19th Hole
U.S. team questioned by media over their choice of HATS at Walker Cup presser

The ninth edition of the Walker Cup is set to begin this weekend at St. Andrews. The American team, who’s going for their fourth straight win, had their introductory press conferences on Thursday.
Oddly enough, the aspect of the press conference that’s created the most buzz was the hats that the American team were wearing. The hats had a “W” on them, and most people in the room were unsure of what they stood for.
A reporter kicked off the questioning with a remark about the hats immediately.
“We have to ask right away, are you representing Washington or Wisconsin or what are the W’s for on the hats?”
U.S. captain, Mike McCoy, answered the question.
“The Walker Cup.”
There was then a follow up question, “The next question is why is one W bigger than the other W?”
The number one ranked amateur in the world, Gordon Sargeant, answered that question.
“This one fits my head a little better, so I went with this one, [Nick Dunlap] liked that one. As long as they all have a W on them, we’ll be good.”
But that wasn’t all, towards the end of the press conference, another reporter brought the hats up once again.
“Mike, sorry to belabor the point about the hats, but Tiger Woods has educated us about the W means a win, I take it that’s not the case. Are those hats going to be the ones the boys will wear in the match?”
McCoy wasn’t sure of the answer.
“I don’t know. I don’t think so, but we may very well. I think they came about when President Bush, he attends the matches over in the U.S., and so I think the hats started also as kind of a tribute to him as well as the Walker Cup.”
When GB&I Captain was asked if he’d seen the hats, he said that he hadn’t.
“No, no, I actually haven’t seen the hats. I could think of a lot of W’s, help me out there.”
Both teams will be seeking a “W” this weekend at the Old Course.
More from the 19th Hole
- Korn Ferry Tour pro disqualified while warming up on the practice range
- ‘I know what people want to see’ – Ex-Golf Channel’s Holly Sonders on her new topless sports league
- ‘Is this serious?’ – Jon Rahm hilariously reacts to knee-lock golf swing from Barstool Sports’ Big Cat
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19th Hole
‘It was devastating’ – Keegan Bradley reveals the call he got that made him believe he was on Ryder Cup team

This week, Keegan Bradley was a guest on the Foreplay Podcast. The 37-year-old was one of the players who seemingly narrowly missed a spot on the Ryder Cup team, and shared a heart wrenching story of how it all went down.
Apparently, Zach Johnson texted all of the players in consideration for a Captain’s pick that they’d be getting a call the following day about whether or not they’ve made the team.
When the next day arrived, Keegan got a call from Netflix, who said “Keegan, we got a camera crew five minutes from your house.”
At that moment, Bradley let himself believe that meant he was going to be heading to Rome for the Ryder Cup.
“Why would they be sending a camera crew if I’m not to get picked? For the first time, I let my brain think I did it.”
He then said he knew immediately by the tone of Zach’s voice that he wasn’t going to be picked.
“It was devastating.”
When Netflix called, Keegan allowed himself to believe he was getting a Ryder Cup pick. And then, heartbreak.
Awesome show today. pic.twitter.com/SYW8c0X6cV
— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) September 21, 2023
You can catch the full episode here.
More from the 19th Hole
- Korn Ferry Tour pro disqualified while warming up on the practice range
- ‘I know what people want to see’ – Ex-Golf Channel’s Holly Sonders on her new topless sports league
- ‘Is this serious?’ – Jon Rahm hilariously reacts to knee-lock golf swing from Barstool Sports’ Big Cat
New here?
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19th Hole
Brooks Koepka explains why he understood the case for and against picking Dustin Johnson for the Ryder Cup

Brooks Koepka is the lone LIV golfer in next week’s Ryder Cup. This will be the 33-year-old’s fourth Ryder Cup, and second in Europe. In his three prior Ryder Cups, Koepka is 6-5-1 overall, including 2-0-1 in singles matches.
Koepka was extremely close to being an automatic qualifier but slipped out of the final spot during the FedEx Cup playoffs.
The five-time major champion spoke about his Ryder Cup preparation prior to this week’s LIV Chicago event, in which he will be taking a flight to Rome directly after.
“My whole mindset has been to practice for (the Ryder Cup) the last few weeks. I mean, look, I think it’s one of the top six, seven biggest sporting events you can have. It’s a little bit more eyeballs, a little bit more pressure.”
When asked if he “plays for legacy” now after all he’s accomplished, Koepka said “I think everybody remembers their record”.
“I think everybody remembers their record, or that’s kind of what you’re known by, wins, losses. Poulter has pretty much made a career on that. Yeah, I think you can.”
While speaking with Sports Illustrated this week, Brooks was asked about the fact that Dustin Johnson, who went 5-0 at Whistling Straits in 2021, was not chosen as a captains pick this time around.
“I get the case for DJ. He played great the last time, played great last year. Hasn’t really played that great this year … or hasn’t played to DJ’s standard. That’s a better way to put that. And he didn’t play well in the majors. So I can see why he didn’t get a pick. But if they had picked him, it’s DJ and I could see that one as well.”
Although there will be no other LIV players in Rome, Koepka said he’s not worried about who he plays with and can “play with anybody”.
“I can play with anybody, and I will play with anybody.”
It will be interesting to see who Koepka is paired with next week at Marco Simone.
More from the 19th Hole
- Korn Ferry Tour pro disqualified while warming up on the practice range
- ‘I know what people want to see’ – Ex-Golf Channel’s Holly Sonders on her new topless sports league
- ‘Is this serious?’ – Jon Rahm hilariously reacts to knee-lock golf swing from Barstool Sports’ Big Cat
New here?
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- WOW0
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19th Hole
Free agent Matt Fitzpatrick explains why he can’t play golf clubs made by these two manufacturers

