It was not a week for front-runners, at least on the men’s tours. The round-three leader of each event failed to close the door on victory. Perhaps it was the early nature of the season, when games are not yet finely-tuned. Maybe it was the nature of the chasers. Top-rated golfers, all of them. in search of an important victory, and they applied too much pressure for the relatively inexperienced forerunners to hold position.

As a result, a trio of chasers emerged from the masses to claim victory. How precisely did they do so? That’s what Tour Rundown intends to reveal. Strap in and prepare for an exciting ride through four tours and one indoor league.

PGA Tour @ AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am: Roars from the West Coast as Irish eyes smile

Sepp Straka had been the revelation of the first months of 2025. Straka won in California and had a pair of top-30 finishes in Hawaii. The ability to preserve a 54-hole lead at venerable Pebble Beach and claim a second title would have elevated the Austrian to a higher level of competitor. Such a result was not to be, and Straka ultimately closed with 72 to place seventh.

Surging on Sunday were a pair of golfers from the Emerald Isle alongside a pair of U.S. Open champions. Rory McIlroy had posted 65 on Saturday to lay claim to opportunity, while fellow acer Shane Lowry moved into contention with a 65 of his own on day three. Nearby were 20o9 Open champ Lucas Glover and 2013 winner Justine Rose. The quadrilateral would ultimately claim the top four spots.

Rose had a pair of mid-round bogeys, at eight and 10 but reclaimed those strokes with a bump-in for eagle at the last. Glover etched birdie at 17 and 18 onto his card and matched Rose at 18 under for the week. The pair ended in a third-place tie, one shot shy of Shane Lowry. Ireland’s hope had a turbulent front nine, with three bogeys and two birdies dropping him a bit off the pace. The inward half was more to his liking, as five birdies lifted him up the leaderboard — ultimately to a second-place finish.

Ahead of Lowry was the pride of Northern Ireland, Rory McIlroy. Despite 26 wins on the PGA Tour and its affiliated events, McIlroy had never won farther west than New Orleans. The vast majority of his titles came in the Carolinas and Florida, along with other venues up and down the USA’s East Coast. Over the final 36 holes, McIlroy was indomitable. His Saturday 65 was followed by a Sunday 66, highlighted by an eagle three at the par-5 14th. Over three rounds, McIlroy took a line on that par 5 that resembled the shot at the Road Hole at St. Andrews. His birdie at 15 elevated him to 21 under par, and from that point on, it was pars for the win.

571-yard par 5.

Rory just went driver, 7-iron. pic.twitter.com/0kwG8vap4i

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 2, 2025

LPGA @ Tournament of Champions: Kim claims third LPGA title by two

A Lim Kim came into view during the pandemic, winning the U.S. Open in December of 2020. Kim had also earned three wins on the Korean LPGA Tour, when she won for a second time in the USA, in Novermber of 2024. This week, Kim seized the Thursday lead at the year’s first event, posting 65. She continued to excel as the week progressed, adding scores of 69 and 67.

As initial challengers faded away, the most feared name on tour came into view: Nelly Korda. Korda posted dual 67s after opening with 71 but her best was yet to come. On Sunday, the Floridian sizzled across the Lake Nona course, posting a 65 that should have dispatched all comers. A Lim Kim, however, had no interest in that script. She did what her male counterparts could not this week: she held the door.

Kim suffered her second bogey of the day at the 12th, and that was the moment when collapse seemed possible. Gathering and summoning, she closed with birdies at three of the final four holes and won by two over Korda.

The winning putt that made A Lim Kim a 3x LPGA Tour winner ??? pic.twitter.com/o7hkfza7cP

— LPGA (@LPGA) February 2, 2025

DP World Tour @ Bahrain Championship: Playoff Decides Island Championship

Numbers tell a story when you’re not able to witness an event. This week in Bahrain, one golfer alone posted four rounds in the 60s. That golfer was fortunate enough to find himself in the fifth-last group on Sunday, a few shots out of the lead. At round’s end, that golfer found himself in a three-way tie for first, at 14 under par. Four other golfers were one shot shy of the top trio, meaning that seven golfers had a real shot at winning the title, coming down the stretch.

