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GolfWRX Morning 9: Quiet on the first tee? | Ryder Cup highlights | Tony Ro-no

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1. Sitting Mickelson
Live updates are outside the scope of this newsletter, but as highly perishable as the news may be, but looking ahead to the rest of the week, Rory McIlroy is playing exceedingly poor golf. Jordan Spieth is playing superbly, as is Paul Casey. The rest of the combatants are availing themselves as expected, Fleetwood/Molinari, perhaps a bit better, as Tommy’s two late birdies salvaged a point in the morning session for the Euros.
  • Interesting, though, as Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard notes, “The subtext to Friday’s opening four-ball session at the Ryder Cup isn’t who will play the morning matches, it’s who is not playing.”
  • “For Europe, captain Thomas Bjorn decided to sit Alex Noren, Henrik Stenson, Ian Poulter and Sergio Garcia, the final three serving as anchors of the Continent’s team for over a decade.”
  • “For the United States, Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau, Webb Simpson and Bubba Watson will watch the Day 1 morning session from the sidelines.”
  • “Sitting Mickelson – who has played the week’s first session every match since 1995 when he was a rookie – is particularly interesting considering he has an 8-8-2 record in four-ball play (compared to a 5-7-4 foursomes record) and is likely playing his final overseas Ryder Cup.”
2. Highlights
If you’re in the mood for highlights from the 3-1 U.S. victory in the morning four-ball session, check out this piece on GolfWRX.
3. All quiet on the first tee?
Potentially worthless information, but interesting, given the literal build up of the area around the first tee (which holds 7,000 fans), and the figurative ratcheting of excitement. Subjectively, the crowd seems more subdued than expected, but that will assuredly change.
  • Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner…”Eager fans streamed through the gates at 6:30 a.m. local time and headed toward the massive stands behind the first tee. Built to seat more than 6,800 – easily the largest in tournament history – it’s an impressive structure that gave the Ryder Cup an even grander feel. But the late-arriving fans, either because of too many reserved corporate areas or heavy traffic in the area, didn’t even completely fill up the grandstand by the time the first fourball made its way to the tee.”
  • “In fact, the entire hour lead-in was surprisingly flat. The first loud cheer came at 7:37 a.m. – about a half hour before the first ball was in the air – as Ian Poulter ambled down the path to the left of the tee. He waved to the crowd, then apparently decided to join them – a few minutes later, he reappeared at the top of the grandstand, flinging hats and taking selfies as electronic dance music pumped through the speakers.”
4. More tales of first tee nerves
ESPN’s Tom Hamilton with a roundup of player remarks on the difficulty of the opening tee shot at the Ryder Cup.
  • Ian Poulter…“I’ve tried to explain to a number of people through the years what that tee shot means and what the feeling is in your body when you’re walking down. And as a player that’s played in multiple majors now, it’s different [from those]. Walking to the first tee at Augusta, walking to the first tee at St. Andrews, walking to the first tee in The Ryder Cup is that different. That’s very hard to explain.”
  • Justin Rose…”You never get comfortable with it. I don’t think you can ever really walk on to that first tee Friday and go, ‘yeah, this feels good,’ or ‘this feels normal’. “You feel alive. I think José Maria Olazábal gave us a little memento one year, and it says, ‘All men die but not all men live.’ I think what he meant by that is feeling that adrenaline, that emotion, I think that is what it’s all about.
5. A course fit for a king
Entertaining stuff from John Leicester at the AP looking at the history of Le Golf National.
  • “Although this won’t be uppermost on the players’ minds as they negotiate the artificial hills and lakes, the venue can quite literally claim to be fit for a king: It’s built, Chesneau said, on land that used to feed France’s royals before they lost their heads to the guillotine in the French revolution.”
  • “When queen Marie Antoinette, who was put to death in 1793, used to hanker for cake, the wheat for her flour may very well have been harvested from around here. The erstwhile fields now peppered with golf holes and lush greens served the nearby Chateau de Versailles , where King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, his wife, lived before the revolution of 1789 forced them to Paris…Left of the fairway on No. 14 is a squat stone tower that dates back to that time; one of what used to be 12 gateways to the cereal fields that supplied the royal household.”
6. Further commentary on the Tiger Effect
A few morsels from an AP Report…”The immediate beneficiary is the NBC Sports Group, which has this weekend’s Ryder Cup on Golf Channel and NBC. It also had last weekend’s Tour Championship and saw a ratings increase of 178 percent. Sunday’s final round had a 4.45 Nielsen rating. The round also had 18.4 million minutes streamed across NBC’s digital platforms according to the network.”
  • “Fox is hoping that the Tiger Effect will be at its best in June, when the U.S. Open returns to Pebble Beach. With the tournament being on the West Coast, that means most of the coverage will be in prime time in the Eastern and Central time zones.”
  • “The 2015 U.S. Open, which was the last time it was held out West, averaged 3.5 million viewers. By comparison, last year’s coverage on Fox and Fox Sports 1 averaged 2.85 million viewers, which was an improvement from 2017 (2.67 million) when Woods did not compete.”
7. U.S. Mid-Am
Meanwhile, at the Mid-Am…sorry, Boner.
  • AP Report...”Kevin O’Connell won an all-North Carolina final in the U.S. Mid-Amateur, beating Brett Boner 4 and 3 on Thursday at Charlotte Country Club for a likely Masters invitation.”
  • “O’Connell, a 30-year-old former golf equipment representative from Cary, also earned spots in the U.S. Open next year at Pebble Beach and the next two U.S. Amateurs.”
  • “You will be hard-pressed to find a bigger fan of the game than me and I certainly understand the importance of the USGA, and how great their championships are,” O’Connell said. “To be the champion right now is probably what I am most proud of and focused on. Just simply being a champion. All the stuff that comes along with it, I think that will hit me a little big later on.”
8. Ro-no
Tony Romo, as you know, advanced through Web.com pre-qualifying. Now, he’s having a tougher time in the real deal.
  • AP Report…”Tony Romo was 11 over par for 27 holes Thursday in the first stage of the Web.com Tour’s Qualifying Tournament.”
  • ‘The former Dallas Cowboys quarterback opened with an 8-over 79 at Firewheel at Garland Bridges, and had a 3-over 39 on the Masters Nine. He was 74th in the 76-player field, with the top 22 and ties advancing to the second stage.”
  • “I’ve felt pressure with playing (tournament golf) before, but I just didn’t play well today,” Romo said. “Off the tee I struggled and made everything very difficult. I made way too many high numbers. Like anything in golf, you have to go back and see what the reasons were and then subtly work on them.”
Best of luck with the subtle work!
9. A message from the GOAT
Staying with the quarterback theme, Tom Brady posted the below to Instagram.
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Equipment

