The PGA Championship: Rai Turns Aronimink Into His Arrival Party

A Major Win Built On Patience, Precision, and Belief

There are major championship wins that feel inevitable.

This was not one of them.

Aaron Rai did not arrive at Aronimink as the obvious story of the week. He was not the pre-tournament betting favorite. He was not the star most viewers circled before the first tee shot was struck. He was not the player carrying the loudest narrative into the second men’s major of the season.

Then Sunday happened.

Rai closed with a 5-under 65 at Aronimink Golf Club, finished at 9-under, and won the 108th PGA Championship by three shots over Jon Rahm and Alex Smalley. It was his first major championship victory, his second PGA TOUR title, and the kind of performance that can reshape an entire career in one afternoon.

That is what major championships do when they are at their best. They do not simply reward form. They reveal something.

For Rai, they revealed a player with the patience to wait for the week to come to him and the precision to take it when it did.

His final 10 holes were the difference. He played that stretch in 6-under, turning a crowded, tense Sunday into something that suddenly belonged to him. The moment that will live longest was the deep birdie putt on the 17th green, the one that sent him three clear with one hole to play and made the Wanamaker Trophy feel less like a dream and more like his immediate future.

But Rai did not win because of one putt.

He won because he kept answering Aronimink’s questions. He won because he never looked overwhelmed by the size of the moment. He won because a championship that asked for control, discipline, and toughness eventually found a player who had all three.

There is a beautiful simplicity in that.

Rai is easy to root for because his story does not feel manufactured. He carries himself with humility. His game has always looked more careful than flashy, more thoughtful than loud. Even the small details that have followed him for years, from the two gloves to the iron covers, speak to a player who respects the game, respects his equipment, and understands that nothing in golf should be taken for granted.

On Sunday, that respect turned into history.

Rai became the first Englishman since Jim Barnes in 1919 to win the PGA Championship. That gap is almost hard to process. England has produced major champions, Ryder Cup anchors, world-class ball-strikers, and legends of the professional game, but the Wanamaker Trophy had remained out of reach for more than a century.

Now Rai’s name is attached to it.

That is not just a career highlight. That is a legacy marker.

Aronimink Reminded Everyone What A Major Test Should Be

The PGA Championship needs places like Aronimink.

That is not a knock on every other venue. It is a compliment to what this week became.

Aronimink did not feel gimmicky. It did not feel tricked up. It did not feel like a course that relied on a single defense. It asked for everything. Driving mattered. Approach play mattered. Distance control mattered. Putting mattered. Nerve mattered. Patience mattered.

That is what a complete test looks like.

For four days, the course gave players enough room to make birdies but never enough room to relax. It created scoring chances without handing them out freely. It punished misses without turning the event into a survival contest. It allowed movement on the leaderboard without letting the championship lose its shape.

That balance is not easy.

Modern major championship golf can drift too far in either direction. Sometimes setups become so severe that creativity disappears, and the tournament becomes mostly about avoiding disaster. Other times, the best players in the world turn a course into a chase for 25-under, and the architecture becomes more of a backdrop than a participant.

Aronimink sat in a better place.

It had teeth, but it also had rhythm. It could be attacked, but only by players who were in position. It rewarded courage, but only when courage was paired with execution. That is why Rai’s final-round 65 meant so much. It was not a number produced by a defenseless course. It was a round that had to be earned.

The PGA Championship had not been at Aronimink since 1962.

That is far too long.

A venue like this should not disappear from the major championship rotation for six decades. This week was a reminder that some American golf courses do not need reinvention to matter. They simply need another chance to show what they are.

Aronimink did that.

The hope now should be obvious. Do not make the game wait another 64 years before this place gets another major championship stage.

The Chase Gave Sunday Its Weight

Rai’s victory will be the lasting headline, but the week worked because so many players had a chance to make it theirs.

Alex Smalley entered Sunday with the lead and left with a runner-up finish that should still change the way he sees himself. Holding a 54-hole lead in a major is different from contending in a regular TOUR stop. It is heavier. Everything is louder. Every miss feels magnified. Every decision carries extra weight.

Smalley did not win, but he did something important. He proved he could handle the deep end of a major championship leaderboard.

Rahm’s runner-up finish added a familiar major presence to the final board. Even when he is not at his absolute best, Rahm has a way of making the back nine feel bigger. He brings gravity to a tournament. His name near the top changes the room.

Justin Thomas, Ludvig Åberg, and Matthias Schmid finished one shot behind Rahm and Smalley. Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, and Cameron Smith were close enough to keep the board feeling dangerous. Kurt Kitayama gave the final round one of its great early jolts with a 63 that sent him flying up the leaderboard.

That is why Sunday had such good tension. It was not one player trying to protect a huge lead. It was a major championship full of movement, possibilities, and pressure points.

There were proven major champions. There were rising stars. There were players trying to break through. There were players trying to restart something. There were players trying to turn a good week into a career week.

Rai beat all of them.

That matters.

A first major title always changes a player’s biography, but the quality of the chase matters, too. Rai did not slip through a weak board. He outlasted a leaderboard with weight, talent, and pedigree. That makes the victory feel even more complete.

A Quiet Champion For A Loud Time In Golf

Golf is not always simple right now.

The professional game has spent years tangled in conversations about money, structure, loyalty, power, and future direction. Sometimes those conversations are necessary. Sometimes they are exhausting. Either way, they can make the game feel heavier than the shots themselves.

That is part of why Rai’s win landed so well.

It felt clean.

A respected player, widely liked by peers and admired for how he carries himself, played the round of his life on one of the game’s biggest stages. He did it on a course that demanded great golf. He did it against a leaderboard filled with names that could have taken the trophy away. He did it without needing to be the loudest person in the story.

There is something refreshing about that.

Rai’s game is not built on intimidation. It is built on repetition, accuracy, discipline, and trust. In a sport often obsessed with speed and power, his win was a reminder that precision still travels. Thoughtfulness still matters. Composure can still beat chaos.

That does not make him old-fashioned. It makes him dangerous.

The best part is that this does not have to be treated as a one-week fairy tale. Rai has been building toward something meaningful. Winning the 2024 Wyndham Championship gave him PGA TOUR validation. Winning the PGA Championship gave him permanence.

Now he is not just Aaron Rai, a solid player.

He is Aaron Rai, the major champion.

That changes everything.

The LPGA Tour: Woad Keeps Building Something Real

Another English Winner Adds To A Big Golf Sunday

The PGA Championship owned the biggest spotlight of the week, but Lottie Woad made sure England’s golf story was not limited to Aronimink.

Woad won the Kroger Queen City Championship at Maketewah Country Club in Cincinnati, finishing at 12-under and holding off Haeran Ryu by two shots. Miyu Yamashita finished third, with Ruoning Yin, Amanda Doherty, Jin Young Ko, Jeeno Thitikul, Nelly Korda, Jennifer Kupcho, and Lydia Ko among the notable names on the first page of the leaderboard.

That is a serious board.

Woad beat it.

This was her second LPGA Tour title, and it added another layer to a rise that continues to feel more substantial by the week. Some young players arrive with attention before they are ready for it. Others continue to prove that the attention is justified.

Woad is moving closer to the second category.

What stands out is not just the scoring. It is the presence. She plays with a calm that does not feel forced. She has enough talent to win, but the larger question for young players is always whether they can keep doing it when the expectations change.

This week was another positive answer.

There was also a nice symmetry to the Sunday. Rai won the PGA Championship. Woad won on the LPGA Tour. Two English winners, two very different stages and two players showing that patience, poise and competitive clarity still count for plenty.

Woad’s win does not need to be inflated beyond what it was. It was a strong LPGA victory, not a major championship. But it does matter. The LPGA continues to produce young stars who make the tour deeper, more global and more compelling. Woad is becoming one of those players.

And if this keeps going, her weeks will stop feeling like promising signs and start feeling like part of a much bigger pattern.

The Closing Thought

This week in golf worked because it gave us two versions of arrival.

