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Stricker, Baddeley Atop BMW Championship

Steve Stricker fired a 64 and Aaron Baddeley a 65 on the way to 15 under par a the top position on the leaderboard at the BMW Championship. Tiger Woods posted a 65 of his own, finishing a single shot back at 14 under.

Published

19 years ago

Sep 9, 2007

Eric Schuster

Steve Stricker hit every green in regulation, holed out for an eagle from 112 yards, shooting a smooth 64 enroute to the final pairing on Sunday. Aaron Baddeley birdied the last two holes for a 65 to join him. They’ll play right behind Tiger Woods, whose 65 left him a single shot behind.

"That’s probably the highest score I could have shot," he said. "If I’d made a few putts, it really could have been a deep round. I was really hitting it pretty good but I left a few putts right on the edge." It was marvelous golf, on a marvelous day. Mr. Stricker is playing some of the best golf of his career and may be the hottest player on tour at the moment. "I guess you just get in periods where it’s very easy to concentrate, and I’ve been [concentrating] very well," Stricker said. "There hasn’t been a lot of things that have bothered me, and when I have played a bad hole, I really have done well with just letting it go." He hasn’t miss a green since the 13th hole of the second round, and missed 5 birdie putts inside of 12 feet. "I had real good opportunities," he said. "But at this point, you can’t be greedy. Nobody makes them all. And when you do, you have one of those ’60’ rounds."

Mr. Baddeley, playing behind both Mr. Woods and Mr. Stricker, quietly went about his business until holing a 30 footer on the 17th hole and a 5 footer on 18. He knows that of the three leaders he’ll be odd man out with the crowds. "You’ve got roars, and then you’ve got Tiger roars, and then you’ve got the hometown crowd roar, and then you’ve got someone else’s roar," Baddeley said, "But you could tell Steve’s roars out there today. When he holed his second shot on No. 8, you just knew that was a Steve Stricker roar out there." Mr. Stricker played his college golf at Illinois and lives just over the border in Wisconsin.

It’s the third time Mr. Baddeley will be playing in the final group since the US Open. At Oakmont he shot 80 and dropped to 13th place. At the Duestch Bank in Boston he shot 70 but still lost ground and finished 5th.

Justin Rose will be paired with Mr. Woods after his 69 left him five shots back. "I wasn’t playing terribly, but I felt my posture got a little slack and I bumped up my posture after I hit my 11th tee shot, and from then on I hit a few better tee shots," Rose said. "On a day like today, when you needed to be in the fairway to make birdies, it was a little frustrating starting out. And the way Steve (Stricker) was playing, it felt even worse – but I’m happy with the way I finished."

Jonathan Byrd who started the day tied with Mr. Baddeley shot even par 71 to fall six shots behind. "You make par out here you get run over," Woods said.

Mr. Stricker was paired with Mr. Woods the first two days of the tournament. Asked if he was disappointed not to play with Woods in the final round, Stricker smiled and said, "Probably not." After watching what normally happens to guys who play in the group with Mr. Woods on Sundays I’m sure he’s not at all saddened to be playing with Mr. Baddeley instead.

As for the tournament itself, I miss the Western Open. It just doesn’t seem right to be playing golf at Cog Hill in September rather than July and the attendence figures back that up. Thursday’s numbers were about 24,000, Friday’s at 35,000, and Saturday came in at about 45,000. A lot lower than the summer when familys could attend during the week because the kids were not in school. We’ll see how the start of the NFL season affects not only attendence at the tournament but the television numbers as well. Change is not always a good thing.

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

Published

16 hours 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!

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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.

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