Tag: Rob Labritz

After switching driver head and shaft, Ernie Els shoots 63 to open Charles Schwab Cup Championship

The Big Easy has turned it on down the stretch of the season. Now let’s see if he can close.

PHOENIX — Ernie Els has turned it on down the stretch of this season. Now let’s see if he can close.

Els has gone T-4, T-3, T-7 and T-4 in the last four tournaments on the PGA Tour Champions. A bogey-free, 8-under 63 has staked him to a two-shot lead after 18 holes at Phoenix Country Club at the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship.

“Hopefully, I have this feeling again tomorrow and days to come,” he said after his round. “I’ve been playing half-decent the last three, four weeks so I know I’m coming in with a little bit of game. Hey, we’ve all got to tick away until Sunday and hopefully I’m in contention Sunday and hopefully we can have something good happen.”

There are 35 golfers in this 72-hole, no-cut event after 2023’s best player, Steve Stricker, withdrew before the tournament started. He already locked up the season-long championship so Els is looking to make the most of a week in which everyone is fighting for second.

He told Golf Channel’s Phil Blackmar some equipment changes are panning out so far.

“I thought the last week of the year I’m going to try something new, so I put a little lighter shaft in my driver and I actually went with a different driver head from XXIO,” Els said.

The other pre-tournament favorites this week have some ground to make up already. Defending Schwab Cup champion Steven Alker shot 67 and is four back, Bernhard Langer posted a 68, five back, and defending tournament champion Padraig Harrington shot 69, six back.

“We’ve got a long way to go, I don’t think I’m going to think about it maybe until Sunday afternoon if I’m in contention, but just to play good this week and try to finish off a pretty steady year would be great.”

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Dream deferred: Rob Labritz spent 18 years ‘manifesting’ goal of reaching PGA Tour Champions

A club pro for 32 years in all, Labritz is finally a full-time professional golfer.

PHOENIX — Rob Labritz zipped around Phoenix Country Club in two hours, 45 minutes on Thursday, signing for a 2-under 69 to open the Charles Schwab Cup Championship.

But while he played fast in the opening round of the PGA Tour Champions season finale, his journey getting to the senior circuit was nearly two decades in the making.

As the 36th and last man to make the field, Labritz played solo (markers aren’t allowed anymore) after Steve Stricker’s withdrawal the day before led to an odd number of players. But Labritz didn’t seem to mind.

“I used to get 18 holes in with a cart in under an hour at GlenArbor, at my home course,” he said of the private course in Westchester, New York, where he was the long-time director of golf.

A club pro for 32 years in all, Labritz is finally a full-time professional golfer. There were attempts made at a PGA Tour career but that wasn’t meant to be.

“I went to Q school three or four times, I played in eight PGA Championships, won tons of state opens, everything up in the Met section,” he said after his round Thursday. “As a director of golf, I was pretty bored, to be honest. We built a high-end private club, which is phenomenal, but after 32 years I started getting a little…” and before he finished that thought, he revealed a long-held goal.

“Eighteen years ago I made a decision to try to get to the Champions tour. I started manifesting it,” he said. “Every night I would go into my room, right before I went to bed and sit there for five minutes and just envision it happening. I did that for 18 years. And here we are.”

2023 Charles Schwab Cup Championship
Rob Labritz stands with his caddie on the first hole during the first round of the 2023 Charles Schwab Cup Championship at Phoenix Country Club in Phoenix. (Photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Without a trace of remorse for decisions that he made, Labritz explained that life just happened.

“I felt like I was close but I always knew I was a part-time player because I had a full-time job. As a director of golf, I coached more than a thousand, 1,400 hours a year for 23 years, so think about how many hours I was putting into the job, 60-80 hours a week,” he said.

“When you have a wife and three kids and a mortgage, it’s hard to just say ‘OK, I’m going to go practice. You figure out the money.'”

Playing in his 52nd event this week in his second year on the Champions tour, Labtriz has figured out the money, having earned more than $1.1 million. But more than that, what he’s doing validates all those nights he envisioned such a future.

“I’m in dream heaven right now.”

No more worrying about those long work weeks. No more trying to figure out how to find time to practice. It’s full speed ahead as a player.

“It’s all about getting the ball in the hole right now,” he said.

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Can longtime club pro Rob Labritz stay out of PGA Tour Champions Q-School? He needs a big week at the TimberTech Championship

He defied the odds last fall at Q-School, earning his spot on the PGA Tour Champions. He was so happy, he cried.

