News

Morning 9: Leadbetter calls out Ko family again | Olesen charged, suspended from Euro Tour | McIlroy roasts Kuchar

Published

7 years ago

Aug 7, 2019

Ben Alberstadt

By Ben Alberstadt ([email protected]; @benalberstadt on Instagram)

August 7, 2019

Good Wednesday morning, golf fans.

1. Leadbetter calls out Kos again

Scathing words from Lydia Ko’s former instructor, via Christopher Powers at Golf Digest. Ko missed the cut at the Women’s British Open, has won just once in the past three years, and has been through a number of coaches and caddies in the process.

“It really is a very sad situation to observe,” Leadbetter added. “The problem is when you start changing everything.

“As many changes as she’s made, not only coaching, caddies and equipment, and sports psychologists and trainers, she’s also changed her body type now.”

“Her parents have a lot to answer for-a case of unbelievable ignorance,” he said. “They tell her when to go to bed, what to eat, what to wear, when to practice and what to practice. And they expect her to win every tournament. … They need to let her go, let her fly, let her leave the nest so to speak and find her own way. If she can do that, we could see Lydia back.”

Full piece.

2. Tiger’s prep day at Liberty National

Alex Myers ventured off the 27th floor of One World Trade to check out Tiger Woods’ Tuesday practice round in Jersey City.

A few of his observations…“Just moments after Woods arrived on the range, a horn blew signaling everyone to leave the premises. Yes, even 15-time major champs have to seek shelter.”

“An hour and 20 minutes later, Woods was back on the range to finally, actually begin preparation for the first of three FedEx Cup Playoff events played over three consecutive weeks.”

“After a 40-minute warmup, Woods went to the first tee with Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, and Harold Varner III.”

“…As for Woods’ play, it was solid outside of a lost ball in the high fescue left on the par-4 sixth. Just a guess, but a Tiger-sized gallery would have found it during a tournament day.”

Full piece.

3. Olesen charged, suspended from European Tour

BBC report…”Ryder Cup winner Thorbjorn Olesen will appear in court on 21 August after being charged with sexual assault, being drunk on an aircraft and common assault.”

“…A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: “A man has been charged in connection with an incident on an inbound flight to Heathrow Airport on Monday, 29 July.”

“Jacob Thorbjorn Olesen, 29, of Redcliffe Road, Kensington and Chelsea, was charged by postal requisition on Thursday, 1 August with sexual assault, being drunk on an aircraft and common assault.”

“He is due to appear at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, 21 August.”

Full piece.

4. More tweaks for the scientist

PGATour.com’s Andrew Tursky on some adjustments (and a potential bombshell for amateur golfers?) ahead of the first FEC event.

“For DeChambeau, that meant a trip to Carlsbad, California — home of Cobra Golf’s headquarters – to work with Cobra’s R&D team on clubs that can be more beneficial for his game. While remaining mum on details, DeChambeau expressed that he was positive about what the group came up with; not only for himself, but for golfers worldwide.”

“We found some very interesting results that will be of future help to amateur golfers across the world,” DeChambeau said in a press conference.

“”We don’t have the full solution of it yet,” DeChambeau said. “We can’t just make a head right on the spot. It’s going to be a month before we can do things we need to do. There was a minor improvement with the tools we had at that point – not just minor, but pretty drastic — but it can even get better as time goes on. That time is necessary for me to keep learning and getting better.”

Full piece for BAD’s specific adjustments.

5. Woodland’s summer of stress

AP report…”So the smile that never left him Tuesday at Liberty National Golf Club had nothing to do with the $15 million prize at stake as the FedEx Cup playoffs begin. It was all about his twin daughters Maddox and Lennox born Thursday, making his best year in golf the greatest year of his life.”

“I feel 100 pounds lighter,” Woodland said as he walked off the course during a weather delay in a practice round Tuesday for The Northern Trust. “Obviously, I had a huge win and that was great. But it’s been stressful every week because every cart I see … ‘Are they coming to get me? Is Gabby going into labor?’ The last month has been stressful for both of us.”

Full piece.

6. The perils of expecting something different

Golf Digest’s Joel Beall…”Garcia’s litany of temper tantrums-ones seemingly reserved for grade-schoolers-have been met with increased fascination, self-righteousness and finger-wagging. Yet, entertaining as Garcia’s faux pas may be (to some), the aggregate of incidents-the latest a club throw at his caddie at Royal Portrush and a tee-box excavation in Memphis-raises a question: What is up with this cat?”

“After all, wasn’t Garcia a changed man, finding maturity in family, salvation in Augusta? This season, the consensus says, has been a digression to a persona Sergio seemingly had buried. Undeniably, there have been a number of missteps. But the only thing that’s fundamentally changed about Sergio-in this year, and all the years before it-is our perception, and tolerance, of him.”

Full piece.

7. Who’s up for a little Tiger or Jack debate?

For The Win’s Andy Nesbitt with a vote for TW…

“But there’s been nobody as good as Tiger. Ever…And it really isn’t even close.”

“Tiger has excelled in an individual sport during a time when everything he did was examined, celebrated, and critiqued at levels that Nicklaus never even came close to having to deal with.”

“Tiger’s run through the 2000s was must-see TV and man did he know how to put on a show and rise to the occasion – often in dramatic fashion – when the whole world was watching.”

“He took the PGA Tour to a whole new level and continues to make many golfers absolutely filthy rich because of all the money Tiger brought into the game.”

“Before Tiger, winners would often get $180,000 for a win. Now most tournaments are over a million bucks, with majors and the Players’ going over two million bucks.”

Full piece.

8. Roasted!

Golf Channel’s Jason Crook...”The latest burn came via Rory McIlroy on Tuesday during the Wyndham Rewards ceremony, where an extra $10 million in bonus money was handed out to players.”

“While Kuchar was explaining that McIlroy had cost him $300,000 by finishing just two points ahead of him in the season-long race, the four-time major champ quickly interjected, “And we all know what money means to him.”

Full piece.

9. Shibuno for team Japan?

Golf Channel’s Nick Menta...:”Shibuno is up to 14th in the Rolex Rankings, making her the second highest Japanese player in the world, behind 10th-ranked Nasa Hataoka.”

“Although there’s still 11 months to go before the qualification period for the women’s event closes on June 29, 2020, Shibuno is currently in line to represent the host country in Tokyo next year.”

“Ranked 563rd at the end of 2018, the 20-year-old made a quick ascent with a pair of victories on the JLPGA, vaulting all the way to 46th in just seven months…She jumped up 32 more spots with her win at Woburn, leapfrogging Mamiko Higa and Ai Suzuki to move into Japan’s second Olympic spot.”

Full piece.

News

Russell Henley’s winning WITB: 2026 Charles Schwab Challenge

Published

14 hours ago

May 31, 2026

Ben A

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?

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the ShopRite LPGA

Published

4 days ago

May 28, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX Tour Photographer Greg Moore was on site in Galloway, New Jersey, ahead of the ShopRite LPGA powered by Wakefern to snap some WITB photos and more.

Check out links to all the photos below!