Monday Tour Mash is a recap of the weekend’s top-5 golf stories, as well as a few others that didn’t quite make the cut. 

Goodbye Back-Monkey, Furyk Wins RBC Heritage

We had grown accustomed to watching Jim Furyk find a way to not win tournaments over the past five years. From the U.S. Open at Olympic to the AT&T at Pebble Beach, Furyk was zero-for-nine when holding the third-round lead during that stretch. On Sunday, it seemed that upstart Kevin Kisner would find a way to continue the balding eagle’s run of bad fortune as he produced a 64 that featured birdies on three of the final five holes. Furyk proved to be made of stronger stuff, as he signed for a 63 of his own to enter a playoff.

After both protagonists birdied the 18^th hole, Furyk stuffed an iron to a dozen feet on the 17^th hole and caressed the birdie putt home for the title.

See the clubs Furyk used to win.

Kiradech Aphibarnrat Secures Shenzhen International

For a while, it seemed that writers at the Shenzhen International had penned a powerful script. 19-year old Chinese golfer Li Hao Tang unflappably nerved his way into a playoff with Thai golfer Kiradech Aphibarnrat at 12-under par. After eagling the 71^st hole to draw even, Aphibarnrat had an opportunity to win in regulation. After leaving a mid-range birdie putt on the edge of the 72^nd hole, the two golfers headed off to decide matters in extra holes. With the golfing aspirations of a nation at his back, Tang could only watch as Aphibarnrat stroked the identical, 18-feet putt from earlier into the first playoff hole, then leaned back and roared to the heavens as he secured his second European Tour title.

Sei Young Kim at Lotte Classic

You would think that Sei Young Kim might have flinched, coming down the final fairway of Hawaii’s Lotte Classic in a tie with multiple major winner Inbee Park. And flinch she did, crushing her drive through the fairway, into the water, then leaving her third shot in the fringe. Then, Kim did the unthinkable.

She pulled the flagstick and holed the chip to force a playoff with Park. Kim had good playoff karma, with her only previous LPGA Tour win coming in extra holes against Sun-Young Yoo and Ariya Jutarnagarn in the Bahammas. Whether it was the island vibe or the playoff panache, Sei Young Kim knocked an eight iron into the hole from 154 yards for an inconceivable eagle and a second tour title.

LSU Wins Men’s SEC Championship

Photo from @LSUMensGolf

Entering the conference championship on Georgia’s Sea Island, the Bayou Bengals of Baton Rouge owned the No. 7 ranking in the nation. Trouble was, Nos. 6 and 5 were conference rivals Vanderbilt and South Carolina, respectively. When the moss had settled on Sunday, the Tigers had finished 13-under for the week and were owners of a three-stroke win over Vandy and USC. Who knows what will happen to the national rankings now! Despite losing key seniors Curtis Thompson and Smylie Kaufman from its national semi-final team, LSU succeeded mightily in this springboard to NCAA regionals. Next up are the ACC and PAC-12 conference tournaments.

Cell phone policy at U.S. Open

The first U.S. Open I attended was the 2002 Bethpage victory by Tiger. While I waited in the security line at Jones Beach, I watched a dude stuff his cell phone in his hat, then place his hat on his head. He made it past the frisking gendarmes and I thought, good on you, mate. In 2015, if the dude makes his way to Chambers Bay, he won’t have to resort to such canny chicanery. The USGA announced last week that cell phones would be persona grata at the 2015 playing. The rules are similar to ones the PGA of America uses for its championship: free reign for photos during all practice rounds, usage only in cell-friendly zones (there will be four such on-course locales) over the four championship days. The #distancetweet will be out in full force in June in Tacoma.

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Missed The Cut

Olin Browne Is Mother Nature’s Chosen One

Not even Olin Browne would have liked his chances on Sunday. He had a one-stroke lead entering the final round of the Greater Gwinnett Championship. Trouble was, the fellow a shot in arrears endorses his winner’s checks as Bernhard Langer. Of course, if no one played any holes, Browne couldn’t lose any shots. And that’s the way it happened. In 2011, Browne was in the running at the Insperity Championship, the last Champion’s Tour event to have its final round cancelled. Learning what it felt like to lose an opportunity to victory then, Browne could certainly empathize with his pursuers. He’s not too keen on giving them a chance to wrestle the title away, mind you, so he’ll sneak out of Georgia with the trophy and check, thank you kindly.

Mini-Golf Murder?

Bones and Booth took a stab at the faux-golf circuit last week on FOX’s Bones. Seems the uber-competitive world of putt-putt took the stakes to a new level and … naahhh, I didn’t actually watch the episode. You can, if a dance with the devil between the windmill and the clown’s mouth is your idea of date night.