Winged Foot in talks with the USGA about becoming part of a future U.S. Open rotation

MELBOURNE, Australia – Ernie Els was quick to act. The captain of the International team at the Presidents Cup sensed a flatness in the attitude of his squad for a brief moment or two after they allowed a minor fightback from the U.S. late Friday at Royal Melbourne. RELATED: Two winning putts – and a T.O. celebration – keeps U.S. close | Day 2 match recaps | Day 3 morning match previews At one point the Internationals were well on track to win their first Foursomes session since 2005, leading in all five matches on the back nine. But some clutch putts from the U.S. allowed a late reprieve as the two teams shared the session 2.5-2.5. Despite the momentum shift Els rallied his troops and reminded them of the overall score. A 6.5-3.5 lead is their first through two sessions since 2005 and their biggest through the same period since a four point advantage in 1998. This was no time for negativity. This was a time to embrace their strong position. “This (U.S. team) is the best. Sometimes it bites you. But you put a spear in it and bite back,â€� Els said. “It’s perspective, isn’t it. I’ve got to look at where we are. It’s easy to just look at where we could have been, because it was looking really unbelievable. But we’re in a very good position.â€� Els rammed home the message to his men. And in the end the flip might have been a timely reminder that when you count your chickens before they hatch you are asking for trouble. “My guys learnt a lot from this afternoon. We won’t make this happen again,â€� Els said. “I want my guys to play as good as they can and get as good a result as they can. They have put a lot of work into this and it’s been quite a week already. This was probably good for them, showing what can happen the last couple holes.â€� If Els sounds intense it is because he is. ‘The Big Easy’ as he is commonly known has put countless months and hours into this captaincy as he tries to produce the first International win since 1998. With 20 of the points still up for grabs his side needs nine more. Eight of them go on the line on Saturday with four morning Four-Ball matches and then four afternoon Foursomes battles. Els has continued to lean on his secret analytics and data when it comes to his pairings. Three of his victorious Four-Ball teams from Thursday reunite after being split on Friday. The only change is Haotong Li coming in to play for the first time this week – possibly a product of the rule where a player must play at least one team session before Sunday Singles. To those in the team, his steadfastness on his pre-tournament plan is not surprising. “It almost looks like he wants this more than when he’s out there playing,â€� fellow South African and team member Louis Oosthuizen says of Els. “You could see him; I love the passion. I think if you give him a club in his hand, he’ll hit the shot for you. He’s so into this week and he’s been a real good captain. “He’s been an unbelievable player, as well, but this means a lot for me seeing how he is as a captain and how involved he is. He’s brilliant.â€� For U.S. captain Tiger Woods the final hour or so is something he and his side are grasping with two hands. Staring down the barrel of a potential 9-1 deficit they now have the ability to wrestle the lead before the Saturday afternoon Foursomes should they come out hot in Four-Ball. Woods has sat himself out for the first time Saturday morning after going 2-0 with Justin Thomas over the first two sessions. The other 10 Americans have combined for just 1.5 points so far and will need to shoulder more of the load. As their best performer Woods could have once again sent himself out but the 82-time PGA TOUR winner is perhaps mindful of burnout before the Singles. Whether he plays Foursomes in the afternoon remains to be seen. He has replaced himself with Rickie Fowler who is 2-0-1 with Thomas as a partner having played together at the 2017 Presidents Cup. Thomas provided the big putt on Friday, making a 17-foot birdie on the final hole to win the match. “That was kind of the game plan. It would be hard for me to go all the sessions,â€� Woods said. “I’ve been fortunate enough to go out there with J.T. and we’ve gotten two points. J.T. played great and Rickie played awesome this afternoon. They have been looking forward to playing with one another. They have had success before and so I sent them back out.â€� The other American win Friday came in similar fashion as Patrick Cantlay came up clutch on the final hole to provide victory with Xander Schauffele over Adam Hadwin and Joaquin Niemann. Fowler and Gary Woodland also won two of the last three holes to steal a half point against Sungjae Im and Cameron Smith. “At one point … it looked pretty bleak, but the guys turned it around,â€� Woods said. “They played phenomenal coming in. It was important for us to end the way we did and it totally changed the last hour.â€� Marc Leishman, who combined with Oosthuizen for a 3 and 2 win over Dustin Johnson and Matt Kuchar, felt the jetlag and rust was wearing off the U.S. side who arrived on Monday from the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas. Woods said it was more about the conditions of Royal Melbourne – whose hard and fast greens are a stark contrast to most PGA TOUR events. “The energy has been there. These guys are all young and extremely excited about being a part of this team,â€� Woods said. “More than anything, it’s just getting a feel for this golf course. It is fast. It was faster today than it was yesterday. The guys have been able to go out there and get a feel for it. It’s amazing, I was telling the guys, the acceptance of a wedge shot to 20, 30, 40, feet is a good shot. That’s normally not the case, but it is this week.â€� Saturday becomes somewhat critical if history is a guide. The U.S. team has trailed only twice going to Singles in the history of the Presidents Cup. On those occasions they lost in 1998 and tied in 2003. The Internationals want to ensure they keep pace out front. “We are trying to not get ahead of ourselves at all. It’s a long way to go, but Ernie and his team of assistants have done a fantastic job of getting us prepared mentally and strategy-wise with the golf course,â€� International veteran Adam Scott said. “There’s a calmness, a calm confidence about our team here.â€�

