Tour News
Inbee wins No. 3 at U.S. Women’s Open
If you arrive early or wait until late, you can catch Sebonack in a quiet mood.
She’s beautiful then, turbulent fairways rolling against an apparently flat Great Peconic Bay. The greens match the fairways, with grand surges roiling up from the depths, like the waves of a storm. It’s during the daylight hours when this new-ish golf course shows its teeth, allowing wind and other elements to torment golfers.
Let us not say that Sebonack met its match in a young woman from Korea. Let us not say that Inbee Park “beat this monster,” as Ben Hogan once proclaimed at a long-ago U.S. Open. Let us say, however, that Inbee Park exudes the calm of Sebonack during early morning and late evening hours. Park certainly displayed her serenity during four days that got the better of her counterparts, on the way to her second U.S. Open title and her third-straight major championship victory of 2013.
Let’s qualify that notion: Park exuded confidence when she was on the club’s grounds. During a post-round interview on Sunday, however, she said:
“I was really nervous last night at home. Everywhere I was really nervous, but as soon as I was on the golf course, it somehow made me really feel calm and somehow it really made me concentrate on golf.”
For the record, Park made 18 birdies during four rounds at Sebonack. She finished the tournament at 8-under (a 288 total), four shots adrift of runner-up I.K. Kim. For the record, Park trailed first-round leader Ha-Neul Kim by one stroke on Thursday evening, then took over first place on Friday morning, never relinquishing her hold on the lead. Although she faced no serious challenge on Sunday, Park put the tournament away with birdies on Nos. 9 and 10 to stake herself to a six-stroke advantage.
If you know those horse racing fans who appear from the shadows when a horse wins the first two legs of the Triple Crown — expect to see and hear their golfing counterparts through the beginning of August. It’s then that the British Open, the fourth of five female major championships, will be conducted over the Old Course at St. Andrews. If there’s no weather, Park will be installed as the prohibitive favorite. If there is weather, given her performance at Sebonack over a tempestuous weekend, she will also be installed as the betting-woman’s choice.
There were others at Sebonack that gave chase to Park. Ha-Neul Kim had her struggles, but survived through the weekend and finished in the top 25. Despite an opening 71, world No. 2-ranked Stacy Lewis never found the groove she sought and tied for 42nd place. Perennial U.S. Open contenders Paula Creamer (the 2010 champion) and Angela Stanford finished in a tie for fourth place with Englishwoman Jodi Ewart Shadoff. Brittany Lang and Jessica Korda tied for seventh place, with Shanshan Feng and Brittany Lincicome rounding out the top 10 in a ninth-place tie.
You’ll read other stories about Park’s rise, fall and rise in professional golf. You’ll read about her fiancée and swing coach, and his calming presence in her life. You’ll speculate on Michelle Wie’s withdrawal and the mid-round firing of Jessica Korda’s caddy (click here to read the whole story). And yet, the week’s story can be distilled down to two principal characters, Inbee Park and the Sebonack Golf Club. You know plenty about the former; here’s a bit about the later.
Sebonack is less than 10 years old and is the product of the most unanticipated of partnerships. Owner Michael Pascucci found a way to bring Jack Nicklaus and Tom Doak together to design a golf course. This would be akin to Jackson Pollack and Frank Lloyd Wright collaborating on… well, anything. Nicklaus believes in heroic golf shots, triumphant carries over treacherous hazards and other stuff you find on typical pro tour courses. Doak is enraptured with the ground game, the wrinkled, rumpled look of the old countries, and the maddening internal contours of putting surfaces that putt the rolled ball on equal footing with the ones of great and distant flight.
Sebonack exhibits the elements of each noteworthy architect/designer. It has its moments where only a shot with sufficient volitation will win the day. It presents many other scenes in which multiple scenarios reveal themselves to the astute golfer. Inbee Park played glorious high and soft shots into many greens; she also fired low, boring punch shots through the wind, against an inclination that welcomed a purely planned approach.
On a golf course that combined the finest visions of two unique and disparate golfing geniuses, Inbee Park honored both and earned the respect of both with a command performance. It was a grand debut by Sebonack and a tour de force from the top-ranked female player in the world. In one of her final post-round quotes, Inbee Park revealed the champion’s humility for which everyone strives:
“They can beat me, I think. There are so many players who are playing such good golf out here on the LPGA Tour. Yeah, I have been through situations where I thought I wouldn’t beat this person, but just keep working hard and keep looking at your chances and I think you’ll get there.”
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Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
GolfWRX is on site this week in McKinney, Texas, at the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson (FKA the AT&T Byron Nelson).
Last year at TPC Craig Ranch, Jason Day ended a five-year winless streak. J-Day is in the field again, as are Jordan Spieth, Tom Kim, and Will Zalatoris.
We have our usual assortment of general galleries, WITBs, and pullout albums for your perusal. As always, we’ll continue to add links to additional albums as they make their way to us from the Lone Star State.
Check out links to all our photos below.
