Expert Picks: John Deere Classic

The word “consistency” is lost on most 20-year-olds. Most 20-year-olds, however, are not Tom Kim. After winning the Wyndham Championship in August to capture his first PGA TOUR victory, Kim quickly followed it up with another win at the Shriners Children’s Open earlier this month. With two wins, the 20-year-old Kim joined Tiger Woods as the only two players in the last 80 years to win multiple PGA TOUR titles before turning 21. Unlike a young Woods, Kim doesn’t overwhelm golf courses, or his competition, with his distance off the tee. In fact, he ranked 70th or worse in average driving distance during each of his two victories. What he may lack in power off the tee, though, he makes up for with prowess on the greens. Case in point, Kim finished first and third in Strokes Gained: Putting during the weeks of his first two wins, respectively. Kim’s two dominant putting performances could be dismissed as flashes in the pan, or attributed to his intentional switch to a putter setup that yields him greater consistency day-to-day and week-to-week. At last year’s THE CJ CUP @ SUMMIT, Kim used a steel-shafted putter, just as he had done throughout his career to that point. Although multi-material putter shafts have become progressively more commonplace on the PGA TOUR – and in the golf market at large – Kim was far from alone in using a steel-shafted putter. Steel shafts were first permitted by the USGA for use in putters only at the 1924 U.S. Open, and most golfers replaced their familiar hickory shafts with new steel shafts in all of their clubs in the 1930s. In comparison to hickory, steel shafts offered lighter weights, greater strength, increased durability and reduced variance in manufacturing. Steel continued as the material of choice in shafts for the golf industry at large until graphite composite shafts became a superior option in drivers and fairway woods around the mid-to-late 1990s – some switched earlier than others, of course. Composite shafts were significantly lighter than their steel counterparts, allowing players to create more speed, and steel-shafted drivers and fairway woods became a thing of the past. Although graphite was winning the speed race in metalwoods, the sturdier steel shafts remained as the top selection for irons, wedges and putters. For many golfers – even still to this day – that remains the case. In recent years, however, shaft manufacturers have continued leveling the playing field between composite and steel, offering equivalently weighted iron, wedge and putter shafts. Now, composite shafts that use high-end materials and finely tuned stiffness/flexibility in concentrated areas can actually provide increased performance and feel versus steel. Composite shafts aren’t reserved for drivers and fairway woods anymore; even top PGA TOUR players use composite shafts in their irons, wedges and/or putters. — After finishing T49 at last year’s THE CJ CUP @ SUMMIT using a steel-shafted putter, Kim took the advice of a friend and fellow pro by testing out an LA Golf putter shaft, which had a wider-diameter design made to be extremely stiff and minimize bending throughout the stroke compared to steel. In theory, less movement and vibration in the shaft should reduce variability when putting. By the time Kim made his next TOUR start at the 2022 AT&T Byron Nelson, he was using a Scotty Cameron Circle T GSS blade putter with custom tiffany-blue paintfill, equipped with an LA Golf TPZ One35 shaft (the “One35” is a reference to the 135-gram shaft weight, which is roughly 10 grams heavier than typical steel putter shafts). That’s the putter setup he used to win the Wyndham Championship – his first PGA TOUR victory. “I think, obviously, the (LA Golf) shafts are heavier and look bigger than normal steel shafts, so it gives me that weight,” Kim said Wednesday ahead of THE CJ CUP in South Carolina. “The trouble I’ve had sometimes – when my putter fell off – was that I couldn’t feel the weight of the head or the shaft really well. The weight felt different every day. But once I put that shaft in, it made it consistent. I really haven’t had a day where it felt different. It’s always been consistent. “If I have a consistent strike, I know the ball is rolling well. And even with the mishits, I know when I hit it well and when I don’t. I think that was the biggest thing. Just the consistency of it, whether it’s a miss or not. So that’s why it went in. I got a recommendation from a friend of mine, because he was using it, and he won with it … I was like, ‘I might as well try it.’ It worked right away.” Prior to the Presidents Cup, Kim worked with Paul Vizanko, Director of Scotty Cameron Putter Fitting and Player Development, on designing a new custom blade putter with a “simple and cool” colorway. “I talked to Paul (after the 2021-22 season concluded); he’s the guy we talk to for putters,” Kim said. “I wanted sole weights on my putter, and I was talking to him, and he got me weights. I normally just had a Circle T putter and that was it – the tiffany one. I wanted something new. I was like, ‘Can I try this?’ Then he (got one built), and he was like, ‘What color do you want?’ “Obviously, the tiffany is a rare piece and I would have loved to do it, but I wanted something simple and cool. So I went with the black (paintfill). It looks amazing. I put it right in the bag after the season finished, and it’s been working pretty well for me.” For consistency’s sake, Kim’s new putter was equipped with an LA Golf P-Series 135 shaft, which is similar in design to his previous LA Golf shaft. It was also built with a Carolina blue SuperStroke grip, in honor of the 2022 Presidents Cup in Charlotte. That’s the putter he eventually used to win the 2022 Shriners Children’s Open – his second PGA TOUR victory – and remains in the bag. With a more consistent feel in his putter, thanks to the shaft switch, Kim has already established himself as a consistent winner on TOUR. Given his budding superstar status, he received appropriate treatment this week. On Tuesday, an LA Golf tour rep presented Kim with four prototype shafts, in four unique colorways, made especially for him. Most 20-year-olds don’t get that kind of prototype treatment. But again, most 20-year-olds are not Tom Kim.

