Morning 9: Kang breaks though | End of the “muni major” era | Rain ahead at Bethpage?

Published

7 years ago

May 13, 2019

Ben Alberstadt

By Ben Alberstadt ([email protected])

May 13, 2019

Good Monday morning, golf fans.

1. Kang breaks through

Golfweek’s Dan Kilbridge with some succinct commentary on Sung Kang’s Byron Nelson win…

“With soft fairways and calm conditions, Trinity Forest didn’t offer much of a test in its second year hosting the AT&T Byron Nelson.”

“Nor did anyone in the field test Sung Kang down the stretch en route to his first career PGA Tour victory Sunday.”
“The 31-year-old from South Korea ran away from Matt Every, Brooks Koepka and the rest of the contenders with a 4-under 67 in the final round, securing victory in his 159th Tour start. Kang shot 23-under 261 for the week, the lowest winning score in relation to par since Adam Long took home the Desert Classic in January at 26 under.”

Full piece.

2. European Tour

EuropeanTour.com report on Marcus Kinhult’s surprising emergence from the pack at the British Masters…

“Marcus Kinhult secured his maiden European Tour title at the 52nd time of asking after producing a birdie-birdie finish to win the Betfred British Masters by a single shot.”

“There was late drama at Hillside Golf Club on Sunday as Kinhult, Matt Wallace, defending champion Eddie Pepperell and young Scot Robert MacIntyre were locked together at 15 under par when the final group containing overnight leaders Kinhult and Wallace stood on the 18th tee.”

“With Pepperell and MacIntyre watching on following the conclusion of their rounds, Kinhult coolly rolled in his eight foot birdie putt at the last to sign for a final-round 70 and make his European Tour breakthrough.”

Full piece.

3. Meanwhile, on the Web.com Tour…

Golfweek’s JuliaKate E. Culpepper…“Michael Gellerman scored a final-round 69 Sunday at the KC Golf Classic to earn his first Web.com Tour win.”

“Gellerman, who had three birdies on Sunday at Blue Hills Country Club in Kansas City, Mo., finished the tournament 11-under 277, one stroke ahead of Harry Higgs and Nelson Ledesma.”

Full piece.

4. Regions Tradition final round postponed, Stricker leads

AP Report…”Four and a half hours of steady rain later, PGA Tour Champions officials postponed the round until Monday. Play resumes with an early two-tee start.”

“A handful of players got in one hole Sunday before having to leave the course. The leaders haven’t started the final round of the first of five senior major championships.”

“Steve Stricker holds a two-stroke lead at 14-under 202. Two-time Tradition winner Bernhard Langer, David Toms and Billy Andrade are all two strokes back.”

Full piece.

5. A new kitchen for mum

While Robert MacIntyre didn’t win the British Masters, his mother did win a new cooking space…

Brian McLauchlin at the BBC…”The Scot’s final round of 66 put him on 15-under in Southport, leaving him tied for second, just one stroke behind Sweden’s Marcus Kinhult.”

“MacIntyre’s showing will see him take home over £200,000 – the biggest prize of his career.”

“She’s getting her kitchen now. She’s got it, it’s a done deal,” he said.

Full piece.

6. Rain ahead at Bethpage?

Doug Ferguson with the early report from Farmingdale…

“Major championship golf returned to Bethpage State Park and found the Black course just how it left it 10 years ago: wet.”

“More than one-half inch of rain fell Sunday as some players began to arrive for the PGA Championship, which was moved up three months on the calendar to May for the first time in 70 years. Only two players made it so far as the practice range – former champion Rich Beem and Li Haotong of China.”

“Without having played either of the U.S. Opens at Bethpage Black, he knows enough that 7,459 yards for a par 70 will play a lot longer on wet grass. More rain and cool weather – temperatures in the lower 50s – were forecast for the next two days.”

Full piece.

7. End of an era

Geoff Shackelford reports on the brief time of “municipal courses hosting major championships” coming to an end…

“After a state of New York publicly owned course hosts this year’s PGA Championship followed in five years by the Ryder Cup, a distinct era in American golf will come to a close. Following the biennial team matches on Long Island in the fall of 2024, there are no traditional American municipal courses on the major championship or Ryder Cup schedule.”

“…The end of munis on the major schedule is hardly an indictment on the experiment that brought golf’s biggest events to such places as Bethpage, Torrey Pines and next year’s PGA Championship to TPC Harding Park after significant renovation work. Past tournaments were financial successes and enjoyed way more energetic celebrations of the sport when played at the people’s courses. The tournaments generally have left facilities in a much better place than the USGA or PGA of America found them. But gouging golf course contractors, excessive bureaucratic demands and irrational expectations for one week of tournament golf drove up costs at times.”

Full piece.

8. Spieth ready?

Golf Channel’s Will Gray on Jordan Spieth’s finish at the Bryon Nelson and where it leaves him heading to Bethpage…

“Spieth shot an even-par 71 in the final round of the AT&T Byron Nelson, a score that was three shots higher than any of his previous three efforts and one that dropped him into a tie for 29th in his hometown event. After missing the Tour Championship for the first time last season, he’s now gone 14 starts this season without a single top-20 finish and sits at 150th in the season-long points race.”

“I was very disappointed with even par, just with how score-able the conditions are. But, you know, I feel like I made some progress,” Spieth told reporters. “Like the way I putted this week, continuing to putt better and better each week which is nice, frees the long game up. Better this week than it has been any week this year, so feels like good stuff coming. Just stay the course.”

Full piece.

9. ICYMI: Tour pro hits wife with errant shot

Rough stuff for pro Tyler Duncan’s wife Friday at the Byron Nelson…

Golf Digest’s Joel Beall tells the tale…

“Duncan’s approach at the par-4 13th at Trinity Forest sailed to the right of the green on Friday and hit a spectator. A spectator that Duncan holds close to his heart.”

“Today I hit my wife in the head on that hole,” he told reporters after Round 2. “Took a big bounce and hit her, I guess.”

“Duncan said he was not aware that it was his wife until after the round, meaning he can’t use the incident as an excuse for failing to get up-and-down on the hole. “I had a little mud on the ball, little unfortunate timing there and shot out to the right,” he explained.”

Full piece.

Photos from the 2026 U.S. Women’s Open

Published

4 hours 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

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

3 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