Tour News
Monday Tour Mash: Merritt wins first, Inbee’s controversial Grand Slam
Merritt Quiets Critics at PGA Tour’s Quicken Loans National
Both Winona State (Minnesota) and Boise State (Idaho) universities can bask in the glow of Troy Merritt’s inaugural PGA Tour triumph. Before he won this week at RTJ Golf Club, before he before he won the 2009 Mexico Open on the Web.Com Tour, Merritt made his bones at two decidedly non-golf universities. In total contrast to the native Iowan’s humble roots are those of two pursuers — Rickie Fowler and Bill Haas. The former played collegiately at Oklahoma State, while the latter spent his university days at Wake Forest. Merritt outlasted both on Sunday.
Fowler never seemed to get his engine revved, never mounted the charge that many expected from him every time he tees up on Tour. The Californian made seven birdies on the day, but offset them with five bogeys. The last birdie of the day was enough to elevate Fowler to solo second place, one ahead of David Lingmerth. As for Haas, he seized the lead midway through the day, then forgot how to play golf over the final third of the course. Beginning on hole No. 12, the six-time Tour champion posted four bogeys, a double, a birdie and a par to drop from first to a tie for fourth.
Merritt played a solid front side on Sunday, turning in three birdies and six pars. Despite a 12th-hole bogey, he was able to avoid a Haas-style implosion, finishing the final six holes two-under par for a three-stroke margin of victory. Tied with Merritt at the beginning of the day, Kevin Chappell never anticipated the nightmarish round that awaited him on Sunday. Five bogeys and two doubles ensured that the former UCLA golfer would remain winless on the PGA Tour.
Women’s British Open Crowns Inbee Park For First Time
A week after she questioned the logic of the Olympic selection process, Inbee Park matched the low round of the day (65) and overtook third-round leaders Teresa Lu and Jin Young Ko to win at Turnberry. With the victory, Park earned a career grand slam (we think) on the LPGA Tour.
The haze surrounding the LPGA “Grand Slam” stems from Park’s victory at Evian in 2012. The French event didn’t officially become a major until 2013, so who knows what the brass at LPGA HQ will say. Either way, she has won four different major championships, and has already been recognized by many as a winner of the LPGA career Grand Slam.
Perry Tops 3M Championship and Kizzire Kaptures Utah Event
The once-were and hope-to-be tours went at it hard this week in Minnesota and Utah, respectively. Kenny Perry figured out the only way to beat Bernhard Langer is to throw a 61 at him and make him chase you. So he did, and Bernhard did. Perry’s second-round score of 11-under par included just seven birdies, an ace on the par-three fourth, and an eagle on the par-five 18th. His score bettered first-round leader Tom Lehman’s effort by 10 strokes and catapulted him to a four-stroke lead over the field. Perry appeared non-plussed about his round, although he knew it was not simply another day at the office:
“TO START OUT 5-UNDER THROUGH FOUR, I HAD AN IDEA IT MIGHT BE A SPECIAL DAY,” Perry said. “I STARTED THINKING, `YOU KNOW WHAT, WHAT IS IT LIKE TO SHOOT A 59?'”
Despite a game effort by Langer to close the gap on Day 3, Perry would simply not let anyone near him. An opening bogey was the cold water he needed, so he made birdies on four of the next five holes. Although another bogey lurked on the back nine, Perry made two birdies coming home and cinched a four-stroke triumph. Langer made a game effort, with five birdies on the day, but needed his own 61 to put pressure on the leader.
Meanwhile, back in Utah, Patton Kizzire and Sung Kang played hot potato with the lead on Day 4 of the Utah Championship on the Web.Com tour. Kizzire seized a sizable lead on Day 2 with a lightning-hot 62, then played steady golf on the weekend shooting 71-69. Trouble was, Kang chipped away at the lead on both days, finishing 68-67 to force a playoff. Included in that Sunday 67 were four impressive birdies over the final six holes for the young Korean.
The golfers headed to the 18th hole twice in overtime. On the first go-round, neither gave himself a serious chance at birdie, making par via two-putts from 50 and 25 feet. On the return trip to 18, Kizzire took advantage of a weak Kang wedge to 30 feet by stuffing his to three feet. Kang missed his attempt by inches, but Kizzire was accurate with his and claimed the Billy Casper Cup.
