Dustin Johnson and Jordan Spieth are tinkering with their gear in hopes of winning a second U.S. Open this week at Winged Foot.
MAMARONECK, N.Y. – Two former U.S. Open champions are tinkering with their equipment in hopes of winning a second title this week at Winged Foot Golf Club.
Dustin Johnson, the winner of the 2016 U.S. Open at Oakmont and the 2020 FedEx Cup champion, took his TaylorMade SIM Max 7-wood out of the bag and replaced it with a new SIM DHy 2-iron that is fitted with a Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 100X shaft.
Johnson, who is currently ranked No. 1 on the Official World Golf Ranking, not only won at East Lake two weeks ago with the 7-wood in his bag, he also used that club when he shot a second-round 60 and won the Northern Trust at TPC Boston.
So why tinker with a good thing? Last Sunday evening, after playing a practice round at Winged Foot, Johnson decided that he wanted to hit a draw, a right to left shot, on some holes when he is not playing a driver. Like all fairway woods, Johnson’s 21-degree 7-wood is designed with a curved face, but the hollow-bodied 17-degree SIM DHy 2-iron is designed with a flat face. For elite players, flat-faced clubs tend to make it easier to hit draws and fades. Plus, the SIM DHy should create a lower launch angle for Johnson, so if he can hit a draw off the tee, the ball could run more after it lands.
Jordan Spieth, the winner of the 2015 U.S. Open at Chambers Bay by one stroke over Johnson, switched into Titleist’s new TSi3 driver last week at the Safeway Open. His club has 10 degrees of loft and is fitted with a Fujikura Ventus Blue 6X shaft.
Spieth finished the 2019-20 PGA Tour season ranked No. 165 in strokes gained off the tee (-0.279). He averaged 301 yards per tee shot, a career-best, but hit just 52 percent of the fairways, a career-worst.
Titleist has remained mum on the details regarding the yet-to-be-released TSi3 and TSi2 drivers. Still, several golfers switched into the clubs last week, including and 25 others last week at the Safeway Open and 31 at the Portugal Masters, including Tommy Fleetwood (TSi3).
Jordan Spieth acknowledged his continued struggles at the Safeway Open and remained confident that things will start to come together.
“We may as well pack our bags.”
That’s what Jordan Spieth said to his caddie on his final hole of Friday’s second round of the Safeway Open in Napa, California. Instead of staying in Wine Country for two more rounds, Spieth knew he had to decide whether to head home to Texas for a couple days of rest or head to New York for some extra prep time at Winged Foot ahead of next week’s U.S. Open.
And it all happened in an instant. Looking for mini-victories as he tries to emerge from a slump lasting more than two years, Spieth was on the cutline and on the ninth hole of the North Course at Silverado Resort and Spa when his travel itinerary changed as quickly as his second shot on the par-5 banged off a tree limb and headed straight into a hazard.
Thinking he needed to make birdie to feel comfortable about making the cut, Spieth had to take a drop and made double-bogey 7 and packed his bags.
He declined to speak to the media following the round but then again, the story hasn’t changed. Spieth’s struggles continue, whether he’s fighting an uncooperative driver, dealing with sluggish iron play or clashing with his putter.
And momentum? He can’t find any.
The former world No. 1 has dropped to 67th in the official world rankings and he hasn’t won since capturing the Claret Jug in the 2017 Open Championship. The three-time major champion, with 11 PGA Tour titles on his resume, has played 54 events since finishing in a tie for third in the 2018 Masters and has more missed cuts – 10 – than top-10 finishes – 8.
Since golf returned in June following a 13-week break due to COVID-19, Spieth has one top-10 and three MCs. His latest trunk slammer came Friday when, after starting on the 10th hole, he was piecing together a good round despite not having his best form. There was Spieth magic – he knocked in a flop shot for birdie on 17 after his errant approach clanked off a camera tripod. He also knocked a long iron from 222 yards to two feet for a birdie on the seventh and had four other birdies.
He was grinding toward the weekend before it all ended on the ninth hole.
Jordan Spieth during the second round of the 2020 Safeway Open at Silverado Resort in Napa, California. (Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
But Spieth will continue to grind. He won’t sulk, won’t get lazy, won’t quit. He’s confident his best form will return along with his status as one of the game’s best.
