News

GolfWRX Morning 9: USGA nixes Bryson’s compass | Mid-season awards | What Tiger needs to tune

Published

8 years ago

Jul 6, 2018

Good morning, GolfWRX members. As most of you are signed up for our newsletters, you likely already know that I’ve been sending this little Morning 9 roundup of nine items of note.

In case you’ve missed it, or you prefer to read on site rather than in your email, we’re including it here. Check out today’s Morning 9 below.

If you’re not signed up for our newsletters, you can subscribe here.

By Ben Alberstadt ([email protected])

July 6, 2018

Good Friday morning, golf fans. I don’t know if it’s brutal or better when the lords of time and space put a holiday in the middle of the week, but here we are, having made it to the end of it.

1. Sorry, Bryson, no compass for you

Read it and weep, fans of drafting instruments. “The USGA has ruled that the use of a protractor (also known as a drawing compass) during a stipulated round is a violation of Rule 14-3a of the Rules of Golf,” read a statement from the governing body. “It is considered ‘unusual equipment that might assist him in making a stroke or in his play.'”

Golf Digest’s Joel Beall writes: “John Bodenhamer, USGA senior managing director of rules, competitions and equipment standards, told Golf Digest that he had a 45-minute conversation with DeChambeau on July 3 explaining the association’s decision-making process regarding the use of the compass. In the end, Bodenhamer said, it was determined that the compass had the potential to “compromise a player’s skill and judgement.”

“With some of these sorts of devices, it can be difficult lines to draw on what’s permissible and what is not permissible,” Bodenhamer said. “But here, we drew the line there with Rule 14-3 [that the compass did not conform].”

2. A 61 in his Webb

…sometimes, you just want to fire off an awful pun, right? No? OK. Well, Webb Simpson fired a 9-under-par 61 for a one-stroke lead over Whee Kim at A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier.

He needed birdies on the par-5 17th and the par-3 18th for a 59, but parred both holes.

“I knew a 59 was in there, but it’s all right,” Simpson said. “Great start. Scores were good though, so you’ve got to keep the pedal down.”

…and on the LPGA Tour, Australia’s Katherine Kirk went lower but scored higher. Kirk carded a 10-under 62 to open the Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic.

3. Latest Tiger ratings boost

With respect to PGA Tour viewership, the Tiger Woods Effect remains in effect. Not that this should be surprising at this point, but it’s always interesting to see the numbers.

Sports Media Watch reported 3.6 million people tuned in for the final round of the Quicken Loans National on CBS, a 2.3 rating. That’s an increase of 92 percent in ratings and 89 percent in viewership over last year.

Impressively, in the 20 rounds Woods has played on broadcast television, every round but one yielded an increase in both viewership and ratings (the lone exception: the tape-delayed final round of the Memorial).

4. Meanwhile, at Ballyliffin…

Dubai Duty Free Irish Open. What a name. A quick check on the action at Ballyliffin, c/o EuropeanTour.com.

“Joakim Lagergren, Peter Uihlein and Danny Willett all made early moves up the leaderboard as day two of the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open hosted by the Rory Foundation got under way.

“Ballyliffin Golf Club was making its Irish Open debut at the fourth Rolex Series event of the season and while conditions were more overcast than they had been on day one, the northern coast of Ireland was still providing a stunning backdrop for links golf.”

“Swede Lagergren, American Uihlein and England’s Willett all picked up shots on the front nine to join overnight leader Ryan Fox at five under, a shot clear of fellow morning starters Dean Burmester, Russell Knox and Lee Westwood.”

Host Rory McIlroy was 2 under for the tournament through 10 holes at the time of this writing, three strokes back.

5. Mickleson gives Larry Fitzgerald a chipping masterclass

11-time NFL Pro Bowler Larry Fitzgerald was partnered with Phil Mickelson during Wednesday’s pro-am.

The Golf Channel’s Chantel McCabe caught Phil giving a 300-level tutorial on chipping to the famed wideout.

McCabe’s videos here.

6. Jack’s Shinnecock solution

In his most recent 19th Hole podcast, Michael Williams asked Jack Nicklaus for his thoughts on U.S. Open setups in general and what transpired at Shinnecock in particular.

“Now, did they set up Shinnecock poorly? No. I don’t think they set it up poorly at all. I think Mike Davis did a pretty darn good job of it. I just think that because course conditioning has changed so much, and they have courses just on the edge…the setup lends itself-you saw scores on Saturday and Sunday in the mid 60s in the morning and the mid 70s in the afternoon…I don’t think they really wanted that.”

“I think if you back to Shinnecock again, I think the wise thing would be to redo the greens…not change them…but there’s nothing under those greens other than what nature had there….but with the way they do things today, that lends itself to not being able to be controlled. And they could redo those greens exactly as they are now and control the moisture level on those greens, then the setup that they had would work fine, and work fine in the morning and the afternoon.”

Listen to the pod here.

