News

Morning 9: Rahm talked to LIV duo over leadership responsibility | JT not keeping receipts | Spieth on rowdy crowd

Published

3 years ago

Sep 27, 2023

Ben Alberstadt

By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Wednesday morning, golf fans. A quick look at the Ryder Cup odds: at DraftKings right now, the US team are surprise favorites at -110 to win — 52% implied probability — Europe +115, and a tie +1000. Place your bets accordingly! Last time out, the Americans were favored to the tune of -175 at Whistling Straits.

1. Rahm talked to Garcia, Poulter about carrying the leadership torch

Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…“Although Garcia’s absence will be felt throughout the team room, it has been particularly acute for Jon Rahm. The Spanish duo was undefeated in team play two years ago at Whistling Straits (3-0-1) and would have been the side’s most obvious pairing.”

“[Garcia] did show me a lot of what to do at Whistling and obviously in Paris, as well,” said Rahm, who added that he spoke with Garcia and Poulter before arriving in Rome. “Not that it’s going to be easy to take on the role that those two had both on and off the golf course, but just to hear them talk about what they thought and what they felt is obviously invaluable information.”

“With Garcia and Poulter absent, the emotional leadership for the European team now falls to Rahm and Rory McIlroy.”

“I don’t think I need to do anything different to what I’ve done in the past. It’s my role to go out there and try to win as much as I can,” Rahm said. “It’s usually the leaders of a team have to go out there and show a little bit more, exactly that, leadership, and getting those points.”

Full piece.

2. On captain Zach Johnson

Brendan Quinn for the Athletic…”For Johnson, being who he is means being very Iowan. Honest. Process-driven. Diligent. He operates with an abnormal attention to detail. He writes everything down and loves lists — making lists, looking at lists, checking things off lists. Though he recently referred to the U.S. team’s analytics crew as the “nerd herd,” Johnson isn’t dismissive of data.”

“Organization will not be an issue,” says Love III, one of Johnson’s five vice-captains, along with Furyk, Steve Stricker, Fred Couples and Stewart Cink. “And when Zach makes a decision, he’ll be confident in it.”

“The key is for those decisions to be accepted and executed. That takes trust.”

“Fellow tour players have long gravitated toward him, a counter, perhaps, to a public image of him that can sometimes translate as ill at ease. He is exceedingly well-liked among fellow pros. In his 30s and into his 40s, Johnson, comfortable in his skin, welcomed the young stars joining the tour. From Rickie Fowler to Justin Thomas to Scottie Scheffler.”

Full piece.

3. JT on Ryder Cup competitiveness

The Golf Channel digital team…“Rory [McIlroy] is a great example,” Justin Thomas said Tuesday. “I love Rory. We get along extremely well. He’s been a role model of mine. He was super nice to me when I was first starting up. He still is. We see each other a bunch.

“We played each other in the Ryder Cup and, yeah, we hated each other for 18 holes. Again, it’s nothing personal. It’s not a dislike as a person…”

“It’s just, my wife knows,” Thomas said, “if Jill teed it up in the Ryder Cup for the other team, I’m going to try to beat her pretty bad.”

Full piece.

4. “Not keeping receipts”

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach…”Justin Thomas says he hasn’t “kept receipts” for those who have criticized his inclusion in the U.S. Ryder Cup team.”

“The only thing that matters to Thomas, he told reporters Tuesday, is that U.S. team captain Zach Johnson and the other American golfers who will take on the European team starting Friday at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club wanted him there.”

“After I was picked from the team, it doesn’t matter what it is, especially when it comes to people and stuff online, everybody’s got an opinion and theirs is right and everybody else’s is wrong, at least that’s what generally seems to be,” Thomas said. “So for that exact reason, I stayed away from social media and stayed away from stuff online because I knew nothing good was going to come from it.”

Full piece.

5. Spieth on the rowdies

Gabrielle Herzig for Sports Illustrated…”Over the years, players have demonstrated varying strategies for combating the event’s natural rowdiness. On Tuesday at Marco Simone, Jordan Spieth offered an explanation of those distinct approaches.”

“He used a former match-play partner as a pointed example.”

“I played a lot of matches with Patrick Reed, when he felt insulted, he turned the notch up,” Spieth said.

…”Spieth, however, couldn’t be more different in his approach.”

“When I feel insulted, I don’t turn it up or down,” Spieth said. “I’m just like, O.K. they are drunk, move on.”

Full piece.

6. Koepka: I should have 9 majors by now

Our Matt Vincenzi…“While appearing on Barstool Sports’ “Pardon My Take” Podcast, Brooks Koepka said he believed he could win 12 majors by the time his career is over.”

“The five-time major champion was asked by Big Cat, “How many majors? What’s the number? I know there’s a number in your head.”

“Koepka replied, “I feel like I can get to twelve. Think about it, right? Think about how many I’ve already blown. I blew one to Phil, so that’d be six. Tiger, that’s seven. Jon Rahm, so that’s eight. Gary Woodland, lost to Gary. So that’s nine.”

Full piece.

7. Chamblee calls Donald decision a mistake

Our Matt Vincenzi…”For the first time since 1993, the European team has chosen to open the Ryder Cup with foursomes rather than fourball.”

“When asked why he made the decision, European captain Luke Donald indicated that he wanted to get out to a “fast start”.”

“It’s pretty simple really, we feel like as a team, statistically, we are stronger in foursomes within our team than we would be in fourballs.”

“Why not get off to a fast start? That’s it.”

“However, Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee has questioned the decision calling it a “mistake” on Golf Central.”

“It is very important to win the first session from a momentum standpoint. But it’s significantly more important to lead after the first day. If you go back to 1997 to present, starting with fourballs allowed them to end with a strength on the first day, and mostly they’ve dominated in the foursomes.

“If you win the first session, you win the Ryder Cup about 60% of the time. But if you win the first day, you win 70% of the time. So in one fell swoop, he’s potentially thrown away a 10% chance, which is a monumental advantage given to the European side, and I think that’s a mistake.”

Full piece.

8. DP World Tour invites for 4 LIV pros

9 Photos from the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship (LPGA)

Check out all of our galleries here.

Full piece.

News

Most birdies without breaking par – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

8 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

8 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.