News

PGA Championship Round 1 Recap

Graeme Storm shot a 5-under 65 to lead John Daly by two strokes at the PGA Championship in Tulsa, OK.

Published

19 years ago

Aug 9, 2007

A Raehtz

Thursday afternoon, Graeme Storm shot a 31 on the back nine on his way to a 65 to lead the PGA Championship over John Daly by two strokes. Yes, the same John Daly that is only in the tournament with a lifetime exemption as a past champion. In fact, it is also the same John Daly that isn’t even fully exempt on the PGA TOUR this season.

"I haven’t played this course since ’94 and didn’t play a practice round this week because it was too hot," said Daly. "But the angles were really good for me today and I hit the driver real well."

Graeme Storm started the day hot by carding birdies on three of his first four holes. On his second hole of the day, Storm played the par three 11th nearly perfectly by stuffing his tee shot to just six inches.

"It was just one of those rounds, really, when I never really thought about anything. I just kept on doing the things that I was trying to do, which was just enjoy myself.
And, yeah, I did get off to a fast start. I nearly had a hole-in-one at the 11th, which was my second hole. So 2-under through the first two holes is always nice."

One of the biggest stories of the day was the severe weather the players had to endure. With temperatures pushing through triple digits it was just another reminder that this is an endurance race and not a sprint.

When asked about the heat, Tiger Woods (+1) said, "Well, it’s warmer than Florida but nowhere near as humid which is nice. That’s one of the reasons why you run all those miles ought here in the heat and stay in decent shape."

John Daly also had a similar response. "I’m used to it, let’s put it that way. I grew up around this area. I’m used to kind of little valleys where you don’t get a lot of — you don’t get any air and there’s a lot of humidity and it’s tough to breathe. I light up a cigarette and drink some caffeine and it actually works. It does bother me but I’m used to it, let’s put it that way. When you grow up around this area it’s not the heat that bothers you, it’s more the humidity than anything. And anybody that lives around here knows that. You can deal with heat. I can go to Palm Springs, California, Phoenix, Arizona, right now it could be 120 and you hardly sweat. So humidity is brutal and we’re used to it."

Daly had an excellent day on the course; especially since he had not played there since 1994. Daly’s routine is somewhat different from Tiger Wood’s 6am practice rounds.

"I’ve been playing slots over at Cherokee Casino. Did good the first day; didn’t do too good the other day. But I played their golf course yesterday. I went out just in a cart. They gave me the golf course from 10:00 to 1:00 yesterday. I got a lot of practicing in."

If anyone is wondering wether or not Graeme Storm can keep up the pace, they won’t have to wait for long. Storm is currently slotted for the very first tee time on Friday morning, which may give him a bit of a reprive from the heat. According to www.weather.com, the temperature in Tulsa will feel like 107 tomorrow about the time the last groups are teeing off.

"I haven’t thought about it. I still have to tee off tomorrow morning so I’m quite lucky in that respect. Hopefully get a decent night’s kip and see what happens. Like I say, I have not been playing well the last few weeks, shooting high scores. I thought, well, technique, just enjoy the moment and play golf. Enjoy it, that’s what we’re here for."

News

5 Things we Learned: Thursday at the U.S.. Women’s Open

Published

1 hour ago

Jun 5, 2026

Ronald Montesano

Gone are the days when the U.S. Women’s Open was held at Scenic Hills or Churchill Valley. Fine courses that they are (or were, as Churchill Valley went bankrupt a decade ago) there is something to be said for the venue. Not all Women’s Open playings need to take place on Men’s Open venues, but some should. This week in Los Angeles, the Women’s Open visits Riviera Country Club for the first time. Down the road, we will visit Inverness, Oakmont, Interlachen, Oak Hill, Chicago Golf, and Merion. That is quite the murderer’s row (1927 Yankees reference) of golf clubs.

What can we expect from the 2026 tournament? Greatness and uncertainty. Unlike the PGA Tour, which visits Riviera each February, the LPGA does not, so the women will not have nearly the body of work over the George C. Thomas layout. Maybe that’s a good thing. Maybe they’ll play #10 smarter than the men do. Maybe they’ll figure some things out that their male counterparts can not. For today, we’ll try to find five things to learn, and share them with you.

First, this ain’t your momma’s U.S. Open course

How do we know? Well, so far, only one previous champion currently sits inside the top thirty. That would be Minjee Lee, the 2022 winner at Southern (NC) Pines. Lee made par on her first nine holes, the inward side at Riviera. She dropped birdie putts on the first and ninth holes (ten and eighteen for her day) and tallied another seven pars, for 69. She sits three shots off Jennifer Kupcho’s opening 66. Don’t worry about Kupcho; we’ll get to her. After Lee, defending champion Maja Stark ranks T30 at even par, joined by three other, former winners.

