Tiger Woods and Patrick Reed sit out after morning loss at Ryder Cup

CARNOUSTIE, Scotland – Brooks Koepka has played 18 majors and won two of them. He’s behind schedule. Despite his back-to-back victories at the U.S. Open, the 28-year-old Koepka believes he should have won at least one more by this stage of his career. He’s had opportunities, including The Open Championship at St. Andrews in 2015 when he was in contention until a lost ball at the relatively easy 12th hole led to a triple bogey. “We were playing behind Tiger and nobody could find the golf ball,� said Koepka, who eventually finished T-10, five shots behind Zach Johnson. “… You make par there, you never know.� At the 2016 PGA Championship, Koepka entered the final round just two shots off the lead held by Jimmy Walker but was hampered by an ankle injury and shot 70 to finish T-4. “I was just dead,� he said. “I couldn’t even push off it.� Looking back now, Koepka said, “I thought I should have probably squeaked one of those away. … I’ve got some work to do.� Koepka also had a T-5 finish the previous year at Whistling Straits, but there was no catching Jason Day that week. Still, that performance in Wisconsin foreshadowed his winning effort in last year’s U.S. Open at Erin Hills on a bomber’s course. Last month, Koepka showed his versatility by winning on a much different – and more difficult – U.S. Open layout at Shinnecock Hills. It may have been a surprising result to some, who pigeonhole Koepka because of his length off the tee. He currently ranks 24th on the PGA TOUR in driving distance and second in putting average; his strokes gained averages off the tee and on the green are relatively similar. Asked about his reputation as a one-trick pony, Koepka replied: “They get infatuated with distance, and they only see that. Yeah, we do hit it long, but there’s quite a few guys who do hit it much further than I do. “I’m a good putter. My short game’s come a long way in the last few years. Maybe the last five years it’s gotten tremendously better from where it was. And I always stroke it well. I’m always a good iron player.� That kind of balance in his game has allowed him to rise to world No. 4, and he’s currently 13th in FedExCup points despite just being limited to seven starts due to injury since the calendar flipped to 2018. Certainly he’s a threat this week to win his second consecutive major, and no one should be surprised now if he does. Koepka started his pro career playing in Europe, and he’s already recorded one pro win in Scotland, at the Scottish Hydro Challenge five years ago in Aviemore. His comfort level on links courses is quite high. “It’s so much fun to play because of the creativity you can use,� he said. “I think I step over a shot, and I could see seven to 10 different ways to play the shot. To me, that’s fun.� THREE PLAYERS TO PONDER Tiger Woods Hasn’t won The Open since 2006, hasn’t won a major since 2008, hasn’t won any event since 2015. But his stinger shots should serve him well this week. Patrick Reed “Captain America� said he feels the love whenever he comes overseas because of his passion. “I think they really enjoy that,� the Masters champ explained. Jordan Spieth Will the nice, long break since his last start help solve his putting woes? If so, you’ve got to like his chances to defend. THE FLYOVER When Tom Watson won at Carnoustie in 1975 in his first Open start, he played the par-3 16th five times (once in a playoff against Jack Newton). He never made par. In 2007 when Carnoustie last hosted The Open, just 19 birdies were made, second fewest on any hole that week. At 248 yards, often into the wind, the hole will have many players just hoping to successfully get up-and-down. In a BBC Scotland poll of players about the scariest hole in The Open rota, both Darren Clarke and Martin Kaymer pointed to the 16th. “Just brutal. No other word for it,� said Clarke, the 2011 Open champ. WEATHER CHECK The Open forecast for Thursday calls for “dry with sunny spells for the remainder of play. Clouding over during the late evening and into the night with outbreaks of rain developing during the early hours of Friday. Winds SW 12-18 mph, gusting 20 mph at times, slowly moderating during Thursday evening. Max temp 21C (69.8 degrees F). “Friday: A much cloudier day than Thursday. Outbreaks of rain during the morning, mainly light but some heavier bursts possible. Turning drier and perhaps brighter during the afternoon and evening. Rainfall totals in the order of 3-6mm look likely to build up during Thursday night and Friday. Winds varying between S and SW 8-12 mph, occasionally 15 mph. Max temp 19C (66.2 degrees F). “Saturday: Rather cloudy but mainly dry and some warm sunny spells are possible. Winds probably starting light and variable in direction but should settle at S or SW 8-12 mph during the afternoon. Max temp 21C. “Sunday: A similar day to Saturday; often cloudy but with a good chance of some sunny spells. A breezier day with winds picking up to SW 12-18 mph with a chance of gusts 20-25 mph. Feeling warm, especially in any sunshine with a max temp of 22C (71.6 degrees F)� For the latest weather news from Carnoustie, Scotland, check out PGATOUR.COM’s Weather Hub. SOUND CHECK I’m still not sure if this is going to be the toughest Open ever or the easiest Open.Who is the main attraction this year?There’s 5,000 different ways for me to play these holes out here, but for me, it was pretty clear-cut on how to play each hole. BY THE NUMBERS 26 – Years since the last Englishman won The Open (Nick Faldo in 1992) 24 – Worldwide starts without a win made by Jordan Spieth since winning The Open last year at Royal Birkdale. He did have two runner-up finishes in last year’s FedExCup Playoffs. 7 – Rounds in the 60s shot by the seven winners in 28 combined rounds at Carnoustie in The Open. Padraig Harrington had three of them in 2007. Tom Watson two in 1975. Paul Lawrie (1999) and Ben Hogan (1953) one each. SCATTERSHOTS Much has been made of the streak of five majors won by American players in their 20s (Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Patrick Reed and Brooks Koepka twice). Spieth said it’s not just physical ability, but the mental strength of believing there are no age limits to winning. “A natural transition into kind of fearless golf at the highest level,� Spieth said. Justin Thomas respects the potential jinx about touching a trophy before you win it, but there’s nothing he can do about it now. After Zach Johnson won The Open Championship in 2015, Thomas drank some wine out of the Claret Jug. Perhaps it doesn’t matter. Thomas was 9-years-old when he held the Wanamaker Trophy that David Toms won at the 2001 PGA Championship. Thomas, of course, ended up winning the same trophy last year. “I was holding his Wanamaker trophy and that panned out OK,� Thomas said. “So I’m hoping there’s no jinx.� After winning Olympic gold in men’s golf in 2016, Justin Rose took the medal with him to several events after that, allowing his peers and fans to see the game’s first Olympic gold since 1904. He no longer does that. “It was fun for a bit,� he said. “I got a sense the boys were getting irritated after two or three months of doing it, and I thought, that’s enough. But yes, when you win a tournament like that, you have four years of bragging rights.�

