Tag: Brian Gay

Here’s what pros have to say about Tiger Woods’ first course to host a PGA Tour event

The wind is the course’s main defense. Tiger emphasized shot-making and strategic decision-making.

LOS CABOS, Mexico — Tiger Woods doesn’t do many firsts these days in professional golf but he has this week as this marks the first time that a PGA Tour event will be held on one of Woods’ designs (with senior design associate Beau Welling).

With dramatic views of the Pacific Ocean and natural arroyos, mature vegetation and native dunes, El Cardonal at Diamante, which ranks T-33 on Golfweek’s Best Mexico, Caribbean, Atlantic Islands and Central America list and hosts this week’s World Wide Technology Championship, is a par-72 course measuring 7,363 yards and will rank as one of the tougher walks on Tour.

The wind is the course’s main defense. Tiger emphasized shot-making and strategic decision-making. The course’s variety of hole angles, including the par-5 14th, which offers the rare alternate fairway, challenging green complexes and diverse shot values provide a testing ground that requires players to think critically about their approach.  It’s a course that invites players to showcase their versatility and creativity, in line with Tiger’s approach to the game and what made him one of the best to ever peg it up.

“I set up the golf strategy to make golfers think and make choices,” Woods said on the course website. “There are going to be different ways to play every hole. Angles of approach are going to be very important and will dictate the type of shots you should consider. I love this kind of golf.”

The course boasts a magnificent panorama of dunes, fairways, and ocean views that blend with the surrounding natural vegetation. Here’s what the pros have to say about Tiger’s first completed design and first course to host the PGA Tour.

First Tee golfers Alyssa Stewart, Brayden Casolari win junior divisions at Pure Insurance Championship

The Pure Insurance Championship pairs PGA Tour Champions pros with golfers from the First Tee.

The Pure Insurance Championship on the PGA Tour Champions is a special event, in that veteran pros are paired with standout junior golfers from the First Tee program on the Monterey Peninsula.

Amateur Alyssa Stewart had a week to remember, teamed up with fellow Texas Justin Leonard and hit golf’s magic number, a 59, during the second round at Spyglass in a fourball format.

Stewart, ranked 241st in the Golfweek/Sagarin girls junior golf rankings, led by four in the girls division after 36 holes and went on to win by eight shots over Alaythia Hinds.

“She’s awesome,” Leonard said Saturday afternoon. “She’s made two eagles in the last two days and a bunch of birdies.”

The 17-year-old is a high school junior from Mansfield, Texas, and is committed to play college golf at Houston Christian. Leonard sounds like he  enjoyed being a mentor during this tournament.

“I’m not reading every putt and everything, but helping her with a little yardage or a decision here or there,” he said. “It’s fun. And it’s, look, she’s a great golfer, and she’s a better person and just a really fun personality to be around.”

Brayden Casolari, who was paired with Brian Gay, finished 21 under and won the boys division by a shot over Garrett Harrison, Sebastian Velazquez and Andre Follmer.

There were 80 First Tee members from 45 U.S. chapters competing in the event at the start of the week. The top 24 – 12 boys and 12 girls – advanced to Sunday.

Steven Alker and Padraig Harrington, 1-2 in the points race, are 1-2 on the leaderboard at Charles Schwab Cup Championship

Steven Alker and Padraig Harrington are separated by just a shot.

PHOENIX — It should come as no surprise that two of the best players on the PGA Tour Champions in 2022 are dominating the field at the Charles Schwab Cup Championship.

It should also come as no surprise that the golfer who has taken this tour by storm in the last 15 months has put himself in the driver’s seat to claim his first series title.

Steven Alker, tied for the tour lead with four wins this season, including a major at the Senior PGA Championship, came into the playoffs leading the points race. Padraig Harrington, in his first full season on the tour, is No. 2 in points and has won three times, including a major at the U.S. Senior Open.

Once the computers crunched all the numbers, Alker and Harrington were the only ones mathematically alive who could claim the season title. After the two pre-tournament favorites went shot-for-shot on a sunny Friday afternoon at Phoenix Country Club, it’s Alker and Harrington atop the leaderboard.

Harrington, playing in the third-to-last group in the second round, posted a birdie-birdie finish to shoot a 64, tied for low round of the week. He is at 12 under after 36 holes. For Harrington to claim the Cup, however, he needs to win but he also he needs Alker to finish outside the top five.

That’s starting to look like a long shot.

“Steve is relentless,” Harrington told Golf Channel after his round.

