News

Two for one: Presidents Cup and the Viking Classic

Published

19 years ago

Sep 25, 2007

We get a two for one special this week on the PGA Tour as there are two events, one The Presidents Cup, and two the Viking Classic. Each event is special and important in its own right. The President’s Cup is important not from a monetary standpoint, but from a country pride, and team standpoint. The Viking Classic is important from a monetary and where you are standing in relation to the top 125, and a potential job for next season standpoint. This weekend should bode well for the golf fan as he has a smorgasbord of golf to choose from and watch.

The Presidents Cup

The Presidents Cup is back for another installment and this year’s version should be just as exciting as the previous versions. Held at The Royal Montreal Golf Club’s Blue course, in Montreal, Canada, the reconfigured layout will play 7,171 yards, par 70, nearly 300 yards longer than in it played in 2001. The captain for the American team is Jack Nicklaus, and the Captain for the International team is Gary Player. This event’s brief history has been an exciting one, and the American team has seen the better results with a record of 4-1-1.

The golf should be nothing short of spectacular as the 24 players this week are all ranked within the top 60 in the world. The U.S. has the top 4 players in the world rankings, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jim Furyk, and Steve Stricker. The International squad returns with 9 of the next 15 in ranking order.

Since this is not a stroke play event, the format is slightly different than we are used to. On Thursday we will see foursomes, and then on Friday we will see four-ball. On the weekend we will bear witness to foursomes and four-ball on Saturday, and finally the singles matches on Sunday. The main difference between foursome matches and four-ball matches is best ball of the team for four-ball, and alternate shot for the foursome matches.

This is a huge week for Mike Weir as he is the basically the poster boy for Canadian golf. "Here, he brings a massive atmosphere,” said Geoff Ogilvy. "I’ve played in the Canadian Open when Mike’s been in contention and there’s something special about it.” There is also some buzz about the home-grown superstar playing against the world’s number one, Tiger Woods, as this has been commonplace in the last two Presidents Cups. "It might be icing on the cake for me to get a chance to get in there and possibly beat him. You know, I know come Sunday in singles, we just want to pair up who is going to match up the best. As I said, this is my fourth time. I haven’t been on a winning team yet; we tied once and lost twice. Gary wants to make sure that we do the right thing, not just for myself to put me against Tiger, but for everybody. We’re trying to win this.”

No matter what the tournament is, these guys still want to win. That should be evident this week as the only prize in country pride, and that can be a larger motivator than money. Be on the look out for some amazing golf and an amazing competition.

Television Times

Thursday 1-6pm TNT
Friday 1-6pm TNT
Saturday 8-6pm NBC
Sunday 12-6pm NBC

Viking Classic

Running at the same time as the Presidents Cup, the Viking Classic will be some more PGA Tour golf for your appetite. Being held at Annandale Golf Club in Madison, Mississippi, the Viking Classic boasts a purse of 3.5 million dollars, and the winner getting $630,000 dollars for his efforts this week. Playing at a par of 72 and a yardage of 7,199 yards, look for the scoring to be great.

There are several interesting stories developing this week, with the return of David Duval being the most talked about. Duval will return to the PGA Tour after last appearing at the Nissan Open in February, where he missed the cut in his fifth event of the year. He has been home in Colorado taking care of his family as his wife, Susie, has suffered through a difficult pregnancy.

Davis Love III has pulled out of the event with an ankle injury, and that is a major blow to the event as he was the biggest name player in the field. Love, has not officially withdrawn from the tournament but he won’t play because of an ankle injury, said Randy Watkins, the tournament director. "He busted up his ankle at a horse show with his kids," Watkins said of Love. "He called me today and said he tried to play today but had to quit after three holes. He just couldn’t play.”

This event is a great chance for some of the “bubble boys” to make a strong move toward securing their PGA Tour cards for next year. This is typically the time of the year where you start hearing more about the top 125, 50, and 30, as each plateau means different things to different people. But most important is the top 125, as if you are within that number you will have a place to play next year. Outside of that number and you will be back to Q-school to attempt to gain full status back.

We should be in store for some more great golf, and it will be a nice change to take a rest from the Presidents Cup and flip it back and forth between the two events. Enjoy it, because it does not happen that often.

Television Times

· Thursday 6:30-9:30pm Golf
· Friday 6:30-9:30pm Golf
· Saturday 6:30-9:30pm Golf
· Sunday 6:30-9:30pm Golf

News

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

Published

21 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

3 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