News
Tour Rundown: A week of doubles
It was a week of doubles on the world’s professional golf tours, along with a first for the Auburn Tigers in the USGA Women’s Amateur. Playoff season began on the PGA Tour, while major championship season ended for the LPGA and LET. The Korn Ferry and Tour Champions marched on toward their fall conclusions, while the USGA crowned its top amateur in the women’s game. Congratulations to Megan Schofill, the first Auburn Tiger to claim the USGA Women’s Amateur title.
The information is out there; it’s up to us to collect, connect, and coordinate it all. We’ve done our due diligence and our best work, and are thrilled to present this week’s Tour Rundown for you.
An emotional family moment for @AleTostiOK. ?
No one in his family ever played golf, but that didn't them from supporting Tosti's golf dreams that sparked when he was six years old.
Today, he is the PGA TOUR's newest member with his family watching from back home in Argentina.… pic.twitter.com/Xk1AHDA4xZ
— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) August 13, 2023
LPGA/LET @ Women’s Open: Vu wins Walton Heath with stellar conclusion
Lilia Vu was a star on the USA side, at the 2018 Curtis Cup. She paid her dues over the next five years, then jumped on stage in February of 2023, with a victory at the LPGA Thailand event. Little did anyone know that she was merely revving the engine. Vu went to Houston in April, where she gritted out a win at the Chevron Championship, the year’s first major. Her playoff triumph was a step way up from a non-major win. This week at Walton Heath, Vu added a second major to her summer collection, closing 67-67 in Surrey to sideline home-country favorite Charley Hull by six.
Sunday was match play between Vu and Hull. The Englishwoman got off to a rough start, with two bogeys and zero birdies over her first ten holes. Vu saw the opening and posted three birdies against zero mistakes. In the space of 150 minutes, the match had gone from even to five shots up for the American. Hull gave the home fans a chance to roar with eagle at the eleventh, but Vu made birdie of her own to hush the gallery a bit. From the point on the play was a bit erratic. Each player made some bogeys and some birdies, but none of it figured in the end.
With the win, Vu became just about the only active player to have more major titles than regular ones. That should change, as ratio indicates that Vu will win with more frequency, at non-major stops. Currently, the California lass finds herself second in the Race to CME Globe championship. She’ll need another win or two to overtake Celine Boutier. With three wins thus far, four and five don’t seem like such a reach.
????? ?? with a grandstand finish @AIGWomensOpen ?#RaiseOurGame | #AIGWO pic.twitter.com/4SM5dpyAvb
— Ladies European Tour (@LETgolf) August 13, 2023
PGA Tour @ FedEx St. Jude: Glover keeps hot glove hand with playoff win
Right about now, we suspect that Zach Johnson is interviewing the top six golfers on the Ryder Cup USA side, asking them if they can partner Lucas Glover. The South Carolina native and Clemson alum has burst like a nova into the playoff and Ryder Cup races. Wins each of the past two weeks have brought him to 16th on the Ryder Cup points list, and 4th in the tour playoff race. He’s the man to beat as the tour heads west to Chicago and Olympia Fields, for stage two of the extra-season stretch. It’s worth a look at what he did, and how he did it.
Before last week’s win in Greensboro, Glover was not even a blip on the radar circle. His win moved him into the top 70, but he needed a solid finish in Memphis to keep his newly-found, top-fifty rating. He took care of that and more at TPC Southwind. Glover was in comfortable shape after round one, three shots back of Jordan Spieth’s 63. Round two saw the 2009 US Open champion move to the top of the board, one ahead of Spieth. Round three was more of the same, as Glover posted another 66, to preserve a one-shot lead over unheralded Taylor Moore. Moore would falter a bit in round four, but would earn a top-five finish and a spot in the remaining two, playoff events.
Back to Glover. Round four was not the walk in the mid-sixties that he needed. He played his first thirteen holes in one-under, thanks to a birdie and a dozen pars. 14 saw him wobble with bogey, but he gathered himself and posted birdie at 16, tor each 15-under par on the week. Ahead of him, certain Ryder Cup participant Patrick Cantlay had played flawless golf, to reach 64 on the day, and that same, fifteen-deep total. The pair returned to the 18th tee, where one shot determined the outcome. Glover found the fairway with his tee ball, while Cantlay leaned left and found the water. After a drop by Cantlay, each golfer reached the putting surface, some twenty feet from the hole. From there, it was two putts each, and a huge win for Glover.
