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Morning 9: Romo (10,000-1) the most popular Nelson bet? | Crenshaw on putting | McIlroy a Euro Tour member after all

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1. Spieth embracing the struggle
PGATour.com’s Mike McAllister on the Texan’s difficulties, where his head is at…
  • “A year ago, it was putting that plagued Spieth, as he finished T-123rd in Strokes Gained: Putting. He enters this week ranked 50th. A nice bounce-back, almost to his ranking in 2017 (48th).”
  • “However, his other rankings have suffered. Off-the-Tee, he gone from T-50th to 205th. Approach-the-Green, he’s gone from 33rd to 120th. Around-the-Green, from T-49th to 87th. Tee-to-Green, from 23rd to 180th. And overall, from 32nd to 148th. (By the way, he was second overall in 2017.)”
  • “Spieth said that he’s never allowed other parts of his game to be negatively impacted while he focuses on a specific place to improve. That’s why the numbers don’t concern him.”
  • “There’s always something you’re singling out and you obviously put more emphasis on that to get it back up,” Spieth said, “but it’s not been in a place where anything else has dropped as significantly…”
  • “I know what I need to work on. I’ve been now putting the effort in over there while making sure we’re maintaining the rest of the game.”
2. A Tiger spotting at Bethpage
News of Woods’ yacht docking off Long Island is a few days old at this point. Wednesday, however, the 15-time major champion was spotted practicing at Bethpage Black.
The PGA Championship’s Twitter posted a nicely edited video of Woods walking across the 14th green.
3. Nantz on Bethpage
Golfweek’s Dan Kilbridge relays the anchor’s remarks…
  • “If we’re gonna get everybody to think this is gonna be knee-high rough for a PGA Championship, I promise you, it’s not going to look anything like it did for those two (U.S. Opens),” Nantz said.
  • “I just wanted to issue one word of warning here,” Nantz said. “We’re all conditioned to think about Bethpage Black and how it was set up for the 2002 and 2009 U.S. Opens. It was never gonna be set up like (that), because it’s a PGA Championship. (Chief Championships Officer) Kerry Haigh and the PGA, they like birdies. It’s never gonna look like what it looked like back in 02 and 09.”
4. The traveling tour pro
All tour pros travel (a lot), sure, but Dylan Frittelli takes to the itinerant life with gusto.
PGATour.com’s Helen Ross…
  • “Since turning pro in 2012, he’s won tournaments in Austria, Mauritius, South Africa and Switzerland. Frittelli also won as an amateur in Canada and Zimbabwe, as well as in the United States where he played at Texas and sank the putt that gave the Longhorns’ the NCAA title his senior year.”
  • “Ask the 28-year-old his favorite destination and he’ll give you several. For one, Frittelli is drawn to the culture of Japan — “I’ve never seen a sort of Asian country that has so much respect and so much I guess, rigidity in their lifestyle,” he says. And a beach destination like Fiji would definitely top his list of vacation spots.”
5. The teams are coming together
Golf Channel’s Randall Mell…
  • “Juli Inkster isn’t yet among the players in the field for the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational this summer, but the American Solheim Cup captain is planning to be there to check out the pairings in Midland, Mich.”
  • “European captain Catriona Matthew will also be there, but she’ll be playing alongside one of her vice captains, Suzann Pettersen, who isn’t yet dismissing the possibility she might be a playing vice captain in Scotland in September.”
  • “This all adds intrigue to the two-woman team event’s dynamic with some early pairings released Wednesday.”
  • “Notably, the pairing of Lexi Thompson and Cristie Kerr was announced. They’ve become the dynamic duo of team golf, amassing an 11-1-2 record as partners in the Solheim Cup and UL International Crown.”
 