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Scottie Scheffler has won four PGA TOUR events this season, including the Masters, and he once held a record-setting, 1,041-point lead in the FedExCup standings back in June. Scheffler holds the lead heading into the finale of the FedExCup Playoffs – this week’s TOUR Championship – but now it’s a matter of strokes and not points. He will begin the tournament at 10 under par, two shots ahead of No. 2 Patrick Cantlay under the unique Starting Strokes format. Cantlay, who was seventh in the FedExCup prior to his timely win at last week’s BMW Championship, moved to second with his victory. With the injury withdrawal of No. 3 Will Zalatoris, Xander Schauffele is the only other player within four strokes of Scheffler (and two behind Cantlay). The player with the lowest score in relation to par at week’s end will win the FedExCup and the $18 million bonus. For Thursday at least, the focus will be on Scheffler and Cantlay, who’s trying to become the first back-to-back FedExCup champ. We wanted to take a closer look inside the bags of the two players atop the leaderboard at East Lake. In Scheffler and Cantlay, you have two players who stay pretty consistent with their equipment but who also have several notable differences. We found six notable differences: 1. Brands: Firstly, and most obviously, Scheffler is sponsored by TaylorMade, whereas Cantlay is sponsored by Titleist 2. Different driver lofts: Scheffler uses a lower-lofted 7.5-degree build, while Cantlay opts for a higher-lofted 9.5-degree driver 3. Driving irons vs. high-lofted fairways: Scheffler fills out the top end of his iron set with driving irons (3- and 4-iron), while Cantlay uses a 7-wood instead 4. Blade vs. cavity back irons: Scheffler uses a set of blade-style irons, and Cantlay uses cavity-back irons, which are typically designed for greater forgiveness on off-center hits 5. Lighter iron shafts: Scheffler uses True Temper’s Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts, which weigh-in at around 130 grams, and Cantlay uses True Temper’s lighter Dynamic Gold 120 Tour Issue X100 shafts that weigh 120 grams 6. Blade vs. mallet putter: Although both players use custom Scotty Cameron designs, Scheffler uses a more traditional blade-style putter, whereas Cantlay opts for a winged mallet design that helps boost forgiveness The vast differences in their golf clubs highlights the importance of custom fitting; not everyone swings the same way, so not everyone should use the same golf clubs. Look no farther than Scheffler and Cantlay for proof. Below, we’ll dive into both of their full setups to see what they’re currently using and what’s changed throughout the year. Scottie Scheffler As previously mentioned, Scheffler doesn’t tinker much with his equipment. Since his Masters victory back in April, in fact, he hasn’t made any changes to the clubs in his bag. Scheffler did, however, make huge equipment news in 2022 when he signed with TaylorMade Golf the week of THE PLAYERS Championship in March. Prior to the announcement, Scheffler was an equipment free agent, so he wasn’t obligated to play any particular brand. Plus, he was coming off of two PGA TOUR victories (the WM Phoenix Open and Arnold Palmer Invitational). So, why did he end up signing with TaylorMade then? “I would say first and foremost (the reason) would be the driver,” Scheffler told GolfWRX’s Two Guys Talking Golf podcast following his Masters victory. “I already used the (TaylorMade P-7TW) irons for a while. I like the irons, but the (TaylorMade Stealth Plus) driver, when we did testing over the winter, I saw some pretty nice gains. It was one of those things, like, I know I’m going to use this driver, I know I’m going to use the irons, so maybe let’s see if we can work something out. Just because having consistency with their brand, obviously I trust what they do. To be part of the family and be part of the team was pretty cool for me, and so we wanted to work something out with them, and we were able to get it done. I’m happy to be part of the team.” Since signing with TaylorMade, however, not much has really changed for Scheffler, aside from switching out his old Nike VR Pro Limited fairway wood for a new TaylorMade Stealth Plus 3-wood at the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin, Texas, which he went on to win to reach No. 1 in the world. He explained why to GolfWRX.com: “One of the things I’ve struggled with was actually hitting 3-woods too far, and also just not seeing all my shots. … Austin was a good area for me to be like, ‘OK, I’m only going to hit this off the tee maybe a few times, let’s put it in the bag and see what I can do with it.’ And it was a pretty seamless transition. I saw the shots I wanted to see. My mishits were more accurate with the TaylorMade than they were than my Nike. I’ve seen some significant improvements already.” Arguably the most notable clubs in Scheffler’s bag are the irons he plays. They’re TaylorMade P-7TW blade irons, which were actually co-designed by Tiger Woods, hence his initials in the clubs’ name. Not surprisingly, Scheffler told GolfWRX.com that Woods had an influence on why Scheffler even started testing the irons in the first place. “I would say the reason I tested it was definitely a Tiger influence,” Scheffler said. “I used the P730’s for a number of years, and I played with Tiger at the Masters in 2020, and I watched him it. He hits it so solid and he flights it so well and does all kinds of stuff with the ball. It kind of clicked in my head, I was like, ‘I used Nike clubs for so long when he was helping develop those irons.’ I’m like, why wouldn’t I at least test his new irons with TaylorMade because they’re his irons, and he obviously had some influence in the process of developing and producing the irons. “I went home in the off-season, tested them out, and I saw that I was able to hit more shots with them. I was able to flatten out the flight a little bit more if I wanted to hit it low or hit it through the wind. And when I wanted to hit it higher, I could do that, as well. It gave me a little bit more variety in what I could do with the golf ball than the P730. And it’s not a big difference, it’s just when you put yourself in a 20mph wind in your face and want to flatten it out a little bit. I can flatten it out and have the ball be a little bit more stable with the head. It’s only a couple yards, but for me it felt like a huge difference.” Also, during the week of Scheffler’s first TOUR win and first of four victories this season in 2022 – the WM Phoenix Open – he switched into a custom Scotty Cameron Timeless Tourtype GSS prototype putter that measured 36.5 inches, with two 25-gram weights in the sole. Scotty Cameron putter rep Brad Cloke spoke on the backstory behind the “Scottie” special: “He just wanted to switch things up a little bit and give himself a slightly different look heading into 2022,” Cloke said in a Titleist press release. “Prior to visiting us in the studio, he’d been messing around with an older Newport 2 Timeless he had at home. He’d added bunch of lead tape to the sole to try and get it to a similar swingweight as his Super Rat. He really liked the profile but the feel wasn’t exactly where he wanted it, so we went to work on building him a new setup with adjustable weighting.” Check out Scheffler’s full specs below, and for more photos, head over to GolfWRX.com. Driver: TaylorMade Stealth Plus (8 degrees, 7.5 degrees of actual loft) Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7 X 3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth Plus (16.5 degrees, 15 degrees of actual loft) Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8X Driving iron: Srixon Z-U85 (3-iron, 20 degrees) Shaft: Nippon Pro Modus3 Hybrid Tour X Irons: Srixon Z-U85 (4-iron, 20 degrees), TaylorMade P-7TW (5-PW) Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM8 (50-12F, 56-14F), Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks prototype (60-06K) Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 Putter: Scotty Cameron Special Select Timeless Tourtype GSS prototype Ball: Titleist Pro V1 Patrick Cantlay Speaking of not changing clubs very often, Cantlay still uses a driver from 2018, a 3-wood from 2014, a 7-wood from 2018, irons from 2017, and two wedges from 2018. The newest clubs in his bag are his custom Scotty Cameron T5 prototype putter, which Cantlay started using in August of 2021, and a new Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks 60-T custom wedge, which he started using at the Masters. The new wedge has Vokey’s T-grind on the sole, which is the company’s lowest bounce option, and it’s popular on Tour with players such as Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas also using the grind. Check out Cantlay’s full current setup below. Driver: Titleist TS3 (9.5 degrees, B1 SureFit setting, 0.75-degree flat lie angle) Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana ZF 60 TX 3-wood: Titleist 915F (15 degrees, B1 SureFit setting, 0.75-degree flat lie angle) Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana ZF 70 TX 7-wood: Titleist TS2 (21 degrees, B1 SureFit setting, 0.75-degree flat lie angle) Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana ZF 80 TX Irons: Titleist 718 AP2 (4-9 iron) Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold 120 Tour Issue X100 Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM7 (46-10F, 52-08F), Titleist Vokey Design SM9 (56-08M and 60-T) Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S300 Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom X T5 Proto Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

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AUSTIN, Texas — Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson lost in the opening round and now face a tough road to the weekend in the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play. Bernd Wiesberger of Austria ended Johnson’s seven-match winning streak and had plenty of help in a 3 and 1 victory. Former U.S. Amateur champion Peter Uihlein caught McIlroy a little flat and built too big of a lead for McIlroy to overcome. McIlroy birdied five in a row on the back nine at Austin Country Club until losing on the 17th hole. Mickelson, who won the last World Golf Championship in Mexico three weeks ago, made only one birdie in losing to Charles Howell III. Only four players in this round-robin format have won their group after losing the first match.

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