7. Shane Ryan’s awards

“Slaying the Tiger” author Shane Ryan is back for another round of partially tongue-in-cheek awards.

The “Comeback Player of the Year, Star Division” Award…This goes to Bubba Watson, and it’s not a hard call. Bubba had his worst year in more than a decade in 2017, and judging by his age (39) and his seeming level of disinterest and frustration, smart money banked on him spending the bulk of 2018 behind the counter of his candy store in Pensacola ordering Ted Scott to re-stock the Sour Patch kids. Instead, Watson beat his ennui and the medical issues that cost him 20 pounds, and came back to win at Riviera, the WGC-Match Play and the Travelers. That’s three wins (and counting?), the highest total of his career. All this on the doorstep of his 40th birthday, and a year spent wondering if he’d ever win again. Not bad!

The Rory McIlroy “Existential Crisis That We Would Really Like to See Resolved Very Soon” Award…Please come back, Jordan Spieth. To quote Harry Nilsson, I can’t live if living is without you.

The rest of the awards here.

8. How about Joaquin Niemann?

Let’s take a moment and appreciate how good has this guy been.

Niemann, 19, (19!) had his lowest score in nine PGA Tour starts this season. His boom-or-bust pattern has been incredible: three top-10 finishes, four missed cuts.

The young Chilean played the Greenbrier a year ago as an amateur, shot 64 in the final round and tied for 29th place. He fired a 7 under in Thursday’s opening round.

“I’m one of the youngest out here so I feel like I’ve got nothing to lose,” Niemann said. “My game was feeling really good and my putter was good. So all my game was good today.”

It’s as easy as that.

9. What Tiger needs to tune for Carnoustie

Perspective from Bob Harig, because two weeks out is high time to discuss TW’s prospects at the season’s third major. But really, with Woods done competing until Carnoustie, it’s time for the speculation to begin.

“Carnoustie? It has caused its share of fits to all in the two times Woods has played The Open there, and Woods was not exempt. He tied for seventh in 1999 and for 12th in 2007. He was not a final-round contender at either tournament.

What Woods said he’s working on: “”Basically, just trying to get efficient hitting the golf ball both ways and then getting comfortable hitting the ball down,” Woods said of what he has to do to prepare. “Carnoustie is an unbelievable driving golf course. You have to drive the ball well there, but also not your traditional in-out [links] golf course. It’s a lot of different angles, so a lot of different crosswinds. I have to be able to maneuver the golf ball both ways there efficiently. You just have to hit the golf ball well there.”

Harig on Woods’ putting: “This has been the big subject of late. Woods made the decision at the Quicken Loans National to put his trusted Scotty Cameron on the shelf in favor of a TaylorMade mallet-like putter that he says feels better to him at the moment. He all but confirmed he’ll be using it at The Open. He said the grooves on the face help get the ball moving a bit faster, a common problem for him on slower greens.”

“At TPC Potomac during the Quicken Loans National, the results were mixed. He was seventh in the field in strokes gained putting, a nice improvement from his struggles of late. That was mostly due to him making a good number of longer-range putts, an important factor that had gone missing. But he had some head-scratching misses as well, making just 9 of 16 putts from 4 to 8 feet and missing 13 for the week inside of 10 feet.”

News

Tour Tech Rundown: Heroic Henley

Published

9 hours 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

Driver: Ping 440 LST
Metal: Ping G440 Max at 15 degrees
Metal: Ping G425 Max at 21 degrees
Hybrid: Ping G430 at 25 degrees
Irons: Ping Blueprint S 5 through PW
Wedges: Ping S159 at 52, 56, and 60 degrees
Putter: Ping PLD Anser

News

Russell Henley’s winning WITB: 2026 Charles Schwab Challenge

Published

23 hours ago

May 31, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

Driver: Titleist TSi3 (10 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 70 6.5 TX

3-wood: Titleist TS3 (16.5 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80 TX

7-wood: Titleist GTS3 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Project X Denali Black 80 TX

Irons: Titleist T250 (4), Titleist T100 (5-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold AMT (4-6), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 (7-9)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 (48-10F @47, 50-08F @51, 54-10S @55, 60-04T)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (48), S400 (47)

Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom X5 Tour Prototype

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

News

Charles Schwab Challenge Tour Report: MacIntyre, Åberg and Spaun all switch putters, TaylorMade launches new Spider

Published

3 days ago

May 29, 2026

Alistair Cameron

There must be something in the water. Or potentially on the greens. A whole host of big-time players decided that the Charles Schwab Challenge was the perfect place to test out new putters.

With the 2026 U.S. Open just around the corner, defending champion J.J. Spaun made a surprising switch away from his center-shafted Df3 and into L.A.B. Golf’s OZ.1i HS – the heel-shafted mallet putter.

“Just something I kind of wanted to change the way the putter was looking, just a completely different look than the DF3 that I’ve been using for the last year and a half,” Spaun told GolfWRX about the swap. “So it’s just easier to line up for me with less onset looking design, and it’s just something I felt like switching it up and seeing how it goes.”

