Tag: 2023 Masters

‘I needed to be at home for those few weeks’: Rory McIlroy says break after Masters was ‘for my mental and emotional well-being’

“I think I’m in a better head space than I was.”

The 2023 Masters took a toll on Rory McIlroy.

He made equipment changes, he made several scouting trips to Augusta National and yet he missed the weekend. Little mistakes added up, and he fell short of the career grand slam once again.

The RBC Heritage was next up on the schedule, a designated event that boasted the best field the tournament had ever seen.

McIlroy skipped it.

He received some backlash after his withdrawal because the event at Harbour Town Golf Links was the second designated event he skipped in 2023 — all players are allowed to miss one this season.

Now he returns to Quail Hollow Club, the site of his first Tour win in 2010, for the Wells Fargo Championship.

The three-time winner in Charlotte, North Carolina, spoke with Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis about his decision to spend some time at home instead of playing in Hilton Head Island.

“More for my mental and emotional well-being I needed to be at home for those few weeks … I think I’m in a better head space than I was,” he said.

After a few events with a Scotty Cameron in the bag, McIlroy has gone back to his TaylorMade Spider X putter. He lost .85 strokes with the Titleist wand at the Masters.

“I had my best ever putting year on Tour last year so no need to throw the baby out with the bath water,” he told Lewis.

Should a McIlroy win on Sunday surprise you?

Well, no.

In 2021, the Northern Irishman missed the cut at Augusta and went on to win the Wells Fargo in his very next start. In fact, since the start of the 2020-21 season, McIlroy has finished inside the top 10 five times in his next start following an MC (seven missed cuts during that span).

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‘It’s truly appalling’: Matt Fitzpatrick had some strong words regarding the pace of play issue on the PGA Tour

“It’s truly appalling. No one’s going to do anything about it.”

Since the final round of the Masters, pace of play has been a heavily debated topic on the PGA Tour.

Brooks Koepka came after Patrick Cantlay for his tepid pace during the final round at Augusta National. Golf Twitter continued its needling of Cantlay when the Tour posted a video of his hole-in-one at the RBC Heritage and most replies and quote tweets were targeted at his pace of play. Then on Tuesday, a video surfaced of fans timing how long it look the fourth-ranked player in the Official World Golf Ranking to hit a shot.

Now, one of Cantlay’s playing partners during the final round at Harbour Town Golf Links has addressed the pace of play problem in golf.

Matt Fitzpatrick, the eventually winner over Jordan Spieth in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, spoke with Sky Sports and said pace of play on Tour is “truly appalling. No one’s going to do anything about it.”

Watch the full clip below.

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Brooks Koepka dishes on Sunday stumble at Masters and LIV Golf’s warm reception at Augusta National

“You just kind of take some time and digest it all … It was nice to get to the bottom of it,” said Koepka.

Brooks Koepka had a dream start and nightmare finish earlier this month at the Masters, and two weeks later, he’s still dealing with the weekend fallout that saw him finish four shots behind Jon Rahm.

LIV Golf is back in action this week in Adelaide, South Australia, for its fourth event of the season, and the four-time major champion dished on his disappointing performance down the stretch at Augusta National.

“You just kind of take some time and digest it all. Did a good job of that Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and just kind of relaxed and tried to think about why it happened, why I played bad on Sunday,” Koepka said to the media Wednesday at the Grange Golf Club. “I’m always pretty honest with myself, and normally it goes on what I was thinking, what I was doing. It was nice to get to the bottom of it.”

Koepka held a two-shot lead entering the final round, but a 3-over 75 Sunday afternoon sealed the deal for his runner-up finish alongside fellow LIV player Phil Mickelson.

“Look, you tell anybody you’re going to finish second in a major, especially where I was six months ago, a year ago, I’m not sure there, so I would have taken that, so it’s tough to really argue with it,” he continued. “Then reality, expectations and all that stuff gets thrown in there. But it was a good solid week, and I can’t really complain. Gave myself a chance to win, and that’s all you can ask for every time you tee it up.”

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The Netflix docuseries “Full Swing” depicted Koepka as a player lost in the woods and unsure of his ability to play against the game’s best. He even admitted during last year’s Masters he wasn’t sure whether he could hang with the likes of former world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler “week in and week out.” But the 32-year-old has slowly but surely found his competitive edge once again on the upstart circuit led by Greg Norman and financially supported by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Koepka is the league’s only two-time winner over its 11 events after his victory at LIV Golf Orlando a week before the close call at Augusta.