Click here to read the full article…

Summertime rolls along and it’s back to birdies this week as the PGA TOUR returns to TPC Twin Cities for the second edition of the 3M Open. Nothing like another dose of temperatures in the 90s this week but at least the sweat equity will result in low scores in the suburb of Blaine, Minnesota. Matthew Wolff is back and will defend his maiden TOUR victory as he leads a field of 156 looking to grab their share of the $6.4 million purse ($1.152 winner) and add 500 FedExCup points to the ledger. The 20-year old broke onto the scene last year and pummeled the Par-71, 7,431 yards to the tune of 21-under in just his third start as a professional. The cherry on-top was his off-the-green putt for eagle on the final hole to secure the trophy. In the inaugural event the top 12 players were 16-under and the top 52 were all 10-under or better. There was a round of 62 (-9) posted in all four rounds and 44 bogey-free rounds. The course scoring average of 69.46 for the week suggests all comers are welcome. The 6,500 square foot Bentgrass greens will provide the largest targets yet since the restart. Prepped to run upwards of 13 feet on the Stimpmeter, those who hit it closest will have an easier time navigating. Although 72 bunkers and 27 water hazards sounds daunting, we’ve seen if the weather cooperates (read: no wind) these guys just fly right by and over. Only three inches or so of Bluegrass/fescue rough is on the menu this week so I’d expect another shootout again this time around. Tom Lehman and Steve Wenzloff have tuned up the prairie links at TPC Twin Cities after last year’s mid-summer feast. Check Rob Bolton’s Power Rankings linked below for the specific changes. RELATED: Power Rankings | Sleepers | Expert Picks 2019 3M Open: Top 25 (entered this week) 1 Matthew Wolff 5 Wyndham Clark 5 Carlos Ortiz 7 Sam Burns 7 Lucas Glover 7 Brian Harman 7 Troy Merritt 13 Fabian Gomez 15 Scott Brown 15 Scott Piercy 15 Roger Sloan 15 Shawn Stefani 23 Brice Garnett 23 Denny McCarthy 23 Tom Hoge 23 Arjun Atwal 23 Tony Finau 23 Charles Howell III 23 Johnson Wagner Recent Winner 2019: Matthew Wolff (-21) Eagle on the final hole to win as a sponsor’s exemption. … Fired 62 on Sunday to tie the 54-hole lead. … Led the field Strokes Gained: Tee to Green, second Strokes-Gained: Approach, third in Putting: Birdie or Better Percentage and co-led the field in Par-4 scoring. … Seven bogeys (T25) were cancelled out by 26 birdies and the final stroke for eagle. … Led the field in Par Breakers. … Only T62 scrambling. … Won NCAA individual title weeks before. Notables: Club “62” playing this week: Piercy (Round 1) and Glover (Round 4). … Brown and Burns led the field in Par-5 scoring (-10). … Wolff (-12) and Glover (-10) were the best two in Par-4 scoring. … Brooks Koepka 65th. … 85 players made the cut on 3-under. Key stat leaders Top golfers in each statistic on the 2019-2020 PGA TOUR are listed only if they are scheduled to compete this week. Greens in Regulation 4 Aaron Wise 5 Emiliano Grillo 7 Russell Henley 8 Will Gordon 10 Kyle Stanley 11 Harris English 15 Paul Casey 17 Josh Teater 18 Doc Redman 19 George McNeill 21 Matthew NeSmith 23 Cameron Percy 26 Brice Garnett Proximity 2 Johnson Wagner 5 Doc Redman 7 Jonathan Byrd 9 Vaughn Taylor 9 Tim Wilkinson 11 Russell Henley 13 Seamus Power 14 Emiliano Grillo 18 Chesson Hadley 18 Michael Gellerman 20 Robert Castro 20 Brian Harman 20 Ben Taylor 23 Jason Dufner 24 Ben Martin 24 Josh Teater Putting: Birdie or Better Percentage 3 Dominic Bozzelli 8 Seamus Power 13 Kristoffer Ventura 15 Tony Finau 16 Dustin Johnson 17 Bronson Burgoon 20 Charley Hoffman 24 Wyndham Clark 25 Chesson Hadley Rounds in the 60s 3 Harry Higgs 3 Lanto Griffin 3 Doc Redman 6 Carlos Ortiz 6 Patrick Rodgers 6 Henrik Norlander 15 Brian Harman 20 Adam Long 22 Kyoung-Hoon Lee 22 Talor Gooch 30 Adam Schenk 30 Tony Finau 30 Bubba Watson 30 Matthew NeSmith 30 Scott Stallings 30 Sebastian Munoz 37 Lucas Glover 37 Cameron Tringale 37 Harris English

Click here to read the full article…

Click here to read the full article…