At Aronimink, Aaron Rai arrived as a major champion. Not with noise. Not with bravado. Not with the kind of larger-than-life performance that overwhelms the field from the start. He arrived through discipline, control and a Sunday finish that turned opportunity into history.

At Maketewah, Lottie Woad kept arriving as one of the LPGA’s young players worth watching closely. Another win. Another strong field beaten. Another reason to believe her ceiling is still moving.

But the larger takeaway belongs to the PGA Championship.

Aronimink gave the event exactly what it needed. A great course. A demanding test. A packed leaderboard. A worthy champion. A Sunday that kept changing until one player finally separated himself.

That is major championship golf.

It should feel hard. It should feel fair. It should identify more than one skill. It should make players uncomfortable without making the setup the entire story. It should give the winner something he has to earn.

Aaron Rai earned it.

Aronimink delivered it.

And golf was better for both.

The PGA TOUR Signature Event: Reitan Turns Quail Hollow Into His Arrival Party

A First Win That Felt Bigger Than One Week

There are breakthrough wins, and then there are wins that change the way a player is viewed almost overnight.

Kristoffer Reitan’s victory at the Truist Championship belongs closer to the second category.

The 28-year-old PGA TOUR rookie entered Sunday one shot behind Alex Fitzpatrick, then closed with a 2-under 69 at Quail Hollow Club to finish at 15-under and beat Rickie Fowler and Nicolai Højgaard by two. It was Reitan’s first PGA TOUR victory in just his 15th start, and it came in a $20 million Signature Event against a field filled with established names, proven winners, and major championship résumés.

That is not easing your way into the room. That is kicking the door open.

Reitan arrived on the PGA TOUR through the DP World Tour pathway, having finished inside the top 10 on the 2025 Race to Dubai. He had already won twice in Europe, but this was different. This was Quail Hollow. This was a Signature Event. This was 700 FedExCup points, a move from No. 54 to No. 13 in the standings and the kind of result that turns a promising rookie season into something much more serious.

His week had the profile of a player who was ready before most people realized it. The third-round 64 was bogey-free and the lowest round of his PGA TOUR career. Sunday was not flawless, but it was mature. He did not need fireworks. He needed control, patience, and enough nerve to get through one of the TOUR’s most difficult closing stretches.

He found all three.

The Green Mile Still Had Teeth

Quail Hollow’s final three holes, the famous Green Mile, once again showed why this course rarely lets a tournament drift quietly to the finish.

For the week, the field played holes 1 through 15 at a combined 396-under par. Holes 16 through 18 played 214-over. That is not a closing stretch. That is a reckoning.

Reitan handled it well enough to become the seventh player to earn his first PGA TOUR win at this event, joining a list that includes Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler, Max Homa, and Wyndham Clark. He also became the second Norwegian to win on the PGA TOUR, joining Viktor Hovland.

Behind him, Fowler’s T2 finish continued a quietly excellent Signature Event run. He now owns top-10 finishes in each of the last four Signature Events, and while runner-up No. 16 of his career will sting, the form is real. Højgaard also finished T2, his second runner-up of the season and fifth overall, as he continues to chase a first PGA TOUR victory.

Alex Fitzpatrick, the 54-hole leader, slipped to a final-round 73 but still finished solo fourth. That made it three straight top-10 finishes for him after his Zurich Classic win and a T9 at the Cadillac Championship. It is becoming harder to describe that as a nice stretch and easier to call it a real step forward.

Rory McIlroy finished T19 in his first start since the Masters, ranking first in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee but struggling around the greens. That probably matters less for this week and more for what comes next. With the PGA Championship looming, his driving looked sharp enough to keep the conversation loud.

The PGA TOUR Opposite-Field Event: Snedeker Shows Why Myrtle Beach Matters

A Veteran Win With A Different Kind Of Weight

The easy way to talk about opposite-field events is to frame them as chances for younger players and lesser-known names to break through.

That is true.

But Brandt Snedeker’s win at the ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic was a reminder that these weeks serve another purpose, too. They give proven players room to breathe again. They give veterans a stage when the spotlight has moved elsewhere. They give communities a TOUR event of their own. And sometimes, they give a former FedExCup champion one more Sunday that feels like old times.

Snedeker closed with a 5-under 66 at The Dunes Golf and Beach Club to finish at 18-under and beat Mark Hubbard by one. It was his 10th PGA TOUR victory, his first since the 2018 Wyndham Championship, and his first win in 2,821 days.

That number matters because golf has a way of making time feel cruel. Seven years, eight months, and 21 days is a long wait between wins. It is long enough for roles, expectations, and even a player’s relationship with competition to change.

Snedeker is now 45. He is the 2026 U.S. Presidents Cup captain. He had missed the cut in his first two starts at Myrtle Beach. His best finish this season before the win was T18.

Then came a week of 67-66-67-66. No round worse than 67. No dramatic fade. No ceremonial cameo. Just a player with nine previous PGA TOUR wins, reminding everyone that the 10th was still in there.

The victory moved him from No. 148 to No. 63 in the FedExCup standings, earned him PGA TOUR status through 2028, and put him into the PGA Championship, which will be his 51st major championship start and his first major since the 2021 Open Championship.

That is the power of a week like this.

Opportunity Is Not A Small Thing

Mark Hubbard entered Sunday with the lead and was trying to become the third consecutive player to make the ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic his first PGA TOUR victory, following Chris Gotterup in 2024 and Ryan Fox in 2025. He finished second after a final-round 70, one shot behind Snedeker.

That will hurt. It should.

Hubbard now has two runner-up finishes in 274 PGA TOUR starts and remains one of the most experienced active players without a TOUR victory. But he also has back-to-back top-10 finishes at Myrtle Beach, and he keeps giving himself chances. In professional golf, that is both the frustration and the only path forward.

Beau Hossler and Kevin Roy finished T3 at 16-under. Aaron Rai was fifth at 15-under. Those five players now sit atop the Aon Swing 5 standings for a path into the Memorial Tournament, another reminder that opposite-field weeks are not isolated from the bigger PGA TOUR picture. They are part of the ecosystem.

There was another important note tucked into the week, too. Blades Brown, still just 18, finished T9 at 13-under for his second top-10 of the season. He now needs only 44 more FedExCup points to secure Special Temporary Membership.

That is the full picture of an opposite-field event. A veteran wins again. A journeyman nearly breaks through. Young players move closer to bigger opportunities. A host community gets a proper TOUR week. The PGA TOUR gets depth, emotion, and a reminder that not every important golf story happens at the richest event on the schedule.

The LPGA Tour: Jeeno Thitikul Is Building Something That Lasts

A Title Defense With A Champion’s Calm

Jeeno Thitikul did not just win the Mizuho Americas Open again.

She defended it.

That distinction matters because winning once can be a heater. Winning again at the same event, under a different set of expectations, says something more lasting.

Thitikul finished at 13-under at Mountain Ridge Country Club, four shots clear of Ruoning Yin. She played all four rounds under par, closed with a 69, and earned her ninth career LPGA Tour victory. She also became a two-time winner in 2026 and continued a remarkable run of never finishing outside the top 10 at the Mizuho Americas Open.

The numbers around Thitikul are starting to carry real historical weight. She now has nine LPGA victories, 58 career top-10 finishes, and more than $18 million in official career earnings. She became the fastest player to reach that $18 million mark and has now posted multiple-win seasons in three straight years.

This is not a future star anymore. This is one of the defining players of the current LPGA era.

What made the win more impressive was the timing. Thitikul missed the cut at The Chevron Championship in her previous start. She talked afterward about accepting that golf offers chances to reset, that one bad week does not have to become a season-long story. Then she went out and proved it.

That is champion behavior. Not the quote. The response.

Yin Charges, Lee Returns, and Mother’s Day Adds Meaning

Ruoning Yin made Sunday interesting. She carded five birdies on the front nine to cut Thitikul’s lead to one at the turn, then finished second at 9-under after a final-round 69. It was another close call for a player who has spent plenty of time near the lead without getting the finish she wants.

