nearly over. Playing companion Denny McCarthy had his struggles on the day, but managed a top-ten placement. Down the stretch, Poston made birdie at the penultimate hole for a bit of breathing room. He finished with a 21-under par total and a three-shot margin of victory.

DP World Tour: Irish Open champion hails from a new land

Adrian Meronk sang a singular note this week on the DP World Tour. His run of birdie-birdie-eagle at the 15th through 17th holes in round four ensure that, forever and always, he would be the first son of Poland to win on the DP World Tour. In all the years under its former name, not one citizen of Polonia broke through to raise a chalice. Now the flag of white and red has a favorite son to cheer in all events, from here on out.

Betting money might have seen Jorge Campillo, already twice a winner on tour, break through for a third career title. The Spaniard could never get on the run that he needed on Sunday. Each pair of birdies was always followed with a bogey, and the Iberian settled for a top-ten placement. Betting money would not have seen Ryan Fox bookend his opening 64 with another on Sunday. The New Zealand native was two island all week: rounds one and four were brilliant, while the middle two were bumpy and uncertain. Fox stood nine-under par on the day as he headed to 18. Needing a final birdie to finish at 61 and 19-deep, the Kiwi settled for bogey and 17-under.

Fox the runner-up and Meronk the champion will do battle over the coming weeks at the Scottish, and then the Open, championships. Meronk’s work on the final day featured just one bogey, and just five over the entirety of the 72 holes of competiion. As he nears 30 years of age, now might be the time to make a statement in a major event.

Korn Ferry Tour: The Ascendant bids Dou safe passage to PGA Tour

Ryan McCormick had controlled The Ascendant since Thursday, but Sunday was not his day. The 54-hole leader tumbled twelve positions into a tie for 13th, unsealing an envelope of opportunity for his pursuers. Carl Yuan reached 17-under par and a tie for the lead, but made bogey at the last to finish at 16 below. Jeremy Paul stood at 16-deep on the 16th tee, but played the closing stretch in one-over figures to check out at 15 strokes saved. Cut the deepest was Augusto Núñez. The Argentin reached 17-under with two to play, but posted a pair of bogeys coming home, and tied for third with Paul and Brandon Matthews.

Who survived? Zecheng “Marty” Dou, that’s who. He had the sort of round going that McCormick and the rest of the field craved. Dou made six birdies against zero bogeys through 17 holes on Sunday, and had a firm grasp on the winner’s plate with one hole left. When his tee shot found a fairway bunker, Dou went into preservation mode. He played safely out, pitched onto the green, and took two putts for bogey and a one-shot victory. With the victory, Dou jumped from 19th to 2nd on The 25 list for season-long status, just behind Yuan. Both will tee it up on the PGA Tour in the fall.

PGA Tour Canada: Prince Edward Island Open chooses Carlson as champion

While other tours have passed the halfway point in their 2022 schedules, PGA Tour Canada is barely beyond the quarter pole. The PEI Open was the fourth of eleven scheduled events on the 2022 schedule, which culminates at the Tour Championship in September, in Kitchener, Ontario. Brian Carlson of the USA held off Chris Wilson of Canada on Sunday, to win his first event of 2022 and move into the top spot on the season-long Fortinet Cup chase. On the heels of a cancelled event at Elk Ridge in Saskatchewan, PGA Tour Canada looked to rebound, and it did so quite well.

Carlson’s back nine on Sunday was enviable. He had five birdies and four pars on the cleanest card of the contenders. Ironically, he failed to make birdie at the easiest hole on the inward half, the par-five 18th. No matter, as the chasers all had at least one bogey coming home. It wasn’t until the penultimate hole that Carlson and Wilson traded places. Wilson made bogey to drop to 17 under, while Carlson’s final birdie elevated him to 19 below. Wilson made one last run at a playoff, but his birdie at the last served only to separate him from the USA’s Austin Hitt, who finished in third.

The tour reconvenes at TPC Toronto in three weeks, and contestants will certainly be champing at the bit to establish position as the home stretch emerges in the distance.

PGA Tour Latinoamérica: Montenegro wins tour finale; Meissner advance to KFT

The Bupa Tour Championship of PGA Tour Latinoamérica evolved into the tournament that everyone wanted to win, but nearly no one could win. 36-hole leader Cristobal del Solar crashed with 84 on Saturday, tumbling down the leader board. Manav Shah, Andrés Gallegos, and José de Jesús Rodríguez each came to the par-five 16th with a chance at the title, and each walked away with bogey six and a missed opportunity.

Even eventural winner Jesús Montenegro had his struggles over the closing stretch. Standing eight-under par with four holes left, the Platense took a rip at the massive, 245-yard par three fifteenth, and came away with double bogey. Able to steady his nerves with a massive par putt at the next, the Argentine closed with three pars for a two-shot victory over Gallegos and Shah. Also coming out in fine form was the USA’s Mitchell Meissner. Despite not winning an event during the 2022 campaign, Meissner finished on top of the TotalPlay Cup standings, and earned the first of ten promotions to the Korn Ferry Tour for 2023.

 

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Ronald Montesano writes for GolfWRX.com from western New York. He dabbles in coaching golf and teaching Spanish, in addition to scribbling columns on all aspects of golf, from apparel to architecture, from equipment to travel. Follow Ronald on Twitter at @buffalogolfer.

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Tour Rundown: Bend, but don’t break

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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

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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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