Vegas leans on his irons to take Honda lead

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. – It was fitting that Brooks Koepka was paired with Tiger Woods in the opening round at the PGA Championship. Especially considering the last player to dominate major championship golf like Koepka has been was, in fact, Woods. Koepka opened his PGA Championship defense with a course-record 7-under 63 at what is supposed to be the difficult Black course at Bethpage State Park. It was the only bogey-free round of the morning wave and gave the PGA TOUR Player of the Year a four-shot lead over those who went out early. Koepka has won three of the last seven majors he has contested. Should he make it four out of eight, he will be the first to do so since Woods won four majors over the 2005 and 2006 seasons. Woods, who beat Koepka by a shot at last month’s Masters, was left as a spectator in his round of 2-over 72. Even so, the 81-time PGA TOUR winner and 15-time major champion felt Koepka could’ve done more. Given he didn’t birdie either of the two par-5’s, Woods was on to something. “He played well. I mean, he hit a couple loose tee shots today that ended up in good spots, but I think that was probably the highest score he could have shot today,â€� Woods said. “He left a few out there with a couple putts that he missed. But it could have easily been a couple better.â€� The 29-year-old Koepka’s last six rounds in the PGA Championship have been in the 60’s –  including two 63’s – the first person to have done so twice in the championship’s 101-year history. If no one catches him in the afternoon wave, he will have led the championship for three straight rounds, having held the 54-hole lead last season before claiming the victory at Bellerive Country Club. “That was one of the best rounds I’ve played probably as a professional,â€� Koepka admitted after needing just 25 putts. “This golf course is brutal. It tests every asset of your game. You’ve got to drive the ball straight. It’s long, so you’ve got to hit it far and really position yourself with some of these shots in. You can’t take a shot off, and that’s what I love.â€� While the massive New York crowd willing Woods to keep pace, Koepka seemed to feed off that energy. When Woods made an eagle to get within four, Koepka responded with another birdie on the next hole. Woods would three-putt for bogey. It was like watching what Woods used to do at his peak – almost bully others into errors. It was intimidating stuff. “(My game has) never been this confident. I think I’m still learning, understanding my game, and I’ve figured it out, and I think over the next few years, I’m excited for what’s to come,â€� Koepka added. “I understand a lot more about my misses, where to hit it, and major championships I just suck it up, and you don’t always have to aim at the flag like you do in regular events. Sometimes it’s just about how few bogeys and doubles you make this week.â€� Prior to the event, Koepka felt a couple under par might be the winning score through 72 holes. But now he plans to change that. He won’t be playing defense. “It’s always nice being out ahead. But you take a hole off, it could change very quickly out here. So you’ve just got to keep the pedal down. “I’ve just got to go out there and focus on me. I’m not really concerned about what’s going on (with others).â€�

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One good way to measure the mood of the country is to watch what ads pop up on Facebook’s Words With Friends (Scrabble) app. There are spots for survival gear, facemasks, home-workout subscriptions. And, lately, the Dinsler Practice Net ($99.95) to catch your stay-at-home tee shots. Be it in densely populated New York, where an executive order closed most courses, or New Jersey, where courses, parks and boardwalks are shut down, or even Florida, where courses remain mostly open, stay-at-home golf has never been hotter. “You’re really seeing an eagerness to play, and people are figuring out where and when they can do that,� said Rodney Chamblee, Merchant of Accessories at PGA TOUR Superstore. “Hitting nets, chipping nets, hitting mats, putting mats. People who are staying at home, wanting to hit balls, stay flexible – we’ve seen an uptick in practice and/or training aids.� That could mean something as simple as a putting matt with automatic ball return ($39.99 on pgatoursuperstore.com), or a training aid like the SuperSpeed Training Sticks ($199.99), which help players improve swing speed like weighted bats for ballplayers. The Orange Whip ($119.99), a flexible golf shaft with an orange ball at the end of it that helps players feel and generate tempo and flexibility, is also selling well. The answer to where exactly people are using these things is a four-letter word: H-O-M-E. Tiger Woods, broadcaster Jim Nantz, and short-game guru Dave Pelz have some of the most elaborate home practice areas on earth, but they were built pre-pandemic. For the rest of us, like Scott Jones of Fleming Island, Florida – near TPC Sawgrass, home of THE PLAYERS Championship – the COVID-19 crisis has inspired a flurry of architectural creativity. Jones, whose dog is named Rory McIlroy, can still avail himself of open courses near him but built an elaborate backyard course with an assortment of mats and nets, plus a launch monitor. “As a golfer,� he told Jacksonville television station Fox 30 Action Sports Jax, “I can hit all 14 clubs in the bag.