Yin has now stacked enough contention that a win feels more like a matter of when than if. That can be a difficult place to live competitively, but it is also where good players tend to stay until the door opens.

The group at T3 added plenty to the week’s story. Jenny Bae surged with a final-round 66, the low round of the day, to reach 8-under. Alison Lee finished T3 as well, her best result since returning from maternity leave. Gaby Lopez used four under-par rounds and a late eagle at No. 17 to claim her best finish of the season. Hye-Jin Choi also finished T3 for her best Mizuho result and first top-three finish since 2025.

Lee’s week was especially resonant, given that it ended on Mother’s Day with her son and mother there. Her return has not been simple, and she was honest about the limited practice time, the physical changes, and the feeling that she was trying to catch up to players who could pour hours into their craft. A top-three finish did not solve everything, but it showed her that the work is translating.

That is one of the quiet strengths of the LPGA right now. The tour has elite dominance at the top, but it also keeps producing layered human stories beneath the leaderboard.

Thitikul won the trophy. Yin kept pushing. Lee gave the week its emotional center. And Mountain Ridge offered a test that rewarded precision, patience, and resilience.

The Closing Thought

This week in golf worked because it gave us three different versions of meaning.

At Quail Hollow, Kristoffer Reitan showed what a first PGA TOUR win can do when it comes on one of the biggest stages of the regular season. At Myrtle Beach, Brandt Snedeker showed why opportunity should not only be viewed through the lens of youth and potential. Sometimes it is about giving a great player one more door to walk through. And at Mountain Ridge, Jeeno Thitikul showed that consistency at the highest level is not built on never falling down. It is built on how quickly the best players get back up.

That is the beauty of a full golf week. Not every trophy tells the same story.

But the best ones always tell us something.

The PGA TOUR: Cameron Young Looked Like a Man Ready for the Next Stage

Doral is a course that demands confidence. The Blue Monster forces players to hit bold drives, stay patient during tough stretches, and accept that good shots do not always pay off. That is what made Cameron Young’s week stand out. He did not just win the Cadillac Championship. He owned it from the front, finishing at 19-under and beating Scottie Scheffler by six in a wire-to-wire performance that looked controlled even when the day tried to get messy.

Young’s final-round 68 was not flashy, but it was solid. This marks his third PGA TOUR win, his second this season, and shows that his potential is now a reality. He has victories at the Wyndham Championship, THE PLAYERS, and Doral, along with five top-10 finishes in nine starts this year. He is not just hoping to break through; he already has.

The Penalty Told You Plenty

An important moment happened early in the round. Young called a penalty on himself on the par-4 second hole after he moved his ball, then regained his focus and kept playing. Moments like this show a lot about a player’s character, especially when starting the day with a big lead and knowing that one mistake can change everything. Instead of getting rattled, he stuck to his routine and never looked like he was just trying to hold on.

Afterward, Young said that tough courses and tough conditions actually help him focus. That makes sense. He often plays his best when the course requires discipline and mental strength, not just big shots. At Doral, he used a range of skills throughout the week, and that versatility might be his biggest strength.

Scheffler Kept the Standard High

Scheffler’s second-place finish is important. The World No. 1 shot a final-round 68 to end at 13-under, marking his third straight runner-up finish. That shows how high the standard was at the top. Even Scheffler admitted Young played exceptionally well all week, especially with his putting and on Doral’s tough tee shots.

That is why this win felt like more than just another trophy. Young led the field with 24 birdies and was best in strokes gained putting, all on a course where the 18th hole was the toughest finishing hole on TOUR this season. These are real achievements. This was not just a lucky streak with the putter; it was a top player showing he belongs in the biggest events.

The LPGA Tour: Nelly Korda Made Another Win Feel Almost Expected

Sometimes Nelly Korda makes golf look graceful, and sometimes she makes it look unstoppable. At the Riviera Maya Open at Mayakoba, it was the latter. Korda finished at 17-under, won by four shots, set the tournament’s 72-hole scoring record at 271, and was the only player to shoot all four rounds in the 60s. She made just two bogeys all week. Those numbers show not just control, but dominance.

This win gives her 18 career LPGA Tour victories and is her third win in six starts this season. It also came just a week after her Chevron Championship win, making it back-to-back victories and adding to a season that already feels historic. She stays No. 1 in the Race to the CME Globe and picked up another 500 points.

The Scary Part Is That It Was Not Perfect

After the win, Korda said some parts of her week felt like her best golf, while other stretches felt more average. That is a warning for her competitors. When someone wins by four, sets a scoring record, and still feels she was not at her best, it shows the gap between her and the rest of the field is more than just a good week. She is managing tough moments without letting them get out of hand.

She also described the week as both work and a slice of paradise, which felt fitting. The setting in Mexico clearly relaxed her, but her golf never drifted. She was 13-under on the par 5s for the week, made the most eagles in the field, and was bogey-free for 60 holes before finally making one on the 72nd hole of the tournament. Those are not the numbers of someone simply riding momentum. Those are the numbers of a player who is dictating terms.

The Chase Was Good, but Korda Was Better

Aprichaya Yubol finished second at 13-under, her best result on the LPGA Tour. Yu Liu took third, and Brianna Do finished fourth, also her best LPGA finish. Amateur Maria Jose Marin made the top five and kept her strong run going. There was plenty of good golf behind Korda, but it was overshadowed by her standout performance.

Korda is now the youngest American to reach 18 LPGA Tour wins since Nancy Lopez and has 23 points toward the LPGA Hall of Fame. These are not just interesting facts; they show that her career is becoming more impressive with each win.

The Champions Tour: Stewart Cink Keeps Making This Season Harder to Ignore

At some point, a streak like this is more than just a good run. Stewart Cink is having a standout year. His win at the Regions Tradition in Birmingham is his fourth PGA TOUR Champions victory of the 2026 season in only seven starts, his eighth career win on the tour, and his second senior major. He finished with a 3-under 69 to end at 18-under and win by three shots.

Cink is now the first player on PGA TOUR Champions this season to reach four wins, and he stayed atop the Charles Schwab Cup standings for a ninth consecutive week. He also made a field-leading 26 birdies, the highest total of his Champions career. That is not a veteran hanging on. That is a player who has found a groove and is making the most of it.

Birmingham Gave the Win Some Extra Weight

This win was special because of the location. After the round, Cink talked about his golfing roots in Alabama, playing junior golf around Birmingham, and seeing familiar faces in the crowd. These things can make players either nervous or comfortable. Cink seemed calm and settled. He said the day was tough because of the wind, but he trusted his game and did not need things to be easy to stay in control.

That kind of comfort shows in small ways through patience, restraint, and the ability to handle the pressure of senior major Sundays, even if the atmosphere is different. Cink has always shown steady competitive maturity, and on the PGA TOUR Champions, that quality is becoming a real advantage.

This Is Starting to Feel Like a Real Campaign

Scott Hend finished second with a strong final-round 65, Colin Montgomerie took third, and Søren Kjeldsen was fourth. There were plenty of big names near the top, but Cink stayed ahead all week and turned a three-shot lead after 54 holes into another major win. He has now won both the Senior PGA Championship and the Regions Tradition in back-to-back senior majors, putting himself among the best on the PGA TOUR Champions in recent seasons.

That is the main point for me. Cink is not just having a lucky streak; he looks like a player who understands this stage, enjoys the rhythm, and believes he can keep winning. Based on his play, that confidence seems justified.

The lesson from this week’s “The Starter” is straightforward.

Cameron Young looked like a player entering his next chapter. Nelly Korda looked like the standard again. Stewart Cink looked like a veteran who has found exactly where he belongs right now. Three tours gave us three different versions of control this weekend, and all of them proved worth paying attention to.

The LPGA Tour: Nelly Korda Made the First Major Feel Like Her Stage

There are wins, and then there are weeks where a player reminds everyone what the ceiling looks like.

Nelly Korda did the latter at The Chevron Championship.

