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Morning 9: Bryson’s coach: “Change the rules and he’ll still win” | Reshaping the game? | Wunder’s “Love/hate”

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6 years ago

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1. Reshaping the game?
Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…“There will be those who contend the USGA went light on the setup and paved the way for DeChambeau’s paradigm-shifting performance. That’s the same crowd who came down with a convenient case of statistical amnesia when Tiger Woods won the 2000 U.S. Open at 12 under, ignoring that he was the only player under par at Pebble Beach.”
  • “DeChambeau was the only player in red figures (6 under) at Winged Foot, but it’s not the number, as one USGA type explained late Sunday, it’s how he arrived at that number that will keep rules makers awake at night.”
  • “All of the dogma that bound the fabric of the game has unraveled. DeChambeau ate it. All the caveats that came with strongman golf – it’s not controlled enough to work on a “true” major championship test – have been mown down like 5 ½ inches of Winged Foot rough.”
  • “For those who clung to the notion that thick rough and firm greens were all golf needed to bring the body builders back to earth, the sky has fallen.”
2. Bryson’s coach: Even if you change the rules, he’ll find ways to win
BBC report…”Try to make it tough for Bryson and I’m telling you he will figure out how to beat you,” said his coach Mike Schy.
  • Schy told BBC World Service: “The reality is if you make it so Bryson can’t play he will figure it out.
  • “They can easily change this whole situation by scaling the rough on courses and they aren’t talking about that.
  • “Instead of having the same rough 200 yards out from the green, you scale it. At 200 yards it’s an inch and a half deep. At 60 yards it’s six or seven inches deep. The game can go back to strategy and risk and reward if you scale the rough in the right way.
  • “If you scale the rough it becomes back to how it used to be.”

Full piece.