� Lexi Thompson of the LPGA lives in Palm Beach County, one of three “hot spot� counties in Florida where officials have closed courses; on social media, she posted a photo of her garage/hitting area. Others have shared videos of themselves chipping in the back yard and/or showing off. Golf Digest published two lists of “the best quarantine-themed golf trick shots we’ve seen.� All of which has added up to a rare bit of good news for retailers. For retrieving balls hit in a park or other open space, some of PGA TOUR Superstore’s online buyers are even going back to the shag bag ($19.99). A shag tube is just $12.99. The National Golf Foundation has kept close tabs on the coronavirus pandemic and how it’s impacting the industry. It also measures pent-up demand and estimated 43% of golfers are practicing at home more than ever, adding, for emphasis, “About 1 in 5 say they’re doing this a lot more than usual. Might be a good time to get into the window-replacement business.� Last week was a better one for course availability, the NGF reported Monday, as 58 percent of U.S. courses were open for play, up from 49 the week before. Although golf operations were cleared to resume in Minnesota and Wisconsin, with “pockets of play� opening back up in California, plus a ruling in New York allowing for play at private clubs, the Northeast remains largely shut down. Just 3 percent of courses are open in Nevada. The itch to play, though, isn’t going away so easily. Said Chamblee, “Titleist has always had a promotion, a stock-up program at beginning of the season, mid-March to mid-April. The customer buys three dozen ProV1s and gets the fourth free, and gets them personalized. That’s always been a very strong promotion for us, and I’ve noticed we’ve had an increase over historicals; there’s a pent-up demand, people are eager to get out there and play. As soon as they can, they’ll be ready to go.�

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Webb Simpson isn’t the first player ask his teammate to take the opening tee shot of an international team competition, and he won’t be the last. It’s one of the most stressful situations any player will face in his career. Eight years ago, Simpson was the youngest member of the U.S. Presidents Cup team. He’d barely kept his card the year prior, but quickly vaulted into the world’s elite by winning twice in a three-week span late in the 2011 season. One of those victories came at the second event of the FedExCup Playoffs, leading to a runner-up finish in the season-long standings. Those wins vaulted Simpson from outside the top 50 of the world ranking to inside the top 10 by the time he arrived at Royal Melbourne, where he represented the U.S. for the first time as a professional. His career had changed rapidly, and now he faced the prospect of leading off for a star-studded U.S. team that included Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. Could Simpson, one of golf’s newest stars, be blamed for being nervous? Royal Melbourne’s second hole is a par 5, so conventional wisdom would’ve said that Simpson’s long-hitting partner, Bubba Watson, should’ve teed off on that hole in their Foursomes match, meaning Simpson would tee off on No. 1. But the partners decided before the first day of competition that Watson, who’d made his U.S. debut at the previous year’s Ryder Cup, would do the honors to start the match. “I wanted Bubba to go first because I was so nervous,� Simpson said recently. “Probably at that point it was the most nervous I had been in my career, even trying to win my first tournament just a few months prior.� Simpson said he’d never seen so many people gathered around a tee. Watson found the middle of the fairway, leaving Simpson with a 90-yard approach for his first Presidents Cup shot. No butterflies here, as Simpson’s wedge shot lipped out. U.S. teammate Matt Kuchar called it “one of the best opening shots anybody’s ever had in a team competition.� Kuchar then followed with a rhetorical question. “You having a good time, Webb?� The answer was undoubtedly yes. Watson and Simpson won their first three matches that week, all by at least a three-hole margin. Simpson left his first Presidents Cup with a winning record (3-2-0) as the U.S. rolled to a 19-15 win. Simpson is scheduled to return to Royal Melbourne for this year’s Presidents Cup. He’s now one of the veteran members of the team; only Kuchar is older among the eight automatic qualifiers. Simpson, 34, will be playing his sixth international team competition, including his third Presidents Cup. He made the team with another late-season surge. He was 11th in the U.S. standings as recently as July but finished second in back-to-back starts to crack the top eight in the U.S. standings. A final-round 64 put pressure on Brooks Koepka at the World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational. Simpson shot four rounds of 65 or lower at the Wyndham Championship, but finished a stroke behind J.T. Poston, who became the first player since Lee Trevino to win while going bogey-free over 72 holes. “You can’t force anything in this game … but I felt driven to play really well and be that much more focused the last few events,� Simpson said. “It’s a long time between now and December and anything can happen. Guys not even on the radar can play well and (get a captain’s pick). “Being a captain’s pick is an honor, but to make the team feels even better. I’ve experienced both. When I sealed it, it definitely was a sigh of relief.