Wednesday, May 17, 2023

Teen Queens: Clemente, Zweig Take Title at The Home Course

Five years ago, Avery Zweig made history as the youngest competitor in the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship at 11 years, 3 months, a mark that still stands. On Wednesday at The Home Course in DuPont, Wash., she and her younger partner, Gianna Clemente, added their names to the record book in an even more meaningful way.

Clemente, 15, of Estero, Fla.; and Zweig, 16, of McKinney, Texas; rallied from an early 2-hole deficit to defeat current collegians Tiffany Le and Kate Villegas, 3 and 1, and capture the 8th iteration of a competition that has been dominated by juniors. Clemente, the runner-up in last year’s U.S. Girls’ Junior, and Zweig surpassed 2016 champions Hailee Cooper (16) and Kaitlyn Papp (17) as the youngest champions of this event by a combined two years of age.

Bagging Big Bucks: How a Top Caddie Out-Earns Pro Golfers

Ever wondered what it's like to be a caddie for a top PGA Tour golfer? It's not just about carrying clubs; it's about having unmatched knowledge of the course, making crucial decisions, and - you guessed it - making some serious cash.

Meet Ted Scott, the caddie for Scottie Scheffler, who's raking in more dough than many pro golfers, thanks to his golfer's on-course success. In this rotowire.com article you go inside the lucrative world of elite caddies, revealing just how much they make and how their earnings stack up against those of some notable PGA Tour players.

USGA Announces Tee Times for 8th U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship

The United States Golf Association (USGA) today announced tee times for the first two rounds of the 8th U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship on Saturday, May 20 and Sunday, May 21 at Kiawah Island Club in Kiawah Island, S.C.

The U.S. Amateur Four-Ball consists of 18 holes of stroke play on May 20 and 18 holes of stroke play on May 21, after which the 128 sides (256 players) will be reduced to the low 32 sides (64 players) for match play. There will be five rounds of match play, starting May 22 with the first round. The second and quarterfinal rounds are slated for May 23. The semifinals will be played the morning of May 24, with the 18-hole championship match scheduled to follow that afternoon.

Tuesday, May 16, 2023

Young Stars Steal Show as Championship Reaches Semifinals

Despite their young ages, Gianna Clemente and Avery Zweig are no strangers to USGA competition. Zweig, 16, is playing in her fifth U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship, teaming up with Clemente, 15, for the last three, reaching the semifinals in 2021 and the Round of 16 in 2022. Clemente, who first burst onto the scene when she qualified as an 11-year-old for the 2019 U.S. Women’s Amateur, has since Monday-qualified for three LPGA Tour events, and last year reached the final match of the U.S. Girls’ Junior. Zweig already has a U.S. Women’s Open appearance under her belt.

The high schoolers entered this week’s 8th U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball as a team to watch, their junior careers clearly making them a formidable threat. After rounds of 69-67 in stroke play, they entered the match-play bracket at The Home Course in DuPont, Wash., as the No. 15 seed, and cruised through the first two rounds with a pair of 5-and-4 victories. In Tuesday afternoon’s quarterfinal match, Clemente and Zweig took the lead for good against Vanessa Borovilos and Cara Heisterkamp on the eighth hole en route to a 3-and-2 victory.

8th U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship – Inside The Field

The 2023 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball from Kiawah Island Club will be the 20th USGA championship in South Carolina.  The U.S. Amateur Four-Ball consists of 128 two-player teams, each playing their own ball throughout the round.

Each team’s score is determined by using the lower score of the partners for each hole. After 36 holes of stroke play, the field is reduced to the low 32 teams for the championship’s match-play bracket (all matches contested at 18 holes).  Here's a closer look inside the field.

2023 PGA Championship Longshots

The second major championship of the year is here as the golf world turns its attention to Oak Hill Country Club in Pittsford, New York, for this week's PGA Championship.

Oak Hill is hosting the event for the first time since 2013 -- when Jason Dufner won at 40-to-1 odds -- and will play long as a par-70 at approximately 7,400 yards. Soft conditions will make the course play even longer and scoring opportunities will be limited by the extremely thick rough.

Cobra Golf Unveils Limited Edition PGA Championship Staff Bag

With the second major of the year having arrived, COBRA Golf is unveiling a new, Limited Edition PGA Championship Staff Bag.  Like all COBRA Golf bags, these unique staff bags are crafted with premium materials for an elevated, tour-caliber look and feel.