Simply Not Mashworthy, But Still Worth Your Time
Rickie Buys A Round
Rickie Fowler aced the 9th hole (his 18th) on Thursday at the Quicken Loans National, then bought the media tent a tub of beer. Above the tub was the note:
[quote_center]It’s not a mortgage for a year, but enjoy a cold one on me! Cheers! -Rickie. [/quote_center]
Take note of the commonality: light beer. Clearly Rickie knows the girth of some of us in the press tent and was offering a gentle suggestion along with his tribute. As for me, I would have had Uncle Rico autograph my can, then saved it for the grandchildren to fight over.
Tiger Not Just A Ceremonial Golfer
Some wag last week called Tiger Woods a “ceremonial golfer,” after his poor performance at The Open Championship. Clearly said wag (and others like him) should read Tom Stites’ piece on Ben Hogan’s powers of perception, then draw a line to Mr. Woods. Woods had three rounds in the 60s this week. A 70 instead of 74 on Saturday gets him inside the top 10. And he hit this wildly impressive recovery shot on Sunday — nothing ceremonial about it.
For now, the only “ceremonial” tied to Tiger marks the opening of his golf courses and learning centers.
Ten-Year Streak for the Norwegian Pooper
Yep, this guy is on a (paper) roll, at the expense of the Stavanger Golf Club in Hafrsfjord, Norway. The poor superintendent has found human leavings in a number of holes on the course for the past decade. This is one serious, repeat offender. The guy (size of Mr. Hankies the clue, says the super) has climbed trees to dismantle spotlights, restricted his visits to weekdays, and varied his methods of arrival. That the guy takes time to wipe and leave the paper behind says more about his concern for self than the course. Talk about abuse of fertilizer.
- LIKE7
- LEGIT0
- WOW0
- LOL0
- IDHT0
- FLOP0
- OB0
- SHANK2
Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2024 RBC Heritage
GolfWRX is on site this week at Harbour Town Golf Links on Hilton Head Island for the RBC Heritage. Plenty of golfers who competed in the Masters last week will be making the quick turnaround in the Lowcountry of South Carolina as the Heritage is again one of the Tour’s Signature Events.
We have general albums for you to check out, as well as plenty of WITBs — including Justin Thomas and Justin Rose.
We’ll continue to update as more photos flow in from SC.
Check out links to all our photos, below.
General Albums
- 2024 RBC Heritage – Monday #1
- 2024 RBC Heritage – Monday #2
- 2024 RBC Heritage – Tuesday #1
- 2024 RBC Heritage – Tuesday #2
WITB Albums
- Justin Thomas – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Justin Rose – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Chandler Phillips – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Nick Dunlap – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Thomas Detry – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Austin Eckroat – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Xander Schauffele – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Jason Day – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Will Zalatoris – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Patrick Cantlay – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Ludvig Aberg – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Collin Morikawa – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Sam Burns – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Stephen Jaeger – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
Pullout Albums
- Wyndham Clark’s Odyssey putter – 2024 RBC Heritage
- JT’s new Cameron putter – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Justin Thomas testing new Titleist 2 wood – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Cameron putters – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Odyssey putter with triple track alignment aid – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Scotty Cameron The Blk Box putting alignment aid/training aid – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Cameron putter – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Odyssey Ai One Eleven T putters – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Christian Bezuidenhout – testing new Callaway Ti 340 mini driver – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Rory McIlroy testing the new TaylorMade BRNR Mini Driver Copper – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Xander Schauffele testing the Callaway Ti 340 mini driver & the DUW – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Byeong Hun An, two new L.A.B. Golf putter builds with “T” alignment – 2024 RBC Heritage
See what GolfWRXers are saying and join the discussion in the forums.
- LIKE9
- LEGIT0
- WOW0
- LOL2
- IDHT0
- FLOP1
- OB0
- SHANK0
Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2024 Valero Texas Open
GolfWRX is on site this week at the Valero Texas Open.
The event has been around since 1922, making it one of the oldest on the PGA Tour calendar. Over the years, it’s been held at a variety of courses across the Lone Star State, but it’s found its home at TPC San Antonio in recent years. Some of the biggest names in golf have taken home the title here, including Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan, Lee Trevino, and Ben Crenshaw.
GolfWRX has its usual assortment of general galleries, WITBs and special pull-out albums. As always, we’ll continue to update the links below as more photos come in from TPC San Antonio.
