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Tour Rundown: Henderson, Rahm, and Perez hoist trophies

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Four tournaments featured during January’s middle week. The LPGA and the Champions Tour opened their seasons, while the DP World Tour celebrated its first individual event, on the heels of last week’s Hero Cup team competition. The PGA tour moved stateside, after two bucolic weeks in Hawaii, and reached the California desert to inaugurate a five-week stretch in the American southwest.

LPGA: Henderson opens 2023 with a title

Brooke Henderson, the pride of Smith Falls (and most of) Canada, made an equipment switch in the off season. Moving from Ping to Taylor Made, the 12-time champion is now a 13-time champion, thanks to a four-shot win in Orlando. Henderson led from start to finish, after opening 67-66. Her final two rounds were 69-70, and they were good enough to hold off Maja Stark and Charley Hull by a quartet of strokes.

No golfer was able to stitch a pair of low weekend rounds together. Nasa Hataoka posted 66 on Saturday; another on Sunday would have put her one beyond Henderson’s 16-under tally. Instead, the Japanese star stumbled to 74. 68 was the low number on Sunday, just two better than the winner’s total. No comebacks were in the cards on day four, and Henderson wasn’t giving anything back to the field.

PGA Tour: Rahm proves again that he’s the best in the game right now

Jon Rahm gave a clinic on how to hold onto a lead without having your best game at La Quinta. The grand Basque played the inward half on Sunday in one stroke under par, but it was that birdie at the 16th that put his final challengers away. Davis Thompson and Taylor Montgomery, among others, threw everything they had at the big Iberian, but Rahm refused to wilt. Montgomery faded away to solo fifth, while Xander Schauffele put the finishing touch on a stellar 62 that vaulted him into a tie for third with Chris Kirk.

The show came down to the final pairing of Rahm and Thompson. At the last, Rahm found himself in a fairway bunker off the tee. His approach was crisp, settling inside twenty feet, below the hole. Fighting adrenalin, Davis Thompson flew his approach beyond the hole at the 18th, into a swale. His birdie pitch had the proper pace, but was two inches wide right. He tapped in for par and finished at 26-under par, alone in second place. Rahm calmly putted twice from about 18 feet, and clinched his second victory in three weeks.

One day, when Davis Thompson wins his first tournament, he may do so with lessons learned from the day when he nearly eclipsed the game’s biggest name.

DP World Tour: Perez makes case for Ryder Cup team with Abu Dhabi win

Victor Perez began the week with a 71, and found himself a stout, six shots behind leader Jason Scrivener. Each day, Perez chipped away at those in front of him, ultimately clawing to one shot behind Francesco Molinari with one round to play. Molinari, buoyed by his Continental team’s win last week at the Hero Cup, looked for all the world a winner. His final-round 71 undid his fine work, relegating him to a tie for fifth with Alex Noren.

Among the top three golfers, none distinguished himself over the closing holes. Sebastian Soderberg reached 17-deep with three holes to play, but could not find one more birdie. Min Woo Lee stood one behind Perez on the 17th tee, but made bogey at the par three. His closing birdie moved him into a tie for second, but no higher. Even Perez stumbled home. His birdie at 17 was followed by a bogey at the last, but with a two-shot advantage, bogey was enough.

You might wonder why we haven’t mentioned Perez’ inexplicable bunker shot on penultimate hole. Trust us: you have to see it (below) to believe it. The win was Perez’ third on tour. It doesn’t qualify him as a lock for the European side of the Ryder Cup, but it does firmly seat him in the equation. If he keeps up this level of play, he’ll feature in Rome in late September of this year.

PGA Tour Champions: Stricker rides 60 to 12th Champions title

If you ever wondered how good these guys are, lesson one is in the books. After a few-months layoff, Steve Stricker rebounded from a first-round 68 with 12 birdies on Saturday. No, he didn’t make any bogies. Yes, he made six pars. That round of 60 gave him a three-shot advantage over Darren Clarke. Sure, Clarke had a chance on Sunday, as did a bunch of other guys. Stricker made sure that their chance was short-lived, and closed with 65 to eliminate all suspense.

Over the course of 54 holes, the champion made exactly one bogey in the Mitsubishi Electric Championship. That blip came on the fifth hole on Thursday (round one) and didn’t set well with the pride of Wisconsin. Stricker played the next 49 holes without a misstep, and finished the week at 23-under par. Tied for second at 17-deep were Clarke, Steven Alker and his new Sub 70 clubs,  Ken Tanigama and Mike Weir. Alker’s day-three 63 was low for the orbit, but was never going to gain ground against that Stricker 65. The TC resumes in two-weeks time in Morocco.

 

Ronald Montesano writes for GolfWRX.com from western New York. He dabbles in coaching golf and teaching Spanish, in addition to scribbling columns on all aspects of golf, from apparel to architecture, from equipment to travel. Follow Ronald on Twitter at @buffalogolfer.

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 Memorial Tournament

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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

Pullout Albums

 

 

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Tour Tech Rundown: Heroic Henley

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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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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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