Golf’s elite hope to get back on track at Travelers

SOUTHAMPTON, Bermuda — Seamus Power did enough right and left all the mistakes to PGA TOUR rookie Ben Griffin on Sunday to win the Butterfield Bermuda Championship for his second TOUR title. Power took the lead for good with a 25-foot birdie putt at the 14th. A bogey on the final hole gave the Irishman a 1-under 70 and a one-shot victory over Thomas Detry, who earlier had holed a bunker shot on the 18th for birdie and a 67. But it was Griffin who had the best chance. Just more than a year after Griffin was working as a loan officer, he had a shot at winning on the PGA TOUR and going to the Masters. He started the back nine at Port Royal with back-to-back birdies, putting him at 5 under for the day and with a two-shot lead over Power. And then it all fell apart. Griffin bogeyed four straight holes, followed by a double bogey on the par-3 16th that effectively ended his chances. The turning point came at the 14th when Griffin hooked his tee shot, had to take a penalty drop and make his third straight bogey, while Power holed his birdie putt for a two-shot swing and his first lead of the day. Both made bogey on the 15th. Griffin hit a hard draw into a strong wind that went into the hazard above the Atlantic Ocean, leading to another penalty drop and another missed putt for a double bogey. “This course was always going to be a tale of two sides,” Power said. “I knew it was going to be hard coming in and it was. I’m delighted to get it done.” Power won last year at the Barbasol Championship in Kentucky, held the same week as The Open Championship. This victory moves him to No. 32 in the world. He came into Bermuda at No. 48, the highest-ranked player in the field. After making four straight bogeys and then a double bogey, Griffin used iron off the tee on the par-5 17th and watched it run through the fairway and into the water. He took his third penalty drop in four holes, though at least managed a par. Power went just over the green and chipped to 3 feet for birdie, giving him a two-shot lead over Detry and room for error playing the last hole. “It was a fun week. I hate to finish the tournament the way I did,” said Griffin, who shot 72 and tied for third with Patrick Rodgers (65) and Kevin Yu (67). “As I gain more experience, I’m going to get more comfortable.” Griffin and Power were tied going into the final round, and it was Griffin who seized control early with four birdies in the opening six holes. He looked like a winner when he rolled in birdie putts on the 10th and 11th to extend his lead to two shots. But he missed a 6-foot par putt on the 12th, and he missed a 4-foot par putt on the next hole, and it only got tougher from there. Aaron Baddeley, who got in as a Monday qualifier, was in the mix until a pair of late bogeys. He still tied for sixth and was among those who earned spots next week in Mexico for finishing in the top 10. Tennessee freshman Caleb Surratt shot a 64 to make the cut. He followed that with an 85 in the third round, only to improve by 20 shots with a 65 on Sunday.

Click here to read the full article…

Ron Wright is a passionate volunteer for the Wells Fargo Championship, where he has served as the hole captain of hole 3 and tournament volunteer for 17 years. His efforts have earned him recognition as the “Mayor� of the hole captains, and he is regarded as one of the tournament’s most effective and respected of the tournament’s 2,300 volunteers. Ron is passionate about engaging with patrons of all ages and making sure they leave with the most positive experience possible while ensuring players have favorable conditions. He also started the Junior Marshal program at the tournament to increase youth engagement. “I am a people person,� Ron said. “The best thing I can do is send somebody home with a smile on their face.� Ron was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer in June 2017. Sadly, after many months of treatment, his cancer progressed and is now at an advanced stage. He also recently spent time in the hospital after suffering a related stroke and is now focusing on spending quality time together with his wife, Sandy, and extended family. Ron returned to the course this week to receive special recognition for his dedication and enthusiasm that has inspired his peers. He was escorted by golf cart to his hole by close family friend Kendall Alley, Charlotte Regional President for Wells Fargo, where fellow marshal volunteers from hole 3, PGA TOUR Rules Officials Dillard Pruitt and Mark Russell, along with PGA TOUR Tournament Business Affairs (TBA) Community Impact team member Ericson Balcita, were waiting to help present Ron with tickets to the 18th hole hospitality for Sunday along with parking and tournament merchandise. Watching Sunday’s final action will be an exciting first; in past years, he has been unable to watch the final round given his commitment to tournament preparation and volunteering. Ron’s special recognition is part of the #IVolunteerBecause initiative. This onsite experience features volunteers at select tournaments and is part of the 2019 PGA TOUR Volunteer Appreciation Program Sponsored by Myrbetriq® (mirabegron). “I volunteer because I make a difference in somebody’s day,� Ron said. “If they are happy, I’m happy.� What’s your inspiration for volunteering in your community? Tag #IVolunteerBecause on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and share your story.