You can find more about the putter and the reasoning behind Spaun’s change here.

Robert MacIntyre also decided to change the flatstick at Colonial Country Club. He’s using a custom Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5R. The Scotty team created a specially-milled face featuring horizontal grooves and shortened the plumber’s neck to increase toe hang.

Another custom feature of the build is the welded wings added to the rear of the putter, similar to those found on the Phantom 11 head.

It’s potentially part of a major overhaul to his bag. The Scot has recently switched from the Titleist Pro V1 to the Pro V1x golf ball, added the new GTS2 driver, and is currently testing a GTS 3-wood that could replace his ancient TaylorMade AeroBurner 3-wood.

Ludvig Åberg joined the trio of superstars making alterations on the greens. He’s added a Scotty Cameron Phantom 3.2.

It’s not Åberg’s first putter switch of the season. He had been using different versions of his usual Odyssey Versa #1 head to try to get better speed control on the greens.

? Ludvig Åberg is using a new putter! He’s playing a @ScottyCameron Phantom 3 head. First major putter switch, although he has been changing loft and heads in the Odyssey #1 style this season.
Here’s a Phantom 3 built for him earlier in the season https://t.co/oGrNk6p0hz pic.twitter.com/edRbpk22m4

— Alistair Cameron (@ACameronWRX) May 28, 2026

Currently, a Tour-only offering, the Phantom 3 head is a half-moon mallet shape. Like the previous version that GolfWRX captured at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, which Åberg never put in play, the current version appears to feature the Studio Carbon Steel face insert and chain-link face milling. Instead of the all-black version one, Åberg’s current flatstick is in the metal finish.

Rico Hoey’s make-shift Jailbird

Some of the best builds on Tour have a certain Frankenstein theme to them.

Odyssey decided to do this when breeding a turtle and a bird together. The result, Rico Hoey’s latest broomstick.

The custom Jailbird S2S Tri-Hot head includes an aluminium-milled insert from the unreleased TRTL head, which the team machined down to fit the face of the Jailbird after removing the usual Ai-Dual insert.

The team also filled the wings of the putter with epoxy to redistribute mass away from the face, with the metal insert weighing more than the original.

Hoey was also spotted with a custom Damascus Milled Jailbird Mini broomstick. Check out the full gallery here.

Brant Snedeker’s full WITB

Arguably, the PGA Tour’s feel-good story of the year so far was 45-year-old Brandt Snedeker returning to the winner’s circle for the first time in nearly 8 years.

His victory didn’t come without some equipment updates, either. The Presidents Cup Captain added the 2016 M2 driver equipped with a Fujikura Speeder Evolution 661. It’s a shaft that’s even older than the driver.

The historic driver setup might have been added because Snedeker was missing some antique vibes. He recently switched out his 2-decade-old Odyssey Rossie White Hot XG for a TaylorMade Spider Tour X.

He first put the Spider in play at the Cognizant Classic. Still, at the Valspar Championship, he tested TaylorMade’s True Path Alignment versus without, and preferred the added aim benefits he was getting. In previous testing, the biggest thing Snedeker noticed was the launch and how quickly the ball got to true roll from the Spider and its Pure Roll insert compared to anything else he had tried.

Check out Snedeker’s full what’s in the bag during this week’s episode of “Inside the Ropes” from Colonial.

Everything’s bigger in Texas

TaylorMade Golf chose the second stop of a Texas two-step in Dallas as the spot to launch the tour’s latest Spider putter.

On-site Monday at Colonial Country Club, GolfWRX’s Tour Photographer Greg Moore captured the new Spider ZT Max putter ahead of the Charles Schwab Challenge.

The Max version of TaylorMade’s zero-torque putter style has a larger footprint than the original ZT, which will likely lead to a higher MOI thanks to wider perimeter weighting.

The original ZT is made of high-density 303 stainless steel at the front, and then a lower-density 6061 aerospace aluminum on the back to create a high-MOI foundation, with a center shaft featuring slight forward shaft lean and 25mm onset behind the leading edge.

The Spider ZT Max also appears to use the ZT cambered sole, which is also seen on the recently Tour-launched Spider Tour, Tour X, F and V models, which were first spotted at the RBC Heritage.

Brian Harman gamed the original Spider ZT for his victory last year at the 2025 Valero Texas Open, and the putter also saw victory on the DP World Tour in the hands of Michael Kim for his FedEx Open de France win.

Check out the full gallery here.

Odds and Ends

Project X officially Tour launched the Titan Yellow shaft, just a few days after Wyndham Clark played it for the first time and won The CJ Cup Byron Nelson. The shaft features a smoother feel in the handle compared to past Project X wood shafts, along with a firm midsection and firm tip. The Synex Technology allows a player to feel more load in transition without losing the feel of the clubhead. Titleist launched the GTS300 back at Quail Hollow, and just a few weeks later, it’s in the bag of Justin Thomas. Could this be a test run for Shinnecock?