Rough completely breaks Thomas’ spirit

A small wooden bridge at the base of this week’s trophy on the PGA TOUR symbolizes the bridge to the 18th hole at Jeju Island’s most famous golf course. That’s appropriate, because if you want to win THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES, the last bridge is arguably the most important to cross in style.  “It’s bizarre,â€� Justin Thomas said of the 568-yard, par-5 finisher, which features two fairways separated by trees and native area, and ends at a green surrounded by sand, rough and water. “The wind changes it a lot.â€� RELATED: Tee times | Who’s comfortable at NINE BRIDGES | Power Rankings Nine Bridges is a 7,241-yard, par 72 with four par 5s. It features black-rock outcroppings and volcano views and is sometimes compared to Maui, but the real dazzler is the 18th, one of the wildest holes on TOUR. For starters, it’s basically two holes in one.   The aggressive line at the signature hole is to carry the two pot bunkers on the left to reach the lower landing zone, giving yourself the shortest distance to reach the green in two. Thomas got there with only a pitching wedge in 2017. But only with the wind at your back is it even possible to reach that left fairway from the tee. Wind, the X factor at Jeju, demands a different approach. Literally. Into the wind, the target is the right fairway – it’s easier to reach, but leaves a much longer second shot with anything from a long iron to a 3-wood. Often, the prudent play from the right fairway is to not even go for the green in two.   “When it’s into the wind, I mean, I don’t go for that left fairway,â€� said Thomas, who won the inaugural CJ CUP two years ago. “I hit 3-wood up top (to the right), and if I can go for it, I do. It’s very, very weird lay up if you have to lay up.  “It’s a funky finishing hole, but it can provide for some fireworks if it’s close.â€� Simply put, the hole rewards length. “It’s a big advantage for a long hitter if he’s coming to the 18th needing a birdie,â€� said Adam Scott, who played it in 3 under last year but isn’t in the field this time around. Abraham Ancer calls the hole “unique,â€� while both Gary Woodland, last year’s runner-up to Brooks Koepka, and Marc Leishman go so far as to call it “a great risk-reward hole.â€� This, despite the fact that Leishman splashed his second shot in the water on 18 to lose to Thomas on the second playoff hole two years ago. The 18th gave up 25 eagles and 123 birdies last year, and was the second easiest on the course with a 4.58 stroke average. There were also 27 bogeys, four doubles, and two “others.â€� The wind dictates everything. David Dale of Golfplan Dale & Ramsey Golf Course Architects, in Santa Rosa, California, said he designed the hole to give players an option off the tee, but didn’t foresee the day when someone would play it driver, wedge, putt. “It was heroic to reach in two, but not anymore for the pros,â€� Dale said. “The way the hole plays now, it’s on its knees begging for wind.â€� If he’d known how technology would change the game, he added, he would have added another 25-30 yards and crowned the green slightly to repel shots. When Koepka eagled 18 to shoot 64 and win by four last year, it was his second eagle of the week on the hole as he played it in 5 under. But it was Thomas’ opening-round drive in 2017 that first opened eyes. “He can throw it on with that drive,â€� Rich Lerner said on the Golf Channel telecast. “He took it over everything,â€� Frank Nobillo added, not bothering to hide his awe. “You’ve gotta see this hole to believe where that drive went.â€� Thomas hit wedge to the green on the way to an eagle, completing a 29 on his first nine – the back – as he stormed out of the gate with a 63. Then things got hard.  He bogeyed the hole the next day, and by the last day, the wind had switched 180 degrees and howled into the players’ faces. Forced to go down the right fairway, he and Leishman scratched out pars on the first extra playing of 18. On the second, Thomas had 243 yards to the green in two, and hit an epic 3-wood to the front collar. Leishman tried a similar shot and found the water.   “I wouldn’t really call it a split fairway because it’s not like you have the option every time you play,â€� Thomas said. “It’s like 320 to that (left) fairway. If it’s downwind, I’d say 90% of the guys are hitting it left, but if it’s into the wind, 10% are hitting it left.â€� Added Leishman: “It gets pretty windy there, and a lot of the time you can’t even think about going left. If you have to go right, it’s actually a pretty tough tee shot. And it obviously makes the second shot a lot longer; you’ve got to hit a really good shot to get on the green in two.â€�  He paused, rethinking the comment. “Two really good shots, actually,â€� he said.

