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Tour Rundown: Solheim Cup, Tour Championship, KFT
Lots of twin things happened this week. Twins won on a tour in consecutive weeks for most likely the first time in recorded history. Twins rounds on the weekend proved to be the key for at least one winner. And the Korda sisters aren’t twins, but they represented the USA in the Solheim Cup. Maybe it’s a reach, but it’s early September and the story leads are thinning out. It’s Tour Rundown time again, so find your BFF, or your twin and read up together. #MoreFunWithFriends
Solheim Cup claims EGOT for best performance of the year
It figures that a course called Inverness would bring out the best in team professional golf competition. The recent restoration of the iconic Toledo club by Andrew Green set the stage for the performance of many lifetimes. Despite having three acts on the dais, no one expected an EGOT from this biennial event. And yet, the women of Europe and the USA gave us performances usually reserved for Emmy, Globe, Oscar, and Tony winners: they gave us their hearts, their soul, and their blood, sweat, and tears. What more could we ever hope to have, especially during these still-trying times?
After one day, the visitors from across the Atlantic let it be known that they would go quite noisily into the weekend. A 5.5 to 2.5 advantage told the host team that Saturday had better be different, or Sunday would be a formality of a singles competition. Rise to the occasion did the Red, White, and Blue. The home side won 4.5 of the 8 points on offer, and reduced the 3-point margin to a 2-point disadvantage. This, friends, is why singles are reserved for Sunday. Much like wrestling, you walk alone onto the mat, under the gaze of all in attendance, and have only yourself and your singlet. It is raw, it is forceful, and it is unforgettable.
The early portion of the day belonged to the blue of Europe. Three matches were won by Maguire, Sagstrom, and Boutier, while a fourth was halved. The old world stood two mere points from declaring one more piece of luggage on its return flight to the Union. At 4:30 EST, Nelly Korda held off Georgia Hall and notched the first point for the Red flag. At that same moment, it seemed, every other match went to all-square or red as well. Could a comeback take root?
It did, and it almost flowered. Meghan Kang had a six-up lead on Sophia Popov, and such a trouncing would send reverberations throughout the Inverness 18. Somehow, Popov dropped it to five, then four, then three. She ultimately lost by 3 & 2, but who is to say if her delaying the inevitable somehow allowed Matilda Castren to secure a 1-up win over Lizette Salas, and allowed Emily Pedersen to reach 3-up with three to play against Danielle Kang. Those two points made the difference, as Europe retained the Solheim Cup, and won for the first time on USA soil since 2013.
These team events were created to be exhibition matches, but they have (d)evolved into much more than that. They are a source of pride, and they hold their finish not for a moment, but for two entire years until the matches resume. Thus are explained the tears of Kupcho, Harigae, Popov, who suffered one-sided losses to their opponents. Thus is explained the exhaustion of Thompson and Nordqvist, who battled to a draw through 18 draining holes. And thus is explained the jubilation of a dozen women from Europe, who answered the call and realized the dream.
The Ryder Cup has been served notice: after the Curtis Cup and Solheim Cup competitions, the male professionals have much to live up to.
TEAM EUROPE retain the @TheSolheimCup ?????
What a special moment for @CastrenMatilda ?#TeamEurope | #SolheimCup pic.twitter.com/ji8OnEOcsZ
— Ladies European Tour (@LETgolf) September 6, 2021
PGA Tour’s Tour Championship belongs to the Cantlifornia Cid
There was an age when Patrick Cantlay was the next and great thing in American golf. That time has returned, and not a moment too soon. As Team USA prepares to move into Ryder Cup competition, its current darling (two-time major champion Collin Morikawa) is struggling, at the same time its sinew set feuds on. Along comes Patrick Cantlay, with a win last week over DeChambeau, and another this week over Spain’s Jon Rahm, to collect his first two, playoff titles, and his first-ever FedEx Cup.