It’s been a magic-carpet kind of ride for Rob Labritz during his rookie season on the PGA Tour Champions.

He’s gotten to play alongside some of the legends of the game while banking more than a half-million dollars.

His favorite moment of this year?

“This whole year has been a moment,” he said Tuesday.

Can the longtime club pro earn more memorable moments? That’s his quest this week.

Labritz enters the TimberTech Championship at Royal Palm Yacht & Country Club in Boca Raton ranked 40th on the PGA Tour Champions’ playoff points list.

Only the top 36 after this week earn fully exempt status on next year’s PGA Tour Champions.

Labritz needs a good week to keep his full-time job. A really good week.

No pressure, huh?

“I’m just taking it like another week,” Labritz said. “I’ve prepared myself physically and mentally. My game is ready. I just hope everything clicks.”

Labritz won’t be done with the PGA Tour Champions if he finishes outside the top 36. Due to injuries, players ranked between 37th and 40th will get plenty of starts next year. Shane Bertsch, who was 37th last year, has played in 25 events this year.

But there’s a big difference between being able to set your schedule and playing when you get a late opportunity. Moreover, Labritz can’t drop any more spots unless he wants to return to q-school.

Rob Labritz fist bumps his caddie on the 15th hole during the second round at the 2022 U.S. Senior Open at Saucon Valley C.C. (Old Course) in Bethlehem, Pa. on Friday, June 24, 2022. (Steven Gibbons/USGA)

“The key for me this week is to have fun and hopefully get in the top 5 or top 10,” he said. “If I don’t, I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. I don’t want to predict success or failure.”

No matter what happens this week, it’s been a remarkable story for Labritz, who played on the South Fork High golf team in the late-1980s after his family moved from Connecticut to the Treasure Coast.

Labritz worked as a PGA Professional at several Florida clubs in the early-1990s while also playing mini-tours. He moved to New York in 2001 to become director of golf at GlenArbor Golf Club, the club giving him time to qualify for eight PGA Championships.

He defied the odds last fall when he was medalist at Q-School to earn his spot on the PGA Tour Champions. He was so happy, he cried. Tom Watson and Gary Player called Labritz to congratulate him.

Then came the difficult part: Proving he belonged.

He has.

Labritz has had three top-10s in 24 starts, highlighted by a tie for fourth place at the U.S. Senior Open. That finish moved Labritz into the top 36 in the Charles Schwab Cup standings, but he dropped to 40th after finishing T66 in the first playoff event two weeks ago.

“That was a bummer because I could have solidified my spot,” said Labritz, who has earned $531,913 this season. “I know I belong, but I also know I have holes in my game that I need to work on.”

Labritz is about 17,000 points behind No. 36 Mike Weir entering the TimberTech Championship. With points doubled during the playoffs, Labritz needs to earn at least $9,000 more this week than the four players ahead of him – and hope nobody passes him – to earn another fully exempt year on the PGA Tour Champions.

Labritz has several factors going for him this week: He loves playing in Florida and, because the TimberTech Championship moved to Royal Palm this year while its regular course at Broken Sound is under renovation, Labritz isn’t spotting the rest of the field years of course knowledge.

The only course on the tour he previously played before this year? Saucon Valley, where he finished fourth in the U.S. Senior Open.

“Darn right playing in Florida helps,” he said. “I’ll keep it going. You know me – I have a flair for the dramatic.”

His ride isn’t over.

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Hosting duties aside, Jim Furyk found the time to grab a share of the lead in Constellation Furyk & Friends

Who’s leading after the first round of the Constellation Furyk & Friends?

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Constellation Furyk & Friends host Jim Furyk isn’t getting too distracted by his off-course duties this week.

He’ll never be too busy to focus on trying to win his own event.

Furyk birdied three of his last four holes on the front nine of the Timuquana Country Club on Friday and then had a clean card with two birdies on the back to finish with a 5-under 67 and a share of the lead with the last PGA Tour Champions winner, Steve Flesch, and Rob Labritz.

“I didn’t think much about it today,” Furyk said of being the tournament host. “I played well here last year [tying for fourth] and I was happy with the way I scored and played and got the ball in the hole. When I’m off the course I’m thinking about our celebrities finishing, the party for the caddies, a cocktail party downtown for Constellation … I think it’s kind of healthy. It gets my mind off golf. Then when I do step in the ropes, I’m locked in and try to flip the switch.”

