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Morning 9: Optimistic Phil | Morikawa’s frustration | Rocket Mortgage Classic photos

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1 year ago

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Thursday morning, golf fans, as day one of the Rocket Mortgage Classic gets underway.

1. Optimistic Phil

Mark Schlabach, ESPN Senior Writer…”In his first public comments since the PGA Tour’s stunning alliance with the DP World Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund was announced June 6, six-time major champion Phil Mickelson said he’s happy the sides are working to bring the fractured sport back together.”

  • “During a news conference Wednesday ahead of this week’s LIV Golf League tournament in Spain, Mickelson told reporters that he thinks the plan to reshape the sport is ahead of schedule.”
  • “I would say I felt appreciation that we got to this point where we’re working together because it makes me confident with where the game of golf is headed in the future,” Mickelson said. “We felt like it was going to be about two years roughly before we got to that point. It took a year and a half or six months quicker than I thought it would be.”
Full piece.

2. Player meeting re: PIF (and a statement of their own)

AP report…“The PGA Tour sought to assure players Tuesday that they will have a say in the Tour’s new partnership with the Saudi funders of LIV Golf, with its policy board issuing a statement that noted players would have to approve any final agreement between the once-rival tours.”

  • “The statement was released after a meeting of the board, which includes five players: Patrick Cantlay, Rory McIlroy, Charley Hoffman, Peter Malnati and Webb Simpson…”
  • “Entering the framework agreement put an end to costly litigation. Management, with input from our player directors, has now begun a new phase of negotiations to determine if the Tour can reach a definitive agreement that is in the best interests of our players, fans, sponsors, partners, and the game overall,” the statement said.”
  • “If future negotiations lead to a proposed agreement, it would need approval by the Tour’s policy board, which includes player directors. In the meantime, we are all committed to the safeguards in the framework agreement that ensure the PGA Tour would lead and maintain control of this potential new commercial entity,” the statement continued.”
Full piece.

3. Friends again

Our Matt Vincenzi…”Sergio Garcia and Rory McIlroy were once close friends, but Garcia’s decision to join LIV Golf, the relationship deteriorated quickly.”

  • “At the U.S. Open earlier this month, the pair crossed paths. The Independent reported that when McIlroy walked past Garcia, he “put his right little finger to his mouth and his thumb to his ear”, indicating he would call the Spaniard. Apparently, the two eventually found each other and had a conversation at Los Angeles Country Club.”
  • “While speaking to the media ahead of this week’s LIV tournament, Sergio called the U.S. Open a “great event” due to the fact that he reconciled with the man who was an usher at his wedding in 2017.”
  • “More than anything, because I gained a friend back, a friend that I kind of felt like I lost in the last year or so.
  • “We talked and we had a great conversation, and I feel like I have that friend back, and that to me means a lot. That’s a very positive thing.”
Full piece.

4. The Match: Team Curry-Thompson’s golf origin story

Jeff Eisenband for PGATour.com…”Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson have achieved more victories than most other athletes in their era, but one of their early losses still lingers in their minds.”

  • “Our first time playing golf as a two-man team, was it the Grand Canary Islands?” Curry begins. “We were playing on the 2014 Team USA together if memory serves me right. I think we got beat by Clyde Drexler and who was the other guy?”
  • “Dominique Wilkins,” Thompson adds, matter-of-factly.
  • “That’s right. And we were betting milkshakes at the time, no money.”
Full piece.

5. Koepka, DJ in no hurry to return to Tour?

Paul Higham for Golf Monthly…”Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson say they have no desire to return to the PGA Tour even if allowed under the big merger – saying LIV Golf will only get bigger and better.”

  • “…Johnson insists he’s happy to stay with LIV Golf, which he says will get better as a result of a deal between the PGA Tour and PIF – and certainly doesn’t want to play more golf.”
  • “I’m excited for the future,” said Johnson ahead of the LIV Golf tournament at Valderrama. “I think with this agreement, the only thing that’s going to happen is LIV is going to get even better than what it is now, which it’s already great. I’m happy exactly where I am, and I’m definitely not looking to play more golf than I’m playing now, that’s for sure.”
Full piece.

6. Morikawa’s frustration

Colby Powell for Golf Channel…”Frustrating.”

  • “That’s how Collin Morikawa characterized his season when asked about his play prior to this week’s Rocket Mortgage Classic.”
  • “After bursting on the scene with five PGA Tour wins – including two major championships – within a span of two years, Morikawa finds himself in a dry spell of nearly the same length.”
  • “His last Tour victory came at The Open Championship in 2021…”
  • “It’s been a while, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know how to [win], it’s still there,” Morikawa said. “You’ve got to put together some solid golf. … This year hasn’t been great, but I’m not giving up. We’re still right there, we’re 32nd FedExCup. A win puts us pretty high up so just focus on how to win.
  • “I think it’s just coming down to control the golf ball. Right now I brought in left on the golf course. That’s when I was playing my best, when I was winning, I could swing as hard as I’d want and the ball was never going left.”
Full Piece.

