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GolfWRX Morning 9: Koepka the invisible superstar | Tiger burns bright again | LPGA’s limited access to equipment?

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By Ben Alberstadt ([email protected])

August 13, 2018

Good Monday morning, golf fans.
1. The year of the Brooks
While the coverage split is likely 60/40 Tiger Woods to Brooks Koepka following BK’s second major win of 2018, imagine if Woods weren’t in the mix. We’d be crowning Koepka the next Woods…or at least we should be.
  • Absolute bomber off the tee. Well-rounded game. Steady, stellar on the greens under pressure. Koepka is a golfing juggernaut with a flatline pulse. Simply, he’s built to win modern golf tournaments on today’s PGA Tour.
  • Cameron Morfit called the strong-jawed masher of the golf ball an “invisible superstar.” “He has boulder shoulders, buttery hands, and the guts of a burglar,” Morfit writes.
  • “Brooks just doesn’t draw attention to himself,” Florida State men’s golf coach Trey Jones, who recruited Koepka to Tallahassee, said while watching the telecast Sunday. “That’s just not his personality. When he won the U.S. Open the first time he didn’t do the media tour. When he won it the second time, he didn’t do the media tour. He just does his own thing.
  • Morfit writes “It’s gotten so bad that Jack Nicklaus, who himself played second banana to Palmer all those years ago, tweeted that Koepka was being unfairly overlooked and, “doesn’t seem to get press or credit he deserves. A great young talent. Strong, aggressive, smart golfer. Likely force to be reckoned w/for years to come. Should be in every conversation about today’s best!”
2. Also: That Tiger guy
Tiger Woods’ final-round 64 left him two strokes behind Brooks Koepka, as everyone reading this newsletter well knows. There’s plenty of writing about Woods’ weekend performance, but ESPN.com’s Ian O’Connor may have penned the best perspective piece thus far.
  • “Woods was going to celebrate a loss for once in his glorious sporting life. He made that 19-foot birdie putt that he knew in his heart wouldn’t topple Brooks Koepka, and then Tiger responded at Bellerive as if he had just won his fifth green jacket at Augusta National.”
  • “At a surgically altered and emotionally scarred 42 years of age, three weeks after nearly winning The Open at Carnoustie, Woods shot a 64, his best score ever in the final round of a major. His 130 over the closing 36 holes only set a PGA Championship record. He finished at 14-under, two strokes behind Koepka, and the shame of it is he might’ve lost the tournament on his first two holes Thursday, when he opened with bogey and double-bogey before ducking into a portable toilet and exchanging his sweat-soaked shirt for what appeared to be a superhero’s cape.”
  • “On some levels, this has been Tiger’s most remarkable season yet. He hasn’t added to his 79 tour victories, but who cares? He was a hopelessly broken man and athlete a little more than a year ago. After a decadelong majors drought, he nearly won The Open and the PGA back to back. Woods didn’t just produce heart-stopping drama for millions of fans praying for his comeback to take us all to an unimaginable place.”
  • He might’ve just produced the most dramatic non-championship sports season since the 2007 New England Patriots lost their bid for perfection in Super Bowl XLII.
Then there’s this from Tiger putting things in perspective after his round.
  • “I didn’t know what my schedule would be. I didn’t know how many tournaments I would play this year or if I would even play. So each tournament brought about its own challenges. I didn’t know what the number was going to be this year. I didn’t know how I was going to play. And so at the beginning of the year, if you would say, yeah, I would have a legit chance to win the last two major championships, I, with what swing? I didn’t have a swing at the time. I had no speed. I didn’t have a golf swing. I didn’t have – my short game wasn’t quite there yet. My putting was okay. But God, I hadn’t played in two years. So it’s been a hell of a process for sure.”