Furyk hit only half the 14 fairways and missed five green but got up-and-down four times and needed only 25 putts.

His best escape was when he recovered from a drive at No. 16 that went low and left, between two trees and in a sandy lie. He considered laying up but decided on a wedge shot between a gap in the trees, with the ball landing a foot from the hole.

“I hit some bad drives, got some good breaks,” he said.

2022 Constellation Furyk & Friends
Vijay Singh of Ponte Vedra Beach punches out from the trees during the first round of the Constellation Furyk & Friends on Friday at the Timuquana Country Club. (Photo: Bob Self/Florida Times-Union)

Flesch won the Pure Insurance Championship at Pebble Beach two weeks ago for his second Champions Tour title of the season and his third overall. He got off to a quick start with birdies on two of his first three holes and birdied the last.

He’s also the low returning left-hander in the field: 2021 champion Phil Mickelson isn’t playing because of his suspension from the Tour. Flesch was solo third last year and has played his first four rounds at Timuquana at 15-under.

Flesch missed only three greens on Friday and said the course is playing tougher than last season after a renovation firmed up the greens and dry weather since Ian passed the area last week has made them even more difficult.

“Greens are tough to get the ball close this year,” he said. “Seems like the runoffs are a little more severe. It kind of suits my conservative style of play. I’ve never been a guy who kind of aims at a lot of flags. Drove it well, made some great putts and it added up to a great score.”

Labritz, who was a club pro from Pound Ridge, New York, was the Champions Tour national qualifying tournament medalist and has had a solid season, entering the week 38th on the Schwab Cup points race.

He tied for fourth in the U.S. Senior Open and has seven top-25 finishes.

Labritz said he’s played enough Donald Ross courses in the Northeast to feel comfortable at Timuquana.

“We have a lot of those,” he said of course designed by the World Golf Hall of Fame architect from Scotland. “It’s more middle of the green sort of thing, because all of the greens are crowned but if you’re patient out there and you get yourself in the fairways you can attack some of these pins with wedges.”

The trio at the top shouldn’t feel comfortable in Saturday’s second round.

Mike Weir, the 2003 Masters champion, and Ken Tanigawa are tied at 4-under and a crowd of eight players at 3-under includes two-time Masters champion Jose Maria Olazabal, three-time major champion Padraig Harrington, last year’s runner-up at Timuquana, Miguel Angel Jimenez, and two-time U.S. Open champion and 1995 Players champion Lee Janzen.

John Daly got into contention with three birdies in a row on the front but had four bogeys among his last 11 holes and finished with a 1-under 71. Paul Stankowski led at 4-under through 12 holes but played his last four holes 4-over, with a double-bogey at the par-4 16th.

Vijay Singh of Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, eagled the par-5 sixth hole and shot 70. Jacksonville native David Duval, playing at the course when he learned the game, bogeyed two of his first four holes and was steady after that, logging a 1-over 73.

Contact Garry Smits at gsmits@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @GSmitter

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Padraig Harrington holds off Steve Stricker to win 2022 U.S. Senior Open

Harrington had a six-shot lead at one point in the final round before holding on to win by one.

Padraig Harrington started the final round of the 2022 U.S. Senior Open with a five-shot lead. He stretched the lead to six with a birdie on the eighth hole.

But that’s when Steve Stricker, whose U.S. squad demolished Harrington’s team at the 2021 Ryder Cup, got to work.

Stricker, who already has one senior major this season, made birdies on Nos. 8, 9, 12, 14, 17 and 18 to finish at 9 under, one shot off the lead. He was three holes ahead of Harrington, who was sputtering along and had back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 10 and 11 but got a much needed birdie on the 15th hole to get to 10 under.

From there, Harrington parred his way home, securing a one-shot win and capturing his first senior major.

Harrington’s last win came five years, eight months and three days ago as he last hoisted a trophy at the 2016 Portugal Masters on the DP World Tour.

He now has four professional majors, adding this U.S. Senior Open to his two Open Championships (2007, 2008) as well as the 2008 PGA Championship.

Harrington is the first international winner of the U.S. Senior Open since Colin Montgomerie did it in 2014.

Stricker shot the best round of the day Sunday with a 6-under 65 and finished solo second. Mark Hensby was solo third at 4 under.

