News

Five Things We Learned Saturday at the PGA Championship

Published

4 years ago

May 22, 2022

It’s hard to say whether the weather outsmarted the grounds crew, but after the low rounds of Friday, something gave. Were the greens a bit slicker? Were the hole locations more wily? After those low 60s numbers on day two, the only way to earn one on day three was to skip the last hole or two. We learned oh so much on day three at the 2022 PGA Championship. We’ll wittle it down to five facts, but we should love to share more thoughts with you. Perhaps at a later date, we will reconvene. For now, have a look at our handsome handful of honoraria for hours 48-72 at Southern Hills.

What a birdie sequence by Shaun Norris!#PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/B4sNIKR19t

— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 21, 2022

5. Is half a Tiger better than …

A 79? Probably, but that’s what our favorite cat had to accept on Saturday. After reaching ten over par on the day through 13 holes, the spirits of the fairway conceded one birdie to keep him out of the 80s. Tiger hadn’t seen the 80s since he turned 14 in 1989. This was a dispirited performance, one that reminded us of just how injured he was in 2021, and how lame his leg still is. Around 7:30 pm, it was announced that Woods had withdrawn from the tournament.

Tiger starts his weekend in Southern Hills.@TigerWoods | #PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/wE4yT9iXjK

— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 21, 2022

4. Hey, Roomie!

Turns out that second-round leader Will Zalatoris and well-bearded Cameron Young were roomies at Wake Forest not so long ago. Zalatoris struggled on Saturday, but balanced the ship with birdie at 17. He finished at +3 on the day, six under on the week. Young posted his second consecutive 67 to reach five-under through three rounds. The former teammates will tee off in the penultimate pairing on Sunday. Neither has been able to secure a PGA Tour win to date, despite a number of close calls. Perhaps one will make his first victory a major. Two chances are better than one.

Count it. ?

That's an eagle for Cameron Young, now one back of the lead ?#PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/W7MZlwS9Gh

— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 21, 2022

3. Matt, not Matthew

Matt Fitzpatrick was pegged as a favorite at Brookline for next month’s US Open, thanks to his 2013 victory in the US Amateur at the revered layout. The youngish Englishman might secure his first major title in advance of that event. Fitzpatrick overcame a pair of opening bogeys with six birdies on the day. ~~Shaken, not stirred~~ Matt, not Matthew, will match wits with Mito Pereira over the final 18 holes, but there’s no guarantee that either will leave Tulsa with the Wannamaker trophy. This one will be a western shootout.

Four birdies on the back nine in Round 3 helped propel Matt Fitzpatrick up the #PGAChamp leaderboard. @rolex pic.twitter.com/fRufYhOfdK

— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 21, 2022

2. Guillermito Pereira is your 54-hole leader

Little Guillermo, or Guillermito, is often abbreviated to Mito. Thus was born a nickname with staying power, so many years ago in Santiago, Chile. Pereira notched birdie on two of his first five holes, precisely when Zalatoris was strugglin, and seized the lead at 10-under par. In three blinks of an eye, the man from Thin Land posted bogey-bogey-bogey at the turn, to drop to seven-deep. After a fourth bogey, at the 12th, Pereira closed with birdies at 13, 14, and 18 to post a score in the 60s for a third consecutive day. His lead is two strokes over Fitzpatrick, and he’ll breathe rarefied air on Sunday.

Strong finish for Mito Pereira, the solo leader at (-9).#PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/sEguWZ8bq8

— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 21, 2022

1. ¿Quién ganará el torneo mañana?

Será un hispanoparlante, aunque de México, y no de Chile. All right, enough showing off. Your winner of the 2022 PGA Championship will be Double A, or A Squared, aka Abraham Ancer. The young Mexican and Gael García Bernal lookalike will overtake the four golfers in front of him, and will emerge victorious in a playoff. The crystal ball clouded up when we tried to determine the identity of the playoff unfortunate, so we’ll take a gamble and say Bubba Watson loses the playoff. #SmoothWithIt

Smooth with it, @Abraham_Ancer. ? pic.twitter.com/Gw0WUO1rT6

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 9, 2021

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