3. Something special
Golfweek’s Martin Kaufmann penned this assessment of the coverage of what was surely a well-watched PGA Championship.
  • “I have never had so much fun watching nine holes in my life,” CBS’ Gary McCord chortled midway through the final round of the PGA Championship.
  • “McCord chortles often when simple statements would suffice, and he’s given to hyperbole. But there’s no denying that Tiger Woods and a stacked leaderboard can make for compelling television.”
  • “The PGA Championship kind of felt like old times, even if, in this instance, Woods had to settle for second…There’s always something special when Tiger is in the mix,” Sean McManus, chairman of CBS Sports, told me immediately after the tournament. “What he did today was almost historic. It was terrific and it was spellbinding. The combination of what he did with what Brooks Koepka did and the way he hung in there made for unbelievable drama.”
  • “Lead analyst Nick Faldo often seems to wing it when he and anchor Jim Nantz open the show, but he had a pretty good line about Koepka at the top of Sunday’s coverage…”He’s like a cruise liner,” Faldo said. “He’s on a path and he creates a wave, and everyone is stuck in the wave behind him.”
  • Woods and Adam Scott almost crested that wave and caught Koepka. The result was one of the most memorable PGA Championships in years – perhaps the best since Martin Kaymer’s playoff win in 2010.
  • “The biggest gripe I hear each year with regard to the PGA Championship is the heavy load of commercials relative to the other majors. It’s a legitimate gripe, but it’s also an issue that falls largely at the doorstep of the rightsholder, in this case the PGA of America. Bigger rights fees translate into more commercials.”
…and of course, the poverty of Thursday/Friday coverage.
4. Two-putter Scotty
Adam Scott finished three strokes behind Brooks Koepka, playing his final five holes in one over par.
  • What you may not have seen or heard mentioned on the telecast, however, is that Scott had two flatsticks in the bag.
  • Golf Digest’s E. Michael Johnson: “According to Titleist, Scott had two putters in play on Thursday and Saturday as well, but never used the shorter putter. Scott is known for using his broomstick Scotty Cameron by Titleist center-shafted Kombi Long mallet, but also has a conventional-length Scotty Cameron by Titleist 340, often referred to as a Newport 2 Timeless.
  • “The company also confirmed that Scott carried two putters last week at the WGC-Bridgestone. Scott, who usually carries three wedges in addition to his pitching wedge (52-, 56- and 60-degrees), made room for the club by going with just a 54- and 60-degree wedge.”
5. Inequality in women’s golf equipment
Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols points out a troubling reality in the Tour equipment space. Certainly, resources are limited, but the gap is substantial.
  • “There has long been a great divide between the men’s and women’s game. Purse sizes are an obvious talking point. At last week’s Ricoh Women’s British Open, the women competed for $3.25 million. Three weeks ago, the men played for $10.5 million at Carnoustie.”
  • “It’s also widely understood that sponsorship opportunities for LPGA players are vastly different. There’s no pot of gold attached to a tour card. Blank hats and blank bags aren’t limited to the lesser-knowns. LPGA Hall of Famer Juli Inkster started out 2018 with no sponsorship deals.
  • “But what about free equipment? Surely that’s easy to come by. Turns out even a current World No. 1 might have to pull out a credit card for a new 3-wood.”
  • “Two months ago, when  was No. 1, caddie Brad Beecher reached out to a TaylorMade rep on behalf of Park to get replacements for the 3-wood, 5-wood and two Rescue clubs she had in her bag. Park is a Srixon staff player but is only required to have nine Srixon clubs in the bag. For more than five years she has played with four TaylorMade woods. That timespan includes six of her seven majors, an Olympic gold medal and more than 100 weeks as the No. 1 player in the world.”