What Minjee did, is the sort of thing that wins U.S. Open titles. She guided her ship safely past swells, and made a move when the waters calmed. The fewer the bogeys, the more likely Minjee figures in the outcome on Sunday evening in Pacific Palisades. Off the tee, Lee was unmatched. She hit 14 of 14 fairways. Her iron play was a bit loose in comparison. She putted for birdie on 12 of 18 holes, which meant that her recovery short game was on point. Lee was ten yards longer on measured driving holes than the field average, and was below the field average (a good thing) in putting.

Second, the amateurs beat a loud drum

Three of the world’s top amateur golfer posted 70, placing them four off the lead, in a tie for 14th place. Canada’s Aphrodite Deng, Spain’s Paula Francisco Llaño, and Colombia’s Maria José Marin, showed the professional world that their game is strong. Both Deng and Francisco Llaño collected five birdies on the day. Should they match that output on day two, and minimize the foozles, they’ll be the topic of conversation on Saturday morning. Marin, the 2026 Augusta National Women’s Amateur champion and an NCAA team semifinalist last week, played a game similar to Minjee Lee: few mistakes and few taken risks.

The last amateur to post the low medal score for 72 holes was Jenny Chuasiriporn in 1998. She lost a playoff to Se Ri Pak, who matched her plus-six effort at Blackwolf Run. The last amateur to win the U.S. Women’s Open was Catherine Lacoste in 1967. The amateurs are stronger than they’ve ever been, but the professionals have not allowed them to close the gap. A victory by one of the college set would be a cannon shot heard round the world. Could it happen? Absolutely. Is it likely? Not at all.

Third, let’s talk Kupcho

Jennifer Kupcho won the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur. She won three times on tour in 2022, including the Chevron, a major title. She won a fourth event in 2025, but has not established the winning credentials projected on her after 2022’s marvelous coming-out.

Kupcho hails from Colorado, and spent four years in the Carolina Piedmont, at Wake Forest Universtiy. Neither of those locales cries out I’ll be at home at Riviera, but here we are, after a seven-birdie performance. Kupcho posted birdie on each of her first three holes, and added four more (against two bogeys) to assume a one-shot advantage over Korea’s Sei Young Kim.

Kupcho drove the ball decently, approached moderately well, but putted lights out on Thursday. Her 26 putts were tied for best in show on day one. There might just be something about the putting surfaces at Riviera that aligns with Kupcho’s vibe. If that is the case, just get the ball on the green, anywhere, and let the flatstick do the lifting.

Fourth, how young is Sei Young?

Sei (pronounced “So”) Young Kim won a dozen times from 2015 to 2020. She took time off from winning until 2025, shen she captured a thirteenth LPGA title. Like Kupcho, Kim has hardware from one major event, the 2020 Women’s PGA Championship. How to explain the five years away from victory? No idea. When Sei Young was in contention during the prime of her career, the outcome was a foregone conclusion.

What to expect over the next three days at Riviera? Anyone’s guess. It might be the 2015-2020 Sei Young, or it could be the 2021-2025 version. Kim began her day with birdies at 10 and 11, then settled into a stretch of pars before her solitary bogey at the 4th (her 13th) hole. Kim regained her composure and reeled in three birdies to close the front nine. Her four-under performance trails Kupcho alone, and there is a real chance that Sei Young will produce a second score in the 60s and take a bit of control of the tournament.

Fifth, we’re giddy for Gaby

Although I cannot place my finger on why, it seems that each year, Gaby Lopez pops up on the U.S. Open leaderboard. She hasn’t figure out how to remain in contention, but here we are, in 2026, and Lopez is once again in the mix. The three-time champion on the LPGA circuit had a stunning first nine holes, turning in minus-five. She reached six deep at her tenth hole, but then gave three shots back coming home. Which Gaby will show up on Friday, and for how long? If back-nine Gaby can somehow channel front-nine Gaby, all outcomes are within reach. If the loose play continues, Lopez’ wiki page will add one more T41 to her majors column.

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 U.S. Women’s Open

Published

2 days ago

Jun 3, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX Tour Photographer made the trip from the Memorial Tournament across the country to the U.S. Women’s Open at Riviera. Check out links to all the photos below!

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 Memorial Tournament

Published

4 days ago

Jun 1, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX is on site this week at the Memorial Tournament, with both Alistair Cameron and Tour Photographer Greg Moore on the ground in Dublin, Ohio, where a strong field is assembled to pay homage to the Golden Bear.

In addition to WITB galleries, we’ve already been treated to an in-hand look at Tommy Fleetwood’s new TaylorMade Spider putters.

Check out links to all our photos below.

General Albums

WITB Albums