News

Tour Mash: Inbee Park wins Olympic Gold in convincing fashion

Published

10 years ago

Aug 22, 2016

Two shining weeks of Rio Olympic golf closed with the conclusion of the Women’s championship, while other events were contested in the Czech Republic, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Ontario. The PGA Tour qualified its final golfers into the Tour Championship series while the women looked toward their next major, the Evian Championshp in France. The amateur men crowned their U.S. national champion, and we retrieved our blender after a week off and came up with this tasty tour mash for you.

What a moment. What a feeling for Inbee Park.#Gold #OlympicGolf?? #Golf #Rio2016 #KOR pic.twitter.com/IyUDtwbfBO

— Olympic Golf (@OlympicGolf) August 20, 2016

Inbee Park claims Olympic gold in women’s golf

The unique value of an Olympic medal was not lost on anyone on Saturday. Some golfers wanted it so much yet came up short. Others found the proper balance of emotion and execution. In the end, Korea’s Inbee Park triumphed by 5 strokes at 16-under par, with Lydia Ko of New Zealand claiming silver, and Shan-Shan Feng of China wearing bronze.

Park was never threatened on day four as she made a triumphant return to the winner’s podium. A thumb injury had reduced her from championship form to an afterthought, but Park’s total command of the Olympic course was a powerful reminder of the dominance she exerted on women’s golf over the past 5 years. Lydia Ko never quite connected her putting stroke to the Brazilian greens, but her effort was enough to secure a silver medal. On day four, Shan-Shan Feng surged just enough to edge a stroke beyond three other golfers and avoid a playoff for the bronze medal.

As for Team USA, well, Lexi Thompson took until round 4 to figure things out (T19), Gerina Piller cared too much in a closing 74 (dropped from 3rd to T11) and Stacy Lewis came up one inch short of a playoff for bronze, one of the trio at -9.

Si Woo wins in Greensboro while others qualify on

Si Woo Kim turned to the tenth hole on Sunday in 4-under par, 23 strokes deep for the tournament, but would later falter — maybe it was because he saw Mr. 58, Jim Furyk, in the rearview mirror. He bogeyed three of his first four holes on the inward nine, setting the gallery up for an exciting finish. A weather delay near the end of the round added to the drama, as well.

The young Korean golfer bounced immediately back with a 15th-hole birdie, and Furyk stumbled. Although Luke Donald would reach 16-under for second place, Kim closed with a punch worthy of Connor McGregor, birdieing the 18th for a five-stroke win. Hideki Matsuyama and Brandt Snedeker finished in a third-place tie, one behind Donald.

Kyle Stanley and Shawn Stefani moved inside the top-125 to advance to the FedEx Cup playoffs. For Stefani, the result was especially poignant, as the result secured his tour card for 2016-17. Dropping out of the playoffs were Matt Jones and Whee Kim, numbers 124 and 125 heading into the week.

That's how you finish in style, young man.#ShotOfTheDay https://t.co/QHMjTwkZL8

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 22, 2016

Czech Masters title on European Tour in hands of Peterson

Every element of the 2016 Czech Masters pointed to Thomas Pieters defending his 2015 title. The Belgian had placed 4th at the Olympics and was on a course that suited his game. When he took the 3rd round lead, it seemed that the script was written. American Paul Peterson, however, was in charge of the rewrite and he gave the tournament a different ending.

Pieters has had trouble closing the deal this year. While his final-round 70 was a fine effort, it wasn’t enough to hold off the fast-charging Peterson. The Oregon State product had seven birdies on the day. More important, after each of his two bogeys, he bounced back with a birdie. Pieters bogeyed the par-five first hole, then played 3-under golf the rest of the way. Both he and Peterson birdied the closing hole. Pieters ended three strokes ahead of third-place finishers David Howell and Ryan Evans.

Congratulations @PPetersonGolf – the #CzechMasters Champion! ???? https://t.co/9P7IocyRQv

— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) August 21, 2016

A lot of Luck at the U.S. Amateur

The final match of the U.S. Amateur at Oakland Hills brought together two unique competitors; Brad Dalke of the University of Oklahoma matched up with Curtis Luck of Australia. Dalke committed to OU in 2010…when he was a seasoned human of 12 years of age. Talk about precocious! Luck, on his official Twitter account, describes himself as “growin’ beards,” specifically Mirin decent beards (whatever those might be!). After the morning round of 18 holes, the golfers were tied. Each finalist had won five holes in round one, setting the stage for a memorable afternoon.

