The First Look: Butterfield Bermuda Championship

NORTON, Mass. – Bryson DeChambeau wanted to talk about gravity. Actually, he wasn’t sure just how much he should expound on it, fearing perhaps it would go over our heads. Those concerns probably were well-founded – most of us know gravity only as the thing that holds our well-struck 7-irons on earth instead of seeing the golf balls float away into space. To absolutely no one’s surprise, DeChambeau of course has a different perspective. “That gravity actually pushed outward and not inward,â€� he said. As he finished his sentence, a large set of puzzled faces stared back at him. “That’s going to throw you guys for a loop,â€� he acknowledged. By the way, this isn’t a new theory. DeChambeau first thought of it for his first science project — in grade school. Sixth grade, maybe 7th. He wasn’t sure of the year – but he did know it was pretty well-received by his teachers. “I had a couple of interesting theories about it,â€� he said, “and I described it very, very well.â€� What did all this have to do with DeChambeau winning for the second consecutive week in these FedExCup Playoffs and securing the No. 1 seed all the way to the start of the TOUR Championship? Hard to say. After all, giving his form – Monday’s Dell Technologies Championship win being a continuation of last week’s victory at THE NORTHERN TRUST — this seems more like a momentum thing, not a gravity thing. Of course, it just goes to the heart that DeChambeau sees things in a different light, that he’s willing to challenge, think outside the box, defy conventional thinking. Of course, we already knew that. Perhaps you’ve heard he uses single-length clubs. But with each win – he’s had four of them now in his last 31 PGA TOUR starts — the skeptics become believers. Even his dad Jon has come around on it. “When I was starting to do my one-length iron stuff, there were a couple of colleges that just stopped talking to me. Even my dad didn’t think it was a great idea,â€� DeChambeau said. “I love my dad to death, but we butted heads. But obviously it works now.â€� Asked if his dad uses single-length clubs now, DeChambeau smiled. “Yep.â€� Since when? “About a year-and-a-half.â€� That might have been about the time that DeChambeau hit a lull, missing 11 cuts in a 15-start stretch in the first half of 2017. But just over a year ago, he won for the first time on TOUR, the John Deere Classic. Now he can’t stop winning. As a result, his expectations are higher. The frustration he showed during a range session at The Open Championship in July was built on the fact that he now demands more out of his game. “Look, I was at a different level at that point in time relative to last year at this time,â€� DeChambeau said. “I was still hitting the ball in the fairways but it wasn’t up to my standard. And so I was trying to figure out why it wasn’t up to my standard. “I built something really, really consistent in the beginning of the year and I kind of lost it. Kind of got lucky finding it. And now I’m starting to understand why I was so good in the beginning of the year. “And that’s kind of a scary thought for me, at least, because it shows what I can do, and especially with the last couple of weeks. It’s a good combination.â€� I’ve always been a guy that’s been weird and unique relative to everybody else … I’ve always gone about my business trying to do the absolute best I can. Let today’s garbage be better than yesterday’s. And so I don’t view people’s criticism as a negative thing. I actually view it as a positive thing because what people can’t understand sometimes is actually a benefit to the person that does understand it. A week ago, he had entered the final round at THE NORTHERN TRUST with a four-shot advantage and kept everyone else at arm’s length. On Labor Day, he had to work a bit harder. He teed off one shot behind playing partner Abraham Ancer and the two were tied after seven holes. But birdies at the eighth and ninth holes gave DeChambeau a two-shot lead. He gradually built it to four. It was at that point that TPC Boston felt a lot like Ridgewood. While Ancer, seeking his first TOUR title, struggled to keep it, Australian Cameron Smith made a late charge to get within a shot. But DeChambeau’s final birdie, at the par-4 15th, sealed the deal. A 3-wood struck 309 yards, then a wedge to inside 9 feet, then the birdie putt. Lights out. “That was it,â€� DeChambeau said. “That’s how I play golf right there. Make that birdie and come off the green confident.â€� Right now, no one should have more confidence than DeChambeau. Two straight wins to start the Playoffs – only Vijay Singh (2008) has done that. No. 1 in the FedExCup, No. 7 in the world ranking. And expect him to get a call from U.S. captain Jim Furyk for a spot on the upcoming Ryder Cup team. Of course, there is only one guarantee that he’ll finish the season as the FedExCup champ – win at East Lake. If he fails to achieve that, the door could be open for somebody else, since points will be reset after the BMW Championship. But even if he doesn’t end the season winning golf’s biggest prize, he has won over all those skeptics. Not that they bothered him much anyway. “I’ve always been a guy that’s been weird and unique relative to everybody else,â€� he said. “… I’ve always gone about my business trying to do the absolute best I can. Let today’s garbage be better than yesterday’s. “And so I don’t view people’s criticism as a negative thing. I actually view it as a positive thing because what people can’t understand sometimes is actually a benefit to the person that does understand it.â€� Speaking of not understanding something – can we hear more about the gravity theory?