She opened 65-65 at Memorial Park Golf Course, built a five-shot lead, held it together through the weekend, and finished at 18-under after rounds of 70-70. Ruoning Yin and Patty Tavatanakit tied for second at 13-under, five shots back, which tells you plenty about how far Korda had separated herself from an elite field.

The first women’s major of the year had star power, history, and pressure. Korda met all three. She won her third major championship, her 17th LPGA Tour title, and is projected to return to No. 1 in the Rolex Rankings. She also became the fifth player to win The Chevron Championship wire-to-wire with no ties.

That is not just a great week. That is ownership.

Winning From the Front Is Harder Than It Looks

Golf fans sometimes treat a large lead like it is protection. Players know better. A big lead can feel like a room getting smaller by the hour.

Korda said it herself afterward.

“That was a hard weekend,” Korda said. “Honestly having that big of a lead, it’s not easy. It was definitely one of the hardest things I’ve had to do mentally.”

That is the part that stood out most to me. The golf looked clean enough on paper. She made 23 birdies for the week, the most in the field, and hit 59 of 72 greens in regulation, also the most in the field. Those are the kinds of numbers that usually make a major championship look orderly.

But Sundays at majors are rarely orderly in the mind.

Korda had to keep playing golf while everyone else played chase. She had to stay committed without getting protective. She had to accept that not every putt would fall, not every swing would feel perfect, and not every hole would be comfortable.

As a PGA professional, I love it when the best players in the world are honest about that part. It helps everyday golfers understand something important. Great golf is not mistake-free golf. It is the ability to keep your head after the mistakes happen.

The Message Was Bigger Than the Trophy

Korda gave one of the better post-win answers I have heard in a while when she talked about wanting to show kids watching at home that it is okay to miss short putts and still win a major championship.

That is gold.

Not because it is cute. Because it is true.

Golf has a way of making players feel like one miss defines them. One three-footer. One bad chip. One loose tee ball. One uncomfortable stretch where the hands feel different, and the mind starts talking too loudly. Korda’s point was that champions are not champions because they avoid every one of those moments. They are champions because they keep going.

For young girls watching her jump into Poppie’s Pond again, that matters. For young boys watching, too. For adults who love this game and still beat themselves up after a short miss, it matters just as much.

Korda did not just win The Chevron. She won it in a way that made the game feel a little more human.

Tavatanakit and Yin Kept the Week Honest

Even in a five-shot win, the chase mattered.

Tavatanakit’s tie for second was her best major finish since winning The Chevron in 2021. She also had the fewest putts in the field for the week with 104 and made only two bogeys over 72 holes. That is tremendous control.

Yin, also tied for second, was runner-up at this championship for the second consecutive year. She only made three bogeys all week and sounded like a player who knows she is close.

Those performances should not get lost just because Korda took the oxygen out of the room. Major championships are supposed to identify players who are built for the moment, and both Tavatanakit and Yin gave the week depth.

Still, this was Korda’s championship from start to finish. She came to Houston as one of the biggest names in golf. She left with another major, the No. 1 ranking in sight and another reminder that when she is right, the women’s game has a centerpiece few sports can match.

The PGA TOUR: The Fitzpatrick Brothers Turned Zurich Into a Family Story

The Zurich Classic can be quirky. That is part of its charm.

Team golf on the PGA TOUR always feels a little different. The body language changes. The conversations change. Players who spend most weeks carrying everything by themselves suddenly have someone else inside the ropes who feels every bounce with them.

For Matt and Alex Fitzpatrick, that someone else was blood.

The brothers won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans at 31-under 257, a tournament record, beating Kristoffer Reitan and Kris Ventura as well as Alex Smalley and Hayden Springer by one shot. Their week included a third-round 57 in four-ball, the lowest 18-hole score in that format in tournament history.

Then came Sunday alternate shot, where the game asked harder questions.

Matt and Alex began the final round with control, saw the back nine tighten, and still found a way to birdie the 72nd hole. Matt hit a brilliant bunker shot at the par-5 18th to a foot. Alex tapped it in. Then the two brothers embraced, and the whole thing became bigger than the score.

Alex Fitzpatrick’s Life Changed With One Putt

This was Alex Fitzpatrick’s first PGA TOUR victory. It also earned him PGA TOUR membership through 2028, plus exemptions into several major 2026 events, including the PGA Championship, Cadillac Championship, Truist Championship, Memorial Tournament and Travelers Championship.

That is a career-altering Sunday.

Alex had already won on the DP World Tour earlier this season at the Hero Indian Open, one week after Matt won the Valspar Championship. Now, he has a PGA TOUR card, a Zurich title, and a memory with his older brother that will follow them both for the rest of their lives.

Asked what it felt like to win with Matt, Alex gave the kind of answer that did not need dressing up.

“I think that’s as good as it gets, isn’t it?” he said.

Yes, it probably is.

Golf is a family game in ways that are sometimes difficult to explain until you have lived it. Parents on range decks. Siblings in carts. Long drives to junior events. Putting contests at sunset. Shared heartbreaks. Shared jokes. Shared obsession.

The Fitzpatricks gave all of that a PGA TOUR trophy on Sunday.

Matt’s Hot Streak Is Turning Into a Season

For Matt Fitzpatrick, this was his fifth PGA TOUR victory and third win of the 2026 season. He also moved to No. 1 in the FedExCup standings for the first time in his career.

That is serious stuff.

Matt had already won the Valspar Championship and RBC Heritage this season. The Zurich now makes him the TOUR’s only three-time winner on the year. He also became the first player from England on record to win three or more times in a PGA TOUR season.

That is the kind of run that changes how a season feels around a player. A good stretch becomes a heater. A heater becomes a year. A year starts to become something people remember.

Still, this one clearly meant something different.

“It means the world,” Matt said afterward. “Absolutely speechless. It was a grind today, and he was unbelievable. I couldn’t be more proud.”

That is the quote. That is the story.

The golf was excellent. The record was meaningful. The FedExCup move matters. But the older brother saying he could not be more proud of the younger brother is the part people will remember.

Sunday Reminded Us Why Team Golf Works

The Zurich Classic does not always get placed in the same category as the TOUR’s biggest individual stops, but weeks like this show why the format works.

It lets us see players differently.

Matt Fitzpatrick is already a U.S. Open champion and a proven world-class player. Alex Fitzpatrick is building his own career, his own identity and his own résumé. Together, they became something else entirely. They became brothers trying not to let each other down, then brothers trying to hold it together when everything changed at once.

That is compelling.

As much as professional golf is driven by rankings, money, exemptions, and points, it still lands hardest when the story gets personal. Nelly Korda winning a major while talking about inspiring kids after missed short putts is personal. Matt and Alex Fitzpatrick winning together, with their parents watching and Alex’s career shifting in real time, is personal.

That is what this Sunday gave us.

Two tours. Two very different trophies. Two reminders that golf is at its best when greatness and humanity meet in the same place.

The Starter lesson this week is simple.

The score matters. The trophy matters. The history matters.

But the feeling is what lasts.

The PGA TOUR: Harbour Town Asked For Nerve, and Fitzpatrick Had It

Harbour Town is one of those places that does not care how powerful modern golf has become. It still asks players to shape shots, control trajectories, and stay emotionally stable when the target starts to feel smaller coming home. That is why Matt Fitzpatrick felt like such a natural winner there again on Sunday. He closed in 70, got dragged into a playoff by Scheffler’s late push, and then answered with the shot of the day, a birdie on the first extra hole at the 18th to claim his second RBC Heritage title.

What I liked most about Fitzpatrick’s win was not just the result. It was the way he carried himself through the kind of finish that can get noisy in a hurry. This was not a runaway. This was not one of those Sundays where a guy sleeps on the lead and eases his way to a handshake line. Scheffler made birdies late, the pressure ramped up, and Fitzpatrick still found a way to hit the kind of shot that makes a playoff feel over before the putt even drops. That is grown-man golf.