Photos from the 2024 Charles Schwab Challenge

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GolfWRX is live this week at Colonial Country Club for the Charles Schwab Challenge.

Custom Camerons and some “super” new grips from SuperStroke are filling our galleries early in the week as well as WITBs — including the always interesting “Cashmere Keith” Mitchell.

Check out links to our photos below, which we’ll continue to update throughout the week.

And while you’re making your way through our photos, be sure to check out last year’s incredible gallery of prototype and personal Ben Hogan golf clubs.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying in the forums.

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Morning 9: Scheffler arraignment delayed | Missing Bryson? | Garcia, Reed miss out on U.S. Open

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Tuesday morning, golf fans, as we look ahead to the Charles Schwab Challenge.

1. Scheffler arraignment delayed

Golf Digest’s Joel Beall…”Scottie Scheffler’s arraignment date over multiple charges stemming from an incident at Valhalla with a Louisville Metro police officer has been delayed.”

  • “On Monday court documents show the arraignment date, originally scheduled for Tuesday, May 21, had been pushed back to June 3. Scheffler’s attorney Steve Romines has told multiple news outlets that Scheffler will enter a not guilty plea.”
  • “Scheffler was arrested on Friday morning outside Valhalla Golf Club ahead of the second round of the PGA Championship and charged with second-degree assault of a police officer, criminal mischief and reckless driving. Scheffler is alleged to have driven past a police officer against the officer’s instructions while trying to enter the club. Scheffler called the incident a misunderstanding, although a police report states that arresting officer Bryan Gillis was dragged by Scheffler’s car, which led to injury and damage of Gillis’ pants. Scheffler’s lawyer disputed the nature of the incident.”
Full piece.