Alker was tied for the lead after 18 holes and after a 7-under 64, he holds the outright lead. Alker opened his round Friday with a pair of birdies, took his first outright lead with another birdie on No. 5. For the next couple hours, he would share the lead with Harrington a couple more times. Birdies on 15 and 17 got him to 13 under for the week so far. Alker has 13 birdies over two days and has yet to bogey a hole.

“I know what I’ve got to do, the numbers are all there. It’s kind of black and white. I just try and put myself in position to win a golf tournament, that’s big for me,” Alker said. “I’ve got to keep hammering those birdies out.”

Alker, a New Zealander who moved to Scottsdale in 2002, has his family following him this week, including his wife Tanya, son Ben and daughter Skye. That rooting section will be down one Saturday as Skye, a member of the Fountain Hills High School cross country team, will be competing in the state championships.

“Go Falcons,” Alker said.

Alker and Harrington are the only two golfers who can win the Cup this week. Even if Harrington wins this tournament, he needs Alker to finish outside the top five.

What about Langer?

Bernhard Langer, the ageless wonder who at 65 won for the 44th time on the Champions tour last week, has posted scores of 66 and 69 and is tied for eighth at 7 under. A 45th win would tie Hale Irwin’s mark set 15 years ago, but he’ll start Saturday’s third round six shots off the pace.

Lots of birdies but just one eagle

The quirky stat of the week after 36 holes: it took until late in the day Friday for the first eagle to be finally recorded.

Thongchai Jaidee rolled in a birdie putt on the par-5 18th hole to give him a second-round 68 and move him into the top 10. It’s the only eagle after 1,188 holes of competition. There have been 284 birdies so far this week.

What’s on the line?

First place this week is good for $440,000. The winner of the Cup race banks a cool $1 million bonus.

In fact, the top five finishers in the Cup standings will earn a lump sum deposit into a Schwab brokerage account:

First place: $1,000,000

Second: $500,000

Third: $300,000

Fourth: $200,000

Fifth: $100,000

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Brian Gay hoping third time at the Masters is the charm

A Bermuda Championship victory confirmed to Brian Gay that he still had game on the PGA Tour. It also got him back to the Masters.

Brian Gay unfortunately was heading toward a crossroads.

In his late 40s, with more than 600 starts on the PGA Tour and his job becoming more of a grind than a joy, doubts about his future in golf crept into his head.

Stay on the PGA Tour or head to the PGA Tour Champions?

Then he went to Bermuda.

On the first day of last November, Gay, after missing nine of his last 11 cuts, defeated Wyndham Clark in a playoff to win the Bermuda Championship, his fifth PGA Tour title and first since 2013.

“Crazy game,” he said that day.

Masters: How to bet | How to watch

The victory confirmed to Gay that he still had game on the PGA Tour and didn’t need to join the elder set just yet. And about a year before becoming eligible to play the PGA Tour Champions, he had earned exempt status on the PGA Tour through August of 2023.

And the win got him back into the Masters.

Gay, 49, who spent part of his childhood in Louisville, Georgia, about 50 miles south of Augusta National Golf Club, went to the Masters for the first time in 1979 when he was 8. With his father by his side for the Tuesday practice round, Gay, who said he was just beating golf balls around the yard at the time and just catching the golf bug, was hooked.

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And then Andy Bean took him out to the tee box on the second hole.

“That was pretty cool,” Gay said. “That’s when I fell in love with the Masters. It’s great to be going back to the Masters. It’s always been my favorite tournament in the world. I’m from the south and I love the southern charm.

“Love that it’s at the same course every year. The back-nine drama. The history. Know all the shots, know certain putts.”

Gay fulfilled a childhood dream by playing in his first Masters in 2010. But he missed the cut. In his only other appearance, he tied for 38th in 2013 and won crystal when he eagled the 15th.

While he loves the course and everything about the tournament, it’s a tough place for Gay to succeed. He’s one of the shortest hitters on the PGA Tour and despite being one of the game’s best putters, he’s never broken par in any round at Augusta National during the Masters.

“It’s tough on the short hitters, for sure,” he said. “It’s a huge advantage if you can hit it long and high there. Hopefully, for me, it will be warm. I’m not so young anymore. Warm weather will help, for sure. If it’s cold I get a little stiff.”

Gay didn’t play the week before the Masters in the Valero Texas Open, instead planning to head to Augusta for a practice round or two ahead of time.

