News
WATCH: John Senden’s driver shaft snaps mid-swing
As challenging and unpredictable as golf is, professional golfers can usually count on one thing, making contact with the ball. However, when John Senden attempted to rip his tee shot at the par-5 ninth hole in his opening round at the Australian PGA Championship, the Aussie’s club snapped mid-swing producing an air shot.
John Senden…..not having a good day ???? pic.twitter.com/7NyaymgQ4b
— Scott Springer (@Springco) November 29, 2018
Despite not causing himself a severe injury, Senden did wound his hand during the bizarre incident, and after deliberating with a rules official, things got even worse for the Aussie. After failing to make contact with the ball, rules officials told Senden that not only would that swing count as a stroke but that he would also be forced to play his next shot from the original high standing tee. A decision that left his fellow countryman Geoff Ogilvy seething.
John Senden's driver snapped in the grip in his backswing. He missed the ball and stabbed himself with a jagged shaft. The rules official says the stroke counts. Geoff Ogilvy's reaction: pic.twitter.com/uGuAqnZjMa
— Ryan Ballengee (@RyanBallengee) November 29, 2018
Senden did, however, end up making a bogey on the hole, and despite being forced to finish his back nine driverless, the two time PGA Tour winner managed to get in the house with a solid round of level par.
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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
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
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
See what GolfWRXers are saying in the forums.
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News
Vincenzi’s 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson betting preview: International talent to shine
As anticipation mounts for the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla in a few weeks, the PGA Tour makes a pit stop in McKinney, Texas to play The CJ CUP Byron Nelson.
Last year was the third time TPC Craig Ranch hosted the Byron Nelson. Prior to 2021, the event was held at Trinity Forest Golf Club in Dallas.
TPC Craig Ranch is a 7,414-yard par-71 that features Bentgrass greens. The event historically plays relatively easy, and that has remained the case in the three editions at TPC Craig Ranch.
The course structure may provide some additional intrigue with the par-3 17th featuring a stadium setup called “Ranch 17” which is reminiscent of the 16th hole at TPC Scottsdale. The course also has both long and difficult par-4s mixed with drivable par-4s, which should create some exciting moments.
There are 156 golfers in the field this week, and many stars will be taking the week off to prepare for 2023’s second major championship in a few weeks and a “signature event” at Quail Hollow next week. Notable players in the field include Jordan Spieth, Jason Day, Sungjae Im, Stephan Jaeger, Tom Kim, Si Woo Kim, Min Woo Lee, Alex Noren, Adam Scott and Will Zalatoris.
Past Winners of the AT&T Byron Nelson
- 2023: Jason Day (-23 at TPC Craig Ranch)
- 2022: K.H. Lee (-26 at TPC Craig Ranch)
- 2021: K.H. Lee (-25 at TPC Craig Ranch)
- 2019: Sung Kang (-23)
- 2018: Aaron Wise (-23)
- 2017: Billy Horschel (-12)
- 2016: Sergio Garcia (-15)
- 2015: Steven Bowditch (-18)
Key Stats at TPC Craig Ranch
Let’s take a look at five key metrics for TPC Craig Ranch to determine which golfers boast top marks in each category over their last 24 rounds.
Strokes Gained: Approach
Strokes Gained: Approach remains the best measure of current form.
Hot iron play will be at a premium this week. Last year, Jason Day gained 6.4 strokes on approach, which was fourth in the field. In 2022, K.H. Lee was ninth in the field in Strokes Gained: Approach, gaining 5.2 strokes. In his 2021 victory, he was second in the field and gained 8.3 strokes on the field in the category.
Strokes Gaines: Approach Over Past 24 Rounds
- Tom Hoge (+1.12)
- Keith Mitchell (+1.02)
- Henrik Norlander (+0.99)
- Ryan Moore (+0.98)
- Ben Martin (0.80)
Strokes Gained: Off the Tee
Fairways are wide at TPC Craig Ranch.
Distance will certainly be helpful, and there aren’t too many difficult holes on the course. Golfers who put themselves in position off of the tee this week should have a sizable advantage.
