Nate Smith to Face Andrew Bailey in 36-Hole Final at Sand Valley Resort

A home builder from Idaho will face an Ohio-based national sales rep for a prominent golf apparel company for the right to hoist the Robert T. Jones Memorial Trophy as the champion of the 45th U.S. Mid-Amateur. 

Nate Smith, 43, of Tetonia, and Andrew Bailey, 34, of Cleveland, each won a pair of matches on Wednesday at The Lido to set up their 36-hole showdown on Saturday in central Wisconsin. In the semifinals, Smith outlasted Texan Mikel Martinson, 2 and 1, while Bailey defeated 2025 U.S. Open qualifier Matt Vogt, a dentist from Indianapolis, Ind., 4 and 2. 

PING Signs College Standout Kihei Akina to NIL Agreement

BYU sophomore Kihei Akina, who captured NCAA Freshman of the Year honors last season and is playing in this week’s Bank of Utah Championship on a sponsor invite, has signed an agreement to represent PING, company CEO & President John K. Solheim announced today.

The 20-year-old native of Hawaii starred at Lone Peak High School in Alpine, Utah, where he won three individual state titles and led the team to two state championships before joining Brigham Young University in 2025 as one of the most highly recruited players in the country, receiving offers from 50 golf programs. He won twice his freshman season and earned a spot on the 2026 U.S. Walker Cup team. As a 19-year-old, Akina became the youngest winner of the Utah Open Championship in more than 90 years.

45th U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship: Meet the Quarterfinalists

The Quarterfinalists for the 2026 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship at The Lido at Sand Valley Resort are set.

Here's a closer look at the eight player field including local standouts, reinstated professionals, and top amateurs.

Local Caddie Hutchins Among Quarterfinalists at Sand Valley Resort

Don’t be surprised to see a few more PTO requests on Wednesday from the Sand Valley Resort staff and especially the 200-plus caddies still on the property.

Matt Hutchins, a caddie at the central Wisconsin facility hosting the 45th U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship this week, has given a sense of pride to everyone involved. Even the longtime caddie master, Vinny Lacerra, snuck away for a few hours to see the 29-year-old from Naples, Fla., deliver a pair of victories on Tuesday at The Lido, including a 1-up decision over former Texas A&M standout Jordan Russell in the Round of 16 while nursing a calf injury.

Yuna Nishimura Earns First LPGA Tour Victory with Callaway Quantum Mini Spinner She Helped Develop

Yuna Nishimura’s won her first LPGA title yesterday with the Callaway Quantum Mini Spinner, a club she helped develop.

Nishimura helped inspire the design of this new club asking Callaway for something with more spin and a steeper landing angle (especially for approaches into par 4s and par 3s) than what she was getting from her 7, 9, and 11 woods.

ECCO GOLF Introduces BIOM H6: A New Generation of Hybrid Performance

ECCO GOLF, leaders in golf footwear innovation, today introduces the new BIOM H6. Drawing on the legacy of two of ECCO GOLF 's most successful hybrid models - the BIOM HYBRID 3 and BIOM HYBRID 4, the athletic BIOM H6 golf shoe brings trusted BIOM performance to a new generation.

Developed for golfers who prioritise performance, the BIOM H6 combines a modern, sporty aesthetic with all-day comfort, advanced stability, and next-generation traction. Built on an updated version of ECCO's proven BIOM® last, the shoe is based on the BIOM C4 platform with increased toe volume, supporting natural movement while delivering a secure and performance-focused fit. 

World Golf Hall of Fame Announces Class of 2027 Finalists

The World Golf Hall of Fame (WGHOF) today announced the list of Finalists for the Class of 2027.

The Final Class of 2027 will be announced in December, with induction ceremony set for July 12 in St Andrews during The Open Championship.

Massa Takes Home Medalist Honors at Sand Valley

Bobby Massa has won a few tournaments, but he had never bested a field in the stroke-play portion of a USGA competition.

That drought ended on Sunday at the Sand Valley Resort when he backed up his first-round, 7-under 64 on The Lido with a 2-under 69 at Sand Valley, the stroke-play co-host venue, to earn medalist honors in the 45th U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship with a 36-hole total of 133.

2024 Runner-Up Massa Fires Near-Record 64 to Lead at Challenging Sand Valley

As a first-time USGA championship venue, Sand Valley Resort more than held its own on Day 1 of the 45th U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship on Saturday.

The Lido, modeled after the classic Charles B. Macdonald design that closed during World War II on Long Island (N.Y.), and stroke-play co-host Sand Valley, the first layout to open at the central Wisconsin golf destination developed by Mike Keiser and now overseen by his two sons, Mike and Chris, provided a stern test for the world’s best 25-and-older competitors.

Club Champion Takes Its Talents to the PGA Tour with Scott E.G. Golf

Club Champion, the globe’s leading custom golf club fitter, is taking its expertise to golf’s biggest stage through its relationship with Scott E.G. Golf, bringing Club Champion services and SST PURE (shaft analysis technology that identifies the most stable orientation for each club before installation) technology directly to the PGA Tour.

For Club Champion founder Nick Sherburne, the move represents much more than a Tour presence. It brings the Club Champion story full circle. In 1997, Sherburne was working the range at the Western Open outside Chicago when he was exposed to the PGA Tour equipment trucks and saw firsthand the level of detail, customization and expertise available to the best players in the world.

45th U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship: Fact Sheet

The 45th U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship will be played at the Lido Course Sand Valley Course at Sand Valley Resort.

