Connect with us

News

Morning 9: Rahm not dwelling on PIF deal | Zhang for Solheim Cup? | Travelers Photos

Published

2 years ago

on
By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com

Good Wednesday morning, golf fans, as we gear up for the Travelers Championship.

1. We’re the captain still

Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…”PGA Tour officials intend to tackle a growing narrative that the “framework” agreement the circuit signed with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia two weeks ago is not a takeover of professional golf.”

  • “According to a source familiar with the agreement, who requested anonymity, the deal has built-in safeguards that will ensure the Tour maintains leadership of both the new entity – which will be for-profit and is tentatively called NewCo in the agreement – as well as the PGA Tour.”
  • …”For the Tour, those for-profit assets would include any media rights, sponsorships, the TPC network and any licensing agreements. The board of directors of NewCo will include an executive committee of Tour commissioner Jay Monahan, PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan, Jimmy Dunne and Ed Herlihy, who are members of the Tour’s policy board and forged the framework agreement with the PIF. The tax-exemption arm of the Tour, including anything “inside the ropes,” will remain autonomous.”
Full piece.

2. Rahm not dwelling on PGA Tour-LIV union

ESPN report…”Jon Rahm still doesn’t know much about the proposed partnership between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf, but he knows this much — he’s not dwelling on it…”

  • “I didn’t really talk about [the union] much last week, and I guess I might know more in a few hours once we’re done with the player meeting tonight,” Rahm said. “I don’t think we’re going to get a lot of answers, but I’m going to at least get an idea of where the membership head is at. That’s all I can say. We don’t know anything. I don’t know if the people in charge know much more than we do.
  • “There are so many unanswered questions that at this point I wouldn’t want to waste time thinking about it because there is a lot of what-ifs and unknowns,” he added.
Full piece.

3. In Gee Chun’s internal battle

Nicole Gaddie for Golf Channel…“All my family and friends were in Korea. I felt lonely instead of thankful. I had to take depression medication while on tour,” said Chun.

  • …”She was feeling the effects of becoming a superstar.”
  • “When In Gee wins a big tournament and flies into the airport in Seoul, cameras flash everywhere,” said her coach, Dr. Won Park. “She has to do a lot of interviews at the airport, and she spends about two or three hours until she finally makes it to her car.”
  • “On the streets of Korea, Chun became accustomed to being recognized. As her rockstar status grew, her fans and the Korean media expected results. Chun felt pressure to deliver.”
  • “She grew up from a poor family and needed support from people around her. She knew how precious that help was. She feels all the time that she owes something to everyone,” said Park.
Full piece.

4. Lewis looking at Zhang for Solheim Cup?

Golf Channel’s Max Schreiber…”There was only one way Rose Zhang could become eligible for September’s Solheim Cup in Spain.”

  • “She needed an LPGA win before then, and in her first professional start three weeks ago at the Mizuho Americas Open, the 20-year-old emerged victorious, becoming the first woman to accomplish that feat since Beverly Hanson in 1951.”
  • “That caught the U.S. Solheim Cup captain’s eye.”
  • “I’ve texted with Rose a little bit since her win, just needed her to try some clothes on and stuff like that,” Stacy Lewis told GolfChannel.com at KPMG Women’s PGA media day, June 12. “I was letting her get over last week before I started bugging her. Yeah, the (assistant) captains and I already started talking about (Zhang making the team).”
Full piece.

5. Can your course host a successful modern day U.S. Open?

From Shane Ryan’s superb Golf Digest “guide”…

Who should I give all my tickets to?

  • “Bad: Corporate suits.”
  • “You can’t give your tickets to people who will sit in hospitality tents the whole time, never cheer, drink cocktails with names like “Mortimer’s teawhistle,” and miss all the golf action because they’re deep in conversation about the best way to monetize carbon monoxide poisoning. These people are not the heart and soul of the U.S. Open, and if you overload the place with elites, you’ll lose all your atmosphere.”

“Bad: Ordinary people.”

  • “Have you seen any ordinary people lately? They’re hooting, insensate morons who can only get a dopamine rush by drunkenly shouting the names of food items after a player hits a golf ball. The human animal is a gross, slobbering beast with a penchant for violence, whose elevated brain power has only led him to a rough kind of egotism that funnels toward collective destruction. You absolutely cannot let too many of these boors near the golfers, the same way you wouldn’t let your child inside a gorilla cage at the zoo.”
  • “Good: A mix, but heavily police the proletariat with propaganda and pinkertons.”
  • “The Masters has it right. Rule with an iron fist or invite anarchy. The USGA has been permissive for far too long, and if anyone from that organization is reading this, be in touch, because I have some interesting ideas.”
Full piece.