“I’m looking forward to going back there,” Gay said. “Hopefully I won’t put too much pressure on myself. Hopefully, I’ll go there and really enjoy it and feel good about it and play well.”

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AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am odds, predictions and PGA Tour picks

We look at the 2021 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am odds, and make our PGA Tour picks and predictions to win

The No. 1 golfer in the Official World Golf Ranking and reigning Masters champion, Dustin Johnson, returns to the PGA Tour following a victory at the European Tour’s Saudi International last week. He is among a solid field of 156 golfers teeing it up at Pebble Beach Golf Links for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Below, we look at the 2021 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am odds, and make our PGA Tour picks and predictions to win.

This year’s event will look considerably different due to COVID-19 protocols. There will be no celebrity pro-am portion of the tournament and golf will be played on just two courses – Pebble Beach Golf Links and Spyglass Hill Golf Course – instead of three. The cut will be made after the standard 36 holes instead of 54.

Johnson, who’s playing his first PGA Tour event on the mainland since his Masters victory, is a prohibitive betting favorite at BetMGM following his Saudi International win. He’s +350 as the only member of the top five in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings in attendance.

While acknowledging Johnson’s high chance of winning this event for the third time, we’ll look for some better value.

2021 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am picks – Favorite

Odds provided by BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Monday at 1:05 p.m. ET.

Jason Day (+3000)

Day has never won this event, but he was a co-runner-up in 2018 as one of six top-10 finishes in his last eight appearances. He missed the cut each of the last two weeks, but those performances have now helped to boost his odds at a course where he has had great success.

Day gained strokes off-the-tee, from tee-to-green and around-the-green last week, but he lost 2.62 strokes per round with the putter over his 36 holes. Trust in his driver and irons while expecting his putter to get right at a familiar venue.

Place your legal, online 2021 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am bets in CO, IA, IN, MI, NJ, PA, TN, VA and WV at BetMGM. Risk-free first bet! Terms and conditions apply. Bet now!

2021 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am picks – Contender

Kyoung-Hoon Lee (+9000)

Lee was the co-runner-up to Brooks Koepka last week in Phoenix. He vaulted from No. 263 to No. 142 in the OWGR with his best finish on the PGA Tour. He’s a two-time winner on the Japan Tour and previously had a top PGA Tour finish of T-5 at the 2019 RSM Classic.

Lee led the field last week in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green and SG: Around-the-Green. His odds are far too high coming off of that well-rounded performance.

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2021 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am picks – Long shot

Brian Gay (+25000)

Gay missed the cut in each of his last two events following a 72nd-place finish at the Sony Open in Hawaii and T-29 at the Sentry of Tournament of Champions, but he’s just four events removed from his victory at the Bermuda Championship, albeit in a much weaker field.

He tied for 38th last year, seventh in 2019 and eighth in 2018. He was solid from tee-to-green and on approach all three of those years and didn’t rely too heavily on his putter. Port Royal Golf Course, the home of the Bermuda Championship, was designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr., who also designed Spyglass.

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Winner’s Bag: Brian Gay, Bermuda Championship

See a complete list of the golf equipment Brian Gay used to win the 2020 Bermuda Championship.

A complete list of the golf equipment Brian Gay used to win the PGA Tour’s 2020 Bermuda Championship:

DRIVER: TaylorMade SIM (9 degrees), with Fujikura Ventus Blue 6 X shaft

FAIRWAY WOOD: TaylorMade SIM (15 degrees), with Fujikura Ventus Blue 7 X shaft

HYBRID: Callaway Apex (18 degrees), with Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White Hybrid 100 TX shaft

IRONS: Srixon Z 545 (4, 5), Z 745 (6-PW), with Project X 6.0 shafts

WEDGES: Titleist Vokey Design SM8 (50, 56, 60 degrees), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 shafts

PUTTER: Scotty Cameron TN2 prototype

BALL: Titleist Pro V1

Scottie Scheffler is latest young gun to get in the hunt, shoots 67 at Arnold Palmer Invitational

Scott Scheffler fired a bogey-free 5-under 67 to open the Arnold Palmer Invitational. The rookie is seeking his 1st victory on the PGA Tour.

ORLANDO – Big expectations have followed Scottie Scheffler ever since he won the 2013 U.S. Junior Amateur at Martis Camp and became the first Texan to do so since a kid named Jordan Spieth.

Scheffler also won three straight individual state titles, joining Spieth as the only players to accomplish that feat at the time. He followed Spieth to Texas and just as Spieth did played on the U.S. Walker Cup team, in 2017.