Scheffler Made the Win Mean More

Scheffler forced the extra hole with a 4-under 67 and finished runner-up at 18-under, while Si Woo Kim took third at 16-under. Ludvig Åberg, Harris English, and Collin Morikawa tied for fourth at 13-under.

That matters because the quality of the chase changes the feel of the win. When the world No. 1 starts leaning on a leaderboard, nobody gets to exhale. Scheffler did exactly what elite players do. He posted a number, applied pressure, and made the leader keep earning it. In my mind, that is part of why Fitzpatrick’s Sunday will age so well. He did not just win at Harbour Town. He had to finish the job with the best player in the world breathing down his neck.

The Senior PGA Championship: Cink Looked Like a Man Who Knew the Ending

A 63 at The Concession Is No Small Thing

Stewart Cink won the Senior PGA Championship at 19-under after a final-round 63, good for a six-shot victory over Ben Crane. It was Cink’s first senior major title, and PGA of America coverage also noted it as his third PGA TOUR Champions win of the year.

There are final rounds that feel hot, and then there are final rounds that feel authoritative. This was the second kind. A 63 on a setup like The Concession is not just a good number. It is a statement. It says the player saw the golf course clearly, trusted the plan, and never let the moment become bigger than the shot in front of him. Cink has always had that steady, almost understated quality about him. Sunday was that trait turned all the way up.

For a lot of golf fans, Cink still gets tied first to that 2009 Open Championship win. Fair enough. That was a career-defining moment. But this stage suits him, too. He has enough firepower, enough patience, and more than enough scar tissue from a long career to know how to manage a major Sunday when everybody else starts gripping a little tighter.

Justin Hicks Gave This Week Some Real Heart

One of the best stories of the week belonged to Justin Hicks. In his Senior PGA Championship debut, Hicks finished tied for 17th at 5-under and earned low PGA of America Golf Professional honors. He opened with rounds of 69-69 and stayed relevant deep into the week before closing with 73 on Sunday.

That is the kind of story I do not think this game can ever have too much of. We all know the headliners. We should. But championships like this still have room for working golf professionals to remind people just how good they are. Hicks was not simply hanging around. He belonged there. And for those of us who have lived in the PGA professional world, those performances always hit home a little harder because we know what those guys balance just to get to the first tee.

The LPGA Tour: Hannah Green Stayed Ready for the Moment That Came Back to Her

The Finish in Los Angeles Was Crowded in the Best Way

At the JM Eagle LA Championship, Hannah Green, Jin Hee Im, and Sei Young Kim all finished regulation at 17-under 271. Green then won the playoff on the 18th hole with a birdie, while Im and Kim made par. Ina Yoon finished fourth at 16-under, and Haeran Ryu and Patty Tavatanakit shared fifth at 14-under.

That is a terrific LPGA finish. No wasted drama. No fake tension. Just a crowded top of the board and players who kept answering each other until somebody finally produced one cleaner swing. Green did not win this because everyone else backed up. She won because she stayed in it long enough to take the last opening that existed. There is a difference, and it matters.

This Tour Keeps Producing Sundays Worth Watching

The LPGA has a way of giving us leaderboards that feel honest. Talented, yes. Star-heavy, absolutely. But honest, too. A three-player playoff at 17-under tells you the quality was real, and it also tells you how deep the competition runs week to week. Hannah Green gets the trophy, as she should, but the bigger takeaway is that this tour keeps delivering finishes in which several players look capable of taking over at once.

That is healthy golf. It is compelling golf. And it is one more reminder that if you only check the LPGA results after the fact, you are missing some of the best competitive theater in the sport.

What stood out to me this week is that all three tours gave us different versions of the same truth. Fitzpatrick showed what composure looks like when the walls start closing in. Cink showed what happens when experience and form align. Hannah Green showed the value of staying present until the very last chance becomes your chance. Different tours, different stages, same lesson. The best golf still belongs to the players who can keep their pulse where it needs to be when Sunday starts asking harder questions.

2026 Masters: McIlroy Did More Than Win Again

The Harder Kind of Repeat

There is something different about winning a Masters as the defending champion. The first one can feel like a release. The second one feels like proof. On Sunday, Rory McIlroy became just the fourth player to win back-to-back Masters titles, joining Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo, and Tiger Woods. He closed with a 1-under 71, finished at 12-under for the week, and beat Scottie Scheffler by a shot for his sixth major championship. That is history, of course, but it is also something more than that. It is confirmation that Augusta is no longer the place that haunted him. It is now one of the places that defines him.

What impressed me most was not that McIlroy won. It was the way he had to win. This was not one of those Sunday strolls where the tournament quietly drifts toward the obvious ending. He had let a six-shot lead shrink on Saturday. He began Sunday tied with Cameron Young. He made a double bogey at the fourth and suddenly found himself chasing. That matters because it forced him to do something champions at Augusta always have to do sooner or later. He had to steady himself emotionally, trust his game, and make the golf course feel small again.

The Shots That Changed Everything

For me, the defining stretch was not simply that McIlroy played Amen Corner well. It was how forcefully he answered the moment. He knocked it to seven feet at the 12th, the closest of the day, and made birdie. The boldness of that shot, as noted by the AP, over Rae’s Creek was followed by another birdie at 13. Those were not cautious survival swings. Those were the swings of a player who knows exactly what is available to him when he is willing to trust it.

That is what great players do at Augusta. They are not fearless. They are clear. There is a big difference. McIlroy still had to save himself with a nervy up-and-down at 16, manage the pressure at 17, and absorb a bogey at 18 after a wild tee shot. But by then, he had already done the most important thing. He had reasserted control of the tournament on the part of the golf course where control so often disappears.

The Chase Made the Win Mean More

Scheffler Was Exactly What a World No. 1 Should Be

One reason this victory will age well is because of who was chasing him. Scottie Scheffler, the world No. 1 and already a two-time Masters champion, shot 68 and finished alone in second. His late charge, a trademark Scottie run, nearly cut the margin to one. His bogey-free run over the weekend is another example of Scheffler doing Scheffler things.

For McIlroy, that was serious pressure. He had to hold off the steadiest force in men’s golf, and that gives this win even more weight.

Scheffler did what elite players do. He posted a number and made the leaders feel him. That is one of the great tensions of major championship golf, especially at Augusta. You are playing your own round, but you are also hearing the roars, sensing the movement, and trying not to let someone else’s excellence pull you out of yourself. McIlroy passed that test, too.

Rose and Young Reminded Us How Thin the Margin Is

Justin Rose and Cameron Young were part of the emotional truth of this Sunday, too. Rose had the lead through 10 holes before bogeys around Amen Corner undercut his charge, and he eventually finished tied for third alongside Tyrrell Hatton, Russell Henley, and Young. Young, who began the day tied with McIlroy, lost his footing around the turn and closed in 73.

That matters because the Masters never just crowns a champion. It reveals people. Rose once again showed the grace and resolve that have long made him one of the game’s class acts, even as Augusta gave him another painful near-miss. Young showed he belongs on this stage, even if he could not quite finish the climb. And McIlroy, more than anyone, showed what experience can look like when it is finally paired with emotional freedom. This was not youthful brilliance. This was earned composure.

Augusta Still Tells the Game’s Best Stories

Why This One Was So Complete

A year ago, McIlroy’s Masters triumph carried the release of the career Grand Slam. This one carried something more subdued, but maybe just as significant. Joy. After so many years of Augusta asking him hard questions, McIlroy now looks like a man who has stopped negotiating with the place and started embracing it.

To me, that is the biggest takeaway from this Masters. McIlroy is no longer walking into Augusta trying to settle an old score. He is walking into Augusta as one of its central characters. That is a massive shift, and it changes how we talk about him going forward. The old Rory-at-Augusta storyline is gone. In its place is something considerably more interesting. How many more can he win here?

The Game Is in a Very Good Place

Step back for a moment, and this tournament also said something healthy about professional golf. McIlroy delivered star power. Scheffler delivered persistent pressure. Rose gave us veteran resilience. Young showed more evidence that his ceiling is very high. Hatton and Henley were right there, too. The leaderboard had history, personality, and real tension. That is what the Masters should feel like.

