News
Five Things We Learned: Saturday at the Masters
Saturday at Augusta National was a hybrid of sorts. It saw the conclusion of round two, followed by the affirmation of the cut line (three-over par made the weekend.) Guys like Justin Thomas and Rory McIlroy won’t be around, nor will five of the six amateurs. After the morning’s restart of Friday, round three began and lasted for all of six holes for the leaders. The rains came and play was halted around three in the afternoon. The plan for Sunday is a two-tee start, off the first and second nines, in threesomes. By Sunday evening, we should have a champion, and he will certainly be someone who can play over hilly, wet grounds, in overcast, cool weather. We learned a few nuggets during Saturday’s abbreviated play, and we’d like to share them with you here.
The first roar of the round courtesy of Cameron Young. #themasters pic.twitter.com/zP6CrgUfDR
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 8, 2023
1. Tiger Woods finds a way
Whether it was a nearly-30 feet birdie putt at the 15th, or a fortunate bogey from a fellow competitor, Tiger Woods found a way to stick around for the weekend.
Tiger Woods moves inside the projected cut line. #themasters pic.twitter.com/FH6tZxwQl8
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 8, 2023
2. If he wins the tournament, Brooks Koepka might recall six holes on Saturday
Those first six holes, when he played one-under golf on Saturday, before play was called, to be precise; those are the ones that I reference. His advantage over Jon Rahm doubled, from two to four. No other in the field was within seven shots of his number. We all remember the Koepka of the mid 2010s, but his inability to endear himself as a human being, made forgetting him that much easier. He had a golden opportunity to win the 2021 PGA Championship, but let it slip away. Now that he is healthy, this one will not avoid his attention nor his grasp. Major number five comes from away for Brooks.
A new day lies ahead, full of potential and uncertainty. It's Saturday at the Masters. #themasters pic.twitter.com/glmGHVkoIk
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 8, 2023
3. The mudders
Some pundit, early in the week, alerted the golf world to Matt Fitzpatrick’s renown as a mudder. The 2022 US Open champion is currently three-under par for his third round, but chances are quite good that he won’t be able to use his mudding skills much longer. With Saturday’s play suspended, Fitzpatrick will need to be a marathoner on Sunday, playing 25 holes or more to have a shot at a second professional major title. The course will be wet, but not as wet as other courses, given the deluge. After all, it’s Augusta National.
Fitz isn’t the only mudder out there. Patrick Cantlay is also three-deep on day three. Both will certainly figure in the resolution on Sunday, but only a massive Koepka retreat will give them great hope. Asking for nine or more birdies over the next seven hours of play is quite a bit.
Weekend golf in Augusta!! ? pic.twitter.com/lfyIwIOjw7
— Matt Fitzpatrick (@MattFitz94) April 8, 2023
4. This guy has me impressed
I didn’t think that he could get it done at Augusta National. Morikawa has two major championships to his name, but is getting anxious. He hasn’t won a big one (nor any other event) since the Open Championship of 2021, at Royal St. Georges. Right now, he’s plus one on the day and minus-five, in a tie for fourth with Cantlay and Fitzpatrick. Is he a long shot? Sure, but he was one, entering the week. If anyone knows how to pull something out of nothing, it’s this Cal Bear.
Collin Morikawa moves into solo third with a birdie at No. 4. #themasters pic.twitter.com/0CcwYWzybq
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 8, 2023
5. Some completely off-the-rails notions from this writer
The rain seeped into my brain, and what came out were these thoughts and suppositions ~
*Tiger Woods really didn’t want to play another 36 holes, so he talked Joe LaCava into allowing him to bogey the 36th hole. Unfortunately for Tiger, he needed double bogey to miss the cut …
*Cameron Young is learning to contend at Augusta, before he learns to win. It’s like a super-long, lag putt. You want to get it close to the hole, and if it happens to fall, it’s a plus. We know that Young can play the majors very well. Augusta is a different sort of major, and caddie Paul Tesori knows it …
*Gordon Sargent is exhibit A for why you don’t listen to folks who forecast the next big thing. The only one of those to truly deliver is Tiger Woods. What does that make the winning percentage for all the fails? Sargent will return to Vanderbilt and win loads of events. When it is time, he will win as a pro …
*Adam Scott is so much better as a golfer than an actor. I admired his work on Parks and Recreattion, but I hated him as the bad guy in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty …
A Golden Bell highlight for the Australian past champion. #themasters pic.twitter.com/cuAIQg6RpD
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 8, 2023
Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2026 Memorial Tournament
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
- Jason Day – WITB – 2026 The Memorial
- Chris Gotterup – WITB – 2026 The Memorial
- SungJae Im – WITB – 2026 The Memorial
Pullout Albums
- Jason Day’s 1off Payntr golf shoes – 2026 The Memorial
- JT Poston’s TaylorMade Spider – 2026 The Memorial
- Cameron putter – 2026 The Memorial
- Tommy Fleetwood’s TM Spider putters – 2026 The Memorial
- New Mitsubishi Chemical 1K Pro Orange shaft – 2026 The Memorial
News
Tour Tech Rundown: Heroic Henley
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
A party on the green!
Alvaro’s time comes in Raleigh with his first win @UNCHealthChamp ? pic.twitter.com/2dmtZdbSzk
— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) May 31, 2026
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
News
Russell Henley’s winning WITB: 2026 Charles Schwab Challenge
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