2. Missing Bryson?

Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…”Bryson DeChambeau – whose initials “B.A.D.” are displayed proudly on his yardage book – is the variable, a wildcard who decided to ply his trade on LIV Golf and, in doing so, robbed the Tour and its fans of the kind of polarizing star that makes sports so compelling.”

  • “To call DeChambeau an antihero would be unfair and inaccurate, but he is very much an antagonist whose stated goal is to reshape how the game is played in his unique imagine. Single-length clubs, a fixation on speed and strength and a mind that always seems to be three shots ahead.”
  • “In a world filled with Fords and Chevrolets, DeChambeau is a Tesla, and the contrast between the leading men was there for the world to see Sunday at the PGA Championship. Schauffele was focused and fixated, keeping his emotions and his energies in check, while DeChambeau was larger than life.”
  • “DeChambeau set the stage for his emotional Sunday late on Day 3 when he chipped in for eagle at No. 18. “Exhilarating,” he gushed when asked how he felt after his finish. “I haven’t felt like that in a long time.”
Full piece.

3. Why Schauffele’s dad watched from afar

Tod Leonard for Golf Digest…”The 22 acres of land is outside of Poipu Beach on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. The Schauffele family owns it now, and on it sits a large cargo shipping container that doubles as a “house,” an excavator with a mulcher and several chainsaws. There is no running water or air conditioning, and the only power is generated by solar panels. Bathroom? “You take a spade and you walk into the jungle—that’s your toilet,” Stefan Schauffele says.

  • “Rather fitting for a man whose centuries-old German-French name literally means “man with a small shovel.”
  • “This rustic camp is where professional golfer Xander Schauffele’s parents, Stefan and Ping Yi, have spent weeks at a time away from their tract home in San Diego so they can eventually create an escape from the world for future generations of their family. Stefan is currently on a three-month stint there. Still, there are sacrifices, like not being able to have a television around when your son is contending in the final round of major championship.”
  • “That was the case on Sunday for the elder Schauffele, who rose with the cries of Kauai’s ever-present roosters to work his land. It rained overnight and he wanted to check on the plants he had just put in. Some 4,300 miles away and six hours ahead in time, Xander Schauffele began his round in the 106th PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club tied for the lead and with his best chance to win what had been an elusive first major.”
Full piece.

4. Inside the Colonial renovation

Paul Hodowanic for PGATour.com…”There would be many more like it. Still 10 months from their deadline, a quiet intensity loomed over every decision and action. Crews began ripping up Colonial less than 24 hours after Emiliano Grillo beat Adam Schenk in a playoff to claim the 2023 Charles Schwab Challenge, and they did so with an ambitious directive: fully renovate one of the most historic courses in America in time for the PGA TOUR’s annual visit the following May.?”

  • “A project of such scale normally takes at least 18 months to complete; Colonial had little less than a year, though. As the venue for the Charles Schwab Challenge since 1946, Colonial hosts the longest-running TOUR event held annually at the same site. The club had no intention of interrupting that streak. The renovation had to fit its schedule.?”
  • “Gil Hanse, the renowned architect in charge of restoring the 1936 Perry Maxwell design, had worked under similar time constraints only a handful of times before. Each of those had more favorable growing seasons. Colonial’s renovation banked on the course surviving the winter.??”
  • “Hanse, McIntosh and their teams had spent the last year with those stakes as their backdrop. The $20 million renovation, designed to reinvigorate the classic design and maintain Colonial’s reputation as one of the top clubs in the country, was accompanied by an unforgiving timeline. The world would know if the course wasn’t ready, and there would be no time for adjustments. The pros playing Colonial this week are the first to play the course. Members won’t play it for another month.?”
Full piece.

