Tag: Kurt Kitayama

Kurt Kitayama claims 2023 Arnold Palmer Invitational for first PGA Tour win

“I’ve always dreamed of winning on the PGA Tour and to finally do it, yeah, it’s pretty amazing”

ORLANDO – Kurt Kitayama is a golfer with several nicknames.

Arnold Palmer, the golfer known simply as “The King,” would appreciate that Kitayama claimed his namesake event, the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Sunday, grinding out a pair of weekend 72s at Bay Hill Club and Lodge to prevail over a stacked leaderboard for his first PGA Tour title.

“I’ve always dreamed of winning on the Tour and to finally do it, yeah, it’s pretty amazing,” Kitayama said after tapping in for par at 18 and overcoming a triple bogey earlier in the day. “It’s pretty unbelievable, really.”

Indeed, it is, considering that Kitayama, a 30-year-old from Chico, California, took a circuitous route to the winner’s circle, traveling all over the world, playing on tours in China, Asia, Japan, South Africa, and Australia.

“We call him Quadzilla or the Quadfather,” said Xander Schauffele, who plays frequently with Kitayama when they are both home in Las Vegas.
“He’s got really big legs. So I call him Quadz with a Z at the end.”

Asked to name the strength of Kitayama’s game, Schauffele said, “He hits it a mile. He hits it far, putts it well, he does everything good.”

That, however, was hardly the case when he showed up at UNLV in 2011, where they called Kitayama “The Project.”

“I don’t think he was very good at anything,” said J.C. Deacon, men’s golf coach at the University of Florida and Kitayama’s swing coach since 2017.

Back then, Deacon was an assistant at UNLV during Kitayama’s four years there and recalled that Kitayama could barely break 75 upon his arrival. But then-coach Dwaine Knight recognized his potential and loves his grit. “He just worked so hard,” Deacon continued. “You tell him something to do and he’d be out there for 10 hours doing it. He always outworked what you asked him to do.”

That tenacity and perseverance served Kitayama well when he struggled to earn status on the Korn Ferry Tour and instead went seeking a place to play wherever that happened to take him.

“Not finding success early here was, yeah, it’s disappointing, but it took me somewhere else to grow,” he said. “And it was growing more than just in golf, really. You get to experience the different cultures, travel. I mean, you find yourself in some interesting spots. Places that you probably wouldn’t ever go. So I think just as a person I was able to grow.”

Kitayama slowly established himself in the world of golf, winning twice on the DP World Tour in 2019. In the past two seasons, he’s finished second three times on the PGA Tour, finishing second to World No. 1 Jon Rahm at the Mexico Open, Schauffele, No. 6, at the Scottish Open and Rory McIlroy, who rose to No. 1 at the time, at the CJ Cup. On Sunday, the 54-hole leader buckled but refused to break. Fourteen players were within three shots of the lead coming down the stretch, including four major champions and there was a five-way tie at the top with just three holes to play.

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Kitayama built a two-stroke lead with three birdies in his first seven holes, including rolling in a 46-footer at seven. But on the ninth hole, he tugged his tee shot left and it stopped out of bounds by six inches, leading to a triple bogey. It could’ve easily led to a free-fall into oblivion. Instead, on a day at Arnie’s Place where the greens became so baked that players complained of little friction, Kitayama never made another bogey.

Still, this was anyone’s race. Jordan Spieth charged first with four birdies in his first five holes as his trusty putter came alive. He took just 12 putts in his first 11 holes but down the stretch he couldn’t get them to drop. He missed four straight putts inside 8 feet from the 14th through the 17th holes and made three bogeys in that four-hole span. He ended up signing for 70 and a tie for fourth.

“I wouldn’t have hit any of the putts differently. I hit my line on every single one of ’em. I misread all four by just barely,” Spieth said.

Rory McIlroy, who won this tournament in 2018, had an inauspicious start with two bogeys but rallied with birdies at Nos. 12 and 13 to take the lead at 9 under. However, he still thought he was one or two strokes behind the lead and tried an aggressive line at the par-3 14th and made the first of consecutive bogeys to slip back.

“As I was walking to the 14th green, I looked behind me at the scoreboard, and I was leading by one. And if I had of known that, I wouldn’t have tried to play the shot that I played on 14, which was unfortunate,” said McIlroy, who shot 70 and missed a 10-foot birdie putt that could have forced a playoff. “Game’s rounding into form for the bulk of the season. Even though I didn’t get the win, I’m still pretty happy with how everything went this week.”

Scottie Scheffler had a chance to regain World No. 1 and defend his second title of the season. One back, he had a wedge in his hand from the fairway at 18 but instead managed to make bogey to finish at 7-under and share fourth.

