News

The Season of Hot Streaks

Published

12 years ago

Sep 16, 2014

The 2013/2014 PGA Tour season ended much like it began — with a winning streak.

After missing the cut in the opening FedEx Cup Playoff event at the Barclays, Billy Horschel got hot at the right time, riding a wave of momentum throughout the rest of the Playoffs. He won back-to-back events — the BMW Championship and the Tour Championship — to capture winnings of over $13 million.

Looking back at 2014, however, it was no surprise the year ended with a player riding a winning wave, since it was a year of some career-defining hot streaks from some of the games brightest stars. Let’s take a look back at the players who got caught fire at different points throughout the 2013/2014 wrap-around season.

Jimmy Walker

Jimmy Walker entered the PGA Tour’s 2013 Fall Series, which counted towards the following year’s FedEx Cup points for the first time, without a PGA Tour victory on his resume. It had been well documented within the golfing community that the 35-year-old American had been improving under the eye of swing coach Butch Harmon, and his first win was likely just around the corner.

Little did we know that his first win at the Frys.com would be validated with two more wins in his next seven events. Also, 19 of his 23 made cuts this season resulted in Top 25 finishes. Although Walker failed to capitalize in the major championships and left much to be desired in the FedEx Cup Playoffs, his early season hot streak helped him qualify for his first Ryder Cup.

Bubba Watson

In 2014, Bubba Watson will be remembered for winning his second Masters in three years by overpowering Augusta National with his driver (yet again). He became the 18th man in Masters history to win a second Green Jacket. Even after this incredible summer of golf, I still think that his drive that cleared the towering pine trees and Ray’s Creek on hole No. 13 on Sunday afternoon, leaving only sand wedge into the par 5, may be the best shot of the year.

Although he missed the cut at the Arnold Palmer Invitational the week before the Masters, Bubba had a stretch of four tournaments where he finished T2, T9, T2, with a win at the Northern Trust Open sandwiched in the middle. At one point during the stretch, he went 291 straight holes without three-putting! Not bad for a guy known mostly for the long ball.

Martin Kaymer

Just after Bubba’s streak of near flawless golf ended at Augusta in April, Martin Kaymer came out of hibernation to make his own run. Something in Kaymer’s game clicked, propelling the former world No. 1 to win arguably two of the year’s most difficult tournaments — the Players Championship and the U.S. Open — within a 3-week span. And it should not go unmentioned that Kaymer won both tournaments without giving up the lead. He was robotic during that stretch and seemed unbeatable, until falling back into mediocrity late in the season.

Rory Mcllroy

The summer of 2014 was undoubtedly The Summer of Rory. The stretch of golf that saw Rory win three straight tournaments (two majors and a WGC-Championship) was undoubtedly the best streak of the year and one of the dominating stretches of golf the game has seen. The world’s No. 1 ranked golfer did miss an opportunity to close the door on the FedEx Cup Playoffs, but he ran into a golfer riding a hot streak of his own.

Billy Horschel

If you were watching the broadcast on Sunday afternoon at the Tour Champinoship, somewhere between BillyHo’s 30-foot bomb to save par on No. 16, and his post-win Florida Gator Chomp celebration, you likely heard the NBC crew mention how it was Horschel’s 12th straight round in the 60’s. Horschel’s streak was well-timed, since the 27-year old American pocketed nearly $14 million in prize money in the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

His streak would have been even more impressive had it not been for a chunked iron shot on No. 18 in the final round at the Deutsche Bank Championship, which ended up in a hazard, leading to a disappointing T2 finish. Before his run of brilliant golf, Horschel missed the cut in the opening playoff event at the Barclays, and had not played his best throughout the bulk of the season.

Sports figures often allude to “being in the zone.” PGA Tour fans were lucky enough to witness a handful golfers achieve their respective “zones” in 2014. If there is one fan that enjoyed the hot streaks better than any other this year, it was probably Billy Horschel’s bank account (cha ching!), although Rory’s legacy and trophy case weren’t quite sent home kicking rocks.

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 Memorial Tournament

Published

2 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

Pullout Albums

News

Tour Tech Rundown: Heroic Henley

Published

2 days ago

Jun 1, 2026

Ronald Montesano

Around the world, the golf wheel spun this final week in May of 2026. From New Jersey to Austria, with stops in Korea, Texas, and North Carolina (don’t let me route your next trip) the world’s finest put their golf games on display. There were three playoffs, some known commodities and some new talent. It was the sort of week that we hope to have at this point in the seasons. June and July afford double-digit major events, and perhaps, one of this week’s champions will use this success as a springboard to new heights. Time to run it all down, tech style, in this week’s Tour Tech Rundown.

Thanks to WITBHub, Today’s Golfer, GolfWRX, and Inside Tour Golf for initial research into equipment.

PGA Tour @ Charles Schwab Challenge: Heroic Henley denies Cole

Eric Cole did nearly everything that a fellow can do, to secure a first PGA Tour title. He stayed one shot clear of Ryder Cup player Ben Griffin. He kept US Open champion Gary Woodland and wunderkind Michael Brennan two shots distant. He posted 70 on day four to reach twelve under par. And then, Russell Henley revealed his Dr. Strange cloak. Henley made 47 feet of birdie putts on holes 16, 17, and 18, to jump from minus-nine to twelve-deep, and secured a spot in a playoff with Cole. The duo returned to the final tee, and put on a stripe show.