5. Bryson feels the love at Valhalla

Will Knights for Fried Egg Golf…”??While he ultimately came up one shot short, the 2024 PGA Championship will go down as a rousing success for Bryson DeChambeau. He said he didn’t play his best and yet he shot four rounds of 68 or better, finishing strong with a Sunday 64. More surprising than the on-course success, though, was the clear, obvious, and at times overwhelming crowd support DeChambeau found in Louisville. Down the stretch, Joel Beall posted “the crowd is pulling for Bryson and it’s not even close.” That was very clear on the broadcast, as Bryson’s birdies were greeted with roars and he met the moment again and again with increasingly large fist pumps, playing to and feeding off of the crowd.”

  • “Whether it’s just the passage of time, a lack of exposure due to his LIV move, a maturation within Bryson, or some combination, DeChambeau has come a long way from the days when he was harassed with chants of “Brooksy!” Belief-straining statements about people thanking him for what he does online notwithstanding, I truly think his YouTube channel is helping his reputation. It lets him connect with people in a way he’s comfortable with, and he seems somewhat more comfortable out there, to the point he stopped to shame an adult who swiped a ball he tossed to a kid. He may not be for everyone. He may always say some outlandish things at press conferences. But he’s certainly more popular than he was in years past.”
Full piece.

6. Reed and Garcia miss out in U.S. Open qualies

AP report…”Patrick Reed withdrew from U.S. Open qualifying on Monday to end his streak of playing every major since the 2014 Masters. Sergio Garcia made two big mistakes late that cost him advancing to his 25th straight U.S. Open.”

  • “Garcia, who made it through 36-hole qualifying last year, was poised to get one of the 11 spots at Dallas Athletic Club until taking a double bogey on the par-5 16th of the Gold course. He finished with two pars for a 71 and was forced into a seven-man playoff for six spots.”
  • “Everyone else made par or birdie. Garcia made a bogey on the first hole of the Gold course and had to settle for first alternate, keeping his hopes alive to be at Pinehurst No. 2 on June 13-16.”
Full piece.

7. Only one LIV golfer successfully qualifies

Mike Hall for Golf Monthly…”Three US Open final qualifying events were held on Monday, and LIV golfers were in the field in each.

  • “However, while a total of 13 teed it up for a place at Pinehurst No.2, only Eugenio Chacarra achieved it, and it will be a particularly special occasion for the Spaniard as it will be his maiden Major appearance.”
Full Piece.
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Morning 9: Nelly does it again | Bryson: Definitely disappointing | Xander wins PGA

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Monday morning, golf fans, as Xander Schauffele celebrates becoming a major champion after a dramatic Sunday at Valhalla.

1. Xander wins first major

Mark Schlabach for ESPN…”They can’t call Xander Schauffele the best golfer in the world without a major championship victory any longer.”

  • “The 30-year-old from San Diego captured his first major victory Sunday by outlasting LIV Golf League captain Bryson DeChambeau and Norway’s Viktor Hovland in the final round of the PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club.”
  • “After starting the day tied for the lead with two-time major winner Collin Morikawa, Schauffele silenced his critics who claimed he couldn’t close out a big one by posting a 6-under 65 in the final round to finish with a 72-hole total of 21 under and defeat DeChambeau by 1 shot and Hovland by 3.”
Full piece.

2. Bryson comes up agonizingly short

Elliot Heath for Golf Monthly…The LIV Golfer shot a stunning final round of 64 (-7) at the PGA Championship, which included a birdie at his final hole, to come up one stroke shy of Xander Schauffele’s new record 21-under-par total.

  • “Definitely disappointing, but one that gives me a lot of momentum for the rest of the Majors. I said today it was closing time, but it will be closing time hopefully, hopefully over the next couple Majors,” DeChambeau said.
  • “Having began the day two strokes off the lead, his seven-under score got him to 20-under to force the pressure on Schauffele to shoot a low number. The American duly did that, with DeChambeau revealing that he thought his eventual score would have got the victory before the round.”
  • “Yeah, I certain seriously thought 18 [under-par] was going to do it,” he said.”
  • “Then when I saw what Xander was doing, it’s like, man, he’s playing some unbelievable golf. Viktor was right there. I mean, he was beating me for quite awhile, and I was hitting it all over the place. But, yeah, I mean, it was an impressive, impressive round of golf by all three of us. I don’t know what else to say. It was just difficult.”
Full piece.