The Lido is an exacting re-creation, by Renaissance Golf’s Tom Doak and Brian Schneider, of the legendary links originally designed by inaugural U.S. Amateur champion Charles B. Macdonald on Long Island. The original course opened in 1914 and featured classic templates including the Alps, Redan and Eden before it was repurposed by the U.S. Navy during World War II and closed in 1942. Using historical surveys, engineering records and photographs, Doak and Schneider, alongside golf historian Peter Flory, brought the course back to life adjacent to Sand Valley in Wisconsin, where it opened for play in 2023. Its deep hazards, greens averaging more than 12,000 square feet and classic template holes make it a strategic marvel and one of the premier courses in the nation.

45th U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship: Inside The Field

The 45th U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship will be held at Sand Valley Resort's Lido Course.

There are 264 players in the field.  Here's a closer look at the competitors.

L.A.B. Golf and Steph Curry Partner for Limited-Edition Collection

L.A.B. Golf has partnered with UNDERRATED Golf and Steph Curry to collaborate on a limited edition putter collection.  The collection includes limited edition putters, headcovers, and ball markers.

L.A.B. and UNDERRATED Golf originally announced their partnership in May at the start of the 2026 UNDERRATED Golf Tour (UGT) season.

PUMA Golf Ambassador J.J. Spaun Wins Flagship Rolex Series Tournament

PUMA Golf proudly celebrates Tour ambassador J.J. Spaun’s victory at the BMW PGA Championship. Spaun secured his first Rolex Series title and second DP World Tour victory at Wentworth Club this weekend, in addition to his win at the Valero Texas Open on the PGA Tour earlier this year.

“We could not be more proud of J.J.’s performance this weekend,” said Russ Kahn, president of COBRA PUMA Golf. “He is an incredible athlete and ambassador of the brand, and he showed his grit in the face of challenging conditions at Wentworth this weekend. We look forward to J.J.’s continued success at the highest level.”

Scotty Cameron Introduces Limited-Edition Phantom OC Spec III Putters

Scotty Cameron introduces the new limited-edition Phantom OC Spec III putters, pairing all-black configurations and high-contrast sightlines with the low-torque Phantom 5 and 11R OC designs.

Scotty Cameron OC (Onset Center) putters combine low-torque performance with exceptional feel and feedback, promoting a square-to-the-path delivery while keeping golfers connected to the putting stroke. “Onset Center” refers to the putter’s shaft position, which is set back of the putter head’s leading edge (Onset) and in line with its center of gravity (Center) to help minimize torque and simplify the putting stroke.

Raw Power, Pure Sound: Srixon Introduces All-New ZXi RKT Woods

SRIXON announces the launch of its all-new ZXi RKT Woods family, a complete reimagination of brand’s metalwood lineup engineered to deliver explosive ball speed, refined acoustics, and tour-validated performance for golfers of every skill level.

The new lineup, including ZXi RKT LS, ZXi RKT, and ZXi RKT MAX Drivers, along with ZXi RKT Fairway Woods and Hybrids, represents years of research, prototyping, and collaboration between Srixon’s engineers and Tour staff. Rather than pursuing a simple evolution of its previous generation, Srixon rebuilt its development process from the ground up, creating entirely new prototypes and gathering deeper player feedback to uncover every possible performance advantage.

J.J. Spaun Wins the BMW PGA Championship

Srixon’s J.J. Spaun delivered a fiery closing stretch on Sunday to capture the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth Club, securing his second victory of the 2026 season and first Rolex Series win of his career.

Making his debut appearance at the prestigious event, Spaun finished at 17-under-par after birdieing four of his final five holes to claim one of the DP World Tour’s most coveted titles.

Fujikura and VENTUS Support Memorable Tour Victory at Marquee Event in Surrey

Fujikura is celebrating another global Tour victory after the winner negotiated a demanding week on one of the UK’s most challenging inland courses, relying on the performance and stability of VENTUS on a course where precision from the tee proved essential.

Host of the European-based Tour’s showpiece tournament since 1984, the famous venue - one of the most iconic in the UK - offers a unique test to players with tightly lined fairways surrounded by heavy woodland, towering pine trees and heather. But under the most intense pressure to find the fairway, the winner was able to close out victory - with four birdies over his last five holes - using a VENTUS Black 6-X shaft in his driver.

Eagle Ridge Resort and Spa Offers Championship Golf, Elevated Dining, and Galena Traditions

For travelers looking for a quieter getaway without the airport,Eagle Ridge Resort & Spa offers unexpected fall or winter escapes in northwest Illinois’ Driftless Region, an area known for the rolling hills, wooded ridges and valleys that distinguish it from much of the Midwest.

Set amid 6,800 scenic acres overlooking Lake Galena, Eagle Ridge sits in a landscape largely untouched by the Ice Age glaciers that flattened much of the surrounding region. The result is dramatic terrain, brilliant fall color and sweeping views that make the resort feel far removed from city lifewhile remaining about 150 miles west of Chicago, an easy drive from Madison, Dubuque, Milwaukee, Rockford and the Quad Cities, and a worthwhile road trip from St. Louis.

Refining the Formula: Inside the Evolution of Srixon's Next-Generation ZXi Irons

How do you make something golfers already trust even better?

For Srixon's second-generation ZXi Irons, the answer wasn't a complete redesign. Instead, it was a commitment to refining the details that matter most through extensive testing, player feedback, and continuous innovation.