Both golfers found the fairway off the tee, and Henley improved on his regulation play with an approach to four feet. Cole did himself proud, tucking an iron to a dozen feet, but he was unable to convert the putt for three. Henley is one of the best putters on tour, and he proved it once more by draining a putt for a fourth consecutive birdie, and a sixth PGA Tour title. For Eric Cole, that first victory should come, and soon. He has done everything necessary to earn the chalice lift.

Henley’s Suitcase

Driver: Titleist TSi3 at 10 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 70g 6.5 TX
Metal: Titleist TS3 at 16.5 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist TSi2 at 21 degrees. Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT hybrid 100 TX
Iron: Titleist T250 4-iron. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 5-6 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 7-9 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 48 and 50 degrees. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 54 and 60 degrees. Shaft: rue Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue S400
Putter: Titleist Scotty Cameron T5 Tour Prototype

LPGA @ Shoprite LPGA: Welcome back, Celine!

Soo Bin Joo had her eyes on a maiden LPGA title. She held the lead after two rounds, then hit a red light at the intersection of can-I and how-To. Joo posted plus-two on day three in New Jersey, and dropped to a T4 finish, which was still a career-best for the young Korean golfer. Instead of a new face, a familiar face returned to the top of the podium.

Celine Boutier was the It Girl in 2023. She collected four victories, including a major title at Evian. Boutier reached world number one status, then simply faded into the background. No wins came her way over the next 30 months. On Sunday, she collected LPGA victory number seven, at the same trace as LPGA victory number two.

Day three saw Boutier manage the windswept Seaview Bay course with six birdies and a bogey. She was challenged in the end by Thailand’s Arpichaya Yubol, who signed for a 66 of her own. Yubol came up one shot shy of the top ladder rung. Finishing in third place at -7, two back of the winner, was Ireland’s Lauren Walsh.

Celine’s Suitcase

Driver: PXG 0311 Black Ops Tour-1 at 9 degrees. Shaft: Graphite Design AD IZ-5
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Black Ops at 19 and 22 degrees. Shaft: KBS Hybrid Prototype
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Gen5.
Iron: PXG 0311 P Gen 4 5-9 irons
Wedge: PXG 0311 T Gen 4 PW
Wedges: PXG 0311 Sugar Daddy II at 50, 54, 58 degrees
Putter: Bettinardi Studio Stock 3 DASS

DP World Tour @ Austrian Alpine: KK? KK!

Kota Kaneko has a rhythmic name. It has strong vowels and a run of voiceless stops in its crunchy K sounds. On Sunday in Austria, Kaneko put a stop to a challenge from Portugal’s Ricardo Gouveia and everyone else, and claimed a first-ever title on the DP World Tour. Gouveia did well to reach 16-under par over four days, but Kaneko held firm, two shots in the clear.

Davis Bryant of the USA also forged a strong challenge for the win. He ended in a tie with Gouveia for second place. Kaneko began and finished his final round in a bit of a malaise, but he caught fire midway through. Birdies at 10, 12, and 13 provided the necessary cushion to cruise to the finish line without breaking a serious sweat.

Kaneko’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping Max G440
Metals: TaylorMade Qi4D at 15, 16.5, 21, and 24 degrees
Irons: TaylorMade P760 5 and 6 irons
Irons: TaylorMade P7TW 7-9 irons
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design at 46, 52, 56, and 60 degrees
Putter: Odyssey Ai-One Cruiser Arm Lock #7

Korn Ferry Tour @ UNC Health Championship: Improbably Alvaro

Alvaro Ortiz may have had a bit of scare on the outward nine on Sunday, but he came through in clutch fashion in the end. Ortiz began the day bogey-double, and added another double bogey at the 11th hole. He was mired in a downward trend, spiraling away from the top of the leader’s board. Ortiz found hope at the 14th, where his first birdie of the day tumbled home. Inspired, he closed with birdies and 17 and 18 to catch Ross Steelman at 10-under par, and the duo returned to the 18th deck for overtime.

The extra session concluded in brief time. Ortiz, buoyed by his newly-retrieved confidence, hit the fairway with driver, then approached to six feet and drained the putt. Gobsmacked, Steelman could do little more than smile and applaud, as his run at the top came to a close. The victory was the first for Ortiz on the KFT, and will implant him squarely in the chase for a PGA Tour promotion.

Alvaro’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping G430 MAX driver at 9 degrees loft
Metal: Ping G430 MAX 3W
Iron: Ping iDi Driving Iron
Irons: Ping Blueprint S irons
Wedges
Putter: Scottsdale TR Piper C

A party on the green!

Alvaro’s time comes in Raleigh with his first win @UNCHealthChamp ? pic.twitter.com/2dmtZdbSzk

— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) May 31, 2026

LIV @ Korea: Me llamo Joaquin

Chile’s Joaquin Niemann had been away from the LIV winner’s circle throughout all of 2026. This week in Korea, he reminded us that he is still a force to consider. Niemann chased down Taylor Gooch over the closing holes at Asiad Country Club, then claimed victory with a hole-one birdie in extra time. Bryson DeChambeau claimed solo third, one shot in arrears at minus-eleven. Dustin Johnson finished on fourth, one putt farther back.

Niemann’s Suitcase