“I almost feel at times like the game is testing me a little bit right now because I feel really good about the progress I’ve been making, and then it seems like I’ll really have one (good round) brewing, and then I’ll get where I used to hit a tree and go in the fairway, it’ll hit a tree and go off the cart path out-of-bounds,” Spieth said ahead of the 102nd PGA Championship last month.
“It just feels like I kind of here or there am taking some punches right now.”
The latest haymaker came on the ninth hole in Napa, where his ball hit a tree but didn’t go into the fairway.
“I’m in no hurry,” Spieth said at the PGA Championship. “I’ve got a lot of years in front of me and hopefully the best years in front of me. I just stay the course. I keep my head down, focus on what our team is trying to accomplish and work each day really, really hard. I’ve worked my butt off over the last year mentally, physically and mechanically.
“Things will start to come together.”
Since those words, Spieth has tied for 71st in the PGA Championship, tied for 72nd in the Wyndham Championship and missed the cut in the Northern Trust and the Safeway Open. And now he heads to Winged Foot, a rugged course that is not kind to anyone trying to emerge from an abyss of poor play.
But Spieth will continue his search for lost form no matter where his travels take him.
After missing the cut at the Northern Trust, several big names who started the week ranked higher than No. 70 in FedEx Cup points are out.
NORTON, Mass. – The numbers don’t play favorites, and after missing the cut at the Northern Trust, several well-known golfers who started the week ranked higher than No. 70 on the FedEx Cup points list have now been eliminated from the playoffs. Only players ranked 70 or better are eligible to play in next week’s BMW Championship.
While it is not official yet, Phil Mickelson will almost assuredly finish worse than 70th on the FedEx Cup points list. Mickelson started the week at No. 67 and missed the cut. As of Friday night, he is projected to move to 76th, and the Hall of Famer has already said that he plans to play the PGA Tour Champions event that starts on Monday.
Among those golfers who will not be moving on are:
Jordan Spieth – The winner of the 2015 FedEx Cup, Spieth entered the Northern Trust ranked No. 100 on the point list, but his 71-69 performance left him one shot over the cutline.
Harold Varner III – Started the week at No. 73 and missed the cut after shooting 71-69
Shane Lowry – Despite playing in eight tournaments after the PGA Tour restarted in June, the 2019 British Open champion entered the week at No. 122 on the FedEx Cup points list. He missed the cut at TPC Boston by two shots.
Lucas Glover – The 2009 U.S. Open champion entered the week at No. 115 on the FedEx Cup point list and shot 70-75.
Brandt Snedeker – The 2012 FedEx Cup winner struggled after the PGA Tour restart and started the week at No. 98. he shot 73 and 72 at the Northern Trust to miss the cut.
Graeme McDowell – This was the eighth event for the 2010 U.S. Open champion, who started the week at No. 113 on the point list. Since the tour restarted and after shooting 77-72, he missed the cut for the sixth time.
At the PGA Championship, players were asked about TPC Harding Park and the cooler weather and how it impacts their game.
Since the return to golf in early June, steamy conditions have been the norm, with above-average temperatures in places like Fort Worth, Texas; Hartford, Connecticut; and last week in Memphis.
That’s not the case this week at TPC Harding Park, however, as San Francisco’s chilly, foggy setting has given the PGA Championship a divergent backdrop from the Tour’s previous events. According to meteorologists, lows are expected to be in the mid-50s and high temps barely reaching 70, with light rains intermittently rolling through.
How will the world’s best handle these conditions at the year’s first major? Here’s what they’ve had to say.
Jon Rahm during a practice round for the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, California. (Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Jon Rahm
On his impressions of the golf course and the weather being colder compared to previous PGA Tour events.
“I might be the wrong person to ask since I haven’t seen the golf course yet. It’s going to be a short answer. All I’ve seen is the chipping green and the range. I can tell you in a couple hours once I’ve played nine holes, but it looks like obviously this West Coast weather, a little bit cooler, chances of rain. Rough is going to be nice and healthy and thick, and it looks like fairways, from what I’ve seen, are decently narrow, right, so major championship golf, we just need to play good in every part of your game and have confidence in every part of your game and hopefully be the one standing alone on Sunday.”
On if the temperature being cooler and air heavier in San Francisco makes a difference and how he makes adjustments.