Dalke burst from the lunchroom gate with a birdie to take a one-up lead. Unmoved, Luck went on one of the all-time great tears, winning 8 consecutive holes. His ridiculous run was highlighted by an eagle 3 on hole 2, birdies on 5 and 7, and pars on the rest. It’s not the Dalke played poorly, he just didn’t play well enough to win a single hole during the stretch. To his credit, Dalke made consecutive pars on holes 10 and 11 to cut the deficit to 5 holes. Luck returned to form, finishing birdie-par-par over the final three holes of the match to win the title, 6 and 4. Both golfers earned return trips to the 2017 Amateur, along with expected invitations to next year’s Masters and U.S. Open tournaments.

And with that, @CurtisLuck6 is the champion of the 116th #USAmateur. https://t.co/2KJCkMIseC

— USGA (@USGA) August 21, 2016

J.J. Spaun surges to back-nine win at News Sentinel Open

After nine holes on Sunday, Sam Ryder had increased his lead over J.J. Spaun by one stroke. Both golfers were in search of their first 2016 wins on the Web.Com Tour, although for Ryder, the stakes were higher. While Spaun held down the 5th spot on the Tour money list, Ryder was farther back, in 55th place. Ryder’s back nine turned out to be an acceptable one, three birdies against two bogeys. Unfortunately for him, Spaun awakened.

Spaun graduated from PGA Tour Canada to the Web.Com Tour, winning once last season. He used that experience over Fox Den’s final nine holes, marking five birdies against no bogeys on his card, to surge past Ryder by one slim stroke. Both golfers laid up on the par-five 18th hole, facing birdie putts of 12 feet for Spaun and 8 feet for Ryder.

As they say in golf, first in wins, and Spaun made certain that his putt dropped for birdie. Ryder could not counter and the victory was Spaun’s. With the victory, Spaun moved inside the top three on the money list. Although he didn’t win, Ryder’s runner-up finish was enough to move him inside The 25 who earn a PGA Tour card at the end of the regular season.

Spaun has spunk. He drains the birdie on the 72nd hole. pic.twitter.com/gRLvd40nMd

— Web.com Tour (@WebDotComTour) August 21, 2016

Mackenzie Tour-PGA Canada’s National Capital Open lasts 8 extra holes

Manav Shah and Jonathan Khan found out what pressure feels like in the final round of the National Capital Open. After lighting up the Hylands Golf Club in Ottawa for three rounds, they collapsed to 77 and 78, respectively, and tumbled down the leader board. Eager to exploit the opening was a trio of competitors.

Samuel Del Val and Adam Cornelson avoided the big numbers on Sunday, each posting 1-under on the day. Brock Mackenzie, inspired by the tour that bears his name, went deeper, reaching 3-under for the final 18. The result was three golfers at 15-under par, one stroke ahead of a quartet of pretenders. Off to the par four 18th went the trio, twice! After six pars, the playoff moved to the par-three third hole. Both Mackenzie and Del Val made birdie, but Cornelson stumbled to bogey and was eliminated.

It took two more visits to each hole (18 and 3) before Mackenzie was able to strike for another birdie and seize victory. Both Mackenzie and Cornelson firmed their grasp on their spots in The Five — the golfers who earn a Web.Com Tour card at season’s end. Del Val has a way to go, but moved inside the top-20 on the Order of Merit with his runner-up finish.

There it is! Brock Mackenzie ends the marathon playoff with a birdie on the seventh extra hole. pic.twitter.com/vrsYMskMYc

— Mackenzie Tour (@PGATOURCanada) August 21, 2016

News

Most birdies without breaking par – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

9 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Will Schube

In our forums, one user is wondering how many birdies other players have had in a round while still failing to break par. @Lalan45, unfortunately, asked the question after a unique experience of their own.

They wrote:

“Today I managed 8 birdies but still shot even par, could have been a round to remember! What’s the most birdies you’ve made in a round and still didn’t break par?”

Our members in the forum shared their own experiences with successful rounds that still resulted in a score over par. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

kwcsports: “I’ve had 5 a few times, still shot 80+ haha.”
jda: “I played a course for the first time, had 8 birdies, 9 doubles and an eagle. The infamous no-par round. I kept the scorecard. Every shot had a creek that I did not know about, or I was within 8-10 feet for a birdie look. To this day, I have no idea if I should be really jacked up or mad about that performance.”
jvincent: “I think my record is either 5 or 6. Probably shot 75.”
Instron4204: “3 birdies and shot a 92…man I suck!”

Entire Thread: “Most Birdies Without Breaking Par.”

News

Best current stock shaft 2026 – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

10 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Will Schube

In our forums, one user is asking for thoughts on the best stock shafts offered in 2026. Stock shafts are the shafts included with a club when it’s purchased from retailers or OEMs.

@DTorres asked:

The last couple years has seen a lot of updates and additions to no upcharge stock shafts, which do you think is the best offering in 2026?