In that yet-to-be-accepted format of starting the top players with an advantage, Cantlay posted just the fourth-best score on the week, and he was tied at that. However, given his bonus strokes as top horse in the race, his 269 was just enough to edge the U.S. Open titleist (Rahm) by one. Cantlay stood outside the top six who automatically qualify for Team USA, but he figured to be an automatic pick to all. With everything on the playoff line, the winner closed birdie-bogey-birdie to edge Rahm’s 72nd-hole birdie.
In an era of Twitter-this and Bluster-that, Cantlay’s demeanor is a contradictory throwback to an era when clubs did the talking. It’s a style befitting a spot on recent European teams, not the ones sporting RWB. Here’s hoping that his disposition and comportment rub off on his teammates and give us the Ryder Cup we all deserve.
361 yards ?@Patrick_Cantlay unleashed it all on the 18th tee. pic.twitter.com/Dq4HM8hJA6
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 5, 2021
Korn Ferry Tour Championship is a tale of highs and lows
Joseph Bramlett has battled his way around the tours for over a decade. Perhaps, only in his dreams did he expect to shoot 30 on the final nine of a Korn Ferry Tour Championship — including a five-birdie run — to clinch the tournament title and a return ticket to the PGA Tour. That’s precisely what happened on Sunday in Indiana. Bramlett stood on the 14th tee, on the heels of two consecutive birdies, precisely six shots in arrears of tournament-leading Trey Mullinax. Five holes later, the former Stanford golfer had made up six shots and earned a four-shot win over the former UAlabama star. Third place went to Christiaan Bezuidenhout of South Africa, one back of Mullinax at 15 deep.
Throughout the week, Trey Mullinax had held the spotlight. He opened with 63 over the water-laced Victoria National layout, and maintained first spot until the bittersweet end. At 14 and 15, his iron game betrayed him from perfect fairway lies. At 18, it was an errant driver that nearly cost him solo second. Despite the home-stretch troubles, Mullinax will join Bramlett next year on the PGA Tour. A win in his portfolio would have been nice, but the consolation prize will comfort almost as nicely.
Let’s remember that the gilded story of the week was the performance of Mr. Bramlett. He has visited the PGA Tour before, and here’s a raised glass to his taking up longer residence this time around.
7-under thru 14!
Joseph Bramlett pulls within one of lead @TourChampULF as he aims to cement spot in The Finals 25. pic.twitter.com/3ImTDrFbuj
— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) September 4, 2021
European Tour Italian Open: Twins win in back-to-back weeks
Just two of the top eight failed to break par each day at Marco Simone near Rome. One of the two, Masahiro Kawamura of Japan, finished in a tie for fifth. The other, Nikolai Hjøgaard, won by a single shot. And he did so on the 72nd hole. And he is the twin of last week’s winner, Rasmus Hjøgaard. That’s pretty exciting, huh?
For the second time in his European Tour career, Adrian Meronk had a chance at victory. Unlike the 2020 Dunhill, when he gave up a final-round lead, Poland’s top golfer stood tied with Nikolai Hjøgaard as the Dane played the final hole. Meronk had posted a sparkling 66 on Sunday, highlighted by an eagle-birdie-birdie, back-nine stretch. His closing run of five pars proved to be precisely what undid his challenge. Nikolai Hjøgaard was brilliant for three days, then held on for dear life over the course of the final round. Faced with the prospect of an initial tour title, each bogey was countered by birdie, and vice-versa. At the closing par five, he zipped a wedge approach to about 30 inches and converted the putt for four and a one-shot win over Meronk and Tommy Fleetwood, who had also made birdie to reach minus-twelve.
Nicolai Højgaard's winning highlights ?#DSOpendItalia pic.twitter.com/2A4nujPYhi
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) September 5, 2021
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Tour Rundown: Malnati’s 2nd, Korda rebounds
March has brought out the lion as the month draws to a close. An early spring fortnight brought dreams of golf for the northern states until Mother Nature shrieked a veil of snow across those emerald fairways. Fortunately for golf, the sun shined bright and warm across a fair part of the links landscape, and events in Singapore, the Yucatan, California, and Florida, went off as planned. We hold our breath when champion golfers rise to the occasion in grand slam events. For the Malnatis, Feaglers, and Svenssons of the golfverse, every week is a major opportunity. In honor of their efforts, let’s begin this week’s Tour Rundown with a flying beast seen rarely outside the southern oceans: the albatross
ALBATROSS FOR @ROBBY_SHELTON!