“No, there will be a difference. I think we all have our monitors, whatever we have, early in the week to see the difference. Especially being somebody who lives in Arizona, the difference is going to be significant. But at the same time, where I grew up in Spain is pretty much like this. Same weather year-round, same type of climates and — well, that’s the same thing.
“But same, let’s say, environment around, same type of golf course. It’s going to be pretty much like going back to Spain playing golf when I was growing up. Weather shouldn’t bug me, something I’m used to, and yeah, need to get used to how far the ball is going. For the most part, we’ll be able to predict most of it. It’s just when the wind picks up, knowing it’s that humid air, a little bit heavier, it will affect it more than it has in some places. Yeah, it’s almost closer to what we play on The European Tour, which I’ve done decently well on, so hopefully I can this week.”
Jordan Spieth during a practice round for the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Jordan Spieth
On if the cooler weather in San Francisco makes a difference in his game.
“Yeah, I was anywhere from 10 to 13 yards shorter with a very similar swing and ball speed with the irons, and the driver is up to 20 yards shorter in carry, and that’s normalized on the TrackMan. Yeah, it’s very different. I mean, I played nine holes each day already, so I’ve seen the golf course, and I would say it’s been harder for me to hit — to commit to some of the clubs first time around, so I’m glad that I’ve played some holes and been able to hit in some crosswinds into the wind and really see how much of an effect it really has. But I’m used to playing the AT&T there at Pebble Beach every year in February, and we get very similar conditions to this.”
On how tough TPC Harding Park is playing and what the biggest challenges are?
“Yeah, it’s very tough. I played the back nine today. It was pretty meaty there. 11, 12, 13, 14 are tough, and then on the front nine you kind of get a mixture of a couple holes where you feel like you can get at them, and then you get two or three or four in a five-hole stretch where you’ve just got to kind of hold on. The rough is up around the greens. It’s not extremely difficult around the greens as far as leaving yourself short-sided. The bunkers are very playable. There’s not big lips and the sand is pure, so you don’t get in trouble if you miss shots in the sand out here.
“But with these conditions, if we get cooler weather and some wind picking up, then you’re looking at more of a 10 under. But if the wind dies down and it heats up a little bit, I think you’re in a situation where if guys are really controlling the ball tee to green, the greens are a very makeable speed and there’s not a ton of slope to them, so you could see some lower scores potentially. I think we’re kind of forecasted somewhere in between the two, and so my expectation going out is to try and — is not a hold on for dear life, par is a great score, but it’s also not a let’s fire at flagsticks. It’s kind of somewhere in between where a few under is a solid round.”
Justin Thomas during a practice round for the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, California. (Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Justin Thomas
On his thoughts on the golf course so far and how it compares to other PGA Championships.
“Yeah, the fun thing about the PGA is that I feel like we play a wide variety of golf courses. All great golf courses, but I mean, I didn’t play Bethpage last year, but this is different than Bethpage. It’s way different than Quail Hollow. It’s different than — I’m trying to think — different than Bellerive, different than Baltusrol. Yeah, it’s just — they’re all different, but they’re all good tests for what they are. It’s interesting for that reason.
“But this course is great. It’s fun. It’s right in front of you. It’s not tricked up. You just have to hit the fairways. You have to have control of your ball. I mean, I’ve only played 18 holes, but it seems pretty difficult in my eyes. I think it’s going to be a little bit more of a challenge this week than maybe some in the past.”
Brooks Koepka talks with his coach during a practice round for the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, California. (Harry How/Getty Images)
Brooks Koepka
On his impressions of the rough, and I guess how deep rough needs to be to be significant if he has a short iron or a wedge for an approach.
“It all kind of depends. The rough out here is pretty thick. You can get some pretty juicy lies and not advance it very far. But it all depends. Is it going to be wet? I think it will be, especially in the mornings, so it could be quite tough to control your distance, spin, things like that. But I don’t think it’s overly bad right now. Come Sunday, might be different. Might grow two inches, who knows, an inch. Anything could make a big difference. I don’t think it’s bad, but it’s not the worst I’ve ever seen.”
Tony Finau during a practice round for the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, California. (Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Tony Finau
On the rough at TPC Harding Park and how deep does rough needs to be to be effective from shorter range.