3. Paynes Valley Cup 

Jason Lusk for Golfweek…“After the narrow fairways, high rough and impeding tree lines at Winged Foot’s West Course in the U.S. Open, the top players in the world surely could use a little relaxing width in a golf course.”
  • “Four of them will get plenty of opportunities to swing away Tuesday, as Tiger Woods welcomes Justin Thomas, Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose to the opening of his new Payne’s Valley layout at Big Cedar Lodge. That foursome will tee off at 3 p.m. Eastern (on Golf Channel) in the Payne’s Valley Cup on Woods’ first public-access design in the United States.”
  • “Named in honor of Ozarks native Payne Stewart, the three-time major winner who died in a plane crash in 1999, Payne’s Valley will be the third 18-hole course at Big Cedar.”
4. Bamberger’s take
The eminent Golf.com scribe…“DeChambeau may be too young to really understand what he just did. Tiger, at 27, was like that. He wasn’t when he won the Masters last year, at age 43. This game of golf, especially alongside this thing called life, has a way of growing up all who play it for keeps. DeChambeau is not married. He does not have children. Like Justin Thomas and Matthew Wolff and Collin Morikawa and Viktor Hovland, he’s in a period in his life where he can devote himself to one main thing: getting better at golf. Tiger remembers what that was like. It won’t last forever. Even Hogan found that out.”
  • “The winner of this 120th U.S. Open, and its $2.25 million first-place prize, was asked what kind of mental strength he takes, from doing things his own way.”
  • “It’s a lot of validation through science,” he said. “If I hit a 40-footer and it says 10.1 miles per hour on the device, I know that I’ve executed it correctly. If I see the ball go two feet past that 40-foot mark, I know it’s perfect. I know I’ve done everything I can in my brain to make my perception reality. I’m trying to make my perception of what I feel and what I think and turn it into proper reality.”
5. Love/hate with Johnny Wunder
I LOVE what Bryson’s success is going to do to change the game, not only from a “what is possible” standpoint but the trickle-down effect it will have on the average golfer. Think of it this way: Bryson has become the test subject for not only physical optimization but also golf club launch optimization, stability-hell, footwear optimization. Like with Tiger in 2000, the game will shift in a new direction. That’s exciting.
I HATE what Bryson’s success is going to do to change the game. The separation between the tour and actual golf will become even greater and the nuance of the game will be lost to speed and power. Gone are the days were a true craftsman can have designs to play on tour and compete. The path to the tour will be speed first and strategy second. The PGA Tour is looking more and more like the NFL every day, and at some point, the courses we love will become completely unrecognizable. No. 1 at Augusta is 450 yards. In the next 10 years, somebody will get to that green on the tee shot. That scares me. It will be great TV though…
6. Zalatoris cashes is
Golf Channel’s Will Gray…”Zalatoris shot 70-71 over the final two rounds in difficult conditions to move all the way up to a tie for sixth at 5 over. He finished the week alongside world No. 1 Dustin Johnson, and his top-10 finish means he’s exempt for next year’s U.S. Open at Torrey Pines.”
  • “I just found out that obviously top 10 gets us into next year, too, so that’s obviously pretty exciting,” Zalatoris said Sunday. “I’ve been really working hard over the past couple of years, and nice to finally see it pay off on the big stage.”
  • …”But Zalatoris’ result in one of the most lucrative tournaments of the year highlights the disparity in pay between the biggest events and those on the developmental circuit. In 16 Korn Ferry starts this year, while distancing himself as the circuit’s best player, Zalatoris has made a total of $403,978. For his T-6 performance at Winged Foot, he eclipsed that total and cashed a check for $424,040.”
7. Takeaways for Wolff
ESPN’s Bob Harig…“The Sunday struggles are the kind of thing that might send a golfer into a funk, causing him to wonder what went wrong and making him the subject of conjecture about how difficult it might be to recover from such a collapse.”
  • “But for Wolff, there should be no such fear. In this case, especially, there is no shame in finishing second — not when you completed 72 holes in even par on a golf course where many expected the winning score to be over par and not when DeChambeau did otherworldly things and was the only player in the field to break par on Sunday.”
  • “Keep in mind that Wolff, 21, was playing in just his second major championship. Only 15 months ago, he won the NCAA individual title for Oklahoma State, and soon after, he turned pro. This was his first U.S. Open; you have to go back to Francis Ouimet in 1913 for the last time a player won the championship in his first attempt.”
8. Grillo seeks out Como
PGATour.com’s Sean Martin on Emiliano Grillo linking up with Bryson DeChambeau’s coach…“They do share one thing in common: a swing coach. Both work with Chris Como, the Dallas-based instructor whom DeChambeau effusively praised Sunday for guiding him through the radical transformation of his body and game.”
“Como’s ability to assist one of the game’s most obsessive tinkerers, and another student with a more laid-back approach, is credit to an under-appreciated aspect of coaching. It’s not just what you know, but how you convey the information to your students. Como can be give DeChambeau the data he craves or tailor his teaching to Grillo, as well.”
  • “Chris is always 100% into it. He adapts to your personality,” Grillo says. “I’m super different to Bryson and we both really match well with (Chris). That’s what makes him very special.”
  • “Grillo said he isn’t planning a Bryson-esque transformation – “I enjoy a lot of other things, and I don’t think adding weight for my job is a priority,” he says – but he has been helped by Como’s instruction. Whereas DeChambeau loves to rely on Trackman readings and his background in physics, it has been a simple key from Como that has benefitted Grillo.”
9. Browsing the GolfWRX Classifieds…
Member TheRawEdge – TaylorMade SIM Ti 3-wood…It’s been proven to be one of the longest 3 woods ever made, and now this if your chance to get one, for a great price with a very expensive aftermarket shaft.
Member Paranorml – The Buck Club ( sneaker head ) cover…If you like to collect rare covers and also happen to be a sneakerhead, then this cover, along with some of the others in this listing are for you.
Member Wintohla – Cameron inspired by JT Putter…Scotty Cameron “Inspired By” series putters are a hot commodity and the weld neck JT is already proving hard to find – better scoop this one up quick.

Related Topics:

Ben Alberstadt is the Editor-in-Chief at GolfWRX, where he’s led editorial direction and gear coverage since 2018. He first joined the site as a freelance writer in 2012 after years spent working in pro shops and bag rooms at both public and private golf courses, experiences that laid the foundation for his deep knowledge of equipment and all facets of this maddening game. Based in Philadelphia, Ben’s byline has also appeared on PGATour.com, Bleacher Report...and across numerous PGA DFS and fantasy golf platforms. Off the course, Ben is a committed cat rescuer and, of course, a passionate Philadelphia sports fan. Follow him on Instagram @benalberstadt.

2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. Maximillian

    Sep 22, 2020 at 1:07 pm

    After the 1997 Masters, courses began the expensive process of “Tiger-proofing”… Result? Tiger dominated those courses and the game for 20 years…

    The longer the course, the more tour pros will seek maximum distance. The thicker the rough, the more tour pros will seek strength to wrestle the ball out.