General Albums
- 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson – Monday #1
- 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson – Monday #2
- 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson – Tuesday #1
- 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson – Tuesday #2
- 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson – Tuesday #3
WITB Albums
- Pierceson Coody – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Kris Kim – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- David Nyfjall – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Adrien Dumont de Chassart – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Jarred Jetter – North Texas PGA Section Champ – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Richy Werenski – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Wesley Bryan – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Parker Coody – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Peter Kuest – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Blaine Hale, Jr. – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Kelly Kraft – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Rico Hoey – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
Pullout Albums
- Adam Scott’s 2 new custom L.A.B. Golf putters – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Scotty Cameron putters – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Ben Griffin playing Maxfli golf ball
See what GolfWRXers are saying in the forums.
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Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans
GolfWRX is live on site this week at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans for the PGA Tour’s one-and-only two-man team event.
As usual, general galleries, WITBs, and pullout albums — including some pretty spicy custom putters and headcovers — await your viewing.
Be sure to check back for more photos from the Big Easy, as we’ll continue to update this page with additional galleries throughout the week.
General Albums
- 2024 Zurich Classic – Monday #1
- 2024 Zurich Classic – Monday #2
- 2024 Zurich Classic – Tuesday #1
- 2024 Zurich Classic – Tuesday #2
WITB Albums
- Alex Fitzpatrick – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Austin Cook – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Alejandro Tosti – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Davis Riley – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- MJ Daffue – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Nate Lashley – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- James Nicholas – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Kevin Streelman – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Rasmus Hojgaard – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Tom Whitney – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- SangMoon Bae – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Daniel Berger – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Rory McIlroy – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Russ Cochrane – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Aldrich Potgieter – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Steve Stricker WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Drew Brees WITB (Legendary New Orleans Saints QB) – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Derek Carr (New Orleans Saints QB) – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Thriston Lawrence WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
Pullout Albums
- MJ Daffue’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Cameron putters – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Swag covers ( a few custom for Nick Hardy) – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Custom Bettinardi covers for Matt and Alex Fitzpatrick – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Doug Ghim’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Patrick Cantlay spotted testing a Scotty Cameron blade putter – 2024 Zurich Classic
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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.
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Ronald Montesano
Jul 1, 2013 at 6:11 pm
Chuck,
Excellent questions, whose answers I do not know. Perhaps we can dig a bit for you. I’ll ask around. Thanks for commenting…keep reading our stuff!
Ronald Montesano
Jul 1, 2013 at 6:10 pm
LK…there is a perfect tempo for each of us…I’d encourage you to revisit the ex and have some java. Perhaps you’ll find a tempo between the old and the new that works for you. Thanks for commenting…keep reading!
LK
Jul 1, 2013 at 5:24 pm
Great tourney by Inbee, great golf course, great privilege to watch history being made. The ultra-slow back swing is changing golf as we know it. My first swing had this and I used to knock down range yardage signs and then the posts that held up the signs. But I tossed it away for more power and a “manlier” tempo. Maybe it’s time to call up the ex and get coffee.
Ronald Montesano
Jul 1, 2013 at 5:23 pm
Daphne, thank you for your comments. I disagree completely on the notion that Sebonack’s fairways and greens are “horrible tricked up…” If you were there, you noticed that each green had target shelves that top-notch pros can aim at with ease. Traversing those shelves did not prove unfair to the women. As for the fairways, they did not repel good tee shots, but accepted them. While there were many uneven lies, none was drastic nor unfair.
I do agree with your support of Inbee Park…she is playing the best golf on any world tour and will certainly hold our attention into August. Keep reading and voicing your opinion!!
Chuck
Jul 1, 2013 at 1:14 pm
What’s in the bag, of the player who is making more history than anyone on the PGA Tour?
Perhaps I missed a link, after two searches on GolfWRX and one on Google. I see the usual low-grade discussions of the fact that her driver was/is a Dunlop XXI07 and that she has a TaylorMade RBZ hybrid blah blah blah.
That’s like identifying somebody’s car as “a Chevy.”
I want to know what shafts the best female player in the world right now is using. How are they tipped? Swingweights? Gripping? Anything special? Backweighting?
There ought to be a lot more to this story.
Daphne
Jul 1, 2013 at 12:05 pm
forgot to say, while i thought Sebonack was beautiful, the fairways and greens reminded me of horrible tricked up resort courses…terrible golf course, no need to play that one
Daphne
Jul 1, 2013 at 12:03 pm
this woman putts like a borg
i’m happy to be around to witness her play…i’m floored by her play, reminds of tiger’s dominate years…i hope she wins the open, how fitting would it be to the only person to complete the slam at St. Andrews…
Ronald Montesano
Jul 1, 2013 at 9:52 am
KB,
No joke! great course and great swings equal great championship. What struck me was the slow pace of the female pro swing from address to hands-hip-high. Their takeaway is so controlled, allowing them to store energy for a furious lash at the ball. Dudes, take note!!
Thanks for your comments. Keep reading!
KB
Jul 1, 2013 at 8:31 am
This Open was a joy to watch this year…in no small part due to the course. Inbee Park is just wiping out the field. Her swing is similar to Na Yeon Choi and Ai Miyazato…they just make it look effortless.