Strokes Gained: Off the Tee Over Past 24 Rounds
- Peter Kuest (+0.93)
- Kevin Daugherty (+0.91)
- Alejandro Tosti (+0.83)
- Keith Mitchell (+0.82)
- Kevin Tway (+0.74)
Birdie or Better %
There aren’t many hazards on the course, and all of the par-5s should be reachable in two for the majority of the players in the field. I am anticipating a birdie fest, and this statistic should be helpful in finding the birdie-makers.
Birdie or Better % Over Past 24 Rounds:
- Wesley Bryan (31%)
- Kelly Kraft (26.2%)
- Peter Kuest (25.9%)
- Matti Schmid (25.7%
- Jimmy Stanger (25.2%)
Strokes Gained: Putting (Bentgrass)
Many golfers on TOUR have some major putting surface variance in their statistics and prefer Bentgrass to other surfaces.
Bentgrass is common in Texas, and we often see golfers who play well in Texas continue to do so, finding a great feel around the greens.
Strokes Gained: Putting (Bentgrass) Over Past 24 Rounds:
- Maverick McNealy (+0.92)
- Aaron Baddeley (+0.87)
- Callum Tarren (+0.86)
- Harry Hall (+0.81)
- Nick Hardy (+0.69)
Course History
This statistic will tell us which players have performed the best at TPC Craig Ranch over the past three seasons.
Course History Over Past 12 Rounds:
- Jordan Spieth (+2.69)
- K.H. Lee (+2.59)
- Seamus Power (+1.84)
- Ryan Palmer (+1.76)
- Adam Scott (+1.72)
CJ CUP Byron Nelson Model Rankings
Below, I’ve compiled overall model rankings using a combination of the five key statistical categories previously discussed — SG: Approach (27%), SG: OTT (24%), Birdie or Better % (18%), Course History (17%) and SG: Putting Bentgrass (16%).
- Alex Noren
- Adam Scott
- Keith Mitchell
- Si Woo Kim
- Stephen Jaeger
- Jordan Spieth
- Jhonnatan Vegas
- Nate Lashley
- Brice Garnett
- Tom Hoge
2024 CJ CUP Byron Nelson Picks
Byeong Hun An +3000 (DraftKings)
Byeong Hun put together an excellent performance at The Masters, finishing T16, which ties his best ever finish at a major championship (also T16 at 2019 U.S. Open). The South Korean gained 9.16 strokes from tee to green, which ranked 2nd in the field behind only the champion, Scottie Scheffler.
An’s next start at Harbour Town didn’t go as well (67th), but he still had a fantastic ball striking week. The 32-year-old bled strokes both around and on the greens, which was his eventual undoing. In his past three starts, An has gained significant strokes on the field both off the tee and on approach.
Benny had a strong start at last year’s Byron Nelson, finishing in a tie for 14th. With limited challenges on the course, he shouldn’t have to do much scrambling. In his past 24 rounds, he ranks 17th in the field in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee and 17th in the field in birdie or better percentage. The putter is up and down per usual, but his ceiling putting weeks with his LAB Golf putter in 2024 are higher than they’ve been in past seasons.
An is starting to become my “white whale” of the PGA Tour, but I believe in his talent and TPC Craig Ranch is a course that should suit his excellent tee to green play.
Mackenzie Hughes +5500 (FanDuel)
Mackenzie Hughes is quietly putting together a very good season. He finished in a tie for 3rd at the Valspar Championship and followed that up with a T14 at the Texas Children’s Houston Open.
In his past 36 rounds in Texas, the Canadian ranks 5th in the field in Strokes Gained: Total. Last year, he finished in a tie for 14th at this event and gained strokes putting and off the tee. Mackenzie played well that week despite being in extremely poor form. He missed two cuts in a row prior to the event, and four consecutive cuts immediately after. His irons were off that week, but in 2024, we’ve seen an improvement in Hughes’ approach game. He now comes to the event playing some steady golf. He’s gained strokes on approach in four of his past five events and is hitting the ball very well from tee to green.