The Masters wasn’t just a time for Koepka to show the sports world that his alpha male, kick-your-ass-at-all-costs mentality was still alive and well (ironically enough for just 54 holes this time around). His fellow LIV Golf captains Dustin Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau saw it as a time to show the divide between LIV and the PGA Tour may not be as wide as some fans may think.

“I think it was the best thing for the fans to see what happened at the Masters,” said Koepka. “We kind of experience it all behind closed doors, and I know when I’m home, I can’t speak for Bryson, but when me and DJ are home, we see (Rory McIlroy) there at (Grove XXIII) … (Keegan Bradley), Matt Fitzpatrick. Patrick Cantlay lives on the same street; (Rickie Fowler) does, as well. I could run into 15 Tour guys if I wanted to in a day, and nobody has really had any negative feedback, any negative thing to say, and that would be the time to say it.

“But I think it was good just for the fans to see that we still communicate, we still play together, we still practice together, do everything the exact same. We’re still the same people.”

“Obviously where we live, I think half the golf world lives in South Florida. I see all the guys all the time,” added Johnson, captain of last year’s champion 4 Aces. “It was nice to see at Augusta, see a few of the guys that you don’t see in Jupiter or out here on LIV, a couple buddies I got to see and hang out with.”

Johnson claimed to have heard a lot of “Go Aces” yells from the gallery and chalked up the warm reception to the respect patrons have for Augusta National and the Masters.

“It’s more about the golf than what Tour you play on,” DJ explained. “I think that’s how it should be all the time.”

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A tired Jon Rahm hopes to avoid Masters hangover at RBC Heritage, already thinking Champions Dinner

“If I was one of the kids, I would want to see the recent Masters champion play good or bad, just want to be there.”

Shortly after winning the Masters on Sunday and concluding his press conference, Jon Rahm was whisked away to Butler Cabin where his family was waiting to toast his four-shot victory over Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson.

“It was a very enjoyable 20 minutes (before a dinner in his honor in the clubhouse) to just be with my family over there in such a special cabin just by ourselves for a little bit was very nice,” said Rahm, speaking on Wednesday during his pre-tournament press conference ahead of the RBC Heritage.

Among those to congratulate Rahm on his second major championship and 11th PGA Tour title was fellow Spanish star and winner of 22 majors in tennis, Rafael Nadal, who left a poignant voicemail. Rahm also noted he didn’t celebrate as hard as some might imagine.

“That will take part next week,” he said.

Nevertheless, Rahm said he didn’t sleep well, observing that whenever he wins, whether it is the adrenaline rush he enjoys or something else, he finds it difficult to come down from the victory buzz.

“Monday night, I slept great and still woke up tired,” he said.

Yet, Rahm is scheduled to play this week at the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, where a star-studded field in one of the PGA Tour’s designated events is set to compete for $20 million, an even larger purse than last week’s Masters. He spent an extra day in Augusta, Georgia, on Monday with his family to give his body some extra rest before he shifted into competition mode. (He was on the practice-putting green at Harbour Town by early Tuesday afternoon and played nine holes in the pro-am on Wednesday morning.)

The field counts 41 of the top 50 players in the Official World Golf Ranking and 29 of the top 30 players in the FedEx Cup standings are in the field, with one notable absence: Rory McIlroy. After missing the cut at the Masters, McIlroy withdrew from the tournament on Monday and is skipping his second designated event. Did Rahm, who returned to World No. 1 on Monday, consider withdrawing from the RBC Heritage after playing 30 holes on Sunday and feeling both physically and mentally exhausted?

“It did cross my mind, but I made a commitment earlier in the year, and I want to honor that commitment,” said Rahm, who is seeking his fifth Tour title of the season. No player has won five times in a season on Tour since Justin Thomas in 2016-17. “I also, talking to (wife) Kelley, I put myself in the shoes of not only the spectators, but the kids as well. If I was one of the kids, I would want to see the recent Masters champion play good or bad, just want to be there.”

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Rahm is the first reigning Masters champion to play the following week on Tour since Jordan Spieth in 2015. Rahm confirmed that the green jacket awarded to the Masters champion is with him this week, but he’s focused on donning the tartan jacket awarded to the Heritage champion on Sunday. This week marks his second start at the RBC Heritage, his first since 2020, when he finished tied for 33rd.