“Well, it’s definitely thick enough this week to be a factor. I played the back nine for the first time yesterday, and I think it’s about a 50/50 chance as far as the lie. I’ve had two lies yesterday on Hole 12 that were three feet apart. One I could easily get a 7-iron on and the other one I was just trying to hack out 40, 50 yards. It’s almost luck of the draw when you hit it in the rough. I think you’re going to see some guys get fortunate and hit it on to the green and I think you’ll see some guys hack it out and not hit it anywhere.
“The length I think is perfect, perfect length just to have it be tough. Again, I think it’s just luck of the draw. I think it’s a 50/50 show of having a shot at the green and having to lay up hitting it in the rough here on all these holes.”
Tiger Woods during a practice round for the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, California. (Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
Tiger Woods
On the weather in San Francisco and how it impacts swing preparations.
“I think that for me when it’s cooler like this, it’s just make sure that my core stays warm, layering up properly. I know I won’t have the same range of motion as I would back home in Florida where it’s 95 every day. That’s just the way it is. Talking to some of the guys yesterday, they were laughing at their TrackMan numbers already. They don’t have the swing speed or ball speed they did last week. It’s just the way it is. It’s going to be playing longer. It’s heavy air whether the wind blows or not, but it’s still going to be heavy. The ball doesn’t fly very far here. I’ve known that from all the years and times I’ve had to qualify up in this area. It’s always 20 degrees cooler here than it is down there in Palo Alto. We knew that coming in. I think the weather forecast is supposed to be like this all week: Marine layer, cool, windy, and we are all going to have to deal with it.”
On how TPC Harding Park is different than his previous times playing.
“It’s not as long. It’s a par-70; it’s not as long numbers-wise, but the ball never goes very far here. It plays very long, even though it’s short on numbers. This golf course in particular, the big holes are big and the shorter holes are small. It can be misleading. They have; pinched in the fairways a little bit and the rough is thick; it’s lush. With this marine layer here and the way it’s going to be the rest of the week, the rough is only going to get thicker, so it’s going to put a premium on getting the ball in play.
“I’m still a bit surprised that the surrounds are not as fast as they are and they’re not cut short and tight, but they are grainy. Into-the-grain shots, where the balls are popping in and rolling out. Downgrain you can spin pretty easily and you can spin it either way. It’s going to be a test, with the overhang of these cypress trees and the ball — there may be a couple lost balls here; cut a corner and ball hangs up there, that could happen very easily here and has happened and I’m sure will this week as well.”
SAN FRANCISCO – Jordan Spieth is a Wanamaker Trophy away from becoming just the sixth player to complete the career Grand Slam. But he’d like to win any trophy these days. The former world No. 1 and three-time major champion is still struggling to …
The former world No. 1 and three-time major champion is still struggling to emerge from an abyss that began taking hold heading into the summer of 2018.
Until then, Spieth was elite, a favorite every week he put a peg in the ground, a winner of 11 PGA Tour titles before turning 26, including his E-ticket ride at Royal Birkdale in England to win the Claret Jug in 2017, his last victory.
Then his game started cooling when the heat began rising two summers ago. In 50 starts since finishing third in the 2018 Masters, Spieth has missed as many cuts – 8 – as he’s notched top-10 finishes. He’s fallen to No. 62 in the world. And momentum of any sort has been fleeting.
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At times he’s been bewildered standing over the ball with putter in hand, or an iron, or a driver or 3-wood. The winless stretch has often sent him to the practice ground in search of lost form alongside longtime coach Cameron McCormick and under another set of watchful eyes, those of his caddie, Michael Greller.
But faith has not deserted him. Like a weeble wobble, he keeps getting back up.
“I almost feel at times like the game is testing me a little bit right now because I feel really good about the progress I’ve been making, and then it seems like I’ll really have one (good round) brewing, and then I’ll get where I used to hit a tree and go in the fairway, it’ll hit a tree and go off the cart path out-of-bounds,” Spieth said Tuesday at TPC Harding Park, site of the 102nd PGA Championship.
Aug 4, 2020; San Francisco, California, USA; Jordan Spieth (right) receives coaching from Cameron McCormick (left) on the practice range during a practice round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at TPC Harding Park. Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
“It just feels like I kind of here or there am taking some punches right now as I’m really progressing in the right direction,” he added. “You can get really upset and complain about it, which I’ve done and that’s not helpful, or you can look at it like hey, this is part of the game testing you, and the better you handle these situations, the faster you progress forward.