Are you kidding?! ? pic.twitter.com/UzNOQQHkqo
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 24, 2024
PGA Tour @ Valspar: Malnati earns second tour title
Keith Mitchell played 54 great holes from Thursday to Saturday in Florida and played two more great ones on Sunday. It was the eight rotten holes on day four that cost him nine shots and dropped him from first to 17th in one round. Mitchell looked like a man poised to collect his first tour title, until his Sunday malaise. His struggles cleared the way for a number of challengers to move up the board. The tournament was won at 12-under par, but eight players finished within four shots of that lead.
Four shots are not a lot to make up on the Copperhead golf course at Innisbrook. Adam Hadwin, Carly Yuan, Xander Schauffele, and Ryan Moore finished on 276 strokes, four back fo the leader and tied for fifth. Mackenzie Hughes and Chandler Phillips finished one shot lower, at 275 strokes, in a tie for third spot. The runner-up spot was claimed by Cameron Young, perhaps the most talented player on tour without a win. Young was spectacular all week, never leaving the 60s.
Late in the round, Peter Malnati posted his fifth birdie of the day, at the difficult 17th. His tee ball from 200 yards settled six feet from the hole, and he guided the putt home. Ahead of him, on the uphill 18th, Young flew his drive far left but was able to loft an approach onto the green. His first putt, from 50-ish feet, came up woefully short and his attempt to save par was wide of its mark. Despite a drive into the left fairway bunker at the last, Malnati was able to recover to the green in two and coax a 25-feet approach put to tap in range. The victory was Malnati’s first since 2015, and his second overall.
Another birdie for @PeterMalnati ?
He holes the solo lead with one to play @ValsparChamp. pic.twitter.com/plqKr3dvm1
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 24, 2024
LPGA @ Se Ri Pak Championship: Korda rebounds for overtime win
During the first week of March Madness, maddening things happened on and off the hardwood. For Nelly Korda, the eagle she collected with five holes to play, should have given her momentum and confidence. Instead, it took her in the opposite direction. She found bogies at 15, 17, and 18, and it was only a saving birdie at the 16th that allowed her entry into a playoff with Ryann O’Toole. The pair returned to the 18th tee, and Korda once again managed to reverse fortune.
After the eagle, Korda strode at 11-under par, while her closest pursuers were a solid handful behind. At that juncture, O’Toole snared birdies at 15 and 16, and closed with pars at 17 and 18. She waited 45 minutes for Korda to finish, certainly uncertain as to her chances for more golf. In the playoff, both golfers hit stellar approach shots to the home green, with Korda about four feet inside O’Toole. The UCLA alumna missed her run at birdie, but Korda’s aim was true. The victory was her 10th on tour and her second of the 2024 campaign.
Two gorgeous approaches from @RyannOToole and @NellyKorda ?
This is gonna be a close one! pic.twitter.com/tKIZyRNxZd
— LPGA (@LPGA) March 24, 2024
DP World Tour @ Singapore Classic: That’s Svensson with three S’s
Svenson and its variations must be somewhat similar to the name Smith across the English-speaking world. Your father was a guy named Sven, so they didn’t think too long before giving you a last name. Jesper Svensson must be relieved: coming from a long line of Svens (hence the double S in the middle) his parents strayed from the norm and went all in on Jesper. This week in Singapore (which might be renamed Ssingapore for a bit) Jesper, son of Svenss, took down a guy that the golf world was all in on, just a decade ago.