7. DJ Khaled, OBJ hit the links

8. JT credits wife for change in mentality

  • Jimmy Reinman for PGATour.com…”Thomas once took the TOUR Championship almost for granted, but now he’s grinding to secure a spot in the top 70 to qualify for the Playoffs. He’s playing this week’s Rocket Mortgage Classic with some positive momentum after a T9 at last week’s Travelers Championship, flipping the script after back-to-back missed cuts at the U.S. Open and the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, the first time Thomas missed the cut in consecutive events since July 2017.”
  • “So, what changed? He received a text last Wednesday night from his wife Jillian, which he received Thursday when he woke up. She gently nudged him to remember the spirit of why he loves this game.”
  • “With rounds of 70-64-62-67 at TPC River Highlands, his third-round 62 marking a season-low, it paid dividends.”
  • “It resonated to me and it really hit home better than anything I’ve heard,” Thomas said of his wife’s text. “Just basically said (to) remember why you love this game and why you play this game and why you’re out there, just enjoy that and kind of take it in. It hit home for me. So last week, any kind of challenge I faced, anything good that happened, anything bad that happened, I just kind of remembered this is why I play professional golf and that’s, it’s why I’m doing this.”
Full Piece.

9. Rocket Mortgage Classic photos

  • Check out all of our photos from this week’s event!
Full Piece.
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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 John Deere Classic

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15 hours ago

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Jul 2, 2024

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GolfWRX is on site this week at the 2024 John Deere Classic. With the Scottish Open next week and The Open Championship two weeks away, those who have qualified will be looking to shore up their games in Silvis, Illinois, before heading to European shores.

On the equipment front, we spotted some new SuperStroke x Marvel grips and got an in-hand look at impressive custom Scotty Cameron putters. Our WITB galleries already feature a look at Jason Day’s wares, and general complement the spread.

Be sure to check back throughout the week as we add more photos from TPC Deere Run!

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying about the photos and join the discussion in the forums.

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Protected: Highlights from the Wilson Golf Product Testing and Fitting Experience at Pinehurst

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Tour Rundown: #QueenMel and a “Bland” U.S. Senior Open

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2 days ago

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Jul 1, 2024

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A wee bit to the north and east of my hometown is a jaunty little ‘burg called Medina, NY. No one would ever consider it to be a golf mecca, but for this week at least, it is. Why? The 2024 Amateur Champion of the world, Melanie Green, hails from Medina. With a sense of regional pride, I salute #QueenMel, who emerged from 36-hole, medal qualifying and six head-to-head matches, to win 2-up in the 36-hole final at Portmarnock. Miss Mel won the last three holes, two with birdies, to join great USA winners like Babe Zaharias, Louise Suggs, and Kelli Kuehne.

Now, let’s run down all the world’s tours this week. We followed a national championship (Men’s US Senior Open) from storied Newport Country Club, the PGA Tour at Detroit, the DP World in Italy, the LPGA doing the tandem thing around Michigan, and the Korn Ferry down Illinois way. We’re spoiled during these summer months, full stop. Might as well enjoy these riches.

PGA Tour @ Rocket Mortgage

The results that came out of Detroit Golf Club on Sunday caused a few heads to be scratched. Nowhere to be found were the mid-60s numbers that traced across the leaderboards like sunflowers in Carmona. Missing, too, as the sun waned in the sky, were the expected, clutch performances of golfers chasing victory.

We’ve grown accustomed to birdies down the stretch, and numbers like Bhatia’s 72nd-hole bogey, and Young’s closing five-five-five, seemed strange and unfamiliar. Bhatia’s take that he knows how to close tournaments, and that it simply didn’t happen on this day, was equal parts explanation and compensation. Teachers teach well, writers write well, and golfers put the ball in the hole. That’s the measure of victory.

The lifting of the tournament trophy was left to Cam Davis, who did what the others could not. He concluded play with 70 for -18 on the week, hoping for a second RMC in four years. On his heels, all tied for second at -17, were Davis Thompson, Min Woo Lee, Aaron Rai, and Bhatia. Beyond Akshay, none has tasted tournament success on the US PGA Tour. Davis posted birdie at 17, then waited. Thompson made a late rush, with birdies at three of his final five holes. He needed one more. Lee took five shots at the final hole; he needed one fewer. As for the two-gloved Rai, his even-par 72 on the day left him a shot away from playoff.