Click here to read the full article…

RIDGELAND, S.C. — Tom Kim felt as much a spectator as a player Thursday in THE CJ CUP in South Carolina, amazed at how Rory McIlroy produces so much power with so little effort. Kim wasn’t too bad himself. They were the star attractions on a beautiful morning at Congaree Golf Club, one of them pursuing the No. 1 world ranking, the other a 20-year-old who is quickly becoming one of the more popular players among his peers. Trey Mullinax and former U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland each had a 6-under 65. McIlroy and Kim, who played together in the same group with Rickie Fowler, were among those another shot back at 66. “He makes this game look so easy,” said Kim, who won two weeks ago in Las Vegas to become the first player since Tiger Woods with two PGA TOUR titles before turning 21. “It was really hard to just kind of play my own game sometimes, seeing the lines he took. It was like 380 (yards) to the runout and he was saying, ‘Sit!’ I was like, ‘Really? Like sit?’ But he almost made it. “Obviously, what was the most important thing for me today was trying to play my own game and not look at his line. But it was still so much fun.” McIlroy was equally impressed, mainly at how polished Kim plays at such a young age. They matched birdies for so much of the day in different manners. One example was the par-5 fourth hole, where McIlroy hit a 360-yard drive that bounded along the firm, wide fairway, and belted a fairway metal just through the green. Kim was 50 yards behind him off the tee, still 64 yards from the hole after a fairway metal, and then clipped a wedge over a bunker to 7 feet for birdie. McIlroy really showed his driving ability on the 366-yard 15th, with sand and water along the right side of the green. He hit his drive just onto the front of the green, even as Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas in the group ahead were putting. “The longer I stood over that tee shot, the more likely it was that I was going to lay up, so I just needed to step up and hit it,” McIlroy said. “Whether they were on the green or not, I had to go.” Some apologies were in order by McIlroy, minus the hard feelings. “He was never going to fly it on the green,” Thomas said. “It was never going to hit us. We’re just jealous. I wish I had hit on the green.” McIlroy, the reigning FedExCup champion, needs to win to reach No. 1 in the world for the ninth time in his career, and he was off to a good start with a bogey-free round. Kim was one better, firing at pins with his superb iron play and not getting as much as he would have liked with his putter. He was tied for the lead until pulling his tee shot on the 18th, having to play short of the water and missing an 8-foot par putt. “He didn’t really miss a shot out there,” McIlroy said. “He’s a very, very solid player, plays to his strengths. Makes the same swing at it pretty much every time. He was sort of picking my brain a little bit out there about speed training and I’m like, ‘No, no, no, no.’ I think as he gets older and maybe a touch stronger, he’ll get that naturally. “I was like, ‘Don’t go down that path, you’re good the way you are.’” It was a good day for so many in the 78-man field, starting with Mullinax and Woodland. Both ran off three birdies early. Mullinax already was 7 under through 12 holes when his birdies dried up. Woodland finished with two birdies. But not everyone. Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 player since late March and trying to hold off McIlroy, switched putters and didn’t have much to show for it with two birdies and two bogeys for a 71. Jordan Spieth had a 75 with a round that included a triple bogey and a putt he missed from 16 inches. Spieth tried to backhand his short par putt on the 16th and it missed the hole, the lowlight of an otherwise rough start to his season. Fowler, who had the 54-hole lead in Japan last week, fell back early when he four-putted from 20 feet on the fourth hole. He had a 74.

Click here to read the full article…