Back on top.@Lucas_Glover_ birdies No. 16 to join the lead at 15-under @FedExChamp. pic.twitter.com/vRQKiIekxm
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 13, 2023
Korn Ferry Tour @ Pinnacle Bank: Tosti earns victory and PGA Tour card
When a golfer opens with 63 and closes with 62, an awful lot of bad has to be served at the drive-through window, for him to not figure in the outcome. That’s not Alejandro Tosti’s tale for his week in Omaha. The Argentine posted 29 for his first nine holes on Thursday, surviving a solitary bogey coming home, for 63. On Sunday, he went one better. Seven birdies and an eagle allowed him add up just 62 strokes, overtake third-round leader John VanDerLaan, win his first KFT event, and lock down a PGA Tour card for 2023-2024. That’s a big order.
VanDerLaan’s play over the final 18 holes bore little resemblance to the consistency he displayed over the prior 54. He totaled four bogies on the day, and was fortunate to hold on to a second-place tie with Max Greyserman, at 16-under par. As for Tosti, his rags-to-riches story closed another chapter and opened the next, with a glorious win in the heartland of America.
AN EAGLE HOLE OUT TO TAKE THE SOLO LEAD ?@AleTostiOK has two shot lead at 17-under with three left to play. pic.twitter.com/sBH7fSFVml
— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) August 13, 2023
PGA Tour Champions @ Boeing Classic: Ames aces exam with 63
We know that 63 usually doesn’t ace a classroom exam, unless everyone else scores 62 and lower. This was not school classroom, however, but there was much learning at the hands of the Trinidadian-turner-Canadian Ames. The tall, wavy-haired golfer put on a clinic on Sunday in Washington state. Despite eagle at the first and birdie at the sixth, Ames had not put much distance between himself and Miguel Ángel Jiménez. That all changed as the denouement of the tournament arrived.
Beginning at the 14th hole, with the outcome still in doubt, Ames tallied birdie-birdie-birdie-birdie, then capped his day with a closing eagle. He left Jiménez in the dust, although the Canarian claimed solo second by two shots, over K. J. Choi and Steven Alker. The win moved Ames into third position in the Charles Schwab Cup race, although he and the other will need a turbo boost to catch leader Steve Stricker. No matter, as the Vancouver native Ames will celebrate for a bit on his sixth Tour Champions victory, then recharge and begin the chase to catch Stricker.
'The closer'?????@StephenAmesPGA's incredible second shot from 224 yards out on the par-5 18th @BoeingClassic. https://t.co/GsMvae4c1C pic.twitter.com/1izF0tER2C
— PGA TOUR Champions (@ChampionsTour) August 14, 2023
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News
Five Things We Learned: Thursday at the PGA Championship
It was a year ago that we the north, found ourselves with toes and fingers crossed. The Oak Hill PGA Championship of 2023 finished on schedule, despite the iffiness of weather in upstate New York. It’s 75 degrees today across the Niagara Frontier, which makes it two out of three (2022 was the same way) for sultry, unseasonal weather.
Louisville is, let’s be honest, a much better bet for a May PGA Championship, and Valhalla is an exciting venue for the year’s second major championship on the men’s circuit. Brooks Koepka came in as the defending champion, and Rory McIlroy arrived as the last golfer to win a major at the Nicklaus-designed course. That was a decade ago, and lord, have things changed in the world and golf.
Day one at Valhalla offered walk-in eagles, buckets of birdies, and potential for a record-low, winner’s score. We’ll get right to the meat of the matter, with five things that we learned. After all, if you can make par from the muck, anything’s possible in the land of the horses.
Cam Smith made par from here …#PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/BY5ZFCiH45
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 16, 2024
1. X marks this spot
Xander Schauffele went head to head last Sunday with Rory McIlroy, at least on the practice green. By the end of the round, Rors had won for a fourth time at Charlotte, while the X Man sat scratching his head, wondering what went wrong. Fortunately for us, Xander didn’t sulk.
The San Diego State alumnus absolutely torched Jack’s track with 62. Four birdies on the front nine, were followed by five more on the inward side. Schauffele never looked as if bogey was a consideration, and he might have gone even lower. Despite winning the Covid-delayed Gold medal at the Japan Olympics (I consider it a major, btdubs) Schauffele continues to chase an initial men’s major, and the validation that it brings. If 62 doesn’t get you over the hump, who knows what will.
Cam Smith made par from here …#PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/BY5ZFCiH45
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 16, 2024
2. Scottie starts strong? Aye.
Last month, Mr. Scheffler won a second green jacket at Augusta National. Last year in Rochester, Mr. Scheffler tied for second in this event. Mr. Scheffler began play today with a walk-in eagle, a one-hop affair that never looked as if it might go anywhere but to its home. Scheffler had a few rough holes, but that’s to be expected from a new dad. Each time he made bogey, he bounced back with birdie, so he has that short memory that winners crave. Surprisingly, Scheffler failed to manage one last birdie at the reachable 18th. Perhaps that miss will motivate him in round two.