6. Crenshaw on putting
Perspective from a man who knows a thing or two about the subject in question…
Geoff Shackelford spoke with Gentle Ben…
  • “Shack: I’m sure you’ve had parents ask, what would help someone develop a great putter?”
  • “Crenshaw: Putting contests, I always thought, were great. Harvey encouraged that. Having to putt against someone and go around the clock. There’s no better practice, because you’re putting something on the line, you’re competing. When you’re putting at different holes, that’s what golf is. When I was a kid, I found about eight balls out on the golf course. I went up to the putting green by myself, and I hit this one putt about an hour. Same putt, over and over. Harvey said, “Ben, I see what you’re doing. Your stroke looks pretty good, but you’ll never have that putt again the rest of your life. Putt to different holes.” You see young people do that in practice. They get the chalk out with straight lines and all that stuff.”
7. Making another bet…
Perhaps the bloom is off the rose with this gentleman, but nevertheless…
Stephen Hennessey at Golf Digest…
  • “James Adducci has doubled down. Golf Digest has learned that Adducci, the 39-year-old Wisconsin man who won $1.19 million on Tiger Woods winning the Masters, has taken $100,000 of his winnings and placed it on Woods to win the Grand Slam.
  • William Hill U.S. confirmed the bet was placed on Wednesday afternoon at the SLS Casino in Las Vegas, the same sportsbook where Adducci placed-and then cashed-his first bet. Michael Grodsky, William Hill’s VP of marketing, said Adducci flew to Vegas and placed the bet on Wednesday.”
  • “Adducci claims his initial $85,000 bet on Tiger to win the Masters at 14-1 was his first sports bet. The $100,000 bet at 100-1 odds on Tiger Woods winning the Grand Slam would net the 39-year-old Wisconsin man a $10 million payday. Tiger’s current odds of winning next week’s PGA Championship are listed at 8-1 at the Westgate Sportsbook.”
8. Bettors plowing cash behind Romo at 10,000-1?
David Purdum at ESPN…”On Wednesday afternoon, Jeff Sherman, an oddsmaker at the SuperBook at Westgate Las Vegas, reviewed the early betting action on this week’s PGA tournament, the AT&T Byron Nelson, and was fascinated with what he saw — more bets had been placed on Tony Romo to win the tournament than on any other golfer in the field.”
  • “Romo is 10,000-1 to win the Byron Nelson at the SuperBook. Other sportsbooks have him at 2,000-1 or 1,000-1. Regardless, the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and current CBS broadcaster will be a massive long shot when he tees it up Thursday at Trinity Forest Golf Club in his third PGA Tour event.”
9. After all that…
The Telegraph’s James Corrigan…
  • “Rory McIlroy has enacted an 11th hour U-turn to join the European Tour and so make himself eligible for Ryder Cup points this season. The news will come as a relief to Europe captain Padraig Harrington, particularly as he has limited himself to three wild-card picks for next year’s match.”
  • “McIlroy had been in a stand-off with his home circuit since the end of last year because of a disagreement believed to centre around appearance fees and told the media in January…”
  • “…although he will probably limit his schedule on the Tour to the minimum of four appearances in 2019, his late decision to send in the forms just before the deadline has come a sizeable boost for chief executive Keith Pelley.”
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GolfWRX Editor-in-Chief

2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. Voice of Reason

    May 9, 2019 at 11:07 am

    Tiger winning the Grand Slam at 100-1 is about the dumbest bet I have ever seen. Let’s look at the math. Tiger is 8-1 at the PGA. Let’s say he wins, being conservative he will be 6-1 at Pebble. Now if he wins you would be looking at a 48-1 payoff. Anyone think he will be longer than 2-1 at the Open? Of course he will be, not to mention you have 2 built in outs if he is in poor form. Why in the world would you essentially play a parlay card when you can make a multiple of the winnings playing each tournament?

    • Johnny Penso

      May 9, 2019 at 1:58 pm

      Because, when you win a longshot bet, and you’re not very smart, you might have a tendency to think you were somehow smarter than everyone else and that’s why you won the initial big bet. You don’t realize it was pure luck that you picked the right guy at the right time and not some special insight. Win big and quit, invest your money in real estate.

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News

Morning 9: 58 on the Korn Ferry Tour | Rory on possible return to policy board

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Friday morning, golf fans, may a bountiful weekend of golf be in store for you!

1. 58 on the Korn Ferry Tour

KFT staff report…”Frankie Capan III went crazy low Thursday on the Korn Ferry Tour. Nearly in record fashion.”

  • “Capan carded 13-under 58 in the opening round of the Veritex Bank Championship, matching the second lowest score in Korn Ferry Tour history. He fell one shy of Cristobal Del Solar’s record 57, set at the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard earlier this year, but it was a heck of a show nonetheless.”
  • “The Minnesota native played an eight-hole stretch in 9-under Thursday, following an eagle at the par-5 ninth with seven straight birdies to begin the back nine at par-71 Texas Rangers Golf Club. He “cooled off” with a two-putt par at the long par-4 17th hole. He arrived at the par-5 18th hole at 13 under for the round, but he found a fairway bunker off the tee, laid up to 134 yards and missed his third shot left of the green. He chipped to 7 feet and drained the par putt to match the Korn Ferry Tour’s second-lowest score of 58, carded by Stephan Jaeger in the opening round of the 2016 Ellie Mae Classic at TPC Stonebrae.”
Full piece.

2. Team McIlowery starts strong

Paul Hodowanic for PGATour.com…”Late Thursday afternoon in New Orleans, Rory McIlroy rested his head on Shane Lowry’s shoulder.”

