News

Morning 9: Is Pebble beach really a “public” course?

Published

6 years ago

Sep 30, 2020

1. Is Pebble beach really a “public” course?

Will Bardwell for his Lying Four blog on the “public” element of the famed plausibly public track…“More importantly, though, is the indisputable fact that Pebble Beach is “public” on technicality alone. In 1982, when Pebble Beach hosted its second U.S. Open, the greens fee was $70 (about $188 in 2020 dollars, when adjusted for inflation). Today, Pebble’s greens fee has soared to a gargantuan $575 – and that doesn’t include the $45 cart fee, or the $95 caddie fee, or the caddie’s gratuity. And unless the player stays overnight at the resort (a two-night stay and play package starts at nearly $2,800), tee times cannot be made more than 24 hours in advance. Pebble Beach is a bucket-list destination – but that’s because few golfers are able to afford the experience more than once, if that.”

“…it is public in name only, and nevertheless is rewarded year after year as the model toward which every public course should strive. If there’s no disincentive for Pebble to make itself more accessible, then why should Sawgrass or any other high-end destination?”

“And ultimately, it’s Pebble’s failure to embody the best – indeed, the most important – qualities of public golf that cries out for its demotion. Any course that deserves to be called the best of American public golf should offer public golfers the best the game has to offer: an inviting environment, creative architecture, and realistic greens fees. On that, Pebble fails…”

Full piece.

2. NGF: Golf participation is booming as coronavirus lingers

Golfweek’s Jason Lusk…“The National Golf Foundation and Golf Datatech released a report last week that said rounds played in August in the U.S. were up 20.6 percent over 2019. That was roughly 10 million more rounds played in August 2020 than in August 2019. The report said that was the largest year-over-year monthly increase since Golf Datatech began tracking rounds two decades ago.”

“All that comes on the heels of year-over-year increases of 19.7 percent in July, 13.9 percent in June and 6.2 percent in May. That was after more than half the courses in the U.S. were shut down in parts of March and April because of the pandemic or seasonality – rounds played in April 2020 were down 42.2 percent versus April 2019.”

Full piece.

3. Renee Powell to lead US side at Junior Solheim

Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols…“Renee Powell set to lead Team USA at Junior Solheim Cup; Annika Sorenstam will captain EuropePowell forged her own trail as well, captaining both the Ohio and Ohio State University golf teams. She fought through racial prejudice, even death threats, as the second Black player to compete on the LPGA. After retiring from the tour, Powell continued to grow the game as an ambassador, traveling to Africa more than two dozen times.”

Full piece.

4. Johnny’s love/hate

I LOVE that golf equipment is getting better and better as each year passes by. As I get older and the muscles get tighter, it’s nice to know that with a quick tweak or a new setup I can leap back 15-20 years and still play like I used to. Technology as a whole has been so good to this game. It started with the Pro V1, and we stand here today with kids coming up at 200 mph ball speed, what a world.

I HATE how obsessed we are with distance over lower scores. The blame is on all of us, but I’m dying for an OEM marketing campaign centered around Golf IQ, and not all ball speeds and launch. The whole point to any of this is getting the ball in the whole faster and more consistently. How we hit it should be secondary to how we play. Simple as that.

5. Southern courses distancing from Confederate associations

Tom Cunneff for Golf Digest…“The tragic killing of George Floyd caused a lot of people in our country to rethink things, and certainly our situation was no different,” says Mike Gonzalez [Secession Golf Club], the club’s president who, unlike the majority of members, lives in South Carolina. “So, I invited our members to weigh in, and it was clear we needed to do something [to separate themselves], particularly anything that could be deemed to be connected in any way to the Confederate cause, which is certainly nothing we could support. I didn’t want to take any chance that we could be perceived to be something we’re not, because Secession is a very welcoming and inclusive club.”

“Changing the name was also considered, but after speaking with many of the 900 members, including all African-Americans members (the club wouldn’t divulge how many there are), Gonzalez concluded that that step wasn’t necessary because the name is meant to acknowledge the broader history of the area, not the act itself. He cites the fact that the Reconstruction Era that enfranchised African Americans, at least for a while, began in Beaufort in 1861 after the Union Army overtook the Lowcountry following its decisive amphibious assault at the Battle of Port Royal. The white plantation owners fled while more than 10,000 enslaved people, about one-third of the enslaved population at the time, stayed and became free.”

“Also being questioned this year are the handful of clubs named after Confederate generals…”

Full piece.

6. Rory works out? Who knew?

Golf.com’s Luke Kerr-Dineen…“Rory’s issue early in his career is that he was very flexible but didn’t have much strength. And while we often regard lots of flexibility as a good thing, it’s a double-edged sword. You don’t have enough strength to manage that flexibility, your golf swing can veer out of control and create stress in different parts of your body.”

“I wanted to get stronger and build up a little bit of robustness in my body,” he said. “Honestly, make myself a little less flexible, a little stiffer, that was one of the reasons. I had so much movement in my hips and in the lower part of my spine that there was not enough stability to protect the joints and the discs and the vertebrae.”

Full piece.

7. Inside the Ryder Cup postponement

CNN’s Sandy Thin… “At that stage we started making all sorts of alternative options, what we’d do with picking the team, how we get in the right amount of play, and just making all different scenarios for selection, qualification, picks, timings, all that.” But as the pandemic spread and the early optimism over fans returning to the grandstands faded, hope quickly diminished and in July, the decision was announced that Whistling Straits — the Wisconsin course hosting the event — would have to wait another year, as the Ryder Cup was postponed until September 2021.”

Full piece.

8. Best Driver 2020 2.0

If you haven’t checked out our update to Best Driver of 2020 and/or need additional clarity for your driving buying decision-or merely want to see what some of the best fitters in golf have to say about the best big stick based on your swing speed, check out the fall edition of the Best Driver.

Full piece.

9. “I could watch golf until the cows come home’: Ballymena farmer becomes an online hit with the hottest seat at the Irish Open

If you haven’t seen the photos from last week’s Irish Open, moo-ve down the page to have a look.

See the full piece for a talk with the farmer.

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