    But it’s not too late! Golf can be preserved and restored to its historical context!

    Two options:

    1. Do not allow athletes to play the game. This should have started with Tiger – too strong, too much gym time. Boot them off the tour in favor of the shorter, older and pudgier. Maximum heights, minimum body fat %, any time in gym is year suspension. Courses could go back to 7000 yards, saving lots of money on maintenance.

    2. Return to hickory shafts and featheries. No way Bryson gets 400 yds out of that combo.

    Reply Report comment

  2. Wunder sucks

    Sep 22, 2020 at 11:26 am

    Who cares about what Wunder has to say about anything?

    Dudes a complete hack.

    Reply Report comment

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 Memorial Tournament

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3 weeks ago

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Jun 1, 2026

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GolfWRX is on site this week at the Memorial Tournament, with both Alistair Cameron and Tour Photographer Greg Moore on the ground in Dublin, Ohio, where a strong field is assembled to pay homage to the Golden Bear.

In addition to WITB galleries, we’ve already been treated to an in-hand look at Tommy Fleetwood’s new TaylorMade Spider putters.

Check out links to all our photos below.

General Albums

WITB Albums

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Tour Tech Rundown: Heroic Henley

Published

4 weeks ago

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Jun 1, 2026

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Around the world, the golf wheel spun this final week in May of 2026. From New Jersey to Austria, with stops in Korea, Texas, and North Carolina (don’t let me route your next trip) the world’s finest put their golf games on display. There were three playoffs, some known commodities and some new talent. It was the sort of week that we hope to have at this point in the seasons. June and July afford double-digit major events, and perhaps, one of this week’s champions will use this success as a springboard to new heights. Time to run it all down, tech style, in this week’s Tour Tech Rundown.

Thanks to WITBHub, Today’s Golfer, GolfWRX, and Inside Tour Golf for initial research into equipment.

PGA Tour @ Charles Schwab Challenge: Heroic Henley denies Cole

Eric Cole did nearly everything that a fellow can do, to secure a first PGA Tour title. He stayed one shot clear of Ryder Cup player Ben Griffin. He kept US Open champion Gary Woodland and wunderkind Michael Brennan two shots distant. He posted 70 on day four to reach twelve under par. And then, Russell Henley revealed his Dr. Strange cloak. Henley made 47 feet of birdie putts on holes 16, 17, and 18, to jump from minus-nine to twelve-deep, and secured a spot in a playoff with Cole. The duo returned to the final tee, and put on a stripe show.

Both golfers found the fairway off the tee, and Henley improved on his regulation play with an approach to four feet. Cole did himself proud, tucking an iron to a dozen feet, but he was unable to convert the putt for three. Henley is one of the best putters on tour, and he proved it once more by draining a putt for a fourth consecutive birdie, and a sixth PGA Tour title. For Eric Cole, that first victory should come, and soon. He has done everything necessary to earn the chalice lift.

Henley’s Suitcase

  • Driver: Titleist TSi3 at 10 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 70g 6.5 TX
  • Metal: Titleist TS3 at 16.5 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80 TX
  • Hybrid: Titleist TSi2 at 21 degrees. Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT hybrid 100 TX
  • Iron: Titleist T250 4-iron. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
  • Irons: Titleist T100 5-6 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
  • Irons: Titleist T100 7-9 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
  • Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 48 and 50 degrees. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue X100
  • Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 54 and 60 degrees. Shaft: rue Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue S400
  • Putter: Titleist Scotty Cameron T5 Tour Prototype

LPGA @ Shoprite LPGA: Welcome back, Celine!

Soo Bin Joo had her eyes on a maiden LPGA title. She held the lead after two rounds, then hit a red light at the intersection of can-I and how-To. Joo posted plus-two on day three in New Jersey, and dropped to a T4 finish, which was still a career-best for the young Korean golfer. Instead of a new face, a familiar face returned to the top of the podium.

Celine Boutier was the It Girl in 2023. She collected four victories, including a major title at Evian. Boutier reached world number one status, then simply faded into the background. No wins came her way over the next 30 months. On Sunday, she collected LPGA victory number seven, at the same trace as LPGA victory number two.

Day three saw Boutier manage the windswept Seaview Bay course with six birdies and a bogey. She was challenged in the end by Thailand’s Arpichaya Yubol, who signed for a 66 of her own. Yubol came up one shot shy of the top ladder rung. Finishing in third place at -7, two back of the winner, was Ireland’s Lauren Walsh.