  • “It wasn’t the typical post-round moment, but this isn’t the typical event. McIlroy and Lowry teamed up for this week’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans, the PGA TOUR’s lone team event, and the all-Irish duo put on a show. Sporting matching pink-on-navy getups, McIlroy/Lowry opened in a best-ball 11-under 61 in Thursday’s Four-ball format at TPC Louisiana.”
  • “This partnership might have stemmed from a boozy brunch last fall, but their opening-round performance at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans gave the field a sobering reminder: They’ll be tough to top.”
Full piece.

3. LPGA Tour: Grace Kim in front

AP report…”Grace Kim shot a 7-under 64 at Wilshire Country Club to take the first-round lead Thursday in the LPGA Tour’s JM Eagle LA Championship.”

  • “Playing in the morning session, the 23-year-old Australian capped her bogey-free round with a chip-in birdie on the par-3 18th.”
  • “Well, I chunked my tee shot on the last hole 20 meters short and then I chipped it in it,” Kim said. “I think that’s pretty cool, in front of everyone
Full piece.

4. McIlroy on rejoining policy board

Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner…”Rory McIlroy said Wednesday that he is willing to rejoin the PGA Tour policy board if the other player directors want him.”

  • “As first reported by the Guardian, Webb Simpson has submitted a letter stating that he’d like to resign from the board, but only if his vacant seat is filled by McIlroy, who stepped down last fall because of the toll it had taken on him professionally and personally.”
  • “Five months later, what has changed?”
  • “I think I can be helpful,” McIlroy said Wednesday ahead of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, where he is partnering with Shane Lowry. “I don’t think there’s been much progress made in the last eight months, and I was hopeful that there would be. I think I could be helpful to the process. But only if people want me involved, I guess.”
Full piece.

5. Charlie Woods shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier

Golfweek’s Cameron Jourdan…”Charlie Woods is going to have to wait to play in the U.S. Open.”

“The 15-year-old son of Tiger Woods played Thursday in local qualifying for the United States Golf Association’s national championship, set for June 13-16 at Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina. Charlie played at The Legacy Golf & Tennis Club in Port St. Lucie, Florida, and he shot 9-over 81.”

“Charlie’s round featured a bogey on his opening hole, the par-4 first. He then doubled the par-5 second. A pair of pars followed before his lone birdie on the front, but another double the next hole, the par-4 sixth, had him turn in 4-over 40.”

Full piece.

6. Photos from the Zurich Classic

GolfWRX is live on site this week at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans for the PGA Tour’s one-and-only two-man team event.

Check out all our photos at the link below!

Full piece.
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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans

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GolfWRX is live on site this week at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans for the PGA Tour’s one-and-only two-man team event.

As usual, general galleries, WITBs, and pullout albums — including some pretty spicy custom putters and headcovers — await your viewing.

Be sure to check back for more photos from the Big Easy, as we’ll continue to update this page with additional galleries throughout the week.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying about our photos from the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in the forums.

 

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Morning 9: Tiger’s TGL teammates | Woosnam’s criticism of Cantlay | Rory’s return to tour policy board

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Tuesday morning, golf fans, as the PGA Tour heads to New Orleans for the Zurich Classic.

1. 15-year-old finishes top 20 on KFT

Jay Coffin for Golf Digest…”During a week when most eyes were on Scottie Scheffler and Nelly Korda, the 15-year-old lefty finished off an incredible week with a five-under 66 in the final round of the Korn Ferry Tour’s LECOM Suncoast Classic at Lakewood Ranch in Florida.”

  • “After opening with 68-66-70, Russell finished at 14-under-par total to tie for 20th place. The finish in which he jumped 28 positions on the leaderboard on the final day, gives him an exemption into next week’s Veritex Bank Championship at Rangers Park in Arlington, Texas. He’s the youngest player to finish inside the top 20 on the PGA of Korn Ferry tours, according to records that go back to 1983.”
Full piece.

2. Understandably, Nelly WDs

Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner…”Nelly Korda’s bid for a record-setting sixth consecutive win will have to wait a few weeks.”

  • “A day after capturing the Chevron Championship during a marathon final round in Houston, Korda announced on social media that she was withdrawing from this week’s JM Eagle LA Championship.”
  • “It was not an easy decision,” she wrote. “After the unbelievable week at the Chevron and grinding through the mental and physical challenges of four events in the past five weeks, I am definitely feeling exhausted. With so much still to come throughout 2024, I feel I need to listen to my body and get some rest, so I can be ready for the remainder of the season.”
Full piece.

3. Scheffler’s impressive No. 1 feat

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”After Scheffler’s victory Monday morning at the RBC Heritage, Scheffler upped his points average to 15.016 and increased his advantage in the Official World Golf Ranking over No. 2 Rory McIlroy to more than double McIlroy’s 7.365 average, meaning Scheffler is ranked further ahead of No. 2 than No. 2 is ahead of the last-ranked player.”