  • “Park received the same response as several other LPGAers: A new company policy stipulates that players must use a TaylorMade driver to get free product.”
6. Shack slays Levy
Perhaps you too spent the whole week wondering where the disgraced head of the PGA was at Bellerive. Geoff Shackelford offered this scathing commentary on his blog.
  • “The same organization whose board deemed Ted Bishop’s “little school girl” social media reference worthy of a lifetime ban and forced removal from office, wheeled out recent DUI offender Paul Levy to front the CBS telecast and 2018 PGA Championship trophy ceremony Sunday.”
  • “Levy was otherwise not seen all week at Bellerive other than at a PGA Board meeting and no comment was made about his lack of presence at the PGA media conference Wednesday. The PGA President traditionally sits in that news conference.”
  • “Levy is also the first PGA of America President to not actually have a job at a golf facility, or any current job. But he retains his position atop the PGA for a few more months until Suzy Whaley (right) takes over. Whaley, who strongly supported Bishop’s ouster, is supporting Levy despite his having possibly committed a felony…Moral of this story: DUI’s are ok, perceived sexist comment on Twitter with 28 days to go in office? Lifetime ban.”
7. Ben Kern!
Golfweek’s Brentley Romine wrote this about the impressive performance of club pro Ben Kern at Bellrive–Kern tied for 42nd.
  • “The key to playing well around Bellerive Country Club starts with finding the fairway. Club pro Ben Kern did so better than just about anybody else in the field this week at the 100th PGA Championship.”
  • “Kern, a 34-year-old from Georgetown (Texas) Country Club, hit 45 of 56 fairways, ranking second among players who played all four rounds…”That’s been my strength for a long time,” said Kern, who was born in Abilene, Texas, and played college golf at Kansas State.”
  • “The accuracy combined with a respectable 284.1 yards averaged off the tee allowed Kern to notch the best finish by a club pro at the PGA in 13 years. Kern shot 71-69-67-70 to shoot 3 under and tie for 43rd, nearly better than the T-40 finish by Steve Schneiter in 2005.”
  • “It’s nice that we can get out from behind the counter or get off the range to get out and play an event such as this,” Kern said. “Maybe a little motivation for everyone around the country that isn’t doing what I’m doing to hit a few more balls and enjoy playing tournaments.”
8. Sergio should sit (Should Sergio sit?)
Gerry Aherm suggests Sergio Garcia has no place on the European Ryder Cup team.
  • “Should a flailing Garcia be part of the European Ryder Cup team in Paris? It’s been a rough run of late for the 38-year-old, who a year ago seemed reinvigorated by his breakthrough major win at the Masters, his marriage to Angela Akins and fatherhood.”
  • “Garcia currently ranks 20th in the race for the 12 spots captain Thomas Bjorn has for the Euros. Bjorn has much high-performing bubble talent to consider in the likes of Ian Poulter, Russell Knox, Eddie Pepperell and Thorbjorn Olesen. All are playing better than Garcia right now.”
9. Well played, Mr. Curry
Joel Beall details a recent act of generosity from one Stephen Curry.
  • “Curry announced that he has donated $25,000 to tour player Scott Harrington and his wife, Jenn. Harrington didn’t play at the Ellie Mae because he is with his wife as she battles cancer.”
  • “This is an opportunity for me-obviously there are no words to-I can’t put into words any other thoughts or feelings around what their family’s going through,” Curry said. “But as I come out here and play with these professionals, it’s about raising their notoriety in terms of the game of golf.”
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GolfWRX Editor-in-Chief