The design of Cobra’s PGA Championship staff bag borrows elements from Oak Hill’s famed Tudor style clubhouse, with a brick pattern on the side panel and ivy growing into the Cobra logo. The city of Rochester used to be known as the “flour city,” due to the abundance of flour mills in the area, and accordingly hints of wheat are sprinkled throughout the bag’s design. Colors like Old Gold, Brick, Tudor, and Log provide a timeless feel, which is appropriate for a course so rich in history.

Monday, May 15, 2023

8th U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship Fact Sheet

The 8th U.S. Amateur Four Ball Championship kicks off this week from Kiawah Island Club and will be played on the Cassique and River Courses.

The Kiawah Island Club’s Cassique Course opened in 2000 and was designed by Tom Watson, the 1982 U.S. Open champion and a five-time winner of The Open Championship, conducted by The R&A. The links-style course is named for the Kiawah Indian chief who settled in an area where the Kiawah River meets the Atlantic Ocean. The River Course, designed by Tom Fazio, was the club’s first course, opening in 1995. It overlooks the Kiawah River to the north and Bass Pond to the southeast. Six holes play to the river’s edge while the others play through marsh and maritime forest.

Defending Champions, Most Medalists Among Sides to Advance at Women’s Amateur Four-Ball

The first match-play round of the 2023 USGA championship season is in the books, and it produced the typical array of winning moments for some, disappointment for others and dramatic swings of momentum on both sides. Long before the warm sun began to dip over the Olympic Mountains, six of the seven stroke play co-medalists in the 8th U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship at The Home Course in DuPont, Wash., continued their strong play to advance to Tuesday morning’s Round of 16.

Among them were the No. 2-seeded side of Shannon Aubert and Calli Ringsby. The 27-year-old former Stanford teammates, the two oldest players remaining in the field, used their experience and poise to pull out a late victory.

SWAG Golf Partners with Club Champion

Swag Golf, the premium, limited-edition golf accessory, equipment, and apparel company, has announced a new strategic partnership with Club Champion, which offers all golfers Tour-quality golf club fittings. Club Champion has over 110 locations nationwide, including studios in every major golf market. Their trusted club fitting experts are regularly featured on Golf Digest’s Top 100 Fitter lists, driven in part by the more than 100,000 fittings they complete annually.

With this agreement, Swag Golf will be selling four putter models with five exclusive headcovers only available at Club Champion, making them the only location in the country to offer fittings for Swag Golf putters. These products will launch on May 15 at 50 Club Champion locations in the US. The Swag Golf putter designs to be sold at Club Champion will include the US-made, highly-sought after, precision milled putters and fan favorites – Handsome One, Handsome Too, Savage One, and Savage Too.

Jason Day Completes Comeback at AT&T Byron Nelson with Bridgestone Golf

Bridgestone Golf staff player Jason Day captured his 13th PGA Tour victory on Sunday at the AT&T Byron Nelson. Day’s confidence in his Bridgestone TOUR B X golf ball led to a final round 62 and 23-under-par total that was marked by signature big drives, pinpoint iron play, and rock-solid putting.

“Innovation is the hallmark of Bridgestone Golf,” said Elliot Mellow, Bridgestone Marketing Manager. “Jason was in a position to play any ball he wanted when he signed with Bridgestone last year. He was looking for the best performance he could get, and after seeing what Tiger was doing with our golf ball, he decided to test it. As is the case with a lot of top players who test our TOUR B golf ball, he made the switch almost immediately.”

Sunday, May 14, 2023

Callaway Releases New Chrome Soft USA TruTrack Golf Balls

Callaway Golf has introduced their new TruTrack golf balls.  The next evolution of Truvis and Triple Track technologies brought into one ball providing more roll feedback on the golf ball and enhancing it with alignment.

TruTrack will be available in Chrome Soft, Chrome Soft X, and Chrome Soft X LS models.

Callaway Golf Big Bertha and Big Bertha REVO Take Super Game Improvement to New Heights

Callaway Golf's new Big Bertha family is designed to provide the easiest to hit clubs you've ever experienced. This super game-improvement lineup is precisely engineered for players who want to launch the ball higher and play with more confidence every time they tee it up. The extremely forgiving lineup is designed to make every shot your best.

In addition, the new Big Bertha REVA lineup has been developed extensively with data and individual player feedback to create a best-in-class new women’s lineup that’s ideally suited for every level of player. It’s precisely engineered for more more distance and more accuracy on the course.