Hughes has two victories on the PGA Tour, both coming in relatively low-scoring affairs (-17 in each). He will need to go a bit deeper to win the CJ Cup Byron Nelson but has the type of putter that can keep pace in a birdie barrage.
Seamus Power +7000 (FanDuel)
After struggling over the past few seasons with injuries, Seamus Power seems as if he is rounding back into the form that made him a really consistent player on the PGA Tour.
Power finished T12 in his most recent start at the RBC Heritage, which is encouraging considering it was a “signature event” with a very strong field. For the week, the Irishman gained 4.4 strokes on approach and 2.8 strokes putting, which is the combination he’s used in the past to contend on Tour.
In his three trips to TPC Craig Ranch, Power is yet to finish outside of the top-20, with his best finish being a T9 in 2019. He ranks 4th in Strokes Gained: Total at the course. The 37-year-old thrives on easy tracks and has won in 2021 (Barbasol Championship) and 2022 (Butterfield Bermuda) on easier layouts with weaker fields.
Power has the game to go extremely low and I believe he can get back in the winner’s circle for the third time in four years.
Chan Kim +10000 (FanDuel)
Chan Kim has been striking the ball beautifully this season and is a proven winner with two wins on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2023 as well as eight career Japan Tour wins.
At last week’s Zurich Classic, Kim and his partner Doug Ghim finished in a tie for 28th. Prior to that, the South Korean T14 at the Valero Texas Open and T6 at the Corales Puntacana Championship. His success this season in Texas as well as he propensity to play his best golf on the PGA Tour’s easier courses make him and ideal fit for TPC Craig Ranch.
2024 has given plenty of longshot winners on the PGA Tour, and with a birdie fest like this, I believe there’s a strong chance we get another this week in McKinney, Texas.
Alejandro Tosti +10000 (FanDuel)
Alejandro Tosti is one of the most polarizing players on the PGA Tour thus far in the 2024 season. His antics can rub many the wrong way, but he’s shown on a few occasions that he has what it takes to compete in Tour events.
This season, Tosti has been elite off the tee. In his past 24 rounds, he ranks 2nd in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee. The Argentine hits it long and straight, which works at any course on earth. He got a taste of contention a few starts ago at the Texas Children’s Houston Open, finishing in a tie for 2nd place.
Tosti had a fantastic year in 2023 on the Korn Ferry Tour, where going low is a prerequisite to success. If this turns to a shootout, which it likely will, the 27-year-old has the ability to set the pace. Tosti will look to become the second Argentine to win in Texas in the past two seasons after Emiliano Grillo emerged victorious at last year’s Charles Schwab Challenge.
C.T. Pan +15000 (FanDuel)
Outside of a T3 at the Mexico Open, C.T. Pan doesn’t have strong results this season in terms of finishes. However, over his past two starts, Pan’s iron play has come alive. At The Players, he gained 6.6 strokes on approach. At the Valero Texas Open, he gained 3.7. At last week’s Zurich Classic, Pan and his partner Kevin Yu finished T28. For a player who can get extremely hot with his scoring clubs, I believe he’s playing better than the results have shown over the past month or so.
Last season, Pan finished 4th at TPC Craig Ranch and was spectacular across all the major stat categories. In his past 36 qualifying rounds, he ranks 16th in Strokes Gained: Total in Texas.
Pan has won on the PGA Tour at the RBC Heritage and is always a player that I believe has what it takes to win on a Sunday if he finds himself in contention.
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Morning 9: McIlroy, Lowry win Zurich | Green repeats on LPGA | Steele victorious down under
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Dave f
Nov 30, 2018 at 1:32 pm
Good explanation from the full axcent of the one and only Charlie Rymer on the golf channel report, along with mr know it all Mr. Brandel man are they a pair or what they sure have it figured out.
James A.