“I can promise you that every time I tee it up in a tournament, it’s going to be to win. It may feel better or worse, but I intend to try my hardest to win,” he said. “I still intend to hopefully do the jacket double and taking this one home.”

He added: “I feel like I’m going to be feeling better every day. So I think it could be a little challenging early on, but if I can get through the first two days, I think on the weekend I’ll feel back to normal.”

Rahm also was asked by Jimmy, a Make-A-Wish Foundation heart-transplant recipient, if he had given thought to his menu for next year’s Champions Dinner on the Tuesday of Masters week, which is hosted by the defending champion.

“I think this is the part of the week that I’ve given the most amount of thought already,” Rahm said. “I don’t know exactly. Chef Jose Andres is a really good friend of mine, so I’ll be working with him. I also want to talk to Ollie (two-time Masters champ Jose Maria Olazabal), because we’re from the same part of Spain, to see what he did in his dinner, see if I can go a different route.

“I think I have one of the appetizers down, which would be jambon, Spanish ham, the dessert, which I won’t be disclosing, and the wine. Everything in between is still up in the air. Those three things, I think I have down for now.”

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Patrick Cantlay responds to Brooks Koepka’s slow play remarks: ‘I imagine it was slow for everyone’

“I think that’s just the nature of playing professional golf, where every shot matters so much.”

When Patrick Cantlay’s name appeared on the RBC Heritage’s pre-tournament interview schedule, that shouldn’t have come as a surprise.

Cantlay fell to Jordan Spieth in a playoff last year, failing to get up-and-down from a bunker on the first hole. He also has two third-place finishes and a solo seventh in his five starts at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.

What’s also not a shocker is Cantlay, ranked fourth in the world, was asked questions about last week’s Masters in the midst of preparing for the sixth designated event on the PGA Tour’s schedule.

During Sunday’s final round, Cantlay was with Viktor Hovland in the penultimate group. Eventual winner Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka were in the final pairing, and on nearly every shot throughout the final round, they were forced to wait on the pair in front of them.

Rahm and Koepka play quickly, and Koepka didn’t hold back when asked about the pace after his round when he shot a 3-over 75.

“Yeah, the group in front of us was brutally slow,” Koepka said. “Jon went to the bathroom like seven times during the round, and we were still waiting.”

RBC Heritage: Thursday tee times | Photos | Odds

However, Cantlay’s play, or his slow pace, was focused on more. Even Hovland seemed annoyed, as on the 13th hole, he hit a chip shot before Cantlay even reached the putting surface.

On Tuesday, Cantlay deflected the notion the slow play was his fault.

“(When) we finished the first hole, and the group in front of us was on the second tee when we walked up to the second tee, and we waited all day on pretty much every shot,” Cantlay said. “We waited in 15 fairway, we waited in 18 fairway. I imagine it was slow for everyone.”

A couple more questions went by, and another one was asked about whether Cantlay thought pace of play was an issue on the PGA Tour and how it could be resolved.

“One thing that’s interesting sitting on the PAC (Player Advisory Council) is you get all the numbers and the data, and rounds have taken about the same length of time for the last 10 or 20 years that they currently take,” Cantlay said. “When you play a golf course like Augusta National where all the hole locations are on lots of slope and the greens are really fast, it’s just going to take longer and longer to hole out.

“I think that may have been what attributed to some of the slow play on Sunday, and then also when the wind is gusting and the wind is blowing maybe inconsistently, that’s when guys will take a long time, too. I think that’s just the nature of playing professional golf, where every shot matters so much.”

Sounds like Cantlay isn’t concerned with the widespread bitterness being held over his head.

This season, he has three top-four finishes and has missed only one cut in nine starts. And with his track record at Harbour Town, he could find himself in the mix once again come Sunday.

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CBS reports Masters final round was most-watched golf broadcast in past 5 years

Final-round viewership was up 19 percent from 2022.

Safe to say folks tuned in for the final round of the Masters.

Jon Rahm’s four-stroke win and his second major championship was the most-watched golf broadcast in the past five years on any network, CBS reported Tuesday. It averaged 12.058 million viewers, peaking at 15.021 from 7-7:15 p.m. ET. The numbers are up 19 percent from last year’s final round.

Sunday’s presentation on CBS totaled 16.251 million viewers in combined average viewership for the conclusion of the third and final rounds. Additionally, it also became the most-streamed round of golf ever on Paramount+, while recording double-digit year-over-year growth across households, minutes, and average minute audience (AMA) vs. last year’s final round of the Masters.

