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Morning 9: Q-Schoolers to watch | Åberg switches caddies | Tour players want answers

Published

2 years ago

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com

Good Wednesday morning, golf fans, as we turn our attention to the PNC Championship.

1. “Rank-and-file” Tour players ask for answers

Golfweek’s Adam Woodard…”A handful of former and current PGA Tour players are so fed up with leadership they’ve hired a law firm to try and get some answers.”

  • “Susman Godfrey, the firm representing 21 players, recently sent a letter to the PGA Tour Policy Board demanding “full disclosure of the details and analyses of any proposals by prospective capital partners, which should be shared promptly with all Tour players.”
  • “The players, who are all rank-and-file members at best, also demand a meeting with the independent directors on the Policy Board to discuss the process of selecting outside investors and what conflicts of interest may be present.”
Full piece.

2. Q-Schoolers to watch

A couple of the 10 Kevin Prise picked out…

  • “Keita Nakajima…The Japan native, 23, is widely accomplished at various levels of golf. He was ranked the world’s No. 1 amateur for 87 weeks, and he has notched six titles on the Japan Golf Tour, including three wins in the last six months. Now he eyes a PGA TOUR card. Nakajima earned direct access to Final Stage as the No. 1 player on the Japan Golf Tour Order of Merit, and he’ll head to northeast Florida with a laser focus on securing one of the top five spots. He has made 11 career TOUR starts, including six this season – highlighted by a T12 at the 2022 ZOZO Championship – and he stands No. 94 on the Official World Golf Ranking. “My main goal is to successfully play on the PGA TOUR,” he said in 2022, foreshadowing this week’s Q-School foray.”
  • “Sam Bennett…Most golf fans might remember Bennett from this year’s Masters Tournament, when he played in the final group during the third round at Augusta National, en route to a T16 finish. Then a senior at Texas A&M, Bennett impressed with poise and confidence that he belonged on that stage despite his lack of professional experience. Now he’ll look to channel those teachings into the pressure cooker of Final Stage, into which he gained direct access via the top five on the 2023 PGA TOUR University Ranking (he finished fifth). Bennett, 23, made 10 TOUR starts this year after turning pro, highlighted by a T20 at the RBC Canadian Open. He has ample experience against the game’s top players, which he’ll aim to use to his advantage as he battles many of them in northeast Florida.”
Full piece.

3. Åberg switches caddies

Paul Hodowanic for PGATour.com…”Ludvig Åberg will begin his first full season on the PGA TOUR with some added experience on the bag.”

  • “The ascending superstar has parted ways with caddie Jack Clarke and tabbed veteran looper Joe Skovron as his replacement, sources confirmed to PGATOUR.com. GolfChannel.com first reported the news.”
  • “Skovron was the longtime caddie of Rickie Fowler and most recently worked with Tom Kim.”
Full piece.

4. McIlroy shortlisted for BBC Sports Personality of the Year

Golf Business News report…”Rory McIlroy has been revealed as one of six sportspeople to have been shortlisted for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2023.”

  • “In a year where he won two tournaments, both of them on the DP World Tour, the current world second highest ranked golfer is up against a list that also includes England cricketer Stuart Broad and Italian-born jockey Frankie Dettori, two titans of their respective sports that bowed out this year after registering some of the best performances of their careers.”
Full piece.

5. Dusek on rollback takeaways

Golfweek’s David Dusek…Heading: The USGA and R&A boxed themselves into a no-win situation…”On several occasions since the Distance Insights Report was released in 2020, officials from the USGA and the R&A said that distance is a problem in the game and that the trend of longer-hitting players pushing golf courses to get bigger was unsustainable. Mike Whan, the current CEO of the USGA, his predecessor, Mike Davis, and the CEO of the R&A, Martin Slumbers, have all said that doing nothing is not an option.”

  • “But in the same breathe, all three have said that they don’t want to make a change that could negatively impact the growth of the game at the recreational level, where, according to the USGA and R&A’s own data, the average male player hits the ball 216 yards off the tee, and the average female player hits it 148 yards.”
  • “The number one piece of feedback we’ve heard, from virtually all aspects of the game is, ‘Please don’t negatively impact the recreational golf,’” Whan said in a press conference last March announcing the proposed Model Local Rule that could mandate players to use reduced-distance golf balls. It was seen as a solution to shorten the pro game without doing anything to weekend players, but that plan was met with resistance.
Full Piece.

6. Couples to LIV defectors

Our Matt Vincenzi…”While appearing on Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio, Fred Couples ripped into golfers who have joined LIV.”

  • “Couples shared the sentiment that the players only left the PGA Tour for money and the rest of the reasons they cite are untruthful.”
  • “I want them to go for free,” he said.
  • “Then go on CNN and every TV show and say why they’re going because it’s that good, $100m doesn’t get it, $200m doesn’t get it, $300m doesn’t get it. But for $400m it’s a great product and it’s a great show…my ass.
  • “Tell me the next guy, if it’s Tony Finau, ‘I’m going for free, I love this tour, I don’t like the PGA Tour anymore.’
  • “No-one is going to do that. What does that tell me? It tells me it’s all about money which is fine. But don’t sit there and then go on and say they’re changing the game. What are they changing? For 50 years golf has been changed.
  • “Arnold Palmer changed it. Jack Nicklaus changed it. Tiger Woods changed it. The LIV Tour ain’t changing a thing.”
Full Piece.

7. Chubby Chandler: This is when the USGA should have banned

Our Matt Vincenzi…”With the USGA and R&A announcing the universal golf ball rollback, many in the golf world have been debating whether or not the rule change will be positive or negative.”

  • “While speaking with GolfWRX, Chubby Chandler, former Tour pro and renowned golf agent, said he believes they should have banned a club a long time ago.”
  • “In 1984 there was a thing called the Pittsburgh (Persimmon) Pine. They should have banned that. They should have stopped metal clubs then.
  • “And they didn’t, and they’ve let everything get away from everything and, and it’s crazy this, it shouldn’t be like this. We should have equipment that doesn’t hit it as far as that. That’s all it needed.”
  • “Chubby added that he believes implementing the rule change in 2028 isn’t quick enough.”
Full Piece.

8. Cam Smith confirms fellow Aussie’s LIV exit

Mike Hall for Golf Monthly…”Heading into the weekend’s LIV Golf Promotions event, Jediah Morgan had one last chance to save his career on the circuit after finishing the 2023 season in the Drop Zone of the individual standings.”

  • “However, needing a top-three finish to retain a spot on the big-money League, where he had played for Ripper GC, the Australian could only manage 19th, bringing his two-year stint to an end.”
  • “Following the event in Abu Dhabi, Ripper GC captain Cameron Smith has confirmed Morgan’s exit with a message via the the team’s Instagram account, thanking him for his contribution.”
  • “It read: “Thanks for everything Jed! Your energy & character is unrivalled and we’ll always have you to thank for that epic final round in Bedminster. You’re a legend mate and a Ripper for life. Good luck with everything next season!”
Full Piece.

9. Photos from PGA Tour Q-School

  • Check out all of our galleries here!
Full Piece.

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.

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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.

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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.

 

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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)

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WITB

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