3 Comments

3 Comments

  1. TONEY P

    Aug 13, 2018 at 1:38 pm

    The PGA Championship was great ???? to watch. Good win Brooks. Do the LGPA Ladies have agents. That is their job to support for them.

  2. Mike R

    Aug 13, 2018 at 12:13 pm

    LPGA not getting free equipment? I am sorry, but there is no where near the draw of PGA. Why is it expected that there would be equal return? The manufacturers don’t see the value in providing free equipment unless they perceive a payoff. With the limited draw of the LPGA, in TM’s case, they want people to see their drivers. That is their bread and butter. Not out of the question that they try to steer players that direction. I don’t feel one bit bad for her, she can afford it.

    • 8thehardway

      Aug 13, 2018 at 2:01 pm

      It’s more a matter of how little a manufacturer thinks of the LPGA that they didn’t extend the smallest professional courtesy to a top player who used their hybrids and fairway woods for 5 years.

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Tour Rundown: Six-pack of tourneys follows Masters

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Brazil and Texas were kindred souls this week, at least when it came to weather. Both regions experienced torrential delays, and three tournaments were held up. The LPGA, PGA Tour Americas, and PGA Tour Champions were compelled to reduce play or work extra holes into Sunday. As if that weren’t enough, South Carolina and the PGA Tour fell victim to nature’s wrath, with lightning postponing the conclusion of the event to Monday.

The year’s first women’s major championship was celebrated in Texas. The Chevron is gaining a bit of tradition in its second year after relocation. This year’s event culminated in the continued coronation of the game’s current best. The Korn Ferry Tour saw a top-twenty performance from a 15-year old amateur, while the second event of the week on the big tour found a winner in the Dominican Republic. Six events is more than a handful, so let’s get right to it, with this week’s (delayed) Tour Rundown.

LPGA @ Chevron Championship: Korda corrals second major title

The winter of 2022-2023 seems so distant for current Nelly Korda. A mysterious ailment sapped all of her energy, just as the world appeared to have finally emerged from the pandemic. We never quite secured the complete information that we desired, but no one can say that any of us deserved to know more than Nelly wished to share. One thing is for certain: Nelly Korda has returned to top form, and the world number one golfer is at least one level above anyone else on tour.

Korda began her 2024 campaign with a January victory in the Drive One Championship. In her next start, in March, she continued her assault on the record books, with a win at the Se Ri Pak. She won again the following week, at the Ford, then defeated Leona Maguire in the final match at the T-Mobile Match Play, for a fourth consecutive victory. Would the increased hype around a major championship have an impact on her game? Well, no.

Korda began play at the Chevron Championship with a score of 68. She trailed Lauren Coughlin by two after 18 holes, but caught her with a second-round 69. Coughlin would ultimately tie for third spot with Brooke Henderson. Henderson played with Korda on day four, but the middle third of the round was her undoing. Making a late move was Maja Stark. House Stark closed with birdies at 17 and 18 to reach 11 under par. Both Korda and Strak played the final three days in identical numbers: 69 each day.

Korda held a firm hand on the tournament over the course of the final day. She stood minus-four for the round through ten holes, before a bit of sloppy play made things competitive again. Bogeys at 11 and 15 opened the door a wee bit for Stark. Korda was equal to the test, however, and closed stylishly with birdie at 18.

PGA Tour 1 @ RBC: Scottie, so hottie!

Nelly isn’t the only golfer on fire, although Scottie Scheffler still has a ways to go to match her. Scheffler proved this week that he has a game for all courses. After winning comfortably at lengthy Augusta National, Scheffler shifted gears and game to the wee Sea Pines course, and won again. That’s two weeks in a row for the man from New Jersey/Texas, so let’s learn how he did it.

Scheffler totaled 69 on day one, and found himself six shots behind leader J.T. Poston. Scheffler revealed that his teacher, Randy Smith, would tell him that he didn’t need to be the best 15 year-old; just the best 25 year-old. It was easy, then, to play the long game and consider all 72 holes, instead of just 18. Scheffler improved to 65 on Friday, and then went even lower on Saturday. His 63 moved him to the top of the board, and caused the golfverse to wonder if Scheffler would win for a second consecutive week.

Sunday saw all the chasers fall away. Scores between 70 and 72 from Patrick Rodgers, Collin Morikawa, and Sepp Straka meant that others would need to seize the day, if Scheffler were to do more than coast. Wyndham Clark and Justin Thomas each moved inside the top five with fourth-round 65s, but no one ever got close enough to the world number one. The win was Scheffler’s 10th on tour, and made him the betting favorite for next month’s PGA Championship at Valhalla.

