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Tour Rundown: Thee one | Air New Zealand

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Week two of the NFL season did not impact the execution of tournaments on the DP World Tour, PGA Tour, Korn Ferry, and Tour Champions. With the Solheim Cup in Spain this week, followed by the Ryder Cup in Italy at the end of this fortnight, team golf is on the horizon. For the moment, it’s all about individual play, and we have that nearly to excess. Sit back, sit up, and strap in for this week’s Tour Rundown.

DP World Tour @ BMW PGA Championship: Air New Zealand pulls into port

After three days of seven birdie-and-eagle tallies, the flighted creatures left Ludvig Abers’ nest. The wunderkind on the European Ryder Cup side went dodo with a two-birdie 76 on Sunday, dropping to a 10th-place tie. His forced landing cleared the skies for a number of other airlines. British Airway, Iberia, Qantas, and other planes attempted to land on runway number one, but in the end, it was cleared for Air New Zealand, piloted by Ryan Fox.

Fox looked for all the world like a non-winner, after his triple bogey on the third hole. His mental reset allowed him to post eight birdies over the next fifteen hole, including six on the inward nine. Nearly chasing him down was the English duo of Aaron Rai and Tyrrell Hatton. The pair posted 68 and 66, respectively. Rai had a pair of bogeys offset his six birdies, while Hatton began the round on fire, with five birdies in his first seven holes. He could not preserve the pace, and came up one shot shy, in a tie with Rai.

PGA Tour @ Fortinet Championship: Thee one we longed to see win, has won at long last

Sahith Theegala was Thee Stallion this week. The California native and recipient of more family love than any other human knows, broke through for his first victory on the PGA Tour. Theegala had been mentioned in some circles as a long-shot Ryder Cup selection, but the knock was that he had not yet proved that he could win. Check that box for now.

Theegala and S.H. Kim finished 1-2 this week and the tournament was about their duel, from the 36th hole forward. Kim and Theegala held the halfway lead at 132, but Theegala jumped ahead by two after Saturday’s third round. On Sunday, Theegala made seven birdies against four bogeys, but three of those birdies came in the opening five holes. Those notches stretched his lead to five, and forced Kim to do better than the nine consecutive pars that opened day four.

To his credit, Kim played a strong inward half. He posted three birdies to separate from Cam Davis and catch a glimpse of the top spot. Theegala was too consistent coming home, however. He bookended bogeys at 10 and 18, but stuffed the turkey with three birdies in between. His final margin of victory was two strokes, and now we look to see if victory number two is soon to come.

 

Korn Ferry Tour @ Simmons Bank Open: Murray finds redemption in Nashville

Grayson Murray finish 169th on the 2022-2023, ensuring that he would need some Korn Ferry Tour assistance to return to the big circuit. He came through big time in Tennessee, winning a guitar trophy for the tournament title, and a move inside the top six, heading into two final playoff events.

Five golfers began round four in a tie for first. None of them was able to do what Murray did. Max Greyserman fared worst, posting 79 to drop 43 spots. TJ Vogel dropped 11 spots, to 12th, while Pontus Nyholm dropped four shots, to fifth position. Jamie Lovemark and Carter Jenkins posted 70s on day four, to finish T2 with Mason Andersen. The playoffs are the time of year when pressure pushes emotions to the surface, and competitors react differently.

Murray seemed to find the proper cocktail mixture of patience and risk. He played the front nine in one-under par, then jumped into the fray with birdie at 11, followed by four more over his closing five holes. None was able to match him coming home, and Murray hoisted not just a trophy, but the continuance of his professional dreams.

PGA Tour Champions @ Sanford International: Mr. Midwest wins sixth of the year

You need to be flawless to beat the man from Wisconsin, Steve Stricker, when he is on his game. KJ Choi played a wondrous 53 holes of golf this week, but made an ill-timed bogey on the final green, and missed a chance at a playoff. Choi tapped in for five and finished on 15-under par. Behind him, in the middle of the fairway, stood Stricker. He now had a two-shot lead (whether he knew it or not) and played a bad iron shot from 120 yards, some 60 feet shy of the hole. He then hit a bad approach putt, leaving himself eight feet for par. His recovery putt was dead in the hole, one revolution shy of perfection. Despite that trifecta of less-than-Stricker shots, Super Steve tapped in for bogey and a one-shot margin of victory.

Stricker had that wiggle room, thanks to a 62 on Friday. He followed that with a 66 on Saturday and, despite his last-hole tarantella, another 66 on Sunday. Stricker is currently number one on the season-long Schwab Cup list, with double the money of Bernhard Langer, his closest pursuer. To say that he has been the cream of the competitive crop in 2023 is about as accurate a statement as anyone will make today. The only other question is, how many more years and wins does he have in him?

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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