Im a bit of a shaft nerd and recently during my Members Testing with the Callaway Quantum Triple Diamond I found the updated Project X Denali Frost Black to be a fantastic stock shaft. I absolutely did not mesh well with the original Denali. Just curious what other people think are the current best Stock shaft offerings out with new models and stock Ventus options and LinQ options popping up here and there.

We were given the option for any stock shafts for our members review. I went with the 70g Black Frost 6.5 because it’s a shaft I don’t have, it’s an updated version of the original Denali and hear little about. I typically use a Diamana WB, GD VF or a HOF Raptor. I’m not saying it was neck and neck with any of those but it was a pleasant surprise I’m not accustomed to in stock shaft offerings.

Our members in the forum have been offering up their own thoughts on the best stock shafts available in 2026. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

rsballer10: “IMO – MCA Ka’ili White Darkwave, Tensei 1k Black/white, UST Lin-Q White. People are free to spend their money however they see fit, but for me personally the shaft catalogs these days have enough options that I don’t see the value of a $400 upcharge. I have never had a problem finding a no upcharge shaft that fits the bend profile and weight that I need. Whether the paint job is good enough or not is above my pay scale.”
bcflyguy1: “Project X Titan Black. I’ve had one in 60TX in my Quantum TD Max for several weeks now. Have to give Titlieist their flowers for finding a way to make it available as a featured option; very shrewd bit of business and one that I suspect will be duplicated by the other companies. TT/PX have a certified banger on their hands with Titan.”
CTG77: “Undoubtedly, it’s the Tensei 1K RIP shafts from Titleist. The Tensei line gives about 98% of the performance of a Ventus VeloCore+ shaft at a tiny fraction of the cost if you’re looking for a blue or red profile. The white is not an exact match for Ventus Black, but it’s closer to it than the non-VeloCore+ Ventus shafts that come from Callaway or formerly came from TaylorMade.”

Entire Thread: “Best current stock shaft 2026.”

News

GolfWRX’s Father’s Day Gift Guide (2026)

Published

2 days ago

Jun 9, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

A reminder from your friends at GolfWRX: Father’s Day is June 21. And as we do every year, we’re rounding up the best gifts for dad.

As we say every year, there’s no better golf-related Father’s Day gift than a round of golf with pops. Be it a country club or your favorite muni, take the time to get together to play 18 if you can.

Let’s get to the gifts.

Ghost Golf Qualifier Diamond Polo

We like the new polos that Ghost is offering, as the fabric and fit are so good. These new Qualifier Collection polos breathe well, are lightweight, stretch with your swing, and of course look great. You can wear them on the course, in the office, or just out at a casual event and they will fit right in.

Buy here.

STR8-Strip Grip Tape Remover

If your dad is an equipment aficionado and tinkers with his clubs, this tool works wonders. Removing grip tape has never been easier, just put a little head on the tape and the STR8-Strip peals it right off the shaft without any damage.

Buy here.

Why Golf: Putting Thing

When it comes to practice, it is good to have a purpose. This “Putting Thing” sure does it. We know from personal experience how challenging it can be and how rewarding it is on the practice green. This also provides some competition for your kiddo to see who will unload the dishwasher or do the next chore around the house.

Buy here.

OluKai Lae‘ahi Men’s Breathable Slip-On Shoes

Riding to and from the course in style and comfort is always a good thing. If you’re in a hurry, it’s a nice feature to slide into your shoes and get to the tee time. For the post-game shoe, at your locker or while putting your clubs away in the car. Nice to slide into a shoe that looks good anywhere. Pair that with meeting the family for dinner, no need to change!

Buy here.

Therabody Theragun Relief

A little wellness goes a long way. Keeping loose is a good way to go when it comes to the weekend game or treatment during the week. If there is a little ache or pain, the Theragun is there to help out. Help loosen up the back for a pre-game warm-up or cool-down.

Buy here.

World Cup golf apparel

Something for the soccer dads. Embrace the World Cup fever this summer on the course with custom gear to support the nation of your choice.

Buy here.

FootJoy Pro SL spikeless golf shoes

Give the old man a break and save his feet with the Footjoy Pro SL Men’s Spikeless Golf Shoes for some added comfort on the course.

Buy here.

Bushnell Wingman 2 GPS speaker

Combine all the hits as well as some game improvement with the Wingman 2 Golf GPS Speaker by getting audible distance readings from 38,000+ courses worldwide through the Wingman 2 remote or speaker.

Buy here.

Personalized Titleist Pro V1 golf balls

The No. 1 ball in golf is a safe bet, and the Pro V1 fits the largest chunk of the bell curve if you don’t know what ball pops plays. Add personalization for a, well, personal touch!

Buy here.