PGA Tour 2 @ Corales Puntacana: Baton Boy claims 8th Tour triumph

If you’ve ever seen Billy Horschel toss a club, you know that he doesn’t do so in anger. More likely is a calculated, soaring arc, paired with a look of fractured disbelief, followed by a quick catch of the cudgel. Ergo, Baton Boy. This week on the island of Hispaniola, the native of Grant, Florida, outworked and outhustled everyone else on Sunday. Horschel gathered seven birdies and an eagle, on the way to a 63 and a 23-under par total.

The former Florida Gator zipped past the four golfers in front of him, and left the remaining field in the rear-view mirror. Horschel’s round was two shots better than anyone else, and moved him two shots ahead of third-round leader Wesley Bryan. One of the famed Bryan Brothers, Wes closed with birdie at the last to post a 68 that would have won the week on any other day.

Korn Ferry Tour @ LeCom Suncoast: It’s Widing in extra holes

Miles Russell probably won’t have to serve detention for ditching class on Thursday and Friday. The high school freshman made his KFT debut, survived the 36-hole cut, and toyed with a top-ten finish. He ultimately tied for 20th at 14-under par, six shots behind the three co-leaders. My guess is that Epstein’s Mom will write him a note, and he’ll get a pass. By finishing top-25, Russell earned a spot in next week’s event. Yikes!

Back to the top of the board. Patrick Cover, Steven Fisk, and Tim Widing all found their way to the magic number of -20. Fisk made birdie at the last, after bogeys at 16 and 17. Cover had three bogeys on the back nine, but a birdie at 14 was enough to get him to overtime. Widing was plus-one on the day through four, but played interstellar golf over the final 14. Six birdies moved him from Russell-ville to extra time.

The trio scurried to the 18th tee, where Cover drove into a fairway bunker. He was unable to reach the green with his approach, made bogey, and exited the overtime session. Widing and Fisk returned to the final deck once more, and matters were resolved. Fisk was unable to convert a long par putt, and Widing (pronounced VEE-ding) tapped in for his first KFT title.

PGA Tour Americas @ Brasil Open: Mr. Anderson finds a way

Golf is a funny game. Matthew Anderson held a lead with one round to play. He made six pars on Sunday, and sprinkled the rest of his card with birdies and bogeys. In complete contrast, Ollie Osborne played consistently on the day, posting four birdies and zero bogeys. Connor Godsey was not far off Osborne’s pace, with seven birdies and but two bogeys on the scorecard. So, of course, Matthew Anderson won by a stroke over Osborne and Godsey.

Not how, but how many, is another one of those platitudes that we all learn early on. Despite five bogeys through his first 14 holes, Anderson summoned the defiant grit to make birdie at the 71st and 72nd holes. After making deuce at the penultimat hole, Anderson’s swerving effort at the last looked as if it should miss low, but it had enough pace to stay inside the hole and fall for a closing four at the par-five finisher.

PGA Tour Champions @ Invited Celebrity: Broadhurst stands tall

What do you call a tournament that begins on Friday, takes Saturday off, and finishes on Sunday? Fortunate is one adjective to use. A weather system moved through Texas this weekend, and made a mess of things in Irving. After Thomas Bjorn signed for 64 on day one, rain and all things counter-productive moved through the Las Colinas resort, ensuring that Saturday would be nothing more than a rest day. When Sunday arrived, conditions had improved, and the game was on. Bjorn was unable to preserve his Friday magic, although he did record a 70 for -8. He finished in a third-place tie with Y.E. Yang.

David Toms, the 2001 PGA Championship victor, presented Sunday’s low round, and moved to 10-under par. Toms made one mistake on the day. He lived in the rough on the 9th hole, ultimately making bogey. The rest of the day was immaculate, as seven birdies came his way, resulting in a six-under par 65. Only one golfer was able to surpass Toms, and that was Paul Broadhurst.

Broadhurst nearly matched Toms for daily honors. His mistake came early, with bogey at the second. He bounced back with eagle at the third, and added three more birdies for 66 and 11-under par. Over his first three seasons on the Tour Champions, Broadhurst won five times, including two major titles. His fifth win came in 2018, making this win his first in six years. A long time coming, for sure, but well earned.