“I’ve done a really good job of that the last really three tournaments that I’ve played as opposed to any previously, and Michael would attest to that, and my attitude has been phenomenal. Been OK with knowing that the game will test you, and also believing in the process at hand.”
At hand this week is the first major in 13 months due to COVID-19. TPC Harding Park is lush and soft, the fairways thin, the cypress trees imposing, the temps cool and the mist heavy.
A strong test, in other words. A test, Spieth said, he’s confident he can pass. Even if he isn’t in his best form.
“About as much as it’s been since I won The Open Championship, I guess,” he said when asked how much he thinks about joining Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Gary Player, Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen as the only players to win the career grand slam. “It’s something that I really want. It’s probably the No. 1 goal in the game of golf for me right now.
“I’m working the right way, and even in a few years of feeling like I didn’t have my ‘A’ game any time I teed it up, I still had a chance to win three or four majors on a Sunday. Majors aren’t necessarily totally about form. They’re about experience and being able to grind it out, picking apart golf courses, so I feel like I probably have more confidence going into a major no matter where my game is at than any other golf tournament.”
Until that Sunday comes when he wins again – major or otherwise – he’ll keep working and believing.
“I’m in no hurry. I’ve got a lot of years in front of me and hopefully the best years in front of me,” he said. “I just stay the course. I keep my head down, focus on what our team is trying to accomplish and work each day really, really hard. I’ve worked my butt off over the last year mentally, physically and mechanically.
Answers are proving elusive for the former No. 1 player in the world, now 61st in the ranking and without a win since the 2017 Open.
DUBLIN, Ohio – Jordan Spieth is talking to himself again. Golf does that to you.
“What are you supposed to do?” he says after hitting a 9-iron over the green in the swirling winds of Muirfield Village Golf Club during the Memorial Tournament.
What is he supposed to do? The answer has proved elusive for the former No. 1 player in the world, who is now 61st in the rankings and without a win since the 2017 British Open.
Spieth’s story is not a rags-to-riches tissue grabber. He was never a nobody, but instead a teen golf sensation who lived up to the hype, becoming the fifth-youngest winner in PGA Tour history when he won the 2013 John Deere Classic at age 19 year, 11 months, 18 days.
Neither is his a riches-to-rags cautionary tale. Spieth spent 13 weeks at No. 1 in 2015-16 – and was never outside the world’s top 10 from the last tournament of 2014 to the next-to-last event of 2018 – but it’s not like the 26-year-old Texan has flamed out. He tied for seventh at last year’s Memorial and has three top-10s this season.
It’s more that the Spieth story elicits emotional neutrality, somewhere between hallelujah and heartbreak, which describes the majority of Tour players who grind it out to make cuts from week to week. Spieth is no journeyman. He is not just another guy – three wins in major championships precludes that – but he has become something of an afterthought.
If there is a shocking chapter in this narrative, that is it, because once upon a time he dined at the captain’s table of golf. Spieth in 2015 was Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods rolled into one. Engaging, insightful, mentally strong and deadly with the putter. He was good for golf. He still is, but his positive impact will only move front and center when his game stops waiting in the wings.
Is he close? He thinks so. During the second round of the Memorial he shot a 2-under 70 despite playing Army golf off the tee – left, right, left, right – and began Saturday tied for eighth at 4-under-par.
“Recently, those have been my 2- or 3-over rounds that have thrown me out of the tournament,” he said, sounding optimistic.
On Saturday, he had another 2-over round, posting a 74 after converting just one birdie.
The course is baking and Spieth is talking again, but others have joined the conversation. His golf ball cringes as he curses it for settling in a bad lie in the bunker. He and his caddie, Michael Greller, strategize over club selection. Without the buzz of galleries, whispers inside the ropes become booming voices across mostly empty green space.
Exceptions exist.
“They saved some lives today not having people out here, because I would have hit about six of them,” Spieth says to two females standing just outside the black metal fence separating million-dollar homes from millionaire golfers.
It is a good line, showing the self-deprecating side of a player who was wildly popular at the height of his success, before he began tweaking his swing like others who could not leave well enough alone in their pursuit of perfection. Sometimes it works. Tiger Woods and Nick Faldo reworked their swings and won majors. Often it does not.