Champions tour rookie Rob Labritz, who probably had the most fun this week, finished at 3 under in a three-way tie for fourth. He was playing just his 12th Champions event and second USGA event. The last USGA event he played coming back in 1988. He was medalist honors at PGA Tour Champions Q-School last December.

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Why the Cinderella story of Rob Labritz at 2022 U.S. Senior Open is the best thing in golf right now

The Cinderella story of club pro Rob Labritz keeps getting better and better.

The Cinderella story of Rob Labritz keeps getting better and better.

Labritz, a 51-year-old longtime club pro who qualified for the PGA Tour Champions this season in December, shot his third consecutive 2-under 69 on Saturday at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and trails only leader Padraig Harrington entering the final round of the 42nd U.S. Senior Open.

“I’m in the greatest spot I’ve ever wanted to be in,” he told NBC after the round. “I’m living the dream and there’s marks up and down my leg from pinching myself.”

This is just his second USGA event and first since 1988, and Labritz, who has been a club pro since age 19, wearing an assortment of hats in his day job that left little time to concentrate on his own game, is soaking it all in.

“I’ve got to be honest, the adrenaline rush on the 1st tee and the last putt were nothing like I ever felt before in my life,” said the father of three who brought 17-month-old daughter Logan to his post-round press conference. “I had to back off the putt. I had Baby Shark stuck in my head. There was a lot going on. I just had to get the putt in the hole.”

No matter what happens in the final round – he is five strokes behind three-time major winner  Harrington and former U.S. Senior Open champion Gene Sauers – Labritz is soaking it all in as few have done before him.

“It’s so cool. I want to make sure I take mental notes, and now that we have iPhones, I can take actually videos,” said Labritz, who broke out his phone and recorded the scene. “The fans saw me take the phone out and they got behind it, which was kind of cool. I wasn’t expecting that, but it was pretty cool.”

At a time when the professional golf world seems to be spinning off its axis and has become more about playing for outrageous sums of money than love of the game, Labritz has been a breath of fresh air.

Labritz, who served as director of golf at GlenArbor in Bedford Hills, New York, prior to medaling at Q-School in December, carded birdies on Nos. 15 and 16 to reach his 6-under total and is the lone player in the field to post a trio of rounds in the 60s.

“I’m not worried about it,” Labritz said of his final-round deficit. “I’m going to go out there and play my game, shoot under par, and wherever the chips fall, they fall. There are guys out here that have been doing this for 30 years. If they play better than me, so be it. I’m learning. I’m getting better. I’m improving. I feel like I’m so close.”

Labritz has recorded one top-five finish and three top-25 finishes in 11 PGA Tour Champions starts, and entered the week No. 48 on the money list with earnings of $168,353.

He will play in the final round alongside four-time major champion Ernie Els. To Labritz, he won’t be the one burdened with pressure as he already has exceeded his expectation for the week, win or lose.

“Man, it just means that all the work that I’ve been doing for the past however many years is paying off. I feel comfortable out there. I know I’m supposed to be here,” he said. “Even when I was at my greatest club job on the planet, Glen Arbor, I still felt like there’s something missing, and I don’t feel that way anymore. So I’m a blessed man.”

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Padraig Harrington running away from the field leads our 10 fun things about Saturday at the U.S. Senior Open

Harrington all but locked up the 42nd U.S. Senior Open title with a 5-under par 66 Saturday, good for a five-shot lead.

Sure, it was cool to see Padraig Harrington run away from the field and all but lock up the 42nd U.S. Senior Open title with a 5-under par 66 Saturday (good for a five-shot lead with 18 holes to go) here at Saucon Valley Country Club.

But there was plenty more going on before the television cameras rolled that registered on the cool meter.

Such as:

Really? Just like that?

Watching Miguel Angel Jimenez, who drew a nice crowd despite not being in contention, chip in for birdie on the par 5, 6th hole made us duffers understand even more why we’re duffers.

The cooler part was how nonchalantly he did it. He wasn’t smoking his usual cigar at that point (the stogie would come later in his round), but he simply strolled up to the flag to get a look, walked back to his ball (which was about 10 yards off the green, and knocked it in.

A tip of the cap and a bow followed, then a smile, and off to the next tee.

Not so fast

Golfers like it quiet and when the door to a portable toilet slammed as Jerry Kelly was in his backswing on the fifth tee, the always affable Kelly didn’t flinch. Or grumble. Or yell, like so many others do.

