From bad to worse for U.S. Ryder Cup team

ERIN Wis. – Six-time U.S. Open runner-up Phil Mickelson has officially withdrawn from the 2017 championship at Erin Hills to be at his daughter’s high school graduation in California, missing his national open for the first time since 1993. Mickelson had stayed in the field till the last moment in the hope of a potential lengthy weather delay but with clear skies greeting Erin, Wisconsin Thursday morning the five-time major winner officially pulled the pin. The 46-year-old is a veteran of 26 U.S. Open’s – the last 23 consecutively – but will now have to wait another year to try to complete the career grand slam. With wins at the Masters (2004, 2006, 2010), the PGA Championship (2005) and the Open Championship (2013) it remains the one trophy he covets most. He was runner-up in 1999, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2009 and 2013. “Obviously it’s a tournament that I want to win the most, and the only way to win is if you play,â€� Mickelson said recently at the Memorial Tournament. “But this (the graduation) is one of those moments where you look back on life and you just don’t want to miss it. I’ll be really glad that I was there and present.â€� Amanda Mickelson (17) will give the commencement address this morning as the school president at the Pacific Ridge School in Carlsbad. Roberto Diaz of Mexico will take Mickelson’s place in the field. The 30-year-old was the first alternate from the Summit, N.J. sectional qualifying site and is now playing his first major championship.

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Tiger Woods was on roll Friday, before the rain rolled in. So what does this mean for him? For the field? For the condition of the golf course? Our expert weigh in.

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While there is not a Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow Club this week, we’re fortunate to have photos from the Charlotte, North Carolina, event dating back to 2012 — when the sleeves were a bit longer and the drives were a bit shorter. Here are some of GolfWRX’s shots of what the pros were playing at Wells Fargo Championships of the past. Back in 2012, Tiger Woods arrived at Quail Hollow with a rarity in his bag: a cavity-back 3-iron (Nike VR-S Forged). The rest of Woods’ irons were his standard (for the time) Nike VR Pro blades. Jumping forward to 2018: Woods, now a TaylorMade staffer, took on Quail Hollow with TaylorMade TW Phase1 irons, which were the precursor to the P7TW irons he plays currently. Woods had not transitioned to TaylorMade wedges at that point, however, and was still playing his Nike high-lofters. In 2012, Rory McIlroy was still a Titleist staffer. He lost to Rickie Fowler in a three-man playoff (D.A. Points was the third man) while launching a Titleist 910 D driver off the tee. Patrick Reed, in 2017, was a Callaway staffer, and his bag featured a set of rare Callaway MB1 irons. Interestingly, Reed, who always seems to be experimenting at the short end of his bag, was testing out a set of Cleveland RTX 3 wedges. The setup helped Reed to a T12 finish. Back in 2012, Jamie Lovemark showcased a Nike wedge with two weight ports drilled in the rear of the club (to achieve a preferred swing weight). Lovemark, always a interesting What’s In The Bag (WITB), also had a tidy set of VR Pro Combo irons with “JLâ€� stamping. Jon Rahm’s 2017 WITB is TaylorMade from top to bottom — as it has been since the Arizona State Sun Devil joined the TOUR. Interestingly, Rahm had both 2016 and 2017 TaylorMade M1 fairway woods in the bag. Last year, we spotted Sebastian Munoz with the names of Nintendo characters stamped on his Vokey SM7 60-degree wedge. Well-played. Harold Varner III’s 2018 WITB features something we’re confident in saying that he’s the first and only professional golfer to have: A putter cover that showcases his driver headcover (Gerald) dabbing. That’s right, a putter cover with embroidering of the likeness of another headcover. That’d be like Tiger Woods having Frank stitched on his putter cover … Jason Kokrak paired Vokey wedges with his PXG 0311 T irons at last year’s Wells Fargo Championship. The “JASONâ€� stamping on his wedge is the product of tiny dots arranged to form letters, rather than letter stamps, which is very rarely seen.

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