The 2022 U.S. Open Champion, Matt Fitzpatrick, is currently an equipment free agent. He recently sat down with GolfMagic to discuss why he isn’t tied down with a manufacturer and what his outlook is going forward.
“I struggle with TaylorMade and Callaway clubs because of the way their woods and hybrids are designed. The soles aren’t very good for me so my interaction with the turf is terrible with those. Until that changes, I’d never be able to get on with them. PING and Titleist have always been a little bit better for me.”
With TaylorMade and Callaway off the table, Fitzpatrick is currently using Titleist TSi3 and is also experimenting with a Titleist TSR3.
According to the photos captured by GolfMagic, Fitz is still using his Bettinardi BB1 Fitz, but also has a different Bettinardi prototype he’s experimenting with in Rome.
With tight fairways at Marco Simone, the Englishman will be hoping that whichever driver he chooses keeps him in the fairway at next week’s Ryder Cup.
More from the 19th Hole
- Korn Ferry Tour pro disqualified while warming up on the practice range
- ‘I know what people want to see’ – Ex-Golf Channel’s Holly Sonders on her new topless sports league
- ‘Is this serious?’ – Jon Rahm hilariously reacts to knee-lock golf swing from Barstool Sports’ Big Cat
New here?
- LIKE12
- LEGIT6
- WOW3
- LOL3
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JM
Sep 21, 2023 at 2:46 pm
half of the hats have a “W” on them, but clearly the hat supplier ran out of “w”s because some of them are an upside down “M”. Looks like a botched up job by the kid that puts the messages up on the McDonalds sign.
Me
Sep 11, 2023 at 11:56 am
Anyone familiar with the Chicago Cubs? If not look up what the fly when they win.
H
Sep 4, 2023 at 3:44 am
Americans are so full of hate, racism and xenophobia and backwards thinking it’s still stuck in the 18th century lmao
Michael W. Carroll
Sep 1, 2023 at 7:13 pm
Pathetic – when you are representing the USA you wear apparel that indicates same vs this failure at copying the Puma label. This never should have been approved at all. Another tradition disrespected.
Tom
Sep 1, 2023 at 10:34 am
Liberal press trying to make something out of nothing… surprised they didn’t blame Trump
Jack
Sep 1, 2023 at 10:54 am
Liberal?
CV
Sep 2, 2023 at 7:37 am
Yes. Liberal.
Frank
Sep 1, 2023 at 9:50 am
Good Lord what morons is that the best you can come up with??
W
Sep 1, 2023 at 12:19 pm
No, W anker is what they were getting at, but you Yanks wouldn’t understand lol
Bob Jones
Sep 1, 2023 at 9:50 am
If you can’t think of anything else to write about, try to make something out of absolute nothing.
Richard
Sep 1, 2023 at 9:30 am
Pathetic press if that’s the best questions they can come up with
W
Sep 1, 2023 at 12:26 pm
You W ankers wouldn’t understand lol
Mark Felt
Sep 1, 2023 at 8:01 am
Great journalisming
The Truth Network
Sep 1, 2023 at 7:44 am
These Brits are idiots if all they can come up with are questions about the hats.
W
Sep 1, 2023 at 12:17 pm
W anker is what they meant, but you’re too thick to understand lol
Kurtis
Sep 3, 2023 at 3:10 pm
How many times are you going to post this LAME JOKE
The Truth Network
Sep 3, 2023 at 3:37 pm
If you see the ‘W’ and the first thing that you think of is W***er, then you are a simpleton. Brits are not very forward-thinking, this is why you lost the Revolutionary War. Enjoy your cold weather and tax system.
W
Sep 4, 2023 at 3:43 am
Americans are so backwards thinking with its deep down hate, racism and xenophobia in their hearts, it’s still stuck in the 18th century so much so it won’t let a woman be president lmao
The Truth Network
Sep 4, 2023 at 12:58 pm
How’d that Walker cup turn out for you you Wan**er?