“I put up a good fight,” Scheffler said. “I didn’t have my best stuff today. I still gave myself a chance.”

So, too, did Englishman Tyrrell Hatton (72) – “I just didn’t have it today on the greens in the end when I kind of needed it most,” he said – and American Harris English (70), who tied for second with McIlroy and recorded his best finish since winning the 2021 Travelers Championship.

“I love playing in U.S. Opens and this is as close to a U.S. Open setup as we play on the PGA Tour,” English said.

The API’s first year as a designated event lived up to the hype and seemed destined to be headed to a wild five- or six-man playoff until Kitayama took care of business. He regrouped after the triple and made seven straight pars. But the last of the bunch was a three-putt from 56 feet at the par-5 16th. Tied for the lead, he stepped up at the 217-yard, par 3 and drilled a 6-iron like it was a Tuesday practice round.

“I just ripped it and it started leaking little right, but I hit it good enough to cover and it was perfect,” said Kitayama, who finished with a 72-hole aggregate of 9-under 279.

He poured in the 14-foot birdie putt and was tagged with his latest nickname, this time from NBC’s Paul Azinger, who described him as a junkyard dog feasting on a bone.

Kitayama had to grind out one more par at 18. As he walked off the tee after pulling his tee shot into the rough, he had the self awareness to realize he was walking too fast.

“I was like, slow down,” he recalled. “J.C. was on the putting green earlier and he said, ‘You know, just relax and just make sure to take some deep breaths and walk slow.’ So I thought of that and I was able to recognize it, luckily, and just kind of calm down.”

Add one more nickname to the list as now you can just call Kitayama ‘Champ.’ He earned his first Tour title in his 50th career start, banking $3.6 million and improving to No. 19 in the Official World Golf Ranking, the highest position of his career. What a long strange trip it had been to the winner’s circle.

“I think just finding those little successes around the world” he said, “and making it out here, putting myself in those, in contention, you start to really believe in yourself, that you belong out here.”

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Saturday at Bay Hill: Kurt Kitayama leads, but defending champion Scottie Scheffler among numerous chasers at Arnold Palmer Invitational

The leaderboard is stacked heading into the final round at Bay Hill.

ORLANDO – On Sunday, someone will don the winner’s red alpaca sweater, the type Arnold Palmer wore with his unmistakable swagger and made famous. In a sport that has its share of green jackets and tartan and seersucker coats to celebrate its champions, the red sweater is a perfect fit for the champion of the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Zach Johnson, a man who already has possessed a green jacket in his closet, may have said it best when asked what he’d do with Arnie’s red sweater: “I’d turn the A/C down really low and sleep in it.”

The leaderboard is stacked heading into the final round at Bay Hill. There are 11 players within five shots including its defending champion, Scottie Scheffler, past champions Rory McIlroy and Tyrrell Hatton, major champions Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth, Ryder Cuppers Harris English and Viktor Hovland, the reigning Arnold Palmer Rookie of the Year Cameron Young, emerging talent Pierceson Coody and one of the hottest players in the game Max Homa. But they’re all chasing unheralded Kurt Kitayama, who is seeking his first PGA Tour title.

Kitayama, 30, who held the 36-hole lead, overcame a shaky start to make birdies on two of his final three holes and card an even-par 72 to remain at 9 under and a stroke ahead of Hovland (66) and Scheffler (68).

“Just proud of the way I fought. Started off fairly solid first three holes and then one loose swing and I’m 2 over,” said Katayama, who made a double bogey at the fourth hole. “There’s no giving up. It’s just kind of in my nature, I feel like. Even when it’s going bad, you can’t just like pack it in. You fight for every shot.”

The tee shot OB right that led to a double at No. 4 proved to be a fluke – he hit 12 of 14 fairways on the day and ranks first on the week in driving accuracy – and after another dropped shot – a bogey at the ninth – he rebounded to make his first birdie of the day at 10.

“That was a big putt I made,” he said of the 24-foot birdie. “It got me settled down a lot more, for sure. Things felt like they could have easily spiralled out of control there. And then the finish, two of the last three. So that was good.”

And how will Kitayama, who is searching for his first Tour title, handle playing the underdog role amongst so many of golf’s biggest names on Sunday?

“I think you just kind of accept it,” he said. “You just look at the leaderboard, the rankings and what they have done. People will probably be cheering for them louder, you know. So there’s nothing I can do. Just embrace it.”

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Friday at Bay Hill: Jordan Spieth’s putter wakes up, Jon Rahm takes a step back among notes from Day 2 at Arnold Palmer Invitational

Stars are everywhere on the leaderboard heading into the weekend at Bay Hill.