By now, you may have noticed a trend.

Yet somehow, despite being the 2019 Korn Ferry Player of the Year, Scheffler has been lost in the shuffle as the star-studded trio of Viktor Hovland, Matt Wolff and Collin Morikawa beat him to the winner’s circle on the PGA Tour.

One week after Korea’s Sungjae Im claimed his breakthrough victory at the Honda Classic, could Scheffler, 23, be the next young gun to secure his maiden victory? He’s off to a flying start after posting a bogey-free 5-under 67 in the first round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

“It’s always great to be able to keep the card clean, especially on a day like today,” said Scheffler, (T-3) who trails Matt Every by two strokes. “It’s playing really tough out there.”

API: Tee times, TV | Photos | Scores | Live updates

Starting on the back nine, Scheffler circled his first birdie on his card when he rolled in a 28-foot birdie putt at 11 and was just off the putting surface in 2 at the par-5 16th and made a short birdie putt. His putter delivered again at 18 as he poured in a 29-footer at 18 to shoot 33. On the second nine, Scheffler wedged to 5 feet for birdie at the third and nearly drove the fifth green, pitching to a foot.

He didn’t hole any long ones on his second nine, but called a bunch of par saves the highlight of his round. Color veteran pro Brian Gay, who played alongside Scheffler on Thursday, impressed.

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“Shoot, every time I play with him, he’s going low,” Gay said. “He’s pretty long, hits it high, good putter and he’s kind of got an old-school upright swing that reminds me of Mark Calcavecchia.”

Gay has seen a lot of the young pros up close and personal and says Scheffler has what it takes to join the list of Tour winners soon.

“I don’t see why not,” he said. “It wouldn’t surprise me at all.”

Scheffler, who won twice on the Korn Ferry Tour last year, has picked up where he left off in his rookie season. He won the RSM Birdies Fore Love competition for making the most birdies and eagles (139) in the fall portion of the schedule, which included three top-10 finishes: T-5 at the RSM Classic, T-3 at the Bermuda Championship and T-7 at A Military Tribute to the Greenbrier.

Scheffler threatened to notch his first win in January at The American Express, finishing solo-third at 23-under 265. It marked the third time he held a share of the 36-hole lead on the season.

For all of his success this season, Scheffler isn’t one to get caught up in setting and chasing goals.

“I think in college I worried too much about my form and just too many, too much going on in the head,” he said. “I noticed if I start making goals into the future, I’ll start looking ahead and not focusing on the day-to-day.”

“So when I turned pro, I kind of had a little change of heart at the beginning of the season last year and it kept me going,” he added. “Just not over-thinking things and going out and playing.”

That includes not stressing over a potential secondary goal: making his Masters debut. He currently ranks No. 51 in the Official World Golf Ranking, and the top 50 after the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play earn an invite to play in the Masters. But he knows if he takes care of business this week at Arnie’s Place, where he once competed as a high school sophomore in the AJGA’s Wyndham Cup, he won’t have to worry about the fluctuations in the rankings anymore.

“I think winning here would get me into a few events as well, so looking at this week,” Scheffler said.

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Matt Kuchar, Brian Gay drop Mayakoba aces within minutes of each other

Matt Kuchar and Brian Gay upped the PGA Tour’s season-long hole-in-one count by making aces within minutes of each other at Mayakoba.

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At Mayakoba, aces apparently come in packages of two. For the second time this week, holes-in-one were logged within minutes of each other. On Sunday, Matt Kuchar holed out at the par-3 eighth just minutes before Brian Gay, playing two groups ahead, logged an ace at the par-3 10th.

Interestingly, the par-3 fourth hole swallowed back-to-back aces during Friday’s first round (the tournament was pushed back a day after rain saturated El Camaleon Golf Club). First, Cameron Tringale holed out, then in the very next group, Chase Seiffert did the same.

It marked the first time since the 2004 Masters that aces were made in back-to-back groups.

Mayakoba: Leaderboard | TV info | Photos

On Sunday, Kuchar moved from 3 under to 5 under on the day after dropping his tee shot at No. 8 right in front of the hole then watching it trickle the last few feet into the cup.

Gay’s shot into the 10th also landed a few feet short then curled back right and disappeared into the hole.

The PGA Tour season is young, but Kuchar and Gay went down as the eighth and ninth players to make a hole-in-one so far this season. There were 36 holes-in-one last season.

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