3. Scottie “Ready to get home”

Ryan Lavner at Golf Channel…”The pre-tournament favorite was part of a confusing and chaotic situation Friday at Valhalla when he was arrested following a traffic incident with a police officer while trying to enter the course.”

  • “Scheffler was booked on four charges – the most serious, second-degree assault of an officer – and released after about an hour in jail. He made it to the course in time for his second round, shot 66 and was firmly in contention heading into the weekend.”
  • “But that’s when, Scheffler said, the magnitude of what had transpired finally caught up to him.”
  • “…Afterward, Scheffler said that he was more tired than usual following a tournament – a noteworthy admission seeing how he’d just won four of his past five starts. He said he was uncertain about his plans for the next few days – his arraignment is scheduled for Tuesday – but he was still planning to play next week at Colonial.”
  • “I’m just wondering what time bedtime is,” he said. “I’m trying to figure out how quickly I can get home from here, and that’s pretty much it. I’m just fairly tired and ready to get home.”
Full piece.

4. Nelly wins again

AP report…”With her record-tying winning streak over, Nelly Korda got back to doing what she does best — winning.”

  • “Nelly Korda won a back-nine showdown with Hannah Green of Australia with a par on the 18th hole to capture the Mizuho Americas Open by a stroke Sunday for her sixth win in seven starts on the LPGA Tour this year.”
  • “Oh, my gosh, six,” Korda said. “I can’t even really gather myself right now with that, the head-to-head that Hannah and I had pretty much all day. Wasn’t my best stuff out there today, but fought really hard on the back nine.”

 

Full piece.

5. Another policy board resignation

Mark Schlabach for ESPN…”Mark Flaherty resigned from the PGA Tour’s policy board on Sunday, becoming the second independent director to step down in less than a week.”

  • “On Monday, independent director Jimmy Dunne, who helped negotiate the PGA Tour’s framework agreement with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment fund last year, resigned, effectively immediately.”
  • “In Dunne’s resignation letter to PGA Tour members, he wrote that “no meaningful progress has been made towards a transaction with PIF” and that “my vote and my role is utterly superfluous” now that player directors outnumber independent directors on the policy board.”
  • “PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan sent a memo to PGA Tour members Sunday night, informing them of Flaherty’s resignation. Flaherty is a former vice chairman of Wellington Management, an investment management company.”
Full piece.

6. Harry Higgs wins on Korn Ferry Tour

PGA Tour report…”Higgs holed out for eagle from 83 yards at the 72nd hole of the Korn Ferry Tour’s AdventHealth Championship, ultimately landing a spot in a playoff with Tanner Gore at 19 under at Blue Hills Country Club outside Kansas City. Higgs won with a 7-foot birdie on the first playoff hole, again the par-5 18th, an outcome that delighted the spirited observers in Higgs’ home region (he was born in Philadelphia but grew up in nearby Overland Park, Kansas).

Full piece.

7. Winning WITB: Xander Schauffele

Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (10.5 degrees @10.1)

Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana PD 70 TX (45.5 inches)

3-wood: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (15 degrees @14.4)

Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana PD 80 TX

Hybrid: Callaway Apex UW (21 degrees @19.7)

Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 90 TX

Irons: Callaway Apex TCB ’24 (4-10)

Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (4-10)

Wedges: Callaway Jaws Raw (52-10S), Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (56-10S @57), Titleist Vokey Design WedgeWorks Proto (60-K @61)

Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100

Putter: Odyssey Toulon Design Las Vegas Prototype 7CH

Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy Tour 2.0

Grips: Golf Pride MCC Align

Ball: Callaway Chrome Tour

The winning WITB is presented by 2nd Swing Golf. 2nd Swing has more than 100,000 new and pre-swung golf clubs available in six store locations and online. Check them out here.

Full WITB.
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