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Martin Laird made up for a boogie to win the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open on the 18th hole by nailing a 20-foot birdie putt to clinch it in the playoff.

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ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. - Rovonta Young, seeking his first professional victory four years after the end of his collegiate career at Alabama A&M, shot a back-nine 31 for a 6-under 66 to win the APGA Tour event at the King & Bear course at World Golf Village on Tuesday. His 140 total edged Landon Lyons and Davin White by one. "First professional win since I turned pro in 2018," said Young, 26, who overcame a six-shot deficit after the first round. "It's a big hurdle. I'm glad I overcame it today. "It's been my dream since I was 3 years old to be on the PGA TOUR," he added. Tuesday brought warmer weather after a chilly start to the tournament. Willie Mack III, a first-round co-leader after a 68 in cool, breezy conditions Monday, fell back with a second-round 77 to finish five back. Mahindra Lutchman of Florida A&M University, the other first-round co-leader, shot 75 for 143 and low amateur honors. Lutchman is third in the APGA Collegiate Golf Ranking compiled by PGA TOUR University. Teammate Mulbe Dillard, who finished just a shot behind him, is No. 1. If they maintain their rankings, they will earn exemptions into the APGA Tour summer events along with expenses and entry into pre-qualifying for the Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament. It's been a banner year for the APGA. Mack and fellow pro Kamaiu Johnson, golfing ambassadors for Farmers Insurance, have been getting a handful of starts on the PGA TOUR. Mack was 1 under after 14 holes in the first round of the Farmers Insurance Open before eventually missing the cut (74-75). He shot 70-76 to also miss the cut at The Genesis Invitational, but still finished ahead of players like Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas. In other words, the APGA guys are showing they can compete. "It's tough to be just thrown into it like that," said APGA Director of Player Development Adrian Stills. "But we've seen that our guys can do it, and we've got 10 more like that right behind Kamaiu and Willie. You just have to look at what Rovonta did today." Young, who still lives in Huntsville, Alabama, where he went to school, has not one of the APGA headliners, and his first victory only underlines the tour's depth. He felt like he was underachieving and reached a turning point at an APGA tournament at TPC Deere Run last year, where he finished well back. Seeking a mental coach, he sought a referral from his grandfather, Charles Herring, who raised him and got him started in the game. Enter Dr. Richard Trammel, a sports psychologist from Birmingham who is a high-level golfer himself and has worked with players on the Korn Ferry Tour. It clicked immediately. Their work paid off Tuesday as Young went birdie, birdie, eagle, birdie on holes 11-14 to pull away. "He's helped me tremendously, from the first session," said Young, who grew up in Rancho Cucamonga, California. "I feel as if I have the firepower, I have the accuracy, and I have the putting. It's just the six inches between my ears. Just handling the pressure and the moment." Trammel texted his congratulations Tuesday before Young had even had a chance to thank him. "He just said, ‘Yes!'" Young said. "He's someone who has really put a lot of confidence in me; he's got a couple guys on the Korn Ferry, and he's just said, ‘You've got it.'" The field of 49 players was competing for $25,000 in prize money at the 7,279-yard, par 72 golf course designed by Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer. The APGA Tour at World Golf Village was the fourth tournament of the landmark 2021 season, featuring a record 13 events and $350,000 in prize money, almost double from the 2020 season for the tour, whose mission is to bring greater diversity to the sport of golf. The tournament was conducted under social-distancing and health/safety guidelines in conjunction with regional authorities. The APGA Tour's next stop: Las Vegas, April 12 and 13. Young, imbued with confidence, his PGA TOUR dream still very much alive, will be there.

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