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Tour Rundown: Kokrak spoils Spieth’s party, LPGA Match Play winner, Senior PGA surprise

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3 years ago

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I’m packing for a nifty, three-day trip as I type. Fear not, you’ll read about it here in the next few weeks. This week features a five-pack of tour events, including the first LPGA match-play battle in, where else, the gambling capital of the USA. The Champions Tour features its second major title, and the PGA, KF, and European tours were also battling for supremacy. Knowing that different events finish up at different Sunday hours is every golf fan’s gift. Time to run down this week’s quintet, in our #GolfWRXTourRundown for Memorial Day weekend.

PGA Tour: Charles Schwab at Colonial

How to explain the inability of a former wunderkind to close out a tournament? Jordan Spieth did win in Texas in April on the PGA Tour. So we wondered: With a third-round lead at Colonial, with rounds of 63-66-66 behind him, what could possibly stop him? He could, turns out. Spieth stumbled out of the gate with bogey at 2, 3, and 4. He would play even-par golf the rest of the way, and that trio of slips would haunt him at round’s end.

Jason Kokrak, a first-time winner on tour last fall at Las Vegas, was the beneficiary of Spieth’s spill. Kokrak did nothing spectacular on Sunday, but he didn’t have to. The Ontario native struggled early as well but found a way to make a few more birdies than his counterpart. In the end, his lead was such that he could afford bogey at the 15th and 16th holes, and still win by two. Third place went to the compass of Hoffman, Kizzire, Poulter, and Muñoz, tied at 10 under, two back of Spieth.

LPGA Tour: Bank of Hope Match Play at Shadow Creek

What do you call the woman who defeats the giant killer? In the run-up to the final match at Shadow Creek, Sophia Popov had defeated Inbee Park, Patty Tavatanakit, and Shanshan Feng. Two long-standing champions and the winner of this year’s first major. That’s not a shabby trifecta for the 2020 British Open champion. Popov was not unheralded by any means, but she was not recognized as the favorite in any of those three matches.

On the other side of the draw, Ally Ewing compiled an even more incalculable sequence of triumphs. In her round of 16 match, she took down equally under-the-radar Jenny Coleman, but that’s where the spotlight turned on. In the quarters, on-fire Danielle Kang succumbed to Ewing’s game. In the semifinals, Ewing dispatched Ariya Jutanugarn, nearly everyone’s choice to triumph. That win set up a final between a medium shot and a way-long shot.

As often happens in match play events, the week’s lesser golf is played in the final match. Blame sheer exhaustion, both mental and physical, as both combatants have played more holes and dealt emotionally and mentally with more scenarios, than any others. In the Sunday afternoon tilt, Ewing was able to scribble four birdies on her card for the 17 holes of the match, against two for Popov. Three holes were won by Ewing, while Popov was able to claim but one. The German-born Popov posted six 5s on her card, including the final three holes, while Ewing had seven of her own. The match ended on the testy, watery 17th, a par three that extracted double bogey from both contestants. Had Popov but made a four, the match would have gone to the dramatic 18th hole.

As it was, the two shook hands on the penultimate green, and Ally Ewing made a bit of history with a victory at this first match-play event since 2012 on the LPGA Tour.

PGA Tour Champions: Senior PGA at Southern Hills

It’s hard to imagine how a fellow who toiled for years on the PGA Tour with a solitary title to his name, could win two Champions Tour titles in the space of a month. Alex Cejka conquered a restored Southern Hills golf club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and won the Senior PGA by four shots over recent tour winner Tim Petrovic. Cejka began the final round in a tie with Steve Stricker, the man he dispatched in a playoff at the Regions Tradition three weeks ago.

This time around, Stricker imploded, tumbling to 11th place after a final-round 77. Stricker played marvelously last week at Kiawah Island, and repeated the performance through 54 holes in Tulsa. Round four was when the engine ran out of gas, and the 2022 USA Ryder Cup captain had nothing left to generate energy.

Beyond Cejka, the story of the week was PGA professional Bob Sowards. The Ohio native works as a club professional and has qualified for the PGA Championship 10 times, most recently in 2020. This week, he stunned the touring brethren by opening with 67 for the lead. He also closed with that figure. In between, Sowards etched 75-70 on his scorecard, and the resulting 1 under total tied him with John Riegger for fifth position.