6. A tale of two post-major starts

Alex Myers for Golf Digest…”The PGA Tour has been jam-packed this season for top players, most notably with two of the new designated events falling the week after a major championship. Rahm drew praise for playing at Hilton Head in April just days after claiming the green jacket. But on Tuesday the only green on his mind were the bright shoes he wore as he got right back to work.”

  • “Oh, way easier, way easier,” Rahm said when asked to compare this week to the one at Harbour Town following his Masters win. “I was pretty drained on that Thursday still when I tee’d up at Harbour Town, and mainly because that week was unique in how demanding it was on the weekend with all the starts and stops and the tough whether. Every time I win it takes a little bit more out of you.”
  • “Rahm didn’t win at the U.S. Open, but he did finish strong with a Sunday 65 at LACC. That vaulted him into the top 10, but he acknowledged that not all high finishes are created equal.”
  • “For the better part of the weekend I was never in contention, so all that stress and intensity that comes with it wasn’t there,” Rahm continued. “Even though I finished great, my round was done at 3 p.m. and I was able to enjoy most of the broadcast like everybody else. That extra energy spent on battling Sunday afternoon at the Open, so energy-wise I’m much better.”
Full Piece.

7. Rahm to Clark: Make sure you celebrate

Paul Higham for Golf Monthly…”…Rahm says that Clark should just enjoy the celebrations that come with winning a first Major and not worry about how he plays this week, as he gave his advice to those who challenged at the US Open who are making the trip.”

  • “A lot of them are already plenty experienced, right? The only one that hasn’t been in that situation was Wyndham,” said Rahm. “After winning I’m pretty sure he doesn’t care how it goes this week.”
  • “It’s so personal. All I could tell him is to enjoy the win as much as possible. You know, if you want to focus and play this week, go ahead, but just take the time to enjoy those moments, just because, you know, they’re not easy to come by.”
  • “So to make sure you celebrate when something like that happens in the present instead of years after when you’ve already – not forgotten, but it’s already passed.”
Full Piece.

8. Harrington on potential Ryder Cup tension

Alex Perry for Bunkered…”It’s been one of the big talking points of the past two years, but Padraig Harrington believes the players will “get over it” should LIV golfers be allowed to make a return to the Ryder Cup fold.”

  • “For a week, you get over it,” he tells bunkered. “Myself and Sergio used to hug at the Ryder Cup. When you are playing you get over these things, and you work through it. You would be surprised – a bit of tension does help, and you want a bit of drive in there. Everything goes out the window at the Ryder Cup to make the best possible team.
  • “All teams have it. Look at the England football team. Most of the players are kicking the hell out of each other in matches two weeks previous, so I don’t see tension being an issue.
Full Piece.

9. Travelers Photos

  • Make sure to check out all of our galleries from this week’s event!
Full Piece.
GolfWRX | PO Box 2765, Dearborn, MI 48123
Unsubscribe newsletters@golfwrx.com
Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice
Sent by newsletters@golfwrx.com powered by
Trusted Email from Constant Contact - Try it FREE today.

Try email marketing for free today!

Related Topics:

Ben Alberstadt is the Editor-in-Chief at GolfWRX, where he’s led editorial direction and gear coverage since 2018. He first joined the site as a freelance writer in 2012 after years spent working in pro shops and bag rooms at both public and private golf courses, experiences that laid the foundation for his deep knowledge of equipment and all facets of this maddening game. Based in Philadelphia, Ben’s byline has also appeared on PGATour.com, Bleacher Report...and across numerous PGA DFS and fantasy golf platforms. Off the course, Ben is a committed cat rescuer and, of course, a passionate Philadelphia sports fan. Follow him on Instagram @benalberstadt.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

News

Tour Rundown: Bend, but don’t break

Published

3 weeks ago

on

Aug 4, 2025

By

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.

Continue Reading

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2025 Wyndham Championship

Published

4 weeks ago

on

Jul 29, 2025

By

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.

 

Continue Reading

News

BK’s Breakdowns: Kurt Kitayama’s Winning WITB, 3M Open

Published

4 weeks ago

on

Jul 28, 2025

By

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)

Continue Reading

WITB

Whats in the Bag3 weeks ago

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...
Whats in the Bag3 weeks ago

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...
Whats in the Bag4 weeks ago

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. ...
Whats in the Bag4 weeks ago

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...

Facebook

Trending