So yes, Rory repeated. That is the headline, and it should be. But this Sunday at Augusta was about far more than one man collecting another green jacket. It was about the sport’s biggest spring stage, once again producing the kind of drama that reminds us why we keep coming back. It appeared messy, brilliant, uneasy, and beautiful all at the same time. In other words, it was the Masters.

PGA TOUR: Spaun Finds Something Familiar in San Antonio

A Familiar Place, A Timely Win

There are certain venues that just fit a player’s eye, temperament, and timing, and TPC San Antonio has become that kind of place for J.J. Spaun. He closed with a 5-under 67 to win the Valero Texas Open at 17-under par, one shot clear of Matt Wallace, Michael Kim, and Robert MacIntyre. It was Spaun’s third PGA TOUR victory, and notably his second in this event after also winning here in 2022. Even more interesting, this was his first top-10 finish of the 2026 season, which tells you just how much this week felt like both a win and a reset. Spaun himself called the game “crazy” and said it meant a lot to come back and win at a place that has been so good to him.

Why This One Feels Bigger Than One Week

What stood out to me most was not just that Spaun won, but how he did it. He began Sunday two shots behind MacIntyre, stayed patient, and then produced the kind of composed closing round that good players find when their games finally feel aligned again. He led the field in Strokes Gained: Tee to Green at 9.280, jumped from No. 115 to No. 24 in the FedExCup standings, and was projected to move from No. 13 to No. 6 in the Official World Golf Ranking. Those are not small ripples. That is a serious tremor heading into Augusta week.

The Rest of Sunday Had Plenty to Say, Too

The leaderboard also told a larger story about the week. Wallace continued a quietly strong history at the Valero Texas Open with another top finish, while Michael Kim nearly added a signature result of his own. MacIntyre, who held both the 36-hole and 54-hole lead, could not quite finish it off, which is the kind of Sunday sting that can linger for a bit. Ludvig Åberg finishing T5 also deserves notice. It was not the closing charge many expected from him, but it was another reminder that his name is not going anywhere as the year’s first major arrives. Wallace’s runner-up also mattered in another way, helping him lock up an Aon Swing 5 place into the RBC Heritage.

LPGA Tour: Coughlin Controls Shadow Creek

Major-Championship Golf in the Desert

Shadow Creek did not give much away this week, and that is exactly why Lauren Coughlin’s win at the Aramco Championship impressed me. She finished at 7-under and won by five over Leona Maguire and Nelly Korda, closing with an even-par 72 on a course that asked players to hit disciplined shots and accept that perfection was not available. In fact, Coughlin finished as one of only three players in the field under par for the week. On a setup like that, even-par on Sunday is not hanging on. It is controlling the tournament.

This Was Built Long Before Sunday

The final margin may look comfortable, but this was not some out-of-nowhere Sunday steal. Coughlin shared the first-round lead with a 67, stretched her advantage to five shots after 36 holes in gusty conditions, and then carried a two-shot lead into the final round over Korda. That matters because it shows this was a four-day performance, not a late scramble. She established herself early, absorbed the toughest moments of the championship, and never really lost control of the tournament’s rhythm. That is how elite wins tend to look on demanding golf courses.

Why Coughlin’s Week Matters

This was Coughlin’s third LPGA title, and to me it felt like one of those wins that carries a little extra weight because of the venue and the cast around her. Korda was right there. Maguire was right there. Shadow Creek was certainly not in a giving mood. And still, Coughlin was the player who looked the most settled all week. Ruoning Yin’s Sunday 67 to climb into a tie for seventh was a nice late move, but this championship belonged to Coughlin from the moment she put herself in position and refused to blink. That kind of performance gets remembered.

Masters Preview: Augusta Is Finally Here

Rory Returns Without The Old Burden

Now we shift to the 90th Masters, which begins April 9 at Augusta National, and the first thing that stands out is how different Rory McIlroy’s emotional posture feels compared to all those years when the conversation was dominated by what he had not yet done. That burden is gone. McIlroy’s victory last year completed the career Grand Slam, and as the defending champion, he arrives in a very different place mentally, one where the annual Augusta interrogation has given way to something freer. That does not make him less dangerous. If anything, it may make him more so.

Scheffler Still Looms Large

And yet, for all the understandable attention on McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler still feels like the giant presence in the room. Reuters and AP both noted that Scheffler arrived at Augusta after the birth of his second child, with the family story adding a human layer to a week that is already packed with pressure. He is still the world No. 1, still a two-time Masters champion, and still the betting favorite. When a player has that résumé and that history at Augusta, any talk of shakier form can only go so far. You can call it a question mark if you want. I still call it a warning sign for the rest of the field.

This Field Has Real Depth

What makes this Masters especially compelling, though, is the number of believable storylines beyond the top two. AP noted the fresh intrigue around players like Chris Gotterup, Ben Griffin, and Jacob Bridgeman, while Reuters pointed out that LIV’s smaller presence in the field still includes serious threats such as Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau. Add in Cameron Young’s recent big-stage breakthrough, Åberg’s lingering promise, and Spaun bringing fresh momentum from San Antonio, and this does not feel like a week with one obvious script. It feels open, volatile, and very Augusta in that way.

That is what makes the sport so fun this time of year. One player found a familiar comfort zone in Texas. Another stared down Shadow Creek and looked stronger with every round. And now the game heads to its grandest stage, where comfort disappears fast and where legacies can change in the span of one back-nine stretch on Sunday. That is a pretty good way to start Masters week.

Young Conquers Sawgrass with Career-Defining Performance

Cameron Young picked up the biggest title of his career Sunday, hitting a clutch sand wedge to 10 feet on the wind-blown island green at the 17th hole for birdie and winning THE PLAYERS Championship when Matt Fitzpatrick missed an 8-foot par putt on the final hole.

Young played bogey-free on the back nine, where so many hopes faded, and blistered a 375-yard drive – the longest ever on the 18th at TPC Sawgrass – that set up a par and a 4-under 68. He finished at 13-under 275, earning $4.5 million and moving to No. 4 in the world.

It was only his second victory on the PGA TOUR. The 28-year-old tied the tour record with seven runner-up finishes before finally winning late last summer at the Wyndham Championship. But this is the PGA TOUR’s crown jewel, loosely known as the fifth major, and the pressure was intense at the end.

The Island Green Magic

Young became the first PLAYERS Champion to birdie No. 17 in each of the final three rounds. On Sunday, with the wind gusting hard at their backs, he faced a 130-yard shot over the bunker with everything on the line.

“I just so happened to have the best number you could have possibly asked for,” Young said. He used his 57-degree wedge, and the ball caught the ridge and rolled out on the baked green to 10 feet. Fitzpatrick was safe in the middle, 30 feet away. Young rolled in the birdie putt to tie for the lead heading to 18.

The Defining Drive

Standing on the 18th tee tied for the lead, Young had never been in this position before. His only previous win at Wyndham came with a nine-shot lead at the turn.

“My thought process over that ball is, one, making sure that I’m committed to my line, and two, the overarching thought is I’m going to hit the best shot of my life right here,” Young said.

He delivered. The 375-yard bomb – the longest drive on that hole by any player in the ShotLink era – left him just 98 yards to the green. He hit a lob wedge to the back fringe and two-putted for par.

Fitzpatrick went too far right into the pine straw and pitched out just short of the green, then hit a good chip to 8 feet. When Fitzpatrick missed his putt to force a playoff, Young was left with a tap-in par.

The victory was especially meaningful because Young’s family was there to witness it. At Wyndham, his wife and two boys missed one of the only three weeks of the year when he wasn’t on the road with him. Young dedicated the win to his late niece Mia, who passed away in December at age five.

The Mental Shift

Young’s performance was built on a mental adjustment he made after the Genesis Invitational at Riviera. He focused entirely on process and execution rather than outcomes, and it paid off. Young led the field in proximity on approach shots (28 feet, 1 inch) and scrambling (16 of 21). His strokes gained total of 14.661 was the best in the field. He made just five bogeys all week and only one double bogey.