European Tour: Made in Himmerland at Himmerland

It was back around 2019 that Bernd Wiesberger established himself as a threat each week he pegged his tee. Three victories on the European Tour that year made him rue the missed Ryder Cup opportunity. Then, 2020 happened and the Austrian went a year without a title (and nearly a year without competition). 2021 sees him rounding into form, and he will give European captain Padraig Harrington much to consider after his performance this week in Denmark.

Wiesberger was the it guy all week long at the Himmerland golf club. The Tyrolean seized the round-one lead with 66, improved on Friday with 65, and held the top rung for the next 36 holes. Although Italy’s Guido Migliozzi closed fast with 63 on day four, Wiesberger gave him little room for improvement with a 64 of his own. With his eight-under effort, the Venetian edged the trio of Jordan Smith, Richard Bland, and Jason Scrivener by one for second position.

Korn Ferry Tour: Evans Scholars Invitational at The Glen Club

I’ve known Cameron Young since he was a high school golfer at Fordham Prep. My Buffalo-area guys would meet his downstate mates at the state championships each spring. When he went off to Wake Forest, my alma mater, it gave me even more reason to maintain interest. It’s ironic, then, that I had no idea that he won his first Korn Ferry Tour event last week, so fixated I was with the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island.

Young caught our attention again this week with a second consecutive triumph, this time in Illinois. The son of Sleepy Hollow professional David Young started round four lit with birdie at each of the first three holes. Whether it was malaise, or uncertainty, or something else, the former Demon Deacon settled into a mundane stretch of holes, and saw his lead reduced to two strokes. As champions do, Young reached deep and found overdrive. He made birdie at 17 and 18 to re-establish a five-shot margin of victory over runner-up Adam Svennson of Canada. The second triumph all but secured a 2021-2022 PGA Tour card for Young, where he will join former college teammate Will Zalatoris, in the big leagues.

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Ronald Montesano writes for GolfWRX.com from western New York. He dabbles in coaching golf and teaching Spanish, in addition to scribbling columns on all aspects of golf, from apparel to architecture, from equipment to travel. Follow Ronald on Twitter at @buffalogolfer.

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 PGA Championship

Published

1 day ago

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May 14, 2024

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GolfWRX is on site this week at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, for the PGA Championship.

While we see fewer equipment changes and new gear seeding at major championships, we get a look at custom gear and looks into the bags of players we rarely see, which is just as exciting. In the case of the PGA Championship, this means a look at the gear some of the PGA Professionals who qualified for the tournament will be gaming, and LIV players, such as Jon Rahm and Patrick Reed.

Check out links to all our albums from Valhalla below and check back throughout the week as we continue to update.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

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Morning 9: Is it Rory’s time? | Stricker WDs | Why Valhalla is a great major venue

Published

1 day ago

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May 14, 2024

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Tuesday morning, golf fans, as we gear up for the PGA Championship from iconic Valhalla.

1. Is now the time Rory finally ends major drought?

BBC’s Iain Carter…”But given the imperious form he showed in Charlotte last week, perhaps this is the PGA Championship to rekindle the ruthless streak of old. And not just because he is back at Valhalla (the Nordic word for the hall of the fallen).”

  • “It also became clear last week that McIlroy is somewhat persona non grata to the PGA Tour’s Policy Board. His views on a global future for this damagingly split sport do not seem to chime with the American dominated body.”
  • “His offer to return to the board from which he resigned earlier this year was rejected and he has been left as a mere non-voting member of the “transaction committee” dealing with a potential deal with Saudi Arabia.”
  • “McIlroy insists there are “no hard feelings” but there should be.”
  • “No player has worked harder for their sport during this period of unprecedented tumult and the board has rejected someone many people regard as the game’s most articulate and enlightened international voice.”
  • “Now is, surely, the time for McIlroy to feel slighted and respond with his clubs. Play as though he has a chip on his shoulder, but in the knowledge that he is generationally the most consistent golfing force out there.”
Full piece.

2. Scheffler in for PGA Champ after birth of child

Jaclyn Hendricks for PGATour.com…”Scottie Scheffler and wife Meredith’s bundle of joy has arrived.”