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The 31st tournament of the 2017-18 season is the first in a northern latitude, so you know what that means: Summer has arrived for the rest of the country. Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, hosts 120 golfers for the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide. For the first time in memory, there weren’t any noticeable changes on Jack Nicklaus’ home track, but after last year’s edition, none were needed. Scroll beneath the ranking to read why, what to expect and much more on this week’s invitational. Checks all of the boxes, including momentum. Two top fives and another pair of top 15s in six trips; T4 in his last appearance in 2016. Bounces in after a “disappointing” runner-up at Wentworth. The FedExCup points leader is debuting as the World No. 1. Finally solved Muirfield Village in his fourth appearance last year with a T4. Led the field in average distance of putts converted. The wind whisperer is as consistently strong as anyone over the last year. Seventh on TOUR in birdies-or-better percentage. Scoring average of 69.67 in last 12 rounds at Muirfield Village (T5-T11-T15). The 2010 champ has six career top 10s here, including a solo second in his last visit in 2015. Fresh off a classic stripe show at Colonial, leading the field in strokes gained: tee-to-green en route to victory. Home game for the transplanted Aussie who leads the TOUR in strokes gained: putting. End-loaded a personal-best T15 here last here in ninth appearance. Win-T5 in last two starts upon return. First start since losing the handle on the top spot in the OWGR, but still leads TOUR in strokes gained: tee-to-green and adjusted scoring. Two top fives among five top 20s at Muirfield Village. May have fallen prey to grouping with Tiger Woods at TPC Sawgrass where he MC’d. It happened in the finale of the 2012 Memorial when he shot 84. Otherwise strong elsewhere. T2 here last year, too. After a T11 at THE PLAYERS, acknowledged that he’s back on track with his feel for competition. What better than Muirfield Village to test that claim? He’s 15-for-15 with five wins among eight top 10s. At 11th in the FedExCup standings, he’s highest among non-winners. Currently 16th in adjusted scoring and fourth in par-5 scoring. Perfect at Muirfield Village with a pair of top-15 finishes. A force since teaming with Louis Oosthuizen for a third-place finish in New Orleans. Schwartzel has added a T9 at Quail Hollow and a T2 at TPC Sawgrass. Five top 25s at the Memorial. Continues to construct a brilliant season. Solo third at Colonial was his fifth top 10. Ninth in strokes gained: tee-to-green and first in average distance of putts converted. Also T1 in par-3 scoring. Remains hopeful but his putting continues to misfire. Ranked 70th of 78 in strokes gained: putting at Colonial en route to a T32. He’s 5-for-5 at Muirfield Village with a trio of top 20s. Course horse, but stumbling of late. Seven straight starts without a top 15, but third in all-time earnings at Muirfield Village with a win (2013) and another four top fives among seven top 10s. Amid the trials of last season, he mustered a T6 at Muirfield Village, just his second top 20 in 11 tries. The two-time winner this season ranks eighth in greens in regulation. His title here last year was his first top 15 in six appearances, but he averaged 70.00 in last 16 rounds at Muirfield Village. Up-and-down 2018 includes a T5 at TPC Sawgrass three weeks ago. POWER RANKINGS: THE MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT PRESENTED BY NATIONWIDE RANK PLAYER COMMENT Tuesday’s Fantasy Insider will include 2014 champion Hideki Matsuyama, Phil Mickelson, Henrik Stenson and Adam Scott, as well as the red-hot Kevins – Na and Tway. Not unlike when fellow legend Arnold Palmer constantly tweaked Bay Hill for his own limited-field invite, Nicklaus hasn’t hesitated from approving everything necessary to keep Muirfield Village as relevant as it is challenging. But while it’s unlikely that The Golden Bear reaches to the heavens for an assist even when the stock par 72 measuring 7,392 yards remains largely the same, Mother Nature cooperated a bit in adding to the test last year. After conceding a tournament record-low scoring average of 70.987 in 2016, Muirfield Village fought back for a four-year high of 72.797 last year. Zooming in, even if you cancel the first (moderate winds) and final (inclement conditions and strong winds) rounds, the middle 36 holes played according to historical proportions. Putting that into perspective, after Jason Dufner established the 36-hole scoring record at 14-under 130, he’d eventually prevail at 13-under 275, which is a proper target aggregate for would-be winners this week. He was vintage in his own right in leading the field in both greens in regulation and strokes gained: tee-to-green. Dufner finished a distant 47th in strokes gained: putting, but that was due entirely to a dreadful third-round 77 in which he surrendered 4.80 strokes to the field on the bentgrass surfaces. Overall, Dufner’s performance is typical of how to tame Muirfield Village. While its fairways-hit percentage of 62.03 last year was all-time low, it still was inside the top-half easiest of all course last season. Secondarily but worth the mention, the quartet of par 3s averaged a TOUR-high 3.22, a three-year high among all non-majors. In line with Nicklaus’ design philosophy, the focus narrows on approach and on greens averaging just 5,000 square feet and ready to touch 13 feet on the Stimpmeter. Fairways and greens are framed by rough consisting of a blend of Kentucky bluegrass, fescue and rye approaching four inches. Similar conditions to last year are in store this week, which is to say that it’s already summertime in central Ohio. A reasonable threat for rain and storms extends into Friday, but it doesn’t disappear entirely on the weekend. Moderate-to-gusty winds will greet the field in the opening round, but they are forecast to peel off gradually every day. Daytime highs in the low-to-mid 80s will tumble into the upper 70s after the 36-hole cut is made. For the fourth consecutive year, the champion will receive a three-year PGA TOUR exemption (through 2020-21) as well as a three-year exemption into THE PLAYERS Championship (2019-21). ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton reviews and previews every tournament from numerous angles. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Rookie Ranking, Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers, Facebook Live, Fantasy Insider WEDNESDAY: One & Done * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO, which also publishes on Tuesdays.

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