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Spieth made changes and continues to tinker with a swing that too often takes him down a path of doubt and dead ends in another so-so finish.
“It can be hard when it’s been something that’s the norm, when you’ve kind of been fighting through things for a while,” he said. “It’s a process coming back. Any time I get a chance on the weekend and especially anywhere near contention to kind of see where things are, then I’m able to make adjustments and improve from there.”
Spieth has never been an exceptional ball striker. Even when he won five times in 2015, including the Masters and U.S. Open, he ranked 78th in driving distance and 80th in driving accuracy. His distance has improved (41st on tour) but he came into the Memorial ranked 205th in driving accuracy. His short game, and especially his putting, bailed him out in the past, but is not at the elite level of 2015-16. There is more work to do.
Golf is cruel to all. Singling out Spieth as suffering more than his peers fails to recognize that he has earned $41 million from the diabolical game. But seeing bad things happen to a good guy – and outside the ropes Spieth is as decent, considerate and charitable as you will find on Tour – leaves a bad taste. Here is hoping the story changes soon, that Spieth gets talked about for winning and not for talking to himself.
We recap Ian Poulter and Patrick Reed’s finishes Saturday at Muirfield Village during the Workday Charity Open.
DUBLIN, Ohio – Ian Poulter hadn’t played Muirfield Village Golf Club since an undistinguished run of attempts that ended in 2009.
The English golfer lives most of the year in the United States, but his family – he and his wife have four children – have spent recent summers back home.
“It’s been 11 years since I’ve played here, which is quite crazy when I think about it,” Poulter said after shooting a 3-under 69 on Friday to finish 36 holes at 7 under in the Workday Charity Open. Poulter, 44, trails leader Collin Morikawa by six.
“I played here for a number of years and pretty much liked the place but never had a finish,” he said.
In five years of playing the Memorial, he didn’t finish better than tied for 30th. He has played the Wentworth tournament in England instead of at Muirfield Village.
“Tournaments are tournaments and some have to be sacrificed with a global schedule that a number of us are playing,” Poulter said. “It’s a shame it happened that way. To be able to come here and play two weeks in a row is really nice.”
He described his round Friday as “hot and moist.”
Poulter birdied the 11th, 12th and 13th holes to get to 8-under par. He flirted with disaster on 17 before making a 12-foot putt for bogey.
Poulter said he feels refreshed after not touching a club for much of the COVID-forced golf shutdown.
“Even though I didn’t hit balls for seven or eight weeks, I hit enough,” he said. “Then when it was practice time, I felt good because I felt a bit stronger, felt a bit fresher, and my swing was more on line than what it normally is when I take a long layoff. I feel good about my game. I feel fresh, and I’m holing a few putts, and it’s nice to see a few putts go in.”
Reed rallies
Patrick Reed struggled to gauge the speed of the Muirfield Village greens early, but he figured it out late. The 2018 Masters champion birdied four of the last six holes to finish with a 2-under 70 and stands at 6 under through 36 holes.
“I felt like I dialed down the speed pretty well on the putting green this morning,” Reed said.
But he hit what he thought was a good putt on No. 10 – his first hole – and it went more than 8 feet past the cup and he bogeyed the hole.
“From there I just kind of seemed a little timid on speed,” Reed said.
Eventually he told himself he needed to make some putts.
“So I was able to be a little more aggressive and more fluid with my stroke, which is kind of the biggest thing for me,” he said. “Don’t rush your stroke and just kind of be fluid with it.”
Armour, Spieth struggle
Ohio State product Ryan Armour didn’t expect to make the cut after his second consecutive even-par 72. The projected cut when he finished was 1-under par.
Armour said he struggled off the tee, which is normally a reliable part of his game.
Something else was missing – a sizeable Buckeye rooting section for the 1999 grad because of the ban on spectators.
“It’s eerily silent at all these events,” he said. “Especially coming here, being an Ohio State alum, I miss it. I definitely enjoy the interaction with the crowds and the ‘Go Bucks’ and the ‘O-H’s. I just hope in the near future we can get back to normal.”
Jordan Spieth is another prominent name in danger of missing the cut. He seemed safe to survive for the weekend with a birdie No. 5 – his 14th hole – but then double-bogeyed No. 8 to bring him back to even par.
Already in Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth’s bags, these low-bounce wedges are ideal for golfers who play on firm courses with tight lies.