Callum Tarren led with 18 holes to play, but he followed Saturday’s 72 with a Sunday 73. It was not the way he hoped to finish, and he tumbled to a tie for eighth, two shots out of the playoff. Brandon Robinson Thompson had electrified fans with an opening 61. He stood on the 18th tee on Thursday, one birdie away from 59. Alas, he made bogey. On Saturday, BRT returned to contention, after a stumble on Friday. Unfortunately for the Englishman, he struggled again on day four, and matched Tarren at minus-twelve.

So what did happen, early Sunday afternoon, in Bahrain? For starters, Spaniard Ivan Cantero made bogey at the last, missing low from six feet, to fall out of a tie at 14-under par. His countryman, Pablo Larrazabal, also made bogey at the last, to fall into a tie at that figure. England’s Dan Brown and Laurie Canter managed to make par at the watery 18th, and the three trudged back to the tee, to have another go.

It was Laurie Canter, who performed brilliantly in the season-opening, team match, that found glory. Canter played iron to the fairway, then chased a nine iron inside of five feet. He converted for birdie, and his challengers were unable to match. The win was Canter’s second on the DP World Tour, and certainly catches captain Luke Donald’s eye for the European Ryder Cup side at Bethpage.

Closing out victory with a birdie at the first play-off hole ?

That was impressive @LaurieCanter.#BahrainGolfChamps pic.twitter.com/MFTr3Z5Qms

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) February 2, 2025

Korn Ferry Tour @ Panama Championship: Teater totters to title

Johnny Keefer did his best A Lim Kim impression this week in Central America. He opened with 64, then followed with two more good rounds, to take a lead into day four. Unlike Kim, Keefer was destined for a 73 on day four, a score that would drop him from the loftiest of perches. He didn’t drop far, from -10 to -7, but it was enough of a tumble for him to finish in a three-way tie for second spot.

Moving up the board was Josh Teater. A longtime tour grinder, Teater has moved between tours in his 24 years as a touring professional. He won a Korn Ferry Tour title in Utah, back in 2009. Since then, he has placed high enough to earn PGA Tour privileges on multiple occasions but never experienced enough success to take up residence on the big tour. Perhaps, at age 45, the elixir has been uncorked.

Teater made a pair of bogeys on Sunday, at the 9th and the 18th holes. Most golfers would reel, but Teater posted four birdies over the first seven holes on the back nine, to reach ten-under par. He played the 18th cautiously, knowing that a bogey would be good enough for the win. Another week like this one, and Josh Teater will be back on the big tour in 2026.

TGL @ Week Four: Jupiter Links in OT over Boston Common

It’s a year of growing pains. That’s what the wise are supposed to share with the young. TGL moved to Monday evening for week four of the inaugural season. Pitted against the once-beaten Jupiter Links were the untested trio from Boston Common. On paper, it looked like a walk for the men in green. A past-prime Tiger and a past-prime Kizner, alongside a mercurial Tom Kim. Opposing them were Captain America, Keegan Bradley, who is playing stellar golf while preparing to lead Team USA at Bethpage’s Ryder Cup. With him were Rory McIlroy and Adam Scott. As they write, that’s why we play the match.

There always seems to be a safe spot in Trio play, the alternate-alternate-alternate shot format that dominates the first nine holes. Odds are, this is the first format to change, as it’s impossible to find any sort of groove. Suggestion: Add another large screen and put all four members of the team in play at once. Two alternate-shot matches at once will allow grooves to form, and more electricity to flow. In episode four of Trios, only two of nine holes were exchanged, and that’s not enough excitement. As for that Bob-the-Builder, hammer thing, what’s up?

Everything came down to singles, sort of. Rory took hole one from Tiger, then Kiz took hole two from Scottie. Back to square. Kim took a hole from Keegan, but then Scottie avenged hole two, with a hole-14 win. Cap Keeg had a chance to win in regulation, but his putt slid agonizingly over the edge. At this point, TGL became YouTube golf, with two chip-offs to decide an overtime winner. Kind of like going to penalty kicks in soccer/football: you hate them, but you’re running out of time and energy. Jupiter took both to gain an OT win. Ultimately, what is missing is hometown folks who care. As long as it’s the same fans in the box, there’s no true, audience passion.

Match 4 Moment of the Match winner is…

Adam Scott’s precision on the green. pic.twitter.com/hw54VlfG6F

— TGL (@TGL) January 30, 2025