He just stepped back, regrouped, and proceeded to crush one down the right side of the fairway.

“Carte” blanche

Over two decades ago, Casey Martin caused an uproar in the golf world when he used a cart.

Here, a handful of players, including Scott Verplank, are using carts and nobody seems to care.

Players on the Senior Tour are “encouraged” to walk the course, but carts are permitted.

Thanks, mate

Australian Stuart Appleby did one young fan a favor by reaching into the cooler provided to the players on each tee and grabbing a couple bottles of water and handing them over.

With temperatures in the 90s, it was a really nice gesture.

Early birds

It’s easy to show up later in the day to watch the final groups (the last pairing didn’t go off until 2:55 p.m.), but kudos to those who made it for the morning play.

A 3-over par 74 left Rocco Mediate in a tie for 15th Saturday heading into the final round of the 42nd U.S. Senior Open at Saucon Valley Country Club.
Players like Jim Furyk, Mark O’Meara, Colin Montgomerie and Vijay Singh were in the morning wave and the fans showed up to see some of their favorites.

Big Easy turns back the clock

Hearing a dad tell his sons to watch “that guy” and see how easy he makes it look was cool and funny at the same time.

Who knows if the guy knew that Ernie Els’ nickname is the “Big Easy”? It didn’t really matter.

What mattered was how the 67 Els carded (tied for the second-lowest round of the day) moved him from a tie for 13th into sole possession of fourth at 4-under par heading into Sunday’s final round.

And speaking of rolling it

Ken Tanigawa’s sixvstraight birdies (on holes seven through 12) not only rocketed him up the leaderboard but also set a U.S. Senior Open record for consecutive birdies.

He finished the day with a 2-under par 69 and heads into Sunday in a tie for 13th.

Rob Labritz fist bumps his caddie on the 15th hole during the 2022 U.S. Senior Open at Saucon Valley C.C. (Old Course) in Bethlehem, Pa. (Steven Gibbons/USGA)

Puttin’ on the Labritz

Rob Labritz continues to be the feel-good story of this tournament. (In full disclosure, I’d never heard of him, either).

The 51-year-old Champions Tour rookie, who had to go through qualifying to even get into this field, shot his third-straight 2-under par 69 Saturday and finds himself tied for second place with Gene Sauers at 6-under par.

Not bad for a guy who never played on the PGA Tour (although he did play in eight PGA Championships, twice finishing as low club professional) and is making just his 12th Champions Tour start.

Do it again Sunday

The USGA moved the tee on the 10th hole up, shortening the par 4 to just 284 yards, and enticing every player to try and drive the green.

Some did, some didn’t, but the crowd loved it nonetheless. Let’s hope there’s another drivable par 4 in the mix for Sunday’s final round.

Truer words were …

Saucon Valley’s perfect fairways, glass-like greens and overall pristine conditioning led one fan to sum things up perfectly.

“This place looks nothing like the course I play Sunday mornings.”

No, it does not.

Padraig Harrington leads 2022 U.S. Senior Open; Steve Stricker is just a shot back after 36 holes

It’s setting up to be a battle of the 2021 Ryder Cup captains at the U.S. Senior Open.

It’s setting up to be a battle of the 2021 Ryder Cup captains at the U.S. Senior Open.

Padraig Harrington posted a bogey-free 65 that featured six birdies Friday to get to 6 under after two rounds and take a one-shot lead over Steve Stricker at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Stricker fired a second-round 69 despite a double-bogey 7 on his sixth hole to finish at 5 under.

Stricker and Harrington finished 1-2 at the first major on the PGA Tour Champions’ 2022 schedule at the Regions Tradition in May, but it was a runaway, six-shot win for Stricker, who led his team to a Ryder Cup rout over Harrington’s Great Britain & Ireland squad.

Maybe this time will be different for Harrington, who is seeking his first win in his 11th outing on the senior circuit.

Rob Labritz is in solo third after two days. Steven Alker, who has four wins and 17 top-10s in 20 starts since joining the Champions tour, shot a 67 to get to 3 under. He’s among a group of five golfers tied for fourth.

Also in that group is Jay Haas, who bested his age by one during Thursday’s first round. He shot a 72 on Friday. Defending U.S. Senior Open champ Jim Furyk shot a and is tied for 54th and made the cut on the number at 5 over.