The weathermen got it (kinda) right Friday as winds did blow into Bay Hill Club & Lodge in Orlando on Day 2 of the Arnold Palmer Invitational, just not as bad as originally projected.

They were enough, however, to push Jon Rahm, the 18-hole leader, off course as the Spaniard shot a second-round 4-over 76.

Let the man himself tell you just how tough it was out there: “It’s f****ing hard.”

He’s 3 under and six back heading into the weekend.

The wind was no problem for Kurt Kitayama, however. He followed up his Thursday 67 with an impressive 4-under 68 with his lone bogey coming at the easiest hole on the golf course, the par-5 16th.

He closed out his day with a dart from 156 yards on the par-4 18th and a finishing circle.

“It’s always a fun challenge keeping yourself in the moment,” he said after his round. “I feel like when you get conditions like this it’s easy to kind of let things get away from you. For me it’s just keeping myself focused the entire way. There’s no, you can’t let up at all mentally.”

This is Kitayama’s third 36-hole lead this season. He’s yet to convert.

If you missed any of the action Friday, no worries, we have you covered. Here’s everything you need to know from the second round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Note: Play was suspended Friday with two players left on the golf course. The cut line currently sits at 2 over.

API: Leaderboard

Players to watch: Predicting 10 first-time PGA Tour winners in 2023

Keep an eye on this mix of veterans and rising stars in 2023.

After taking a nearly two-month holiday hiatus, the PGA Tour will return to action the first week of January with the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii.

The last time we saw the boys in action, Adam Svensson earned his first win on Tour at the RSM Classic in November. Tom Kim earned his second career win a month before at the Shriners Children’s Open.

There were 12 first-time winners on Tour in 2022. Golfweek predicted two of them, while four won on other tours. So who do we have our eyes on for next year? From veterans to rising stars from the amateur ranks, here are 10 players who we predict will hoist a trophy on Tour for the first time in 2023.

Rory McIlroy defends at CJ Cup, returns to World No. 1

McIlroy’s No. 1 for the ninth time: “When he gets that putter going, he’s tough to beat and that’s kind of what happened.”

If someone had told Rory McIlroy after he had missed the cut at the Valero Texas Open in April that he’d be World No. 1 just six months later, he wouldn’t have believed it.

“I would have asked them what they were smoking,” McIlroy said.

And yet there McIlroy is, on top of the golf world again.

The 33-year-old Northern Irishman carded four back-nine birdies on Sunday, signing for 4-under 67 at Congaree Golf Club to win the CJ Cup in South Carolina and ascend to World No. 1.

McIlroy successfully defended his title – which he won in Las Vegas at The Summit Club a year ago – for his 23rd PGA Tour title, posting a 72-hole total of 17-under 267, one stroke better than Kurt Kitayama, in Ridgeland, South Carolina.

“It means a lot,” McIlroy said of returning to World No. 1 for the first time since July 2020. “I’ve worked so hard over the last 12 months to get back to this place.”

McIlroy, who won the season-long FedEx Cup in August, joins Tiger Woods as the only reigning FedEx Cup champions to win his first start of the next season. (Woods won the 2008 Farmers Insurance Open.)

Carrying a one-stroke lead into Sunday, McIlroy opened the final round with three birdies in his first six holes before three-putting from 27 feet at No. 8 for a bogey. Another former World No. 1 Jon Rahm made birdies on three of his first five holes to give chase but failed to make a birdie after the 12th and shot 69. He settled for a tie for fourth with Tommy Fleetwood, who closed in 65.

McIlroy turned on the after burners on the second nine. Sensing he was in a dog fight with Jon Rahm and promising pro Kurt Kitayama, McIlroy reeled off four birdies in a five-hole stretch beginning with at the par-5 12th, where he wedged to a foot from 60 yards.

“The birdie on 14 was the real turning point for me,” McIlroy said. “It’s a really tough par 3, to make 2 there felt like I picked up at least a shot and a half on the field.”

Kitayama, who was bidding for his first PGA Tour title, put up a strong fight. He uncorked a 339-yard drive at the par-4 15th to set up a 44-foot eagle putt, but failed to take advantage, lipping out a 6-foot birdie and settling for a 3-putt par. He shot 67 and notched his third runner-up finish of the year in his last 14 starts. At the same hole, McIlroy drove into a waste bunker, but wedged to 5 feet and canned the putt to extend his lead to two shots with three holes to play. McIlroy smelled blood in the water, pouring in a 22-foot birdie putt one hole later and pumped his fist as he knew victory was now in his sights.