Nov 30, 2018 at 11:44 am
That happened to me with one of the early gen lite-weight graphite shafts – I’ll just say it was 23yrs ago & they were bright red & light years ahead of the other offerings at the time. I had been using XXX Penley – which weighed in ALMOST twice as much as these did and the designer/owner was very good to us. It played almost as firm in the tip, but to do that a lot of material was taken from the butt. We still saw a lot of high breaks in many different shafts until maybe 8 yrs ago but these Red ones were cutting edge. If you leaned on it at all teeing up? – SNAP. Bag fell over? SNAP- but you could hit 300+ balls on a test day at 115-120 club head speed and (almost) no problem.
I did snap 10 one day but was testing a couple versions for them and most snapped if I let it bounce off my back on a ‘gorilla swing’ follow through.
The bad one was another gen later when they changed the outer layer material to be stronger lengthwise. I had a relatively slow backswing for my swing speed to force a big turn – being a big guy with a back injury. I capitalized on 20+ yrs of karate & being a professional drummer with fast hands. In a pro-am, I went after it on a reachable 340yd hole & the shaft snapped halfway into the downswing – at peak lag when my hands started to turn into impact, but instead of half the club flying away, the head stayed on – connected by a strip of the new outer layer. I hit the ball, but the head wrapped completely around my back & came up and drilled me right on my right eye brow…inch or so lower, it would’ve shattered the orbit & I might’ve lost the eye. As it was, I just saw all blue light – like gettin’ KO’d and almost went down. The missing 2′ of shaft hit someone 10yds away (no harm done) and I just put my hand on the spot which was golf ball size in 3 seconds…I was lucky.
I ended up with 6 stitches. I called the company & ‘my guys’ were out & the person I talked to sounded a little spooked & just said “I don’t think I can talk to you about this…sounds like you need to speak to our legal dept (lol)…I told him I was a sponsored test ‘driver’ & I wasn’t gonna sue! I just needed them to know it happened & maybe they needed to let the head/broken piece just go flying down the fairway if one broke. They stopped using that material lengthwise & created ‘Rings’so to speak – to make sure if it broke it’d be ‘cleaner’…
True story 🙂
For 8 years I didn’t carry a 3 wd. Used a Big Bertha one iron with ‘the red shaft’ and couldn’t miss. Best combo EVER. Eventually, just got tired of them breaking hitting off the deck, & other – now the all well known ‘high end’ shafts got so good I moved on ????
Ray Bennett
Nov 29, 2018 at 5:45 pm
Come on USGA and R&A, surely this circumstance needs to be addressed in the Rules of Golf in the players favour.
jc
Nov 29, 2018 at 5:19 pm
one of my friends just ticked the ball and it fell off the tee, he used his 3 wood, then an iron and made the putt…one of the best pars I had eve seen.
Curt
Nov 29, 2018 at 4:56 pm
Was that a TPT Shaft?
Michael
Nov 29, 2018 at 8:26 pm
I think so. Those shafts are incredibly overpriced for the lack of quality control that seems to exist. I’ve heard of many of these snapping, way above the norm.
Scheiss
Nov 29, 2018 at 8:38 pm
What do you expect from ski poles, they’re not meant to be swung at something lol
Kevin
Nov 29, 2018 at 4:05 pm
Very stupid ruling and yes they should be fkd off. Should the club shaft stay intact he would have hit the ball, it is the one thing that the player does not have any control over. There was no obstacles, no roots in the ground, it is a faulty shaft and the player could not anticipate nor be prepared for. Its the same as punishing a Bus taker for the bus’ engine failture as soon as he stepped into the bus.
KL Nix
Nov 29, 2018 at 3:17 pm
I had that happen to me once with a 1 iron during a tournament. Just after impact i heard and felt a snap and it didn’t compute until I felt the club pinching my hands and the head smacking me in the leg. One of the most bizarre things that I have ever had happen to me and until now I thought I was the only one to have that kind of luck. The following 16 holes of viagra jokes were not that funny at the time but in hindsight have grown on me.