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Schupak: Let’s hear it for Rob Labritz, the feel-good story of the week, if not the year, in golf

Your goose bumps had goose bumps watching the video of Rob Labritz after he qualified for PGA Tour Champions.

Move over Mike Visacki. There’s a new feel-good story of the year contender.

Big Mike pulled on the heart strings when he Monday qualified for the Valspar Championship and cried enough tears to be standing in casual water. The video of his phone call to his dad went viral.

But that was so April and that was before PGA club professional Rob Labritz made his dream come true, earning exempt status on PGA Tour Champions for 2022.

Trailing by one entering the final round, Labritz, the director of golf at the GlenArbor Golf Club in Bedford Hills, New York, carded the low score on Friday with a bogey-free 7-under 64 to grab medalist honors at TPC Tampa Bay. He posted a 72-hole score of 17-under 267 to finish three strokes ahead of runners-up Thongchai Jaidee and David Branshaw.

“I’ve been envisioning this happening. And it did, which is crazy,” Labritz said after achieving his dream of 15 years. “It shows the power of the mind. I’m beyond the moon. I’m almost speechless. I’ve been waiting for an opportunity like this, to know that my golf game held up.”

If your goose bumps didn’t have goose bumps after watching the video above, well, we can’t be friends.

There’s nothing better in sports than the long shot finally having his day in the sun. Labritz has been a club pro since age 19, wearing an assortment of hats in his day job that leaves little time to concentrate on his own game.

Somehow, he says, he kept his game sharp. Over the years, he’s qualified for the PGA Championship eight times, finishing as the low PGA professional at both the 2010 and 2019 PGA Championships. He is a three-time Met PGA Player of the Year, and his hole-out in the 2013 Professional National Championship was the No. 1 “Top Play” on SportsCenter. This summer, he warmed up for Q-School by winning the Massachusetts Open, Rhode Island Open, the Met Professional Championship and the Westchester Open (at his home club).

So, this was no fluke. Labritz turned 50 on May 31, but he’s been planning for his chance to qualify for the senior circuit for at least 15 years.

“This is what I’ve worked for my entire life,” he said. “Every time I’m out hitting golf balls, I’m thinking of this. I’m thinking of the shots I need to hit to make sure this happens. It’s super important, but it’s super fun, too. I’m doing what I love, and there’s nothing better.”

But PGA Tour Champions is virtually a closed shop. It is geared to provide a mulligan for the stars of yesteryear, so fans can have another bite at the apple of seeing Arnie, Jack and Lee win once again and more recently Fred Couples, Bernhard Langer and Ernie Els.

To protect the stars of yesterday, only five cards are available at final stage. The next 25? They earn the right to try to Monday qualify into events. Labritz had to a jump through a lot of hoops even to have a shot at his dream.

To do so, he had to beat a field of veteran pros and former Tour winners such as Harrison Frazar, Frank Lickliter and Ken Duke. In other words, guys whose day job was to groove their swing all day and only ate what they killed.

Every once in a while, a David comes along and beats the Goliaths: Walt Zembriski, a former steel worker, cattle farmer Robert Landers and beer truck driver Mark Johnson were some of the unheralded players to unlock the door. Labritz is following in the footsteps of club pros Jim Albus, Tom Wargo and driving-range pro Allen Doyle, who didn’t make their mark in the professional ranks until turning 50.

As Labritz sat in scoring after his final round, he pulled his hat low to try to hide the emotions, but it was too late. “I’m not a good-looking crier,” he cracked. He whipped out his black leather yardage book and flipped up a flap to reveal the embroidered words he’s tried to live by: Keep grinding….Always…But look around and enjoy the ride!

Those were words on a note (accompanying a bottle of Dom Perignon) from one of his members after he qualified for his first PGA Championship at Hazeltine.

“All the sacrifice, we did it,” Labritz told his wife via a phone call videoed by PGA Tour.com as the emotions and tears poured out.

“I’m going to enjoy this for a while,” he said.

As he should.

“To know that my golf game held up…” and his voice trailed off. He didn’t need to finish the thought.

That’s because it’s evident that Labritz loves being a club pro, but he loves competing, too. As he’d already put it, he’s ready for “the next chapter” and the chance to concentrate on his golf game for once and compete on a more level playing field.

To Labritz, there’s nothing better than doing what you love.

Actually, there is – it’s called doing what you love at the highest level. It’s why Rob Labritz can’t wait to tee it up on the Champions Tour in 2022.

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