“When he gets that putter going, he’s tough to beat and that’s kind of what happened,” Kitayama said. “He made those three putts, that was the difference.”

McIlroy needed every bit of the cushion too as bogeys at 17 and 18 made it a bit more interesting than he would’ve liked. Still, it was enough to secure at least one win in six consecutive seasons on the Tour.

“It feels great to go out there, go out there with a lead, shoot a great score, play really well and get the win,” he said. “It’s an awesome way to start the season, I guess, and obviously just a continuation of how I feel like I’ve been playing over the last few months.”

Back in San Antonio in April, McIlroy already was down in the dumps after missing the cut on Friday and was unable to catch a flight home to Florida until the morning.

“Got back up to my hotel room and went to order room service and they said it will be a two-and-a-half-hour wait. So I basically missed the cut, went to bed on an empty stomach and I was like, let’s just wake up tomorrow and start again,” he recalled.

In notching his third win since June, McIlroy, who has been No. 1 for a total of 106 weeks during his career, supplanted Scottie Scheffler, who had been No. 1 for 30 weeks since March 27 and finished T-45. McIlroy claimed World No.1 for the first time in March 2012 after winning the Honda Classic. He returned to the top spot for the ninth time in his career. For McIlroy, it was the journey more than destination that mattered to him.

“Just the journey of trying to get the best out of myself. I think that’s the satisfying thing,” he said. “I never feel like I’ve figured this game out, I don’t think I ever will figure it out, but every day I wake up trying to get closer.”

Rory McIlroy defends at CJ Cup, returns to World No. 1

McIlroy returns to World No. 1 for the ninth time in his career with his 23rd PGA Tour title.

Rory McIlroy is No. 1 in the world again.

The 33-year-old Northern Irishman carded four back-nine birdies on Sunday and signed for 4-under 67 at Congaree Golf Club to win the CJ Cup in South Carolina.

McIlroy successfully defended his title – which he won in Las Vegas at The Summit Club a year ago – for his 23rd PGA Tour title, posting a 72-hole total of 17-under 267, one stroke better than Kurt Kitayama, in Ridgeland, South Carolina.

McIlroy, who won the season-long FedEx Cup in August, joins Tiger Woods as the only reigning FedEx Cup champions to win his first start of the next season. (Woods won the 2008 Farmers Insurance Open.)

Carrying a one-stroke lead into Sunday, McIlroy opened the final round with three birdies in his first six holes before three-putting from 27 feet at No. 8 for a bogey. Another former World No. 1 Jon Rahm made birdies on three of his first five holes to give chase but failed to make a birdie after the 12th and shot 69. He settled for a tie for fourth with Tommy Fleetwood, who closed in 65.

CJ Cup: Check out the clubs Rory used to win in South Carolina

McIlroy turned on the after burners on the second nine. Sensing he was in a dog fight with Rahm and promising pro Kurt Kitayama, McIlroy reeled off four birdies in a five-hole stretch beginning with the par-5 12th, where he wedged to a foot from 60 yards.

Kitayama, who was bidding for his first PGA Tour title, uncorked a 339-yard drive at the par-4 15th to set up a 44-foot eagle putt, but failed to take advantage, making a 3-putt par. He shot 67 and notched his third runner-up finish this year. At the same hole, McIlroy drove into a waste bunker, but wedged to 5 feet and canned the putt to extend his lead to two shots with three holes to play. McIlroy smelled blood in the water, pouring in a 22-foot birdie putt one hole later and pumped his fist as he knew victory was now in his sights. Bogeys at 17 and 18 made it a bit interesting but it was enough to secure at least one win in six consecutive seasons on the Tour.

Lynch: PGA Tour close to healing self-inflicted wound of a fall schedule

In doing so, McIlroy, who has been No. 1 for a total of 106 weeks, returned to the top spot for the ninth time in his career. Speaking ahead of the tournament, McIlroy said of the chance to regain World No. 1 this week that he enjoyed the journey more than destination.

“It sort of illustrates you can have your runs and you can stay there, but I think the cool part is the journey and the journey getting back there,” he said. “It’s sort of like a heavyweight boxer losing a world title and it’s a journey to get that title back. I feel like that’s the cool part of it and that’s the journey that I’ve sort of been through over the past 12 months.”

Rory McIlroy has a chance to regain World No. 1 among 5 takeaways from third round of CJ Cup in South Carolina

Here’s what you missed from the third round of the CJ Cup.

The best field of the 2022-23 PGA Tour season (to this point) is certainly living up to expectations, but there are plenty of chasers looking to crash the party of big names.