� Returning to Royal Melbourne book-ends an eventful stretch of his career, filled with both the highs and lows that this game can bring. He won a major and THE PLAYERS since his first trip to Australia, and also cried tears of frustration with his wife during his deepest putting struggles. “I’ve definitely reflected a lot with Dowd. A lot has happened with golf and life since we started having kids,� Simpson said. Their first child, a son named James, was born in 2011, the same year Webb made his Presidents Cup debut. Their fifth child, a daughter named Eden, will celebrate her first birthday on the Sunday before this year’s event. “In 2011, if you had said I’d win a U.S. Open and PLAYERS and have five kids and Dowd had started a school (The Oaks, a private Christian school in Charlotte, North Carolina), I would be smiling from ear to ear,� Simpson said. “I know what it’s like to struggle with your game and have a bad stretch. Back then I was kind of eyes wide open, taking it all in. Now I’m very thankful, knowing what I’ve been through, to be back on another Presidents Cup team.� Simpson represented the U.S. team four consecutive years from 2011-14. He was a captain’s pick for the 2014 Ryder Cup, playing just two matches (0-1-1) after struggling alongside Watson in the opening session. That was the last event where Simpson used the belly putter that helped him win the 2012 U.S. Open. Simpson wanted to get an early start on finding a new method before the USGA’s anchoring ban took effect. He didn’t make another U.S. team until last year’s Ryder Cup. His victory at the 2018 PLAYERS, his first win since late 2013, helped him earn one of the team’s automatic qualifying spots. He was a bright spot during a difficult week at Le Golf National. The U.S. lost 17.5-10.5, but Simpson (2-1-0) was one of just four Americans with a winning record. There were calls on social media for Simpson to see more playing time. Le Golf National, which required precision over power, was perfectly suited for his game. Simpson showed that with a 3-and-2 win in his singles match with Justin Rose, who’d won the FedExCup just a week earlier. Simpson’s win pulled the United States within two points during an early Sunday surge. “He’s a different man now,� said his caddie, Paul Tesori. “You can see the confidence everywhere he walks. He has a firm belief in his golf game. Coming out of those struggles, it’s made him a different player. A stronger player.� Simpson didn’t win this season, but he had 15 top-25s in 21 starts, including four finishes in the top 3. He also finished fifth at this year’s Masters. He’s the only player to finish in the top 30 in the past eight majors. He’s qualified for the past three TOUR Championships. Simpson ranked 145th in driving distance last season but is thriving in a power game. He finished outside the top 100 in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee but is inside the top 20 in the other three Strokes Gained statistics (Approach-the-Green, Around-the-Green and Putting). Royal Melbourne is a good fit for his game. Its firm conditions give his tee shots extra roll and require precise distance control with the irons, one of Simpson’s strengths. And the short grass around the greens mimic the conditions Simpson grew up with in North Carolina. “It brings in the imagination, which I love. That’s why I’ve really grown to love The Open. Royal Melbourne isn’t a links, but it shares certain characteristics, the imagination and having to get the ball on the ground,� Simpson said. His opening shot of 2011 is proof. The low, flighted wedge rolled some 50 feet on the green, including 15 feet of right-to-left break, before hitting the hole and stopping 5 feet away. Tesori said four of Simpson’s five PGA TOUR wins have come on firm courses. “Webb grew up with the bump and run,� he said. Simpson’s strong iron play and putting make him an appealing Foursomes partner. Pairing him with a long hitter compensates for his one shortcoming and creates a well-rounded team. His experience at Royal Melbourne will be a valuable asset, especially as he finds a new partner to conquer Alister Mackenzie’s Australian masterpiece alongside. Barring a spectacular run, Watson won’t be on the U.S. team. He finished 81st in this season’s FedExCup and 20th in the U.S. Presidents Cup standings. This would be just the second time Simpson has played on a U.S. team that hasn’t included Watson. When they’ve both been on the same U.S. team, Watson has been Simpson’s partner in every match he’s played. “Since I’m older and this is my sixth team event, I want to be in a position where I’m able to play with anybody,� Simpson said. Perhaps he could take the first tee shot off the hands of a nervous rookie. He’d be returning the favor.

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