Kiradech Aphibarnrat has a fun name to pronunce, at least for filologists. Back in the 2010s, he was a rising star, bound for glory. He collected four wins on the DP World Tour, from 2015 to 2018. Then, inexplicably, he went away. The Thai golfer made his return to our collective view in 2024 and came within a whisper of collectin win number five on Europe’s tour. Aphibarnrat opened and closed the event with rounds of 64, and normally, those fireworks would have sufficed to ice the trophy. Then came a guy named Jesper, son of Svenss.
Despite three bogies on his Sunday card, Svensson amassed eight birdies and two eagles and posted 63. This indiscrete round was enough to earn him a spot in a playoff with Aphibarnrat. The duo returned thrice to the 18th tee, and things appeared to worsen with each voyage. After having the hole with birdies in trip one, the pair managed pars in trip two, then a par and bogey in trip three. Just like that, the tournament had reached a conclusion, and Jesper Svensson the golfer will now threaten Jesper Svensson the bowler’s hold on Wiki searches. Enjoy one of his approach shots for eagle during round four.
A shot worthy of any champion ??#PorscheSingaporeClassicpic.twitter.com/apNudYeFkl
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) March 24, 2024
Korn Ferry Tour @ Bupa: Feagler stands tall after playoff
The KFT event along the Mexican Riviera began day four in the hands of an Argentine golfer. Nelson Ledesma appeared worthy of the title, until he endured a thousand small cuts, on his way to a closing 81. He dropped from 1st to 31st and didn’t just open the door for his chasers. He took out two or three walls and exposed the entire barn for all to enter.
The PGA Riviera Maya course played a stout, 7200 yards this week, and its defenses were apparent for all who came to compete. The week’s low round of 65 came on Thursday, and was redeemed by Jesus Montenegro, He soared ten shots higher on day two but would steady himself enough to finish in a seventh-place tie. With 66 on Thursday, Davis Shore found himself in contention, and he would remain until closing time. As the challenges increased, scores headed north and rounds of 76 and 74 would ultimately be found on the scorecards of the men who tied at the top.
Shore posted a 76 on day three, while Clay Feagler signed for a 74. On Sunday, as Ledesma was tumbling, both Shore and Feagler marched toward a 4-under-par total. They edged past Julian Etulain and tied for the pole position. Off to extra time they went, but three trips over the 436-yard 18th resolved nothing. Each golfer posted par-bogey-par, and the playoff moved to the 10th tee for its conclusion. There, Feagler made another bogey, but Shore went one worse. Unable to avoid double bogey, Davis Shore was relegated to runner-up status, and Clay Feagler collected a shield for his first Korn Ferry Tour title.
PGA Tour Champions @ Hoag Classic: Six seniors for Padraig
If any man could ever match Bernhard Langer’s 46 wins on Tour Champions, he would certainly have many of the characteristics of Padraig Harrington. The reason he won’t is his heavy investment in a wider reach of golf. Harrington captained the European Ryder Cup side in 2021, a venture that consumes close to two years of a golfer’s attention. After turning 50, Harrington continued to play the PGA Tour, mixing in Tour Champions appearances when time allowed. The Irish golfer has also become a YouTube favorite, offering advice and wisdom to those who wish to improve at the game. In other words, he lacks Langer’s laser focus on one task: winning titles.
That’s quite all right because when Padraig Harrington is on his game, wins come his way. They are rarely runaway victories, and this enhances his reputation for performing at the wire. This week in California, Harrington managed to close out Thongchai Jaidee in a most un-Harrington-esque manner. The lad from Dublin closed birdie-double-birdie-birdie, and this was enough to hold off the champion from Thailand by one.
The double at 16 was Harrington’s second of the day. A pair of doubles is welcome in no poker hand, yet Harrington found a way to overcome. The win was his sixth on Tour Champions. With a pair of playoff losses on the senior circuit, Harrington was fortunate to conclude matters in regulation time.
Paddy is clutch!@Padraig_H bounces back from a double bogey on 16 with a birdie on 17 to tie the lead @HoagClassic ? pic.twitter.com/pYaIamtSN8
— PGA TOUR Champions (@ChampionsTour) March 24, 2024
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