Gear: Titleist Vokey Design SM8 T Grind wedges Price: $199 each Specs: Tour Chrome and Raw steel finishes. Right-handed only in 58 and 60 degrees.
Tight lies and hard ground can play havoc with your short game. Getting a wedge’s leading edge under the ball is difficult when it is on the ground with almost no grass underneath it, so pitch shots and lob shots are tricky. The bounce that helps in bunkers and fluffy lies in the rough works against you on tight lies.
If you play courses that typically are hard and fast or you tend to hit short-game shots with a sweeping motion instead of a digging action, Titleist has a new wedge, the SM8 T Grind, that might be suited for your game.
Available in lob wedge lofts only, the T Grind has a low bounce angle and narrow crescent-shaped sole. It is designed to keep the leading edge down, even when you open the face.
The low bounce of the T Grind makes it ideally suited to firm conditions and courses with tight lies. (Titleist)
Jordan Spieth first used a T Grind wedge while playing in college at the University of Texas, and in 2019 he asked Titleist’s PGA Tour rep for wedges, Aaron Dill, to make him one at the Players Championship. The style of club has been in Spieth’s bag ever since.
As he prepared for the 2019 Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne, a course famous for its speedy and tricky greens, Justin Thomas had Dill make him a T Grind wedge. Thomas played it in the biennial event, and Titleist said that since that time he has brought the club to every tournament in case he encounters firm, hard conditions.
Like previously released SM8 wedges, the T Grind has a center of gravity near the front of the face. This is achieved by making the hosel slightly taller and adding tungsten to the toe. As a result, Titleist said, it is easier to flight shots down for extra control and feel.
Each club’s grooves are inspected to ensure they are sharp and comply with U.S. Golf Association and R&A regulations, and each club also undergoes a heat treatment to increase the durability of the grooves so they stay sharp longer.
The SM8 T Grind wedges are available for custom order in golf shops and at vokey.com, and custom options include letter and number stamping, customized paintfill and toe engravings.
At 26, Justin Thomas has won 12 PGA Tour titles, including two this season, but he can’t get a consistent grip on Muirfield.
DUBLIN, Ohio – Justin Thomas has a strange case of the Jekyll and Hyde thing going on at Muirfield Village Golf Club.
In six visits to Jack Nicklaus’s emerald gem for The Memorial, he’s missed the cut in 2015, 2016 and in his most recent visit, in 2019.
In his other three starts, he tied for 37th in 2014 and finally got into contention with ties for fourth in 2017 and eighth in 2018.
Go figure.
We’re talking about the No. 5 player in the world who won the 2017 PGA Championship and the FedEx Cup and was the PGA Tour Player of the Year. Is just one of four players to win five times, including a major, in one PGA Tour season before his 25th birthday, the others being Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Jordan Spieth. He’s been No. 1 in the world.
At 26, he’s won 12 Tour titles, including two this season in the CJ Cup at Nine Bridges and the Sentry Tournament of Champions.
But Thomas can’t get a consistent grip on Muirfield.
“There’s obviously some things that I need to figure out about this golf course and things I need to do better,” Thomas said Tuesday at his sometime nemesis.
He hopes he gets things ironed out quickly as the course first hosts this week’s Workday Charity Open and then next week’s Memorial.
Adding to his 7,500-yard equation is the fact the course will play much differently this week than next in an effort to relieve stress on the course that will bear nearly 800 rounds the next two weeks. That means Workday will feature slower green speeds (around 11 on the Stimpmeter) which will allow for new pin placements, some never seen before; shorter rough (3½ inches); and multiple tee boxes.
“I’m taking these practice days probably a little bit more seriously and trying to figure out why I haven’t done as well those years,” Thomas said. “Obviously not playing well is a big part to do with it, but I still feel my game is good enough where I should never miss a cut a couple times at a place that I feel fits my game like this one does.
“But I’m not going to go out there and spend six hours hitting from different places I’ve never hit before. I only have so much time in a day where I can be focused and pay attention and get a lot out of it. The important thing is I’ve played the course enough and I’ve hit it a lot of different places on this course before to where I know a lot of it for the most part, but I’ll just go check out some of the little changes here and there.”
Thomas tied for 10th in the Charles Schwab Challenge when the PGA Tour returned after a 13-week break because of COVID. The following week, he tied for eighth in the RBC Heritage, then missed the cut at The Travelers Championship.