Moving day was Saturday at the 2022 CJ Cup in South Carolina at Congaree Golf Club, and it should be no surprise to see Rory McIlroy sitting at the top of the leaderboard heading to Sunday. He’s the defending CJ Cup winner, though the event was at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas last year. McIlroy has been arguably the best golfer in the world the past few weeks, and a win would move him back into the top spot of the Official World Golf Ranking.

However, with 18 holes to play, there’s plenty left up for grabs.

Here’s a breakdown of the third round of the CJ Cup.

Jon Rahm torches Congaree, Shane Lowry details how he broke his putter and more from the second round of the CJ Cup

Jon Rahm was perfect until the final hole.

Jon Rahm holed a bunker shot for birdie at 8 and missed holing out from 195 yards for eagle at the par-4 17th by inches.

“We couldn’t really see it, then obviously the crowd let us know,” he said. “That was a really good feeling swing.”

That wasn’t the only one. The 28-year-old Spaniard carded 10 birdies en route to a course-record setting 62 and a share of the 36-hole with Kurt Kitayama at the CJ Cup.

Even Rory McIlroy took notice.

“I saw he was 12 under playing the last, so I was like whoa, just hell of a round out there even with bogey at the last,” McIlroy said. “It wasn’t easy. It’s tricky and the greens are super quick and if you’re just a little off, they can punish you. So yeah, really impressive round of golf.”

Rahm got off to a sluggish start in the opening round, signing for 2-under 69.

“Yesterday was one of those days where I just couldn’t seem to find the center of the face. Lines were good, just wasn’t truly comfortable and it’s hard to score that way,” he said.

Rahm was dialed in on Friday afternoon, making birdies on six of his first 10 holes, including draining a 35-foot putt at 10. For the second straight day, he holed more than 100 feet of putts. A bogey at the last spoiled an otherwise clean card, but of his 62 strokes, he could only think of two that didn’t live up to his high standard. His approach at 8 into the bunker he termed “atrocious.”

“That one on 18 was not good, either. But it’s golf, it is what it is. Usually things tend to even out throughout a round when you’re playing good golf,” Rahm said. “And yes, I made those two mistakes, but I had that hole-out, I made the long putt on 10, the other one on 16. Maybe it was a little one-sided towards the positive side today.”

Three players secure last-minute spots in 150th Open Championship at St. Andrews

St. Andrews awaits for three lucky players.

Kurt Kitayama, Jamie Donaldson and Brandon Wu have plans next week at the home of golf.

The trio secured their spots in the field at the 150th Open Championship at St. Andrews after qualifying via their finishing positions at the 2022 Genesis Scottish Open, the final of 15 events in the Open Qualifying Series.

“It’s really exciting to be going to St Andrews. The 150th Open there, it’s going to be a really cool experience,” said Kitayama. “After my two previous experiences, the goal is now to try and make the cut. It’s just a different type of golf and you have to adapt. The atmosphere is really cool at The Open with all the grandstands and the fans who just love their golf.”

Kitayama finished runner up at the Scottish Open, one shot behind champion Xander Schauffele. Donaldson and Wu each shot rounds of 3-under 67 on Sunday to finish T-6 to lock up the final two positions. One last exemption is available from the PGA Tour’s 2022 Barbasol Championship.

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Xander Schauffele captures Genesis Scottish Open, wins second straight start

Schauffele captured the Genesis Scottish Open for his seventh career PGA Tour title.

It has been a pretty good week for Xander Schauffele.

On Tuesday, he captured the JP McManus Pro-Am in Ireland. Come Sunday, it was his turn to hoist yet another trophy.

Schauffele played brilliantly on the back nine at the Renaissance Club to capture the 2022 Genesis Scottish Open. He shot an even-par 70 during the final round to win his seventh PGA Tour title, finishing at 7 under for the week.

He trailed by 11 strokes after the first round.

It’s also Schauffele’s second straight professional win after he claimed the Travelers Championship two weeks ago in Connecticut. He’s the first golfer to win consecutive starts on the PGA Tour since Scottie Scheffler won the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play and the Masters.

Schauffele birdied his first two holes, but bogeys on three of the final four holes on the front nine gave others chasing him hope. Birdies on Nos. 14 and 16, however, helped Schauffele pull away from the field, though a bogey on the 18th made his winning margin only one.

Kurt Kitayama finished solo second, his second runner-up of the season, after a 4-under round of 66, one shot behind Schauffele. J.H. Kim, a 20-year-old from South Korea, finished in third, his best career result on the PGA Tour.

Now, Schauffele, searching for his first major, heads to St. Andrews for the 2022 Open Championship as the hottest golfer in the world.

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