Scottie’s shot was so nice we had to see it twice ?#PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/eR1UUsyi3a
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 16, 2024
3. LIV Check-In
It’s good to check in on the departed from time to time, to ensure that the fellows formerly known as PGA Tour members are doing well. It’s safe to say that some of them can still play. Defending champion Brooks Koepka posted 67 on the day, He had an eagle and three birdies on the day, with only a stumble at the 17th. He’s tied for 7th. Bryson DeChambeau made an eagle of his own, but also had a bogey, at the 12th hole. He cohabits eleventh position with Cameron Smith, who ALSO had a bogey on his card. They are one shot behind Koepka, and a fistful more behind the leader.
ON THE MONEY ?
Bryson DeChambeau for eagle! #PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/Gz24VikAGQ
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 16, 2024
4. Sahith and Tony at Schauffele’s heels
Both Finau and Theegala represent a special sort of athletic golfer. Their power and their charisma blend to draw golf fans to their groups. Let’s be honest, too, and say that they don’t look like the traditional professional golfer. As much as Tiger Woods did in the 1990s, they have the power to bring greater diversity to the sport.
In terms of their play today, well, only Xander was better. Finau had a clean card, with six birdies and twelve pars. Theegala had seven birdies, ten pars, and one bogey. Each combined power and finesse to insert themselves squarely in contention, ahead of round two. How will they, and Xander as well, manage the afternoon putting surface on Friday? That’s the great unknown!
SAHITH. THEEGALA. ?
This hole out puts him in a tie for the lead early at the #PGAChamp.
? @PGAChampionship pic.twitter.com/s3vLZNBQI7
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) May 16, 2024
5. All those other guys are here!
Rory, Tom Kim, Collin, and Viktor are all at minus-three or lower. Valhalla may not be a traditional golf course, but it is the type of course that the world’s best play well. McIlroy currently sits at minus-five, tied with Robert MacIntyre, Kim, and three others in fourth position. Maverick McNealy finished fast to reach the same figure, as did Tom Hoge. Morikawa closed with birdie to join the sextet at five below. Both Scheffler and Morikawa finished their rounds late on Thursday, meaning they should see smoother greens on Friday morning. If someone is a betting sould, wiser wagers could not be placed on better names than those two, two-time, major champions. Rory will tee off in Friday’s afternoon wave but, hey, he’s Rory, and he won going away last week at Quail Hollow, a course not unlike Valhalla.
The 2020 PGA Champion is making moves.
A solid approach shot from Collin Morikawa ?#PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/DpD7QNfbSM
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 16, 2024
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Morning 9: Tiger 2025 Ryder Cup talks continue | Rory: Tour in a worse place with Dunne’s resignation
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Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2024 PGA Championship
GolfWRX is on site this week at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, for the PGA Championship.
While we see fewer equipment changes and new gear seeding at major championships, we get a look at custom gear and looks into the bags of players we rarely see, which is just as exciting. In the case of the PGA Championship, this means a look at the gear some of the PGA Professionals who qualified for the tournament will be gaming, and LIV players, such as Jon Rahm and Patrick Reed.
Check out links to all our albums from Valhalla below and check back throughout the week as we continue to update.
General Albums
WITB Albums
- Michael Block – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Patrick Reed – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Cam Smith – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Brooks Koepka – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Josh Speight – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Takumi Kanaya – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Kyle Mendoza – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Adrian Meronk – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Jordan Smith – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Jeremy Wells – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Jared Jones – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- John Somers – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Larkin Gross – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Tracy Phillips – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Jon Rahm – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Keita Nakajima – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Kazuma Kobori – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- David Puig – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Ryan Van Velzen – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Brad Marek – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Chris Gotterup – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Rich Beem WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Phil Mickelson – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Matt Dobyns – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Lucas Herbert – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Jason Dufner – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- John Daly – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Taylor Gooch – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Dean Burmester – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Joaquin Niemann – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Dustin Johnson – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
Pullout Albums
- Ping putter covers – 2024 PGA Championship
- Bettinardi covers – 2024 PGA Championship
- Cameron putter covers – 2024 PGA Championship
- Max Homa – Titleist 2 wood – 2024 PGA Championship
- Scotty Cameron experimental putter shaft by UST – 2024 PGA Championship
- Joaquin Niemann – new Ping putter – 2024 PGA Championship
- Brooks Koepka’s new Cameron putter – 2024 PGA Championship
- Rickie Fowler’s Cobra bag and Aerojet driver – 2024 PGA Championship
- Super Stroke grip – 2024 PGA Championship
- Tiger Woods – 2024 PGA Championship
- Michael Block’s new TaylorMade “Proto” 7-iron, from address – 2024 PGA Championship
- Odyssey putter covers – 2024 PGA Championship
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