The previous high for a final round was 2018, when Patrick Reed slipped on the green jacket. That Sunday averaged 13.045 million viewers.

Rahm chasing down four-time major champion Brooks Koepka, combined with the PGA Tour vs. LIV Golf storyline, made for a compelling Sunday. And the numbers reflect that.

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Want to keep the Augusta party going? Check out these 14 Masters-themed items

Keep the Augusta vibes going with our list of best Masters-themed items in 2023.

The 87th playing of The Masters was absolutely incredible.

Sam Bennett’s showing, Phil Mickelson’s runner-up finish and of course Jon Rahm claiming his first green jacket were all storylines we loved watching over the course of the week.

As always, Augusta National Golf Club leaves us too quickly. However, we’ve brought together some of the best items to help keep the vibes from Augusta flowing.

From apparel worn by players throughout the week to t-shirts and accessories, this list features top of the line items centered around the best week of the golfing calendar.

Be sure to check out our lists that feature Masters-themed accessories, shoes and other spring time golf must haves.

What will Jon Rahm serve at 2024 Masters Champions Dinner? Here’s a sneak peek

It’s never too early to start working on the menu. Fortunately, Golfweek asked Rahm about this very possibility.

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Jon Rahm has a little less than a year to figure out his menu for next year’s Champions Dinner ahead of the 88th Masters, but it’s never too early to start working on the menu.

Good thing that Golfweek asked him in Hawaii in January for this year’s Masters Survey to name what he’d serve if he were to win the Masters.

Here’s how Rahm answered our question:

“I have an idea, yes,” he said. “It would be Spanish cuisine. I’m lucky to be friends with chef Jose Andres (owner of restaurants in several cities around the United States and winner of a number of awards for his cooking) and I would seek out his help a little bit.”

As it turned out, Andres participated in the 2023 Masters Par 3 Contest, caddying for Sergio Garcia. Andres also got a chance to take aim at the ninth green during the event.

2023 Masters Par 3 Contest
Spanish chef Jose Andres and caddie for Sergio Garcia plays a shot on the ninth hole during the 2023 Masters Par 3 Contest at Augusta National Golf Club. (Photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Spanish cuisine has been a popular pick for past Spanish winners of the Masters. In 2018, Garcia served up a menu full of Spanish-inspired dishes, including a dish called Arroz Caldoso de Bogavante, which is described as a traditional Spanish lobster rice dish. In 1995, Jose Maria Olazabal went with paella and hake, plus tapas.

This year, Scottie Scheffler’s menu had a Texas flavor to it and was a big hit with his Scottie Style sliders, although his tortilla soup was declared way too spicy. So, Rahm is now on the clock. Here’s hoping it’s paella for everyone.

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2023 Masters: How players approached No. 13 green at Augusta National in first year with new tee

Nearly half the players who went for the green in two and didn’t hold it found the water.

AUGUSTA, Ga. – It’s been 21 years since Augusta National Golf Club first added extra length to Azalea, the par-5 13th hole at the end of Amen Corner.

The green jackets first moved the tee back 20-25 yards in 2002, then eight years later added another seven yards to the front of the tee box. Ahead of this year’s tournament, the 13th tee was moved back 35 yards.

“We believe this modification will put a driver in play more often and restore the element of risk and reward that was intended in the original design of the hole,” said chairman Fred Ridley during his annual address on Wednesday.

“And I certainly look forward on Sunday to having someone in competition with a 3- or 4-iron in their hand or even a hybrid hitting their shot into the 13th hole rather than an 8-iron,” he added. “I think on balance it’s going to prove to be the right decision.”

That begs the question: did Augusta’s plan work?

Sure, it’s a small sample size to use just one tournament’s worth of data, especially when two of the four rounds were greatly impacted with inclement weather and numerous delays, but let’s not let a little rain and wind get in the way of a fun thought exercise. After all, we have to start somewhere.

Here’s a look at how competitors played the 13th hole in Sunday’s final round of the 2023 Masters.

Apr 2, 2018; Augusta, GA, USA; Beauty shot of the 13th green during a practice round for the Masters golf tournament at Augusta National GC. Mandatory Credit: Michael Madrid-USA TODAY Sports

Lay up or go for it?

