Dustin Johnson leads by 3 at LIV Singapore event

Two-time FedExCup winner Rory McIlroy got off to a blistering start on Thursday at the BMW Championship, firing an 8-under 64 after making a series of equipment changes. Following his disappointing T43 finish last week at THE NORTHERN TRUST at Liberty National, McIlroy revealed that he tossed his 3-wood over the fence and in the direction of the New Jersey Turnpike, leaving him with some decisions to make before this week’s second event of the Playoffs. A quick rummage around his garage did the trick. The Irishman told media this week that rifling through his old gear led him to some significant changes, including the revelation of a “new old 3-wood,” he said. “It’s actually a 3-wood I used last year,” McIlroy said. “I went home, I went down to Florida after NORTHERN TRUST on Monday night, went into the garage and rummaged through a few different things, got my old putter back out, got my old 3-wood, brought a few shafts out, tried different shafts in the driver, went to a new shaft in the driver, and it seemed to work out today.” As well as the 3-wood change, McIlroy put a Graphite Design Tour AD XC shaft in his TaylorMade SIM2 driver. He said the new setup reduces spin while still allowing him to draw the ball consistently. “I just had a driver I felt was spinning a little too much, so a couple of times last week into the wind, I’d hit it and it would balloon up in the air,” McIlroy said. “And then if I wanted to try and hit a cut off the tee, I was not comfortable doing it because I felt like I was losing too much distance by hitting the cut.” Another significant equipment change this week has been McIlroy’s return to the TaylorMade Spider putter. The four-time major champion had recently swapped the club out for a Scotty Cameron blade but has returned to the Spider as he believes his off-days with the blade are too punishing. “I said to (caddie) Harry (Diamond) after the first round last week, I’m thinking about going back to the Spider,” he said, “and then I proceeded to gain four strokes on the greens over the next two days with the blade. But I think the thing with the blade is the good days are really good, but the bad days are pretty bad, as well. There’s quite a lot of inconsistency in it for me. It’s almost like I need to practice with the blade at home because you have to get your stroke spot-on to hit good putts with that style of putter.” Mcilroy also revealed that he may decide to practice with the blade at home while keeping the Spider for tournament play, as this week’s return to the mallet style has felt so easy after the small break. “Felt like I couldn’t not start it on line,” he said. “It was sort of – there’s a lesson in there somewhere about maybe just keeping the blade at home and practicing with it and then coming out here and putting with something that’s got a little more technology in it.” McIlroy’s driver shaft change led him to hit all but one fairway in the first round of the BMW at Caves Valley Golf Club, while the return to the Spider helped him gain over three strokes on the greens.

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Hyo Joo Kim rallied with two late birdies for an even-par 72 to maintain a three-stroke lead Friday in the LPGA Tour’s LOTTE Championship.

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Here’s a closer look at the four players who qualified for this week’s Rocket Mortgage Classic, the second-to-last event of the PGA TOUR’s Regular Season. The qualifiers include Chris Naegel, who has qualified for five PGA TOUR events this summer as he tries to make a late push for a spot in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals, as well as Luke Guthrie, who once ranked among the top 60 players in the world, and a former college teammate of Collin Morikawa and member of an NCAA title-winning team at UCLA. Chris Naegel (6-under 66) Age: 39 Hometown: Wildwood, Missouri Alma mater: Missouri Baptist/Mississippi PGA TOUR starts: 8 Cuts made: 4 Best finish: T16, 2022 John Deere Classic Notes: His summer stretch of qualifying continues…Has made four TOUR starts this season, all since June…Started with T56 at the U.S. Open, followed by qualifying for three TOUR events: John Deere Classic (T16), Barracuda Championship (MC) and 3M Open (MC)… He stood T6 entering the final round at TPC Deere Run before closing with a 2-over 73…Also finished T56 in the 2018 U.S. Open… Currently holds 52 non-member FedExCup points as he chases the equivalent of a season-ending top-200 position that would secure Korn Ferry Tour Finals entry; the No. 200 spot currently holds 83 points…Has four top-10s in 73 career starts on the Korn Ferry Tour, highlighted by a fourth-place finish at the 2019 WinCo Foods Portland Open. Luke Guthrie (6-under 66) Age: 32 Hometown: Quincy, Illinois Alma mater: Illinois PGA TOUR starts: 105 Cuts made: 59 Best finish: 3rd, 2013 Honda Classic Notes: Will be making his second start of the season after also Monday qualifying for the Valspar Championship (MC)…Best known for his summer of 2012 when he started his pro career with three straight top-20s on the PGA TOUR, including a T5 at the John Deere Classic, and four straight top-10s on the Korn Ferry Tour before winning back-to-back starts later that season…Finished second on the 2012 Korn Ferry Tour money list in just 10 starts thanks to seven top-10s, including four top-3s…Reached a career-high of 58th in the world ranking in 2013…Has conditional status on the Korn Ferry Tour after finishing 147th on the points list in the combined 2020-21 season…Has made two cuts in four Korn Ferry Tour starts this season…Won back-to-back Big Ten titles in 2011 and 2012, the first player to do so since Luke Donald…Has made the cut in 72 of 127 career Korn Ferry Tour starts, including 13 top-10s. KK Limbhasut (5-under 67) Age: 26 Hometown: Bangkok, Thailand Alma mater: Cal PGA TOUR starts: 1 Cuts made: 0 Notes: Made his lone PGA TOUR start at the 2020 Farmers Insurance Open, missing the cut with rounds of 69-75…Finished 94th on the Korn Ferry Tour points list in the combined 2020-21 season…Has missed five cuts in six Korn Ferry Tour starts this season…Was teammates at Cal with Collin Morikawa…Said he was inspired to watch golf after watching Tiger’s chip-in on the 16th hole in the final round of the 2005 Masters. Moved to Southern California at 14 to pursue college golf opportunities…Four-time winner at Cal. Erik Flores (5-under 67) Hometown: Grass Valley, California Alma mater: UCLA PGA TOUR starts: 1 Cuts made: 0 Notes: Made lone PGA TOUR start at the 2011 Fortinet Championship, missing the cut with rounds of 73-74…Finished T30 in that year’s PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament, missing his card by two strokes after shooting 67-68 – including just one bogey — in the final two rounds…Finished 115th on the Korn Ferry Tour money list in 2012 with one top-10 in 25 starts…This will be his fourth start in an OWGR-recognized event since 2014…Member of UCLA’s 2008 NCAA Championship-winning team that also included PGA TOUR winner Kevin Chappell…Finalist in the 2008 Western Amateur, losing to future TOUR winner Danny Lee, who also went on to win that year’s U.S. Amateur, in the championship match…Three-time All-American at UCLA.

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