“I didn’t really have many expectations coming into the first three events because I knew I was going to be rusty,” he said. “It was good to play some good golf. I just felt like I had just a bit of a bulky putter and I was disappointed to play so poorly at Travelers. But I just had a week off, got a little rest and tried to just enjoy the time off because I realized pretty quickly how much of a grind golf is, even without fans and all the adrenaline rush. It definitely wears on you, so it’s important to get your rest.
“I expect to play well and have a chance to win, but that being said, I need to get a little bit more comfortable and execute a lot better for that to happen for what’s happened in the past.”
Friday’s second round of the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links began under brilliant sunshine. It ended under a dark cloud.
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. – Friday’s second round of the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links began under brilliant sunshine.
It ended under a dark cloud.
A stout leaderboard was taking shape under clear skies with Webb Simpson, Bryson DeChambeau and Cory Conners leading the way and Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and Ian Poulter charging. But shortly after the afternoon wave of players began their rounds, word started spreading throughout the course that a PGA Tour player had tested positive for the coronavirus.
And then an early evening storm rolled in from the sea to delay play for two hours.
In a matter of hours, the PGA Tour’s celebrated return after a lengthy break due to COVID-19 took on a whole new feel. An uneasy feel.
The PGA Tour quickly begun implementing its response plan in consultation with medical experts, including contact tracing. Thus, Watney’s caddie, Tony Navarro, and his playing partners from the first round, Luke List and Vaughn Taylor, as well as their caddies, will be tested.
Watney, 39, who tested negative for the coronavirus on Tuesday when he arrived in the Lowcountry, felt symptoms Friday morning and consulted with a physician, who administered another COVID-19 test. When he was told he tested positive, Watney began to self-isolate for at least 10 days before having to take another test.
But before he got the result and went into quarantine, he went to the golf course in anticipation of playing the second round starting at 12:21 p.m. ET. He had a chat with Rory McIlroy – at a distance – on the putting green and then went to the range. It’s unclear if the PGA Tour will make those Watney came into close contact with outside of his playing group from the first round take another COVID-19 test.
As well, the PGA Tour might want to rethink its protocol that allowed Watney to go to the course before knowing the result of the COVID-19 test. Now that the first positive test has arrived, we’ll see where the PGA Tour goes from here.
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“It’s a shame,” Poulter said. “Obviously, this is why the protocols are in place, and this is why we’re doing all the testing as soon as anyone gets to a venue. I think it’s been exemplary so far, and to have as many people tested in the first two weeks on the PGA Tour, and obviously, Nick to feel slightly unwell today, shows how good a job everyone has done so far.
“It’s inevitable it’s going to happen, and obviously, it has happened today.”
Before the first round of the RBC Heritage, 957 tests had been administered over two weeks to players, caddies and essential personnel. There were zero positives. And then Watney got tested for a third time.
“First of all, hopefully Nick’s doing well and recovering,” said Jordan Spieth, who was involved in extensive meetings with PGA Tour officials, other players, infectious disease experts and local and state health officials that set up an exhaustive plan to create a safety and health “bubble” to reduce the risk of the virus. The plan includes layers of regular testing, questionnaires, reduced numbers on the golf course, social distancing, chartered planes, contact tracing, etc.
“The whole plan put in place was, not if, but when somebody tests positive, what’s the protocol, and what are the next steps?” Spieth said. “So I feel confident, just in being on those phone calls, in what the PGA Tour’s going to do going forward here, and hopefully contact tracing doesn’t lead to anybody else testing positive within the bubble.
“South Carolina’s open. If you go anywhere to a restaurant, there’s a lot of people there right now. So I guess that’s probably, best case, is that he got it on his own outside. But, yeah, again, it was not an if scenario. You’ve got to plan for it to happen, and hopefully it’s very much contained.”
A rainbow lit up the sky late in the day – a good omen? And when nightfall arrived, Simpson had the lead by one over DeChambeau and Conners. Ryan Palmer was two back, Koepka and Poulter in a group three back. Dustin Johnson and Tony Finau were in a group four back. World Golf Hall of Fame members Ernie Els (four back) and Bernhard Langer made the cut.
All were hoping Saturday brings the sun. And good news on the Watney and COVID-19 front.