  • “The couple welcomed their first child, just weeks after Scheffler claimed his second Masters victory in three years.”
  • “Sports Illustrated’s Bob Harig tweeted Saturday that the baby was born and Scheffler will play in this week’s PGA Championship — the second major of the season.”
  • “There’s been nothing official from Scottie Scheffler, his team or the Tour… But word is he will be at Valhalla for the PGA next week after winning four of his last five tournaments, including the Masters. He is currently on the Tuesday interview schedule for 3:30 p.m. #babyborn,” Harig wrote over the weekend.”
Full piece.

3. “Erik van Rooyen, friends and family live in honor of ‘Trazzy’”

  • That’s the headline of Ryan Lavner’s superb piece on Erik van Rooyen and his departed best friend Jon Trasmar. An excerpt would be an injustice. Go read it!
Full piece.

4. Stricker out of PGA citing fatigue

AP report…”Steve Stricker decided Sunday to withdraw from the PGA Championship at Valhalla, citing the difficulty of playing four times in a span of five weeks.”

  • “Stricker, 57, was eligible by winning the Senior PGA Championship last year. He, John Daly and Phil Mickelson are the only players to have competed at Valhalla each of the previous three times the PGA Championship was held there.”
Full piece.

5. Why Valhalla is a great venue for major championships

Garrett Morrison for The Fried Egg…”But before we start slinging mud (of which there will be plenty in Kentucky this week), let’s pause to think about why Valhalla tends to generate close final-round battles featuring elite players. It’s not magic: the course has long par 3s and 4s, narrow fairways, and smallish greens surrounded by rough and bunkers. This style of design and setup, which practically defines the PGA Championship’s modern brand, gives an outsize advantage to a skill that many star players share: power. Length off the tee and the ability to muscle the ball out of rough to a well-protected green will be near-prerequisites for contending at this week’s PGA Championship. If Brooks Koepka, Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm, and Bryson DeChambeau show up with any kind of short-game and putting form, they will be in the mix on Sunday. And the presence of such A-listers on the leaderboard will further burnish Valhalla’s reputation as a serious venue.“

  • “It does not follow, however, that Valhalla is a great golf course. In fact, I find it a fairly mediocre and bland one. Very few holes offer multiple options of the tee (the exceptions being the short par-4 fourth and the double-fairway par-5 seventh), most of the greens lack memorable contouring, and the recovery shots from around the fairways and greens are one-dimensional and repetitive. So even if Sunday turns out to be a barn-burner, the first three rounds, when the focus will be on the course and the shots demanded, will probably be sleepier, aside from the inevitable Blockie walk-and-talk.”
Full piece.

6. Dunne resigns from policy board

Mark Schlabach for ESPN…”Jimmy Dunne, who last year helped negotiate the PGA Tour’s controversial framework agreement with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, resigned from the tour’s policy board on Monday.”

  • “In Dunne’s resignation letter, a copy of which was obtained by ESPN, Dunne 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. Dunne’s resignation was effective immediately.”
  • “It is crucial for the Board to avoid letting yesterday’s differences interfere with today’s decisions, especially when they influence future opportunities for the tour,” Dunne wrote. “Unifying professional golf is paramount to restoring fan interest and repairing wounds left from a fractured game. I have tried my best to move all minds in that direction.”
  • “Along with PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan, Dunne and policy board chairman Ed Herlihy secretly negotiated the framework agreement with the PIF, which is financing the rival LIV Golf League. Monahan and PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan announced the deal on June 6. Most PGA Tour players — including some player directors — were unaware of the deal until it was announced on TV.”
Full piece.
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Tour Rundown: Rose blooms, Rory rolls

Published

2 days ago

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May 13, 2024

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This week last year, I found myself praying to the weather goddesses and gods that Rochester would be spared their wrath over the next seven days. The 2023 Oak Hill PGA Championship (that was slated for August when the contract was signed) was on the horizon, and I wanted my region to show well. Things turned out fine, with all four seasons making an appearance, a PGA Professional (Blockie!) stealing hearts, and a proven champion in Koepka (although I was pulling for Viktor.)

This year, no concerns. Louisville will shine this week at Valhalla, but we’ve matters to consider before we look to four days of coverage this week. Nelly did not win on the LPGA this week, so who did? The PGA Tour held two events in the Carolinas, and Tour Champions celebrated a major event in Alabama. Four noteworthy events to run down, so let’s head to RunDownTown and take care of business.

