Connect with us

News

Five Things We Learned: Thursday at the PGA Championship

Published

12 months ago

on

“Frost Delay” is such a common experience for golfers in western New York, we even have a beer named after it. Another common experience for golfers in the Rochester-Buffalo corridor is three or four seasons in one day. With the eyes of the golf world on the beautiful Oak Hill Country Club’s East course, we decided to provide a taste of our world this weekend. On Thursday morning, you had a wee bit of Winter, followed by some summer. We expect some Spring rain on Saturday, and some cool, Fall vibes in the shoulder hours of late afternoon. Don’t worry, though. This insight does not count as one of the five things that we learned on Thursday at the PGA Championship. Consider it a bonus slice of our pizza, which is the best around. Or, call it a bit more garbage on your RaChaCha Garbage Plate (you may have to look that one up.)

Enough local flavor for now. Let’s get on with five things that we learned on Thursday at the 2023 PGA Championship.

1. Oak Hill club champion posts one-over 71

It was the best of times, it was the meh of times, for Rory McIlroy. While he may not be the official club champion at Oak Hill, the official member of the club would certainly take on all comers (admit it, wouldn’t you love to a parking space sign for Rors-Club Champ, in the parking lot?) The world’s third-ranked male golfer began his tournament on the second nine, and promptly raced to five pars, followed by three bogies in four holes. Not exactly the start he wanted. That was the meh of times.

On the first nine (Rory’s second…still with us?) the Northern Irishman turned things around. He posted three birdies against a solitary bogey, to finish the day at 71. Things might have been a lot worse, and being five off the lead is not cause for concern.

2. Top Ten is a blend of major champs and major seekers

When do ten equal nineteen? When ties come into the equation. 19 golfers sit under par, within four of the leader. If you look at some of the golfers chasing the top cat, you’ll find three major champions and a bunch of major seekers among the group at between -1 and -3. The only PGA Champion among them is Keegan Bradley (2011 at the Atlanta Athletic Club) but you have a US Open champion (Justin Rose) and a Masters champion (Scottie Scheffler.) Among the seekers are everyone’s favorite to win a major (Viktor Hovland) and a bunch of guys who could certainly join the one-and-done major club that has a penchant for shining at the PGA Championship.

Golfers like Corey Conners and Thomas Pieters are known names among the seekers, while Justin Suh, Hayden Buckley, Sepp Straka, Ryan Fox and many others qualify among the Who Dat brigade. As Shaun Micheel will attest, all it takes is one week and one great swing at the right time. For Micheel, it happened here at Oak Hill. Lightning might strike twice for one of the aforementioned seekers. Despite this swing, however, it probably won’t be Scott Stallings.

3. Three major champions tied for second

It’s no surprise to see Adam Scott, Dustin Johnson, and Bryson DeChambeau near the top of the leader board. Johnson and DeChambeau won majors on northern courses (Oakmont and Winged Foot East, respectively) while Scott owns a ten-year old green jacket. DeChambeau had six birdies in his 66, while Scott found five on the day, and Johnson had four. Excruciatingly, both Scott and Johnson met darkness on the 18th tee, and will need to awaken early on Friday morning, to finish the final hole of their first round.

4. Guys who struggled

We’re going to set the struggle bar at four-over par. Currently at that cypher are Tony Finau (through 13 holes) and Patrick Cantlay (through 12 holes.) Both golfers are Ryder Cup fixtures for the USA side, and neither has really made a run at a professional major. Looks like PGA 2023 won’t be that moment, unless they collect themselves and redeem a few stroke-saver coupons coming home.

Poland’s Adrian Meronk has had himself a run on the DP World Tour, including a recent victory. His ascent did not translate into success on day one of the PGA Championship. Meronk had eight bogies against three birdies, and will have to reverse those numbers on day two, to rejoin the chase. Also struggling at plus-five is Cameron Young, a native New Yorker (albeit from downstate.) Young had zero birdies on the card through fifteen holes. With the closing triumvirate of beastly par-four holes ahead, Young’s work was cut out. With grit, the Fordham Prep and Wake Forest alumnus found birdie at the last to post 74 and end on a high note.

Most surprising among the strugglers was world number one Jon Rahm. An opening-hole birdie (the tenth) aroused the crowd, but five bogies in six holes, followed by a bogey-double stretch, dropped the Masters champion to seven-over. Birdie at his penultimate hole salved the wounds a bit, but 76 Trombones was not the song that the great Basque hoped to hear.

5. Guy who stunned

Eric Cole made a run at this year’s Honda Classic, losing a playoff to Chris Kirk. Cole’s parents, for golf historians, are Laura Baugh (LPGA) and Bobby Cole (PGA Tour). Each won a national amateur title. Cole has fashioned a five-under card through 14 holes. He’ll begin Friday on the par-four sixth hole, a challenging par four that has hijacked a few runs at championships. Who knows what happens from here? Cole’s only bogey on Thursday came at the Hill of Fame hole, the par-five thirteenth, but he made amends on the course’s other par five hole, to finish his day. Cole’s only other, major-championship appearance came at the 2021 US Open, where he missed the cut. Suffice it to say, he’s figured a few things out since then.

(A wee tip of the cap to PGA professional Michael Block from Mission Viejo, California. After double at ten dropped him to plus-three, most guys would have packed up and headed home. Not this fellow. He notched three birdies coming home to lead the CF PGA Team at even par.)

Your Reaction?
  • 1
  • LEGIT1
  • WOW0
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

Related Topics:

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.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 PGA Championship

Published

2 days ago

on

May 14, 2024

By

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

Your Reaction?
  • 8
  • LEGIT0
  • WOW0
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

Continue Reading

News

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

Published

2 days ago

on

May 14, 2024

By
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.
Your Reaction?
  • 0
  • LEGIT0
  • WOW0
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

Continue Reading

News

Tour Rundown: Rose blooms, Rory rolls

Published

3 days ago

on

May 13, 2024

By

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.

Your Reaction?
  • 0
  • LEGIT0
  • WOW0
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK1

Continue Reading

WITB

Whats in the Bag22 hours ago

John Daly WITB 2024 (May)

John Daly WITB accurate as of the PGA Championship. More photos from the event here.  Driver: Ping G430 LST (9...
Whats in the Bag2 days ago

WITB Time Machine: Rory McIlroy’s winning WITB, 2014 PGA Championship

It’s hard to believe it’s been 10 years since Rory McIlroy outlasted Phil Mickelson at the 2014 PGA Championship. It’s...
Whats in the Bag2 days ago

Tiger Woods WITB 2024 (May)

Tiger Woods WITB accurate as of the PGA Championship. In-hand photos from 2024 Genesis Open. Check out more photos of Tiger...
Whats in the Bag3 days ago

Michael Block WITB 2024 (May)

Michael Block what’s in the bag accurate as of the PGA Championship. Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 “Dot” (9 degrees @7.5) Shaft:...

Facebook

Trending