General Albums
WITB Albums
- Ben Taylor – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Paul Barjon – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Joe Sullivan – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Wilson Furr – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Ben Willman – SoTex PGA Section Champ – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Jimmy Stanger – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Rickie Fowler – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Harrison Endycott – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Vince Whaley – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Kevin Chappell – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Christian Bezuidenhout – WITB (mini) – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Scott Gutschewski – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
Pullout Albums
- Cameron putter – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Ben Taylor with new Titleist TRS 2 wood – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Swag cover – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Greyson Sigg’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Davis Riley’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Josh Teater’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Hzrdus T1100 is back – – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Mark Hubbard testing ported Titleist irons – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Tyson Alexander testing new Titleist TRS 2 wood – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Hideki Matsuyama’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Cobra putters – 2024 Valero Texas Open
See what GolfWRXers are saying in the forums.
- LIKE16
- LEGIT3
- WOW6
- LOL2
- IDHT0
- FLOP0
- OB0
- SHANK1
Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
GolfWRX is on site in the Lone Star State this week for the Texas Children’s Houston Open.
General galleries from the putting green and range, WITBs — including Thorbjorn Olesen and Zac Blair — and several pull-out albums await.
As always, we’ll continue to update as more photos flow in. Check out links to all our photos from Houston below.
General Albums
- 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open – Monday #1
- 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open – Monday #2
- 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open – Tuesday #1
- 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open – Tuesday #2
- 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open – Tuesday #3
WITB Albums
- Thorbjorn Olesen – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Ben Silverman – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Jesse Droemer – SoTX PGA Section POY – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- David Lipsky – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Martin Trainer – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Zac Blair – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Jacob Bridgeman – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Trace Crowe – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Daniel Berger – WITB(very mini) – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Chesson Hadley – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Callum McNeill – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Rhein Gibson – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Patrick Fishburn – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Peter Malnati – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Raul Pereda – WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Gary Woodland WITB (New driver, iron shafts) – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Padraig Harrington WITB – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
Pullout Albums
- Tom Hoge’s custom Cameron – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Cameron putter – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Piretti putters – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Ping putter – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Kevin Dougherty’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Bettinardi putter – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Cameron putter – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Erik Barnes testing an all-black Axis1 putter – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
- Tony Finau’s new driver shaft – 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open
See what GolfWRXers are saying in the forums.
- LIKE19
- LEGIT5
- WOW2
- LOL4
- IDHT0
- FLOP1
- OB0
- SHANK0
-
19th Hole2 weeks ago
Dave Portnoy places monstrous outright bet for the 2024 Masters
-
19th Hole2 weeks ago
Tiger Woods arrives at 2024 Masters equipped with a putter that may surprise you
-
19th Hole3 weeks ago
Report: Tiger Woods has ‘eliminated sex’ in preparation for the 2024 Masters
-
19th Hole1 week ago
Two star names reportedly blanked Jon Rahm all week at the Masters
-
19th Hole6 days ago
Report: LIV Golf identifies latest star name they hope to sign to breakaway tour
-
19th Hole1 week ago
Neal Shipley presser ends in awkward fashion after reporter claims Tiger handed him note on 8th fairway
-
19th Hole5 days ago
Brandel Chamblee has ‘no doubt’ who started the McIlroy/LIV rumor and why
-
19th Hole3 weeks ago
Addiction, spinal fusion, and scam artists – Everything Anthony Kim revealed in candid interview with David Feherty
Todd Marsh Fitness
Aug 4, 2015 at 8:27 am
The way Inbee is playing she will win all of the “majors” that the LPGA throws at her. I have my clients watch her. They say that is an odd swing, I couldn’t swing like that, etc. They just don’t get the point that it doesn’t matter what your swing looks like if you can get it to work. No where on the card do you have a box to put in swing style. Hit the ball square and straight, don’t worry about distance, keep the ball in play, and work on your short game if you want to score better.
Steve
Aug 3, 2015 at 7:54 pm
Hing in there Inbee, the way the LPGA is going they are more likely to want you to win 6 majors for a grand slam in another year or 2.
Brian
Aug 3, 2015 at 3:28 pm
I remember working with Patton Kizzire on some geology homework. Weird to see his name atop the leaderboard!
cody
Aug 3, 2015 at 3:09 pm
tiger is a non factor as far as winning is concerned. He is in the more famous than good category now.