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Morning 9: Brooks’ Body Issue photos…revealed | World Long Driver winners | Brooks Body Issue

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By Ben Alberstadt ([email protected]; @benalberstadt on Instagram)

September 5, 2019

Good Thursday morning, golf fans.
1. New driver testing protocol 
Golf Digest’s E. Michael Johnson and Brian Wacker report the PGA Tour will begin a new driver testing protocol at next week’s A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier.
…In an email sent to players on Wednesday, the tour specified that its in-use driver-testing program will consist of the following:
  • Two weeks of informational sessions that will take place at The Greenbrier and at the Farmers Insurance Open in late January. During the sessions, members of the USGA Equipment Standards staff will demonstrate the testing procedure-which will be the same Characteristic Time (CT) test used on tour and at the Open Championship at Royal Portrush-and work with manufacturer representatives on site to review their own procedures. Additionally, they will test clubs of players on a voluntary, first-come, first-served basis.
  • Each manufacturer with driver heads in play will appoint a representative to be the on-site contact when testing is occurring. This representative and the player will be the only people who are notified of the results of the test.
  • At various times throughout the season, testing will occur at PGA Tour events. The testing will be unannounced and on non-competition days when manufacturer reps are on-site. If a player has been selected, a rules official will notify him when he arrives at the course. The player will be asked to provide the driver (or drivers) he intends to use for that event. Each test will take approximately 15 minutes, be conducted by a member of the USGA Equipment Standards staff and be performed on a pendulum device in accordance with published USGA test protocols.
If you’re wondering what the test looks like (I believe it is) the same process that’s displayed in this video.
2. Brooks in the buff arriveth
The moment of Brooks’ full nakedness is upon us! With ESPN’s Body Issue hitting newsstands Friday, BK’s full pictorial portfolio is, well, revealed online…
  • Golfweek’s Bill Speros…”Portions of the Body Issue were posted online Wednesday. The final print version of the Body Issue will hit newsstands Friday. ESPN has announced that the magazine will cease publication this year.”
  • “A total of 17 different past and present athletes, or groups of athletes, bore all for the 2019 Body Issue. Among the au naturel jocks joining Koepka are five members of the Philadelphia Eagles offensive line, soccer star Kelley O’Hara and Chris Paul of the Oklahoma City Thunder.”
  • “A dozen still images and videos of Koepka are featured, including one of him in a full-sized The Body Issue Robe awaiting to hit a tee shot. The photos were taken early in 2019 at Palm City, Fla., by Rob Daly.”

Full piece.

3. WLD
AP report…”Kyle Berkshire won the World Long Drive Championship on Wednesday night, beating two-time champion Tim Burke with a 406-yard drive at WinStar World Casino and Resort.”
  • “After Burke got to 374 on his eighth and final attempt in the final, Berkshire missed the grid on his first three shots before nailing the winner for his first world title and third tour victory of the season.”
  • “The top-ranked Berkshire, from Crofton, Maryland, played two seasons at the University of North Texas.”
  • “South Africa’s Chloe Garner won the women’s title, beating three-time champion Phillis Meti of New Zealand with a 347-yard drive on her fifth attempt. Meti, hitting first in the final, had a best of 344.”
4. Lee6’s family reunion
Golf Digest’s Keely Levins…”Nearly four months after winning the U.S. Women’s Open at the Country Club of Charleston, Jeongeun Lee6 relived the moment in a unique way on Wednesday when she returned to her native South Korea to take part in what was billed as the first Women’s Open trophy tour of the country.”
  • “It has been a while since the U.S. Women’s Open, I thought the fans and reporters wouldn’t care this much,” Lee said. “But today, I saw so many media and fans are here, to celebrate with me, and congratulate me, put so much effort into today, I feel so happy and blessed.”
  • “Part of what made the return to South Korea so meaningful was that Lee6 was finally able to share the victory with her parents. Neither her mother, Eunjin Ju, or father, Jung Ho, were in South Carolina in May to see their daughter, an LPGA rookie, win her first major. The 23-year-old hasn’t seen her parents for months. They keep in touch via video calls while she’s traveling.”
5. Best Tour card stories
Golfweek’s Adam Woodard rounds up a few of the most compelling tales…Doug Ghim…”Ghim entered the week 29th in the standings. After the week of play at the Korn Ferry Tour Championship, the former Texas standout needed a par on his final hole of the day and the 1,224th hole of his Korn Ferry season…”I’ve never felt nerves like that before. … to have it all come down to one putt is pretty surreal,” Ghim said after his round….Not only did Ghim earn his par, he did it the hard way, with an epic sand save.”
  • D.J. Trahan…”Ghim making par on his final hole was difficult. What if he had to make birdie?…That wasn’t a “what if” scenario for Trahan, it was his situation. And the 38-year-old made it look easy….On the 432-yard par-4 18th hole, Trahan painted the fairway off the tee and went pin-seeking with his approach, setting up the birdie he so desperately needed.”