Click here to read the full article…

A major champion once more. At 50. Wow. Take a bow Phil Mickelson. What a ride. It seems Mickelson isn’t done providing golf fans with the full rollercoaster of emotions even as his 51st birthday rapidly approaches. In the end the greatest threat to him becoming golf’s oldest major champion was the throng of delirious fans who mobbed him before it was over. In scenes reminiscent of Tiger Woods’ epic return to the winners circle in 2018 at the TOUR Championship, spectators couldn’t contain themselves and flooded the scene to be part of it all. It is the sixth major of Mickelson’s career but first since winning the Open in 2013. He jettisoned from 168th to 45th in the FedExCup and from 115th to 32nd in the world. Here are five stories you may have missed from the PGA Championship. 1. Mickelson defied history to become the oldest major champion of all time Even when the lead was five with just six holes to play there was the nagging feeling that the fairytale might not come true. History had shown that old guys don’t win major championships anymore. Julius Boros was 48 when he won the 1968 PGA Championship and that record had stood since. History had also shown Mickelson had a knack for losing tournaments from winnable positions just as he could win tournaments from seemingly unwinnable positions. His flair for the dramatic loomed large as the Ocean Course’s finishing stretch approached. But while Mickelson’s lead did indeed shrink he remained focused and kept his head on and when the final moment of truth came, an approach shot from the left rough on 18 with his lead down to two, he conjured a little more magic to seal the deal and send the crowds into delirium. Get a comprehensive rundown of Mickelson’s incredible win here. 2. In total Phil fashion, the shot of the day came via some short game magic Mickelson opened with a soft bogey on Sunday that relinquished his overnight lead and while he got it back with birdie on the par-5 second another bogey on the third had his fans worried. They remained concerned when his tee shot on the par-3 fifth came up short and left in a sandy waste area. But Mickelson has thrilled golf fans for decades with arguably the greatest short game skills of all-time and this presented another moment for his highlights reel. A perfect escape shot found the bottom of the cup and energized the crowds, and Lefty himself, for the run home. “Certainly it was a momentum builder. Biggest thing was getting it up-and-down. I just didn’t want to throw away another shot and I had fought hard to keep the round in check and I was still 1-over through four,” Mickelson said. “I just needed to get that up-and-down and to have it go in was a bonus but I knew I had a lot of work ahead.” 3. Louis Oosthuizen now has five major runner ups and Brooks Koepka and the PGA remains a good mix Oosthuizen won the 2010 Open Championship title 3,963 days ago. It remains his only major win and he now has five runner ups in golfs biggest tournaments after he came up two shots short of Mickelson’s mark. Oosthuizen was also runner up recently on the TOUR at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans with fellow South African Charl Schwartzel and moved to 24th in the FedExCup. “I feel like I’m playing my heart out to get a second major, and I do know I have the game to do it. This was close. My game wasn’t great on the weekend. It was better today than yesterday. So I just need to work harder on it to get myself in contention again,” Oosthuizen said. “It was a slow start. But felt I hit decent iron shots. Every single putt I hit finished right behind the hole… so it was frustrating with that. But you know, another second place, I’ve got to take it. But I feel like I could have probably got two or three more shots out of my game.” And then there was Koepka, who now has two wins and a second out of the last four PGA Championships. Despite his banged-up knee and some uncharacteristic bogeys on the back nine Koepka had a chance on the last hole when down by just two shots. But Mickelson held firm. And Koepka shifted the blame on to his putting. “It felt like tap-ins I was missing. Never felt comfortable, and you’re not going to win if you do that,” Koepka said. “I’m super disappointed, pretty bummed. I’m not happy. I don’t know if there’s a right word I can say on here without getting fined, but it hurts a little bit. It’s one of those things where I just never felt comfortable over the putts. I don’t know why, what happened.” “I spent all the weekend before working on it and it was great, and you know, just over did it. I was trying to get my hands a little lower and ended up getting my hands too far low and under and actually ended up getting further away from the ball. The last nine, I just tried to go back to what I’ve always done and I felt like I was hitting better putts. I just wish I would have done it sooner.” 4. Rickie Fowler found some form and Harry Higgs made an impressive major debut Rickie Fowler was only in the PGA Championship thanks to a special exemption but that won’t be the case next year as he booked a return to the tournament with his first top 10 in 16 months. Fowler has been struggling with swing changes over the last year but feels the hard work is finally starting to pay off. His tie for eighth was the confidence builder the former PLAYERS Champion needs to start the climb back. The effort put him right on the FedExCup playoff bubble at 125th and brings momentum he desperately needs. There was another interesting name high up on the leaderboard. Harry Higgs. There’s a little bit of Phil Mickelson in Harry Higgs. Higgs loves playing to an audience and on major debut he was giving the fans plenty as he fashioned together a top four finish that gave him a ticket to next year’s Masters and a return to the 2022 PGA Championship at Southern Hills. 5. Two PGA professionals made the cut, headed by 27-year-old Ben Cook who has aspirations to be on the Korn Ferry Tour next season Cook, a 2020-21 PGA TOUR Latinoamérica member who splits time teaching at Yankee Springs Golf Course in Wayland, Michigan and John’s Island Golf Club in Vero Beach, Florida, shot a final-round 74 to finish 4 over and win low club professional at the 103rd PGA Championship at Kiawah Island. He made a par putt of just over seven feet to make the cut on the number early Friday evening. “Making a cut in a major you get to skip to the second stage of Q-School in the fall,” he said. “That would be worst-case scenario. I still have Latin American PGA TOUR status. If I finish Top-10 on the Order of Merit or their points list, I’ll get to go to final stage of Q-School, get a card. Depending on how you play, you get better status.” Brad Marek, a 37-year-old club pro from California, also made the cut and was emotional and proud after finishing at 12-over. The experience will help him continue to coach juniors. “I did talk to a lot of the coaches. They were all super, super helpful. I learned a lot from them. Learned that a lot of the stuff that I’m doing with them and a lot of the drills and the way that they’re practicing are what some of the best in the world are doing,” Marek said. “From a teaching perspective that gave me a lot of confidence that I’m doing things right. Picked up a few things that I’ll definitely add to my teaching repertoire.” Read more about the two PGA professionals here. COMCAST BUSINESS TOUR TOP 10 The Comcast Business TOUR TOP 10 highlights and rewards the extraordinary level of play required to earn a spot in the TOP 10 at the conclusion of the FedExCup regular season. The competition will conclude prior to the FedExCup PLAYOFFS where the top 10 FedExCup points leaders will be recognized and awarded as the most elite in golf. Week after week, shot after shot, each event matters more than ever before. Who will finish in the Comcast Business TOUR TOP 10? Click here to follow the weekly action.