  • “The last time a No. 1 player had a greater points average was Woods, who was at 15.4564 on Dec. 6, 2009. But Woods was less than seven average points ahead of No. 2 Phil Mickelson at the time. Earlier that year, Woods was 7.735 ahead of Mickelson, which is the last time the gap between Nos. 1 and 2 was greater than Scheffler’s current 7.651 advantage.”
Full piece.

4. Zurich field notes

PGATour.com’s Adam Stanley…”Rory McIlroy will make his tournament debut alongside good pal, Ryder Cup teammate, and Irishman Shane Lowry – a duo that was firmed up during a celebratory lunch after the Ryder Cup last fall… Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele will try to reprise their 2022 win here. Cantlay and Schauffele have both the Foursomes and Four-ball scoring records at this event… Davis Riley and Nick Hardy will defend their 2023 title. No team has gone back-to-back… Three sets of brothers (and two sets of twins!) will play together with twins Rasmus and Nicolai Højgaard and Parker and Pierceson Coody in the field along with Alex and Matt Fitzpatrick. Alex Fitzpatrick and Rasmus Højgaard are sponsor invites…”

  • “Billy Horschel, who won last week at the Corales Puntacana Championship, will be without his previous partner Sam Burns, as Burns and his wife are expecting their first child any day. Horschel will instead be paired with fellow University of Florida alum Tyson Alexander. Horschel has won the Zurich Classic when it was both an individual and team event… Other notable pairings include Collin Morikawa and Kurt Kitayama, Sahith Theegala and Will Zalatoris, and Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin. The Canadian duo finished runner-up a year ago and would like nothing more than to show Presidents Cup International Team captain Mike Weir how well they play together… Steve Stricker will play his second TOUR event this season (after earning his way into THE PLAYERS Championship), teaming up with Matt Kuchar.”
Full piece.

5. Tiger’s teammates

Field Level Media report…”Tiger Woods announced Monday that Max Homa, Tom Kim and Kevin Kisner have joined his Jupiter Links GC TGL team.”

  • “The virtual golf league headed by Woods and Rory McIlroy will begin its inaugural season next January. Woods also unveiled the team’s logo.”
  • “I have already shared my excitement and optimism for TGL as a league and product,” said Woods. “Now that we have finalized our roster with a team of world-class golfers, I am even more confident that this group will proudly represent the Jupiter (Fla.) area and connect with our fans for years to come.”
Full piece.

6. Woosnam questions Cantlay’s decision

Our Matt Vincenzi…”After the horn sounded to suspend play due to darkness, Cantlay, who’s ball was in the fairway on the 18th hole, had a decision to make. With over 200 yards into the green and extreme winds working against the shot, conventional wisdom would be to wait until Monday morning to hit the shot.”

  • “On the other hand, if he could finish the hole, he may just want to get the event over with so he could get out of Hilton Head.”
  • “Curiously, Cantlay chose neither of those options. After hitting 3-wood into the green, and still coming up short, the former FedEx Cup champion chose to mark his ball and chip and putt on Monday morning.”
  • “Ian Woosnam, who was watching from home, took to X to give his thoughts on Cantlay’s decision making.”
  • “Cantlay would end up getting up and down for par when play resumed at 8:00 am Monday morning.”
Full piece.

7. JT on Scheffler’s “weird” equipment choice

Our Matt Vincenzi…”After Justin Thomas’ third round of the RBC Heritage, the two-time major champion went in the broadcast booth alongside the CBS crew.”

  • “While Thomas was watching Scottie Scheffler play on the back nine of his third round, he wondered aloud why Scottie uses high-numbered golf balls.”
  • “Does anybody else think it’s weird that Scottie uses high numbers? I don’t know if I’ve ever seen an elite player use high-numbered golf balls.”
  • “Amanda Balionis who was on the grounds chimed in, reporting that analyst Dottie Pepper had wondered the same thing earlier that day.”
  • “I’ve been going about this wrong my whole life,” Thomas jokingly said.
Full piece.

8. Rory to rejoin PGA Tour policy board

Mark Schlabach for ESPN…”Four-time major championship winner Rory McIlroy is poised to return to the PGA Tour’s policy board, pending a vote by the board, which could come as early as this week, sources confirmed to ESPN on Tuesday.”

  • “One of the PGA Tour’s most vocal supporters during its three-year battle with LIV Golf, McIlroy abruptly resigned as a player director on the tour’s influential policy board in November.”
  • “He is expected to replace policy board player director Webb Simpson, who intends to step away before his two-year term expires in 2025.”
Full piece.

9. Weir names Presidents Cup assistants

PGA Tour report…”International Team Captain Mike Weir announced Ernie Els, Trevor Immelman, Geoff Ogilvy and Camilo Villegas as captain’s assistants for the 2024 Presidents Cup, which will be played at The Royal Montreal Golf Club in Montreal, Canada, Sept. 24-29.

Full piece.
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