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Morning 9: Rory: I’m not joining LIV | Masters ratings | Nelly: We just need a stage

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Wednesday morning, golf fans, as we gear up to this week’s RBC Heritage.

1. Rory: I’m not going to LIV

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach…McIlroy said neither he nor his agents have ever discussed a potential deal to lure him to the LIV Golf League, which is being financed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF).

  • “I honestly don’t know how these things get started,” McIlroy told Golf Channel while on the practice range at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head, South Carolina, the site of this week’s RBC Heritage. “I’ve never been offered a number from LIV, and I’ve never contemplated going to LIV. Again, I think I’ve made it clear over the past two years that I don’t think it’s something for me.
  • “It doesn’t mean that I judge people who have went and played over there. I think one of the things that I have realized over the past two years is that people can make their own decisions for whatever they think is best for themselves, and who are we to judge them for that? But personally, for me, my future is here on the PGA Tour, and it’s never been any different.”
Full piece.

2. Masters ratings down

Yahoo’s Jay Busbee…”Ratings for the full Masters week are now out, and 2024’s version ranks as the lowest since the COVID-impacted years of 2020 and 2021. There was a brief moment when four players shared the lead at the 2024 Masters, but Scottie Scheffler took care of business quickly enough and strolled to what qualifies as an “easy” Masters victory — a four-stroke triumph that wasn’t in doubt for most of the second nine.”

  • “Perhaps as a result, Sunday’s final round averaged 9.59 million viewers on CBS, according to Sports Media Watch, a 22.8% decline from last year’s 12.06 million. Scheffler’s win two years ago averaged 10.17 million viewers. Worth noting: Sunday’s final round was down 20 percent against last year’s victory by Jon Rahm, but last year’s final round fell on Easter Sunday, which created a significantly higher out-of-home percentage of viewers — 21 percent in 2023, as opposed to 9 percent this year.”
Full piece.

3. Chevron gets purse boost

Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols…“Chevron’s commitment to the LPGA went a step higher on Tuesday with the announcement of a purse increase to $7.9 million in 2024. The move brings the tour’s first major in line with the purses of other championships. The U.S. Women’s Open purse of $12 million paces the tour, with the KPMG Women’s PGA second at $10 million. The AIG Women’s British Open purse checks in at $9 million while Amundi Evian is $6.5 million.”

  • “Chevron, which moved the event away from Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California, to Texas, last year, has increased the purse by $4.8 million since assuming title sponsorship in 2022. The company has committed to title sponsor the event through 2029.”
Full piece.

4. Shipley on “notegate”

Alex Myers for Golf Digest…”So what was up with “notegate”? During his hilarious spot with McAfee, Shipley reiterated there was no note from Woods, and that he was only looking at the moderator because he was so confused where the question was coming from:

  • “I looked over at the moderator like ‘Who the hell is this guy?'” Shipley says in the clip. “Because it just didn’t happen. I was so confused and so shocked in the moment.”
Full piece.

5. Nelly: We just need a stage

Iain Carter for the BBC…”Korda is the first American to win four consecutive tournaments on the LPGA since Lopez won five straight 46 years ago. This astonishing streak made the then rookie front page material for Sports Illustrated.

  • “Korda’s feats have yet to transcend the golfing village, and perhaps that suits her as she “tries to stay in my bubble”. But the American Solheim Cup player does recognise that more could be done to tell the increasingly compelling story of women’s golf.”
  • “I feel like we just need a stage,” she told reporters here at Carlton Woods just north of Houston. “We need to be put on TV.
  • “I feel like when it’s tape delay, or anything like that, that hurts our game. Women’s sports just needs a stage. If we have a stage we can show up and perform and show people what we’re all about.”
Full piece.

6. Photos from the 2024 RBC Heritage

  • Check out all of our galleries from this week’s event!
Full piece.
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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 RBC Heritage

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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

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying and join the discussion in the forums.

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