Young credited his Ryder Cup experience at Bethpage Black last fall as crucial preparation for handling Sunday’s pressure. He was the best American player that week in a losing effort.

“It definitely helps,” Young said. “It just provides you some kind of context for how you can perform and how you can think when you feel that way.”

Fitzpatrick’s Agonizing Near Miss

Matt Fitzpatrick came within one putt of forcing a playoff, finishing runner-up at 12-under after closing with 68. The 2022 U.S. Open champion matched the best finish by a player from England at THE PLAYERS and notched his first top-three finish on TOUR since the 2023 BMW Championship.

Fitzpatrick got off to a blazing start, reaching 3-under through four holes. He hit wedge to tap-in range for birdie on the 12th and a tee shot to 4 feet for birdie on the 13th to take the lead. After a three-putt bogey on 14, he regained the lead with a 12-foot birdie on 15.

Standing on the 18th tee tied with Young, Fitzpatrick felt good about his drive, but the ball found the pine straw on the right. He pitched out just short of the green, then hit a good chip to 8 feet. The par putt to force a playoff slid by.

“I felt like I hit a good drive, and once you’re out of position, it’s difficult to make your par,” Fitzpatrick said.

Despite the disappointment, Fitzpatrick sees positive signs in his game. “I think the big thing is I believe in my own ability,” he said. “I feel like I’ve been doing a ton of good work with Mark Blackburn and just really, really seen so many positive signs over the last 12 months.”

Playing with Young made for an enjoyable final round despite the pressure.

“I love Cam. He’s such a nice guy. He’s so laid back; it’s so nice,” Fitzpatrick said.

Aberg’s Lead Evaporates on Brutal Back Nine

Ludvig Aberg, who had a three-shot lead going into the final round, imploded on the back nine with shots into the water on consecutive holes. He shot 40 on the back nine for a 76 and tied for fifth at 9-under.

The 25-year-old Swede was still two shots ahead and in the middle of the fairway on the par-5 11th when he flared a 7-wood out to the right and into the water, leading to bogey. On his next tee shot at the par-3 12th, he pulled his driver badly into the water, hit over the green and took three to get down for double bogey.

“It got away from me quick there,” Aberg said. “Yeah, it was just poor swings.”

Aberg acknowledged that nerves affected his tempo. “I definitely felt a little bit fast at times,” he said. “I would imagine if I look at those swings on sort of 11, 12, they probably were quick swings.”

The collapse put him three behind, and he never recovered. He falls to 1-for-3 when leading or co-leading after 54 holes on TOUR.

Despite the disappointment, Aberg found positives in his week. “Obviously, really disappointed,” he said. “But overall pleased with the week.” He noted this was his second consecutive top-five finish on TOUR following a T3 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Other Notable Performances

Xander Schauffele birdied three of his last four holes to close with a 69 and finish third at 11-under. It was his third top-three finish at THE PLAYERS Championship (T2/2018, T2/2024), matching the most top-three finishes at THE PLAYERS without a win.

After opening 72-72, Robert MacIntyre carded 65-69 on the weekend to finish fourth at 10-under for his second consecutive top-10 finish at THE PLAYERS. First-timer Sudarshan Yellamaraju closed 66-68 on the weekend to finish T5 at 9-under, earning the fourth-best finish by a PGA TOUR rookie at THE PLAYERS.

Making his second start of the 2026 season since returning from back surgery, 2021 PLAYERS Champion Justin Thomas finished T8 at 8-under, earning his first top-10 finish on TOUR since the 2025 TOUR Championship. Two-time PLAYERS Champion and World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler finished T22 at 5-under, recording his 27th consecutive top-25 finish on TOUR.

Looking Ahead

Young’s victory comes at the perfect time as he prepares for the Masters. He earned 750 FedExCup points and moved from No. 12 to No. 2 in the FedExCup standings, his highest rank after any week in his TOUR career. He also earned an exemption on the PGA TOUR through 2031 and three-year exemptions into the Masters Tournament, PGA Championship, U.S. Open and Open Championship.

In four previous appearances at THE PLAYERS Championship, he had finished MC (2022), T51 (2023), T54 (2024), and T61 (2025). This place had his number – until Sunday.

Cameron Young’s victory at THE PLAYERS Championship represents more than just his second PGA TOUR win. It’s validation of his talent, proof that his mental game has caught up to his physical skills, and a statement that he belongs among golf’s elite. With the Masters just weeks away, Young has momentum, confidence, and the memory of hitting the best shot of his life when it mattered most.

PGA TOUR: Bhatia Charges to Victory at Bay Hill

The Winning Moment

Akshay Bhatia started the back nine five shots behind Daniel Berger at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard. The 24-year-old closed with 3-under 69 to finish at 15-under 273, matching Berger and winning with a par on the first playoff hole. It marked his third PGA TOUR victory and moved him into the top 20 in the world.

The Back Nine Charge

Bhatia ran off four straight birdies starting at the 10th, including one from just inside 60 feet on the 11th. At the 13th, Bhatia holed a 10-foot birdie while Berger had a plugged bunker lie and made bogey, cutting the lead to one.

The par-5 16th turned electric. Bhatia’s 6-iron nearly went in, setting up a 3-foot eagle. “Joe said, Just try to hit the best 6-iron of your life,” Bhatia said of caddie Joe Greiner. Berger made birdie to stay one ahead.

Berger lost the lead, missing a 7-foot par putt on the 17th, but got into the playoff with an up-and-down from 70 yards on 18.

The Playoff

They finished at 15-under 273, the first Bay Hill playoff since 1999.

Berger pulled his drive and hit a 6-iron to the front edge, 106 feet away. He rolled that to 7 feet but missed the par putt.

Bhatia two-putted from just inside 30 feet for the win and the $4 million prize.

A Personal Dedication

Bhatia dedicated the win to his niece Mia, who passed away in December at age five. She was diagnosed with a rare disease and wasn’t supposed to make it past a year old.

“It was the day of our wedding she passed away,” Bhatia said. “She stayed in a house where we got married, it was called Heaven on Earth.”

When a rainbow appeared on the 18th green during the trophy ceremony, Bhatia saw it as a sign. “I saw that rainbow on 18, it reminded me of her.”

Other Notable Performances

Berger earned a spot in The Open Championship and moved into the top 40 in the world. His consolation prize included $2.2 million. Cameron Young played bogey-free for a 69 and tied for third with Ludvig Åberg (67). Scottie Scheffler took another double bogey on 18 for a 73 and tied for 24th, the first time since the U.S. Open last year that he failed to break 70 at a tournament.

PGA TOUR: Castillo Wins First Title in Puerto Rico

A Breakthrough Victory

Ricky Castillo made back-to-back birdies after 18-year-old Blades Brown came undone, closing with 5-under 67 to win the Puerto Rico Open for his first PGA TOUR title.

Brown, trying to become the youngest PGA TOUR winner in 95 years, had a one-shot lead with six holes to play when he made triple bogey on the 13th.

Castillo holed a 12-foot birdie on the 13th and pitched to 5 feet for birdie on the 14th.

The Deciding Moment

Brown drove into a fairway bunker on the 13th, and his approach drifted into the water. He took his drop, got too aggressive with a wedge, and the ball trickled over the green. He chipped to 7 feet and missed, taking triple bogey.

Castillo finished at 17-under 271, one shot ahead of Chandler Blanchet (67). Brown birdied his last hole for a 69 to finish third, his first top 10 on the PGA TOUR.

A Silver Lining

Castillo narrowly missed getting into Bay Hill by 11 FedExCup points. He headed to Puerto Rico, played bogey-free in the final round at Grand Reserve, and earned his way into his first major as a pro.

“It’s really cool to be able to win my first event,” Castillo said. “I felt like I wanted to be in Bay Hill and I decided to just come out here and play this and ended up winning, so it all works out in the end.”