Celine’s Suitcase

  • Driver: PXG 0311 Black Ops Tour-1 at 9 degrees. Shaft: Graphite Design AD IZ-5
  • Hybrid: PXG 0311 Black Ops at 19 and 22 degrees. Shaft: KBS Hybrid Prototype
  • Hybrid: PXG 0311 Gen5.
  • Iron: PXG 0311 P Gen 4 5-9 irons
  • Wedge: PXG 0311 T Gen 4 PW
  • Wedges: PXG 0311 Sugar Daddy II at 50, 54, 58 degrees
  • Putter: Bettinardi Studio Stock 3 DASS

DP World Tour @ Austrian Alpine: KK? KK!

Kota Kaneko has a rhythmic name. It has strong vowels and a run of voiceless stops in its crunchy K sounds. On Sunday in Austria, Kaneko put a stop to a challenge from Portugal’s Ricardo Gouveia and everyone else, and claimed a first-ever title on the DP World Tour. Gouveia did well to reach 16-under par over four days, but Kaneko held firm, two shots in the clear.

Davis Bryant of the USA also forged a strong challenge for the win. He ended in a tie with Gouveia for second place. Kaneko began and finished his final round in a bit of a malaise, but he caught fire midway through. Birdies at 10, 12, and 13 provided the necessary cushion to cruise to the finish line without breaking a serious sweat.

Kaneko’s Suitcase

  • Driver: Ping Max G440
  • Metals: TaylorMade Qi4D at 15, 16.5, 21, and 24 degrees
  • Irons: TaylorMade P760 5 and 6 irons
  • Irons: TaylorMade P7TW 7-9 irons
  • Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design at 46, 52, 56, and 60 degrees
  • Putter: Odyssey Ai-One Cruiser Arm Lock #7

Korn Ferry Tour @ UNC Health Championship: Improbably Alvaro

Alvaro Ortiz may have had a bit of scare on the outward nine on Sunday, but he came through in clutch fashion in the end. Ortiz began the day bogey-double, and added another double bogey at the 11th hole. He was mired in a downward trend, spiraling away from the top of the leader’s board. Ortiz found hope at the 14th, where his first birdie of the day tumbled home. Inspired, he closed with birdies and 17 and 18 to catch Ross Steelman at 10-under par, and the duo returned to the 18th deck for overtime.

The extra session concluded in brief time. Ortiz, buoyed by his newly-retrieved confidence, hit the fairway with driver, then approached to six feet and drained the putt. Gobsmacked, Steelman could do little more than smile and applaud, as his run at the top came to a close. The victory was the first for Ortiz on the KFT, and will implant him squarely in the chase for a PGA Tour promotion.

Alvaro’s Suitcase

  • Driver: Ping G430 MAX driver at 9 degrees loft
  • Metal: Ping G430 MAX 3W
  • Iron: Ping iDi Driving Iron
  • Irons: Ping Blueprint S irons
  • Wedges
  • Putter: Scottsdale TR Piper C

LIV @ Korea: Me llamo Joaquin

Chile’s Joaquin Niemann had been away from the LIV winner’s circle throughout all of 2026. This week in Korea, he reminded us that he is still a force to consider. Niemann chased down Taylor Gooch over the closing holes at Asiad Country Club, then claimed victory with a hole-one birdie in extra time. Bryson DeChambeau claimed solo third, one shot in arrears at minus-eleven. Dustin Johnson finished on fourth, one putt farther back.

Niemann’s Suitcase

  • Driver: Ping 440 LST
  • Metal: Ping G440 Max at 15 degrees
  • Metal: Ping G425 Max at 21 degrees
  • Hybrid: Ping G430 at 25 degrees
  • Irons: Ping Blueprint S 5 through PW
  • Wedges: Ping S159 at 52, 56, and 60 degrees
  • Putter: Ping PLD Anser

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Russell Henley’s winning WITB: 2026 Charles Schwab Challenge

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4 weeks ago

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May 31, 2026

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Driver: Titleist TSi3 (10 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 70 6.5 TX

3-wood: Titleist TS3 (16.5 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80 TX

7-wood: Titleist GTS3 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Project X Denali Black 80 TX

Irons: Titleist T250 (4), Titleist T100 (5-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold AMT (4-6), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 (7-9)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 (48-10F @47, 50-08F @51, 54-10S @55, 60-04T)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (48), S400 (47)

Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom X5 Tour Prototype

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

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