Augusta National’s depth of stats for the Masters is truly impressive, but there isn’t an annual stat breakdown for “Go or No” on No. 13. The closest thing we have to compare is from the folks at the Fried Egg, who took a look at how players approached the 13th on Thursday.

Of the 86 players in the field, 31 laid up (36 percent) in the opening round, 16 from the fairway (19 percent).

63% of the field went for the green in two, and 36% of second shots held the green. Three players attempted to reach the green from the pine straw right of the fairway. Eight approaches landed in the tributary of Rae’s Creek. — The Fried Egg

In the final round, four of the 53 players who made the cut went OB off the 13th tee. Of the 49 who were in play, 24 laid up (49 percent), 20 went for the green in two and didn’t hit it (41 percent), and only five went for it and held it (10 percent).

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It’s interesting to see a more even strategy during the final round compared to the first, but not shocking given Sunday’s amplified pressure, as well as windy and cold conditions. What was surprising was how even the split was for those who started off the first and 10th tees. Those at the bottom of the leaderboard (with seemingly less to play for) started on the second nine, with 11 opting to lay up and 11 choosing to test their luck. Among those who had a bit more to play for that started off No. 1, 14 went for the green in two and 13 laid up.

From those who laid up – 22 of the 24 did so from the fairway – seven made birdie and 16 made par. Mito Pereira was the lone eagle after holing out from the fairway.

Of the 20 players who went for the green in two and didn’t hold it, nine found the water (five bogeys, four pars). Scottie Scheffler (par) and Sepp Straka (birdie) were the only two who went for the green from off the fairway. In total, six who went for it made birdie, nine made par and five made bogey.

Here’s how the five who went for and held the 13th green fared:

  • Tommy Fleetwood: Birdie
  • Chris Kirk: Birdie
  • Phil Mickelson: Birdie
  • Justin Rose: Birdie
  • Cameron Young: Eagle

Over the last 22 years at the Masters, the 13th hole at Augusta National has been one of the three easiest holes 20 times. In the other two years (2008 and 2013) it was the fourth easiest hole. This year, the 13th played as the fourth easiest hole, and despite the weather and added yardage, the numbers were pretty similar.

Scores at No. 13 since 2002

Year Rank Eagles Birdies Pars Bogeys Double bogeys Other
2002 16 4 83 133 35 7 3
2003 16 3 83 145 45 5 3
2004 16 7 89 135 31 12 0
2005 17 7 88 150 29 6 2
2006 17 14 96 120 33 9 2
2007 16 9 89 167 38 6 3
2008 15 8 87 137 33 11 1
2009 17 14 124 128 19 6 1
2010 16 10 107 129 33 7 1
2011 18 13 137 115 24 6 1
2012 16 10 128 127 39 9 1
2013 15 2 127 132 42 3 2
2014 18 8 122 123 39 3 1
2015 18 20 141 111 22 9 1
2016 17 7 119 122 37 5 2
2017 18 6 128 131 22 5 0
2018 18 9 128 112 24 7 0
2019 18 17 158 102 23 3 1
2020 16 8 139 120 34 2 0
2021 17 9 132 112 23 6 2
2022 16 6 91 139 37 6 4
2023 15 8 108 122 30 7 2

No. 13 played as the toughest of the four par 5s, and players averaged 4.74 for the week – down from 4.85 last year – but scored 4.85 on average in the final round, the highest of the par 5s on Sunday.

Players made more birdies and eagles compared to last year, and slightly fewer pars and bogeys. Double bogeys and others were about the same.

This is just one round of the first Masters with the added length to the 13th tee, and players are sure to figure out the best way to play the hole the more cracks they get. While more time will be needed for an accurate ruling on the changes, the risk/reward was back in the first year.

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Dressed for Success: Jon Rahm at the 2023 Masters

See how Jon Rahm dressed for success at the 2023 Masters in TravisMatthew apparel.

Jon Rahm finally has his green jacket.

Rahm overcame a four-shot deficit at the start of Sunday’s play, and defeated Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson by three shots to win the 2023 Masters.

Rahm’s special-edition painted golf shoes said “VAMOS”, and that’s exactly what the Spaniard did.

In addition to his second major title, Rahm takes home $3.24M, the largest-ever prize for a Masters winner.

We’ve already taken a look into Rahm’s winning equipment, so let’s dive into the champion’s closet and see how Jon dressed for success in TravisMathew apparel at the 2023 Masters.

Masters 2023 leaderboard: Get the latest news from Augusta