LPGA @ Founders Cup: Rose blooms

There was a sense that Rose Zhang might have a role in the 2020s version of the LPGA. After winning everything there was in amateur golf, she came out and won her first tournament as a professional. That was last May and, let’s be honest, who among us thought it would take 12 months for Zhang to win again? Rhymes with hero, I know.

This week in New Jersey, eyes were on Nelly Korda, as she made a run at a sixth consecutive win on the LPGA circuit. Korda ran out of gas on Saturday, and that was just fine. Madelene Sagstrom and Zhang had turned the soiree at Upper Montclair into a battle of birdies. Gabriela Ruffels came third at nine-under par. No one else reached double digits under par but Sagstrom and Zhang. They didn’t just reach -10…they more than doubled it.

Sagstrom had the look of a winner with five holes left to play. She was three shots clear of Zhang, at 23-under par. The Swede played her closing quintet in plus-one, finishing at 22-deep, 13 shots ahead of Ruffels. That performance we’d anticipated from Zhang? It happened on Sunday. She closed with four birdies in five holes to snatch victory number two, by two shots. Spring is a lovely time for a Rose in bloom.

PGA Tour @ Wells Fargo: Rory the Fourth is crowned in Charlotte

Xander Schauffele is a likable lad. He has an Olympic gold medal on his shelf, and a few PGA Tour titles to his credit. Even X knows that even par won’t get much done in a final round unless conditions are brutal. They weren’t brutal at Quail Hollow on Sunday. X posted even par on day four. It kept him ahead of third-place finisher Byeong Hun An but gave him zero chance of challenging for the title.

Paired with Xander in round four was the King of Quail, Rory McIlroy. The Northern Irishman had previously won thrice at the North Carolina track, and he was champing at the bit to gain some momentum on the road to Louisville. While Xander scored increasingly worse along the week (64-67-70-71) McIlroy saved his best round for the final round. Thanks to five birdies and two eagles, McIlroy ran away with the event, winning his fourth Wells Fargo by five over Schauffele.

PGA Tour @ Myrtle Beach Classic: a little CG won the inaugural week

It always seemed odd that the PGA Tour had zero stops along the Grand Strand each season. This week’s event seemed odd in that the golfers played the same course each day, and there were zero handicaps involved. Most events at Myrtle Beach involve hundreds of amateurs at dozens of courses, with all sorts of handicaps.

The Dunes Club is a Robert Trent Jones Sr. course, down toward Pawley’s Island. It claims what used to be considered an unreachable, par-five hole, the watery 13th. Nothing is unreachable any longer, including a 22-under par total for a six-shot win. Chris Gotterup, a former Rutgers and Oklahoma golfer, played sizzling golf all week and won by a sextet of shots. Gotterup opened with 66, then improved to 64 on Friday. His Saturday 65 sounded a beacon of “come get me,” and his closing 67 ensured that second place was the only thing up for grabs.

Chasing the podium’s second level were a bunch of young Americans. In the end, Alastair Docherty and Davis Thompson reached 16-deep, thanks to rounds of 64 and 68 on Sunday. They held off six golfers at 15-under par. The victory was Gotterup’s first on tour and should be enough to get him a Wikipedia page, among other plaudits.

PGA Tour Champions @ Regions Traditions: Vindication for Dougie

Doug Barron, if I recall correctly, was suspended by the Powers That Be, way back in 2009, for testosterone. He was naturally low in the hormone, so he took supplements. This did not sit well with certain admins, so he was put on the shelf for 18 months. Not cool.

In 2019, Barron came out on the Tour Champions. He won in August. The next year, despite the craziness of Covid, he won again.  Barron hit a dry spell for a few years. He kept his card, but accrued no additional victories. In late April, Barron showed serious signs of life, with a t2 at Mitsubishi. This week in Birmingham, he jumped out to a lead, lost it, then gained it back on Saturday. With major championship glory on the line, Barron brought the train into the station with 68 on Sunday.

Stephen Alker, the man who could not lose just two years ago, gave serious chase with a closing 63. He moved up 11 slots, into solo 2nd on Sunday. He finished two shots back of the champion. Two shots ain’t much. Cough once and you drop a pair. Third place saw a three-way tie, including last year’s winner (Steve Stricker) and runner-up (Ernie Els.) Despite the intimidating presence of the game’s greats, however, Doug Barron had more than enough of everything this week, and he has a third Tour Champions title to show off.

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