Record 7 Sides Share Medalist Honors (133) at The Home Course

It’s been unseasonably warm in the Pacific Northwest this weekend with temperatures, normally in the mid- to upper-60s, nearly reaching 90 degrees. But the mercury wasn’t the only thing rising along the shores of Puget Sound. No amount of sunblock could stop the onslaught of great scores being produced at The Home Course, in DuPont, Wash., during Sunday’s final round of stroke play at the 8th U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship.

How about a record seven sides sharing medalist honors at 11-under-par 133. That’s the most for any USGA amateur championship, surpassing the six who medaled in the 2007 U.S. Mid-Amateur at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon. All of this occurring with winds in the 10- to 15-mile-per-hour range and gusting as high as 20 mph.

2023 PGA Championship Coverage Live on SiriusXM

SiriusXM has announced its coverage of the 2023 PGA Championship, taking place Thursday, May 18th through Sunday, May 21st at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, NY.

Live Championship play-by-play, which SiriusXM will co-produce with Westwood One, will air starting at 1 pm ET on Thursday and Friday, and 2 pm ET on Saturday and Sunday. SiriusXM will also provide live look-ins during its programming in the morning and early afternoon each day to give listeners play-by-play and updates on featured groups playing earlier in the day.

Thursday, May 11, 2023

Vokey WedgeWorks Introduces Limited Edition 58 Degree and 60 Degree V Grind Wedges

Vokey WedgeWorks introduces the new Limited 58.10° and 60.10° V Grind, inspired by the collaboration of Master Craftsman Bob Vokey and Vokey Tour Rep Aaron Dill with tour players around the world.

The V Grind is designed for players seeking a wedge that provides increased bounce on square faced shots and enhanced relief on open faced shots. On full shots, the V Grind features high measured bounce forward on the sole. Yet when the face of the V Grind is opened, the wedge produces increased versatility through heel, toe, and trailing edge sole relief, allowing the leading edge to stay closer to the ground.

Scotty Cameron Introduces Four New Models to Super Select Putter Family

The Super Select line of Scotty Cameron putters is now complete with the addition of four new models – the GOLO 6, GOLO 6.5, Fastback 1.5 and Del Mar – arriving in golf shops on Friday, May 19.

Inspired by the long-term success of tour professionals who have trusted prior generation GOLO models, Cameron has refined this sought-after design with the new Super Select GOLO 6 and GOLO 6.5 mid-mallet putter offerings. Revamped Fastback 1.5 and Del Mar models further bolster a Super Select milled putter lineup that features new dual-milled face technology and enhanced feel in a variety of head shapes and neck configurations to appeal to nearly every golfer’s putting preference.

USGA Names Johnny Miller as 2023 Bob Jones Award Recipient

The United States Golf Association has selected Johnny Miller as the recipient of this year’s Bob Jones Award, the association’s highest honor that recognizes character, respect and a commitment to sportsmanship in the game of golf.

“Johnny’s contributions to our game are significant, and honoring him with the Bob Jones Award reflects everything he means to the game and everything the game means to him,” said Mike Whan, CEO of the USGA.

USGA Announces Tee Times for 8th U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship

The United States Golf Association (USGA) today announced tee times for the first two rounds of the 8th U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship on Saturday, May 13 and Sunday, May 14 at The Home Course in DuPont, Wash.

The U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball consists of 18 holes of stroke play on May 13 and 18 holes of stroke play on May 14, after which the 64 sides (128 players) will be reduced to the low 32 sides (64 players) for match play. There will be five rounds of match play, starting May 15 with the first round. The second and quarterfinal rounds are slated for May 16. The semifinals will be played the morning of May 17, with the 18-hole championship match scheduled to follow that afternoon.

Todd Snyder x FootJoy | The Back Tees Collection

How would the most iconic players in golf history dress if they stepped onto the links today? The answer is the Todd Snyder x FootJoy Collection. Titled “The Back Tees”, the collection was inspired by the golf fashion of old-school greats on and off the course. The styles borrow from the traditional codes of American menswear and place them in performance technical fabrics.

For this collaboration, Todd and the FootJoy team set out to create contemporary interpretations of 60s and 70s golf style. The team emphasized refined fabrics--including pique polos, mercerized sweaters and cotton/cashmere sweatshirts--then reinterpreted these iconic athletic styles in a thoroughly modern way. The collection features apparel in blacks, blues, olives and as well as geometric and jacquard prints, and two new premium pebble-grain leather golf shoes based on FootJoy’s Wilcox and Field Premiere Series models.