USGA @ Senior Men’s Open

Any hope that Hiroyuki Fujita held for finishing off the US Senior Open at Newport, went distantly away, courtesy of two unregistered opponents: fog and rain. The golfer that had played so brilliantly over 3.5 days (16-under through 63 holes) was forced to consider the ramifications of his situation. The golfer whose five cuts made in regular-tour majors included zero, top-forty finishes, stood three shots clear of the field, with no tourist guide to bring him home. Sunday’s dawn proved that he was mortal, and the game was afoot.

No worse pursuer than Richard Bland might have appeared. The Englishman had won his last USA start, and it was also a senior major championship. Bland captured the Senior PGA Championship in late May, winning by three shots over Australia’s Richard Green. The SPGA runner-up was also among the chasers at Newport, but a top-five finish would once again be his destiny. As for Bland, he did what experienced winners do. Consecutive birdies at 14 and 15 on Monday served notice that there would be no easy stroll home for Fujita. The Japan Tour stalwart stumbled over the same stretch of holes, posting bogey on three of his first four holes on day five.

Precisely when it appeared that Bland would conclude matters in regulation, he posted bogey at the 18th and dropped back to 13-under par. Fujita found the same number, and the duo went off to the first, two-hole playoff in US Senior Open history, and the first overtime session since 2014 in Oklahoma. After two pars each in the regulation session, they went to single-hole elimination. Each made bogey at the 18th, but the fourth hole gave resolution. Bland was able to earn a sandy from the greenside bunker, while Fujita was unable to secure par. Congratulations to Richard Bland on a second senior major in 2024.

LPGA @ Dow Championship

Both Atthaya Thitikul (Thailand) and Yin Ruoning (China) will represent their nations in the 2024 Paris Olympic games. Olympic competition is individual-only for golf, which is a missed opportunity. Teaming to win medals for your country is the epitome of Olympic success. It’s a bit odd, then that the two would find success in a team-style, warm-up event on the LPGA circuit.

For most of the week, two golfers from the USA appeared destined for victory at Midland Country Club. Ally Ewing and Jennifer Kupcho finished 36 holes in 128 strokes. They gave one back on Saturday, with 67, but came home on Sunday with a third 64 for the week. Despite an early passel of birdies, they were unable to save a single shot over the closing stretch. They finished at 21-deep for the week.

Paired with them, Thitikul and Ruoning were also finding par after par as they headed for home. At the watery 18th, Thitikul stuffed her tee ball inside fifteen feet, then read the surface flawlessly, and hit her mark. The putt broke slightly right, into the center of the cup. With that closing birdie, a playoff was avoided and a send-off celebration of Olympic calibre was in the works.

DP World Tour @ Italian Open

16 months had passed since Marcel Siem last savored a DP World Tour win. His triumph at the Indian Open, in February of 2023, might have been a bit distant to leave residue of confidence. As he traversed the final arc of the Cervia golf course, his gaskets had unsealed and oil leaked everywhere. An outward 32 was undone by four bogeys from holes 11 to 17. The last one had dropped him from the lead, and only a majestic finish could return a chance at salvation. After he drove the fairway and reached the green at the closing trace, Siem assessed a 22-feet putt for birdie and found cup bottom.

In that moment, the round of 65 that England’s Tom McKibbin had fashioned, was no longer enough. He would need to do a bit more work, to secure a second Tour title. The duo returned to the final tee deck, and Siem once again faced a birdie putt. His approach was played brilliantly to about ten feet, but the putt drifted right. By the grace of gravity, it caught enough of the circle to fall downward, and a sixth career title belonged to the German champion.

Korn Ferry Tour @ MHC by LRS

Max McGreevy has tasted the bitterness of defeat and savored delicious victory on the professional golf tours. He has lost a playoff on the PGA Tour, and now won twice on the Korn Ferry orbit. This week, McGreevey overcame a wee miss on the penultimate hole, to secure victory at green 72, with a xxx birdie putt. He and runner-up Steven Fisk each clinched a PGA Tour card for the 2025 season, based on 2024 peformance.

McGreevy eased a 36-yard pitch within two feet of the hole, at the par-five 16th, on Sunday. He converted the birdie putt and moved a shot lower than Fisk, with two holes to face. At 17, he played safely away from the tucked flag at the watery par three, and eased his 55-feet putt to precisely the same distance (26 inches.) And then, he missed. Gone was the lead, and present were the doubts.

As champions do, McGreevy refocussed and found his spot on the 18th fairway. His approach from 186 yards settled a dozen feet from the flagstick, and his read on the downhill slider was accurate. The putt dropped, and McGreevy avoided overtime.

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