Full piece.

6. Awful
Golf Digest’s Joel Beall with some seriously bad news…”On Saturday the University of Kentucky announced that sophomore golfer Cullan Brown has withdrawn from school for the upcoming year to begin immediate chemotherapy. Brown was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a rare type of bone cancer.”
  • “My family and I are immensely appreciative of the outpouring of kind words, well-wishes, love and prayers we have received in the last few weeks from family, friends and the Big Blue Nation,” Brown said in a statement. “It certainly will be a tough year, but nothing that can’t be handled thanks to the amazing support group I have behind me at all times. Even though I will not be with my team in person this year, I will be there in spirit every time they compete, which I have full faith they will continue to do with the upmost integrity, passion and excellence.”

Full piece.

7. “Sorry state of Scottish PGA”
Martin Dempster of The Scotsman…”The fading glory of the Scottish PGA Championship has been lamented by one former competitor while another has said it is no surprise in the current economic climate and believes players need to do their bit to breathe new life into the event.”
  • “This week’s PGA in Scotland event at Downfield is taking place without a title sponsor, and with 132 players effectively playing for their own money after each paying £120 to enter the Tartan Tour’s flagship event.”
  • “Paul O’Hara, one of the first-round pacesetters at the Dundee venue, said the grand old tournament “feels like a sweep” as a consequence, adding that many others in the field share his “disappointment” about the paltry prize fund.”

Full piece.

8. Open heart surgery for Fuzzy
Golf Digest’s Dave Shedloski...”They said it wasn’t going to kill me, so I said, ‘Well, if it isn’t going to kill me, I’ll see you all at the end of May,’ ” Zoeller said with a hearty laugh.
  • .…Doctors performed a triple bypass on the two-time major winner on June 17, which kind of sounds like a big deal. The timing of the procedure explains why Zoeller, the 1984 U.S. Open winner, was one of the few absentees for the champions’ reunion at Pebble Beach Golf Links prior to the 119th U.S. Open.
  • “It worked out pretty good,” Zoeller said by phone from his home in New Albany, Ind., still downplaying the procedure that included replacing one of his valves, the very operation that his hero, Arnold Palmer, was waiting to have when he passed away in 2016. “Yeah, they did the triple Lindy on me. Threw in a double-toe loop. But it’s all good now.”
9. Herman’s goodbye to his childhood home course
Golf Digest’s Joel Beall on the demise of Shawnee Lookout and Jim Herman-who grew up honing his skills on the track-playing his last round there.
  • “Out of the park district’s seven courses, Shawnee was the black sheep. Tipping out at 6,016 yards, the architects shoehorned 18 holes in a space for 14, yielding an eccentric routing. A lot of holes banked against, not with, the terrain. Laying up was futile, because there was no such thing as a flat lie. There was a z-shaped par 5 that required a 200-yard drive, a 200-yard second up a mountain, followed by a 130-yard (minimum) approach. One par 4 resembled a boomerang, with a landing area the size of a laptop. Another par 5 went 300 yards straight down a hill and 240 yards up another.”
  • “That could explain why Shawnee routinely had the fewest customers of the district’s properties. Due to the unmanageable terrain, its conditioning was volatile (usually good in the spring, a superfund site by the summer), and when paved paths were installed, the slopes were so sharp and serpentine that many a cart ended overturned. Power lines from the plant were omnipresent.”
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GolfWRX Editor-in-Chief

2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. Ray

    Sep 6, 2019 at 11:35 am

    Agree. Not that impressive at all

  2. Conor Mr. 69 Himself

    Sep 5, 2019 at 2:02 pm

    Brooks is not in very good shape compared to Phil Mickleson. Plus the photo’s are g a y as fook.

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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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