Click here to read the full article…

SANDWICH, England – Collin Morikawa has a chance to become the first player to win two separate major championships on debut after a scintillating 6-under 64 in the second round of The 149th Open. Morikawa surged to nine under 131 through 36 holes, a record for Opens at Royal St. George’s and one off the all-time Open record of 130. He was three shots clear of the pack after the morning wave with the likes of Louis Oosthuizen (-6) and Jordan Spieth (-5) yet to start. The 2020 PGA Championship winner is playing his first Open Championship and looks to emulate Ben Curtis – the last player to win an Open on debut – which coincidentally happened at Royal St. George’s in 2003. Willie Park Sr (1860), Tom Kidd (1873), Mungo Park (1874), Jock Hutchison (1921), Denny Shute (1933), Ben Hogan (1953), Tony Lema (1964) and Tom Watson (1975) are the only players pre Curtis to all win The Open on debut. But no one has ever won two of golf’s four majors in their first attempt. “We have four of them a year, and you’re trying to definitely win these four because they’re that big,” Morikawa said of the majors. “Sometimes you have those days where you’re very fortunate to have good numbers, and today was one of those days.” Morikawa opened the round with a birdie and had added three more at the turn to set up his special round. Further birdies at 11, 12 and 14 had the California kid at seven under on the day and on track to equal the course record 63 or perhaps better Branden Grace’s all-time major championship low 62. But a leaked drive on the 15th resulted in a missed green from the left rough and he was unable to get it up and down to save par. Morikawa then had a chance at 63 via an eight-foot attempt for birdie on the 18th only to see it slide by. “I had no clue what any course record was. I don’t know any of those numbers. Now I do know. But I was just trying to make a lot of birdies,” Morikawa said. And besides. He was more proud of some of his par saves, including a great one on the 13th after a drive into a pot bunker. “Out here in links golf you’re going to hit bad shots. You’re going to hit bad approach shots, bad tee shots. To see the par save on 13 I’m really going to draw on that for the rest of the week because sometimes you have to just bite your tongue, play safe, and try and make par best you can. Sometimes bogey is going to be your friend,” he said. Bad shots were rare on Friday for the 24-year-old. For most of the round it was a ball-striking clinic, incredible considering his first real foray into links golf was at last week’s Scottish Open and he’d changed some of his scoring irons in the lead up to the tournament. The changes came directly from what he learned after his T71 result in Scotland. “I wouldn’t be here through these two rounds if I hadn’t played last week at the Scottish. I’ve played in firm conditions… I can think of places I’ve played in tighter, drier conditions, but just having fescue fairways and the ball sitting a little different was huge to see last week,” Morikawa explained. “I changed my irons, my 9 through 7-iron that I normally have blades in. I changed to the (TaylorMade) P7MC’s strictly because I couldn’t find the center of the face. I was sitting these iron shots last week that I just normally don’t and my swing felt good, but it was a huge learning opportunity. “This style of golf is very different, but last week helped tremendously.” Changing irons wasn’t the only adjustment for the cerebral Morikawa. While he putts with a saw grip from close range he was adjusting to a conventional grip for longer putts. Anything outside around 30-feet saw him change it up. “Mentally it felt that much better. Even though I didn’t know how I was going to perform, you just have to go out and feel confident with what you’re doing.”

Click here to read the full article…