Kevin
Nov 29, 2018 at 11:35 am
I very well may be mistaken, but should he not have been able to tee off again without a penalty? He did not make contact with the ball and that would only be a stroke if he intends to make contact with the ball. Much like Kevin Na from years back, he still followed through but was able to say that he did not intend to hit the ball. It very much looked like after the club snapped he tried to stop his swing?
Tips
Nov 29, 2018 at 1:11 pm
No.
In this case, it happened during the normal action of the actual swing, and the judgment is the same as if you were to break a club against a tree, for example. You can clearly see that it was not a practice swing or a waggle, it happened during the actual intended swing.
Whether the shaft was poorly made or not is irrelevant.
Kevin
Nov 29, 2018 at 3:27 pm
This is the ruling of which I am talking about.
14/1.5 Intent to Strike Ball Ceases During Downswing; Club Not Stopped But Path of Clubhead Altered to Avoid Striking Ball
Q.A player begins his downswing with the intention of striking the ball but decides during the downswing not to strike the ball. The player is unable to stop the club before it reaches the ball, but he is able to swing intentionally over the top of the ball. Is the player deemed to have made a stroke?
A.No. The player is considered to have checked his downswing voluntarily by altering the path of his downswing and missing the ball even though the swing carried the clubhead beyond the ball.
If the player had not successfully checked his downswing (i.e., he had struck the ball), he is considered to have made a stroke.
Any doubt regarding the player’s intent must be resolved against the player.
Although it does not match perfectly and the rules in Australia may vary slightly I think this would apply. I would say once the shaft broke he clearly made an attempt to not make contact/check his swing and he did not make contact.
jc
Nov 29, 2018 at 5:17 pm
nope, if you take a swing, it is just like a whiff…the only thing that will change wit the new rules is that if the ball was falling off the tee, you no longer get a penalty for hitting a moving ball…
Willem van der Merwe
Nov 30, 2018 at 5:22 am
Under the new rules, the ball is still on the teeing are, so although the stroke counts, he would be able to re-tee, put the ball on the ground or on any surface irregularity, whether created by the player or natural.
In fact, if you had hit a shot which rebounded and ended up back on your teeing area (the 2 club-length space behind the tee markers for your tee on the hole), you would be entitled to tee it up again for your second shot.
Thomas Horonzy
Nov 29, 2018 at 11:13 am
I would have never assessed him a swing. I feel Geoff felt likewise. Where’s the logic?
KingSingh
Nov 29, 2018 at 9:53 am
What shaft was Senden using in his driver?
Nigel Kent
Nov 29, 2018 at 9:39 am
He did not have to finish the round driver-less . If you break a club deliberately (in temper across your leg ,against a tree or the ground ),that would be true .If it just breaks in normal play , you are allowed to have it replaced either from the pro-shop or your own spare supply in your vehicle , as long as you don’t delay play . I saw Sam Torrance snap a driver across his back on the follow-through,they sent a buggy to the pro- shop ,had a new one back to him in 15 minutes .
GP
Nov 29, 2018 at 9:48 am
The commentators said he didn’t have a back-up driver that day, but was hoping to get one for the next day from some place.
Eric Clancey
Nov 29, 2018 at 9:51 am
Good call Nigel.
It looked like a snap at the grip from banging the club head on the ground after a bad shot.
Engineer Bob
Nov 29, 2018 at 3:26 pm
No…. that’s the result of applying a hands force couple to the club handle and the very thin-walled butt section of the shaft collapsing under the grip. Do not apply a hands force couple approaching impact because that signifies you are attempting a swing compensation.
gps
Nov 29, 2018 at 5:53 pm
Its very natural that there are forces at the point of the fulcrum, between the hands.
In 5L, Ben Hogan pointed out the center of gravity of a golf club, without the golfer
and fulcrum when it becomes a lever in the hands of the golfer.
Engineer Bob
Nov 29, 2018 at 6:57 pm
Sorry but there is no golf swing ‘fulcrum’ between the hands during a force couple, just a rotation axis. A fulcrum is a support whereas the rotation axis just floats through the downswing. You are confusing a lever with a static fulcrum and a moving object subject to a force couple.