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19th Hole

Brooks Koepka expresses his frustration over J.B. Holmes’ slow play at The Open

Published

5 years ago

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Brooks Koepka began 2019 by calling out golf’s authorities for their lack of action over the slow play issue surrounding the game, and on Sunday at the Open Championship, the 29-year-old appeared visibly agitated over the speed of playing partner J.B. Holmes.

The two men teed off at 1.37 PM local time in the final round, and from their opening tee shots of the day, which Holmes would take significantly longer to play than his compatriot, it appeared the two could be in for an uncomfortable day with each other.

For the most part during Sunday’s final round, on the course, Koepka was to keep whatever frustrations which were bubbling under the surface to himself.

However, coming off the 12th green, the four-time major champ was seen staring at a rules official while motioning to his imaginary wristwatch, and on another occasion, the American looked less than impressed as his playing partner went through his deliberate putting routine.

Following their round, the 29-year-old was quick to point out that Holmes is far from being the only slow player on Tour, but explained what his biggest gripe was with the Kentuckian on Sunday at Royal Portrush – his inability to prepare when it wasn’t his turn.

“There are a lot of slow guys out here, that’s not the first time I’ve done it, especially when you’ve got a walking official with you. I’m ready to go most of the time.

That’s what I don’t understand when it’s your turn to hit, your glove is not on, then you start thinking about it, that’s where the problem lies. It’s not that he takes that long. He doesn’t do anything until his turn. That’s the frustrating part. But he’s not the only one that does it out here.”

Holmes’ nightmare performance didn’t help his pace of play as he struggled mightily in the harsh conditions during Sunday’s final round. The 37-year-old shot an 87 – 16 over par to move from third place at the start of the day to fourth last on six over.

Koepka had some sympathy for Holmes’ struggles in the wind and rain in Northern Ireland, but despite this, the Florida native made it clear that he still found the pace at times too slow.

“He had a rough day, but JB is a slow player. We were on pace for 13 holes, but if I’m in the group we’re going to be on pace no matter what. But there were some times where I thought it was slow.”

Koepka’s final round of 74 secured a T4 finish for the four-time major champ to complete an exceptional year at the major tournaments which included a win at the PGA Championship at Bethpage Black in May.

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Gianni is the Managing Editor at GolfWRX. He can be contacted at [email protected].

19th Hole

Xander Schauffele explains free drop ruling during round one of Wells Fargo Championship

Published

6 mins ago

on

May 10, 2024

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During Thursday’s opening round of the Wells Fargo Championship, Xander Schauffele blasted his tee shot in the woods to the right of the fairway on the par-4 8th hole.

The ball was almost not found, but Xander’s group managed to track it down just before the three-minute time limit was reached.

When the ball was found, it was in the penalty area close to a fence. In the moment, it seemed incredibly unlikely that Schauffele would be able to hit the ball through the trees towards the green.

However, through the woods and above the fairway, there was a hanging wire from a ShotLink tower that Xander claimed was in his way. He was then granted relief all the way out of trouble and made an easy par.

Here is the full video of the interaction between Schauffele and the rules official.

After the round, Xander said he “got really lucky”.

“Got really lucky multiple times, on 1 with Wyndham finding it, 2, being able to move the rocks, and 3, the ShotLink tower being in like my only shot line possible. To walk out there with sort of a no breeze 4 with what I thought was almost out was a really good break.”

“Yeah, I hit it in the trees. My ball was probably like a foot, two feet from the fence. If I — ball was here, fence was kind of here, hitting back this direction.

“If I went towards the green, the fence kind of worked this way so I had what I could hit, a 4-iron or something low and just kind of run it through. If it gets stuck, I’ll just kind of hit my next one out. But I brought the rules official in there with me because I was like, you’ve got to be OK with this because this is literally the only shot I can hit.”

“So Austin [Kaiser] and I moved two massive rocks that weren’t embedded and then I got relief out of the junk and then hit a pretty good shot on the green from there. What was a very stressful moment turned into a pretty stressless par.”

Schauffele finished the round at -7, which gives him a 3-shot lead going into Friday’s second round.

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19th Hole

Report: Tiger Woods voted against Rory McIlroy returning to policy board; Will be the only player negotiating directly with Saudis

Published

1 day ago

on

May 9, 2024

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According to a report from The Telegraph, the relationship between Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy has soured.

Last week, reports surfaced that McIlroy, who was a member of the PGA Tour policy board during most of the past few years, was looking to rejoin the board, presumably taking Webb Simpson’s seat.

However, on Wednesday, McIlroy revealed that he will not be rejoining the policy board, due to people on the board being “uncomfortable” with that “for some reason.”

The Telegraph has reported that Tiger Woods was among the players who voted against McIlroy returning to the policy board.

The divide is apparently due to McIlroy pushing for the game of golf to unify, whereas Woods, reportedly, believes the PGA Tour is in a fine position where it currently stands.

The Associated Press added another wrinkle to the situation, reporting that Woods is the only player who will be negotiating directly with the Saudis.

The other members of the committee are PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan, board chairman Joe Gorder, John W. Henry of Fenway Sports Group, and Joe Ogilvie, who was a former PGA Tour player.

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19th Hole

Phil Mickelson reveals he won’t be pursuing broadcasting career when he retires from golf

Published

2 days ago

on

May 8, 2024

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On Tuesday, Chris McKee, a Toronto writer and radio host, wondered aloud on his X account if Phil Mickelson will be a commentator after his playing days are over.

“The second Phil Mickelson retires he’ll instantly become the most sought after TV analyst in golf. Would any PGA Tour broadcaster (CBS, ESPN, NBC or Sky) bring him in or would he have to stick to LIV broadcasts? #LIVGolf”

Mickelson saw the post and responded, saying he’s not interested in moving from the course to the broadcast booth.

“Thank you for the kind words. However, just cuz someone CAN do something doesn’t mean they SHOULD do it. Instead of commentating, I’m going to shoot some Pros vs Schmos 9 hole matches. I’ll share insights throughout as well as talk a little smack. It won’t be the highest quality video but it’ll be fun for me to do and fun to watch I think too.”

While I believe many fans would like to see Phil in the booth, his idea of “Pro’s vs Schmo’s” could certainly be intriguing.

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