The victory gets him into the PGA Championship. He already was eligible for THE PLAYERS Championship next week.

The 25-year-old University of Florida product turned professional in 2023 and owns one Korn Ferry Tour victory. He becomes the second first-time winner on TOUR this season and the 12th player to earn their first win at the Puerto Rico Open.

Other Notable Performances

John Daly II, the 22-year-old son of two-time major champion John Daly, started three shots behind but fell back with five bogeys in seven holes on the back nine and shot 74. Brown earned his spot in the Valspar Championship at Innisbrook with his first top 10.

PGA TOUR Champions: Johnson Wins Champions Debut

Historic Start

Zach Johnson cruised to a four-stroke victory at the James Hardie Pro Football Hall of Fame Invitational to become the 22nd player to win his PGA TOUR Champions debut.

The 50-year-old closed with 69 to finish at 11-under 205. He becomes the fourth-youngest winner in PGA TOUR Champions history at 50 years, 12 days.

Johnson snapped a winless streak of 10 years, 7 months, 16 days dating to the 2015 Open Championship. He becomes the 24th player to win on the PGA TOUR, PGA TOUR Champions, and Korn Ferry Tour.

Converting the Lead

Johnson entered the final round with a one-stroke lead over George McNeill and Steve Allan.

“I’m in somewhat in awe, certainly honored and humbled,” Johnson said. “Just grateful that I’ve got an ensemble of individuals that allow me to do what I do.”

This is the largest margin of victory on PGA TOUR Champions since the 2025 Simmons Bank Championship when Steven Alker won by seven strokes.

Other Notable Performances

Stewart Cink, seeking his third consecutive win, closed with 70 to finish tied for second at 7-under. The reigning Charles Schwab Cup winner remains atop the 2026 standings. George McNeill closed with 72 to finish tied for second. He has finished top 5 in both starts on PGA TOUR Champions. Padraig Harrington carded the low round with a bogey-free 65 to finish at 6-under after opening with 7-over 79.

LPGA Tour: Lee Ends Drought at Blue Bay

A Dramatic Finish

Mi Hyang Lee earned her third LPGA Tour victory at the Blue Bay LPGA, ending a drought of 3,143 days since her 2017 ISPS HANDA Women’s Scottish Open win.

Lee shot 1-over 73 in the final round to finish at 11-under 277, one shot clear of Weiwei Zhang. She birdied the 18th to win after a roller-coaster final round with two double bogeys on the front nine.

“Was first hole make birdie, but like two double front nine and then finish 4-over so was almost give up, but my caddie just kept telling me keep fighting, fighting,” Lee said.

The Comeback

Lee made five birdies, two bogeys and two double bogeys in the final round. She hit 7 of 14 fairways, 11 of 18 greens and had 27 putts. She shot a bogey-free 33 on the back nine.

This is her second time converting a 54-hole lead into a win. The last time was at the 2014 TOTO Japan Classic.

Lee’s approach on 18 from 75 yards proved decisive. She used a 58-degree wedge, landing it at 65 yards and spinning it to within a few feet.

Playing Through Injury

Lee revealed she has been dealing with a shoulder injury and only started playing golf on February 1. This was her third week back.

“My doctor told me yesterday just keep doing it and because he said he can fix it,” Lee said. “I just started golf February first, so this is my only one month to play golf. But that’s why just I cannot believe I’m winning this trophy.”

Other Notable Performances

Weiwei Zhang finished at 278 after carding 3-under 69. She moved to No. 8 in the Race to CME Globe. Auston Kim and Aditi Ashok tied for third at 280. Kim shot 1-under 71 and moves to No. 3 in the Race to CME Globe, her second top 3 result in two weeks. Amateur Yujie Liu from the People’s Republic of China finished 3-under, the only amateur to make the cut, earning a LEAP point with her tied for 12th finish.

Echavarria Wins After Lowry’s Bear Trap Nightmare

The Winning Moment

Nico Echavarria didn’t make a bogey all weekend at the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches. Shane Lowry was on his way to doing the same until the very end. And that’s what decided the tournament.

The 31-year-old Colombian closed with a 5-under 66 on Sunday to finish at 17-under 267, beating Lowry, Austin Smotherman, and Taylor Moore by two shots. It marked his third PGA TOUR victory and first in the United States, earning him a second Masters invitation and the biggest winner’s check of his career at $1.728 million.

“Sometimes you have to have good breaks,” Echavarria said after the win.

He got them. Lowry didn’t.

Lowry’s Heartbreaking Collapse

Shane Lowry had a three-shot lead over Echavarria with three holes to play. Then came the Bear Trap PGA National’s infamous closing stretch and everything unraveled.

On the par-4 16th, Lowry’s long iron off the tee sailed way right into the water. After a penalty drop, he hit a wedge back to the fairway, found a greenside bunker with his fourth shot, and eventually made double bogey. His lead was down to one.

While Lowry was scrambling, Echavarria hit his approach on the par-3 17th to about 10 feet. He rolled in the birdie putt to pull into a tie, punching the air as the ball dropped.

Then Lowry made another double at 17 with an iron shot that came up well short and right. He needed a miracle on the par-5 18th, but his bunker shot from nearly 30 yards skidded by the hole. Echavarria, watching from the scoring tent, knew he had won.

“It’s unfortunate the way he finished,” Echavarria said. “It’s a hard tournament to close. It’s not easy to have a lead coming down the stretch on this course.”

For Lowry, it was another crushing finish at PGA National, where he’s now finished in the top 11 in five straight years without a victory. He was second in 2022, tied for fourth in 2024, and now this is his best finish on paper, but the one that hurt the most.

“I’m obviously extremely disappointed,” Lowry said. “I had the tournament in my hands, and I threw it away. That’s twice this year now so far. I’m getting good at it.”

The Week That Changed Everything

Echavarria’s victory came with added significance beyond the trophy and the payday. The win secured his spot at Augusta National for the second time in his career and earned him exemptions through 2028, including starts in THE PLAYERS, the PGA Championship, and all Signature Events this season.

“I had this feeling that things were starting to click,” Echavarria said. “I played well in Riviera. Unfortunately I didn’t make a single putt and missed the cut by one, but I knew that coming into Bermuda greens, it was going to be my forte.”

The win also moved him up 40 spots to No. 6 in the FedExCup standings and made him the second player from Colombia to win this event, following Camilo Villegas in 2010. Fittingly, Echavarria stayed at Villegas’ house this week.

Other Notable Performances

Austin Smotherman posted his best finish in 82 TOUR starts with a tie for second at 15-under. The performance earned him a spot in next week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational via the Aon Next 10. He led the field with 23 birdies for the week.

Taylor Moore also finished tied for second and secured his spot at Bay Hill via the Aon Swing 5. He was one of just two players to post four rounds in the 60s this week.

Brooks Koepka showed signs of life in his return to the PGA TOUR, closing with a 6-under 65 to finish tied for ninth. It marked his best result since rejoining the TOUR through the Returning Member Program after three starts that included a missed cut at the WM Phoenix Open.

“I played really solid the last three days,” Koepka said. “Putter obviously has gotten better. Found some confidence. I think that’s the one thing that’s been lacking.”

Koepka made an important putting adjustment Thursday night that he said made a “huge difference” for the rest of his week. He’ll skip next week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational but will return for THE PLAYERS Championship in two weeks.

Green Wins With Husband on the Bag

An Emotional Victory

Hannah Green won her second HSBC Women’s World Championship with a final-round 69 to finish at 14-under 274, one shot clear of Auston Kim. But this victory carried far more emotional weight than her first win at the event two years ago.

This time, her husband Jared was on the bag.

“I think I’m far more emotional just because I was able to do it with my husband,” Green said through tears. “I felt like, yeah, again, I played good in areas last year but it wasn’t very consistent at all and I guess it has been a long time since I have had a trophy in my hand.”

The win ended a 497-day drought dating back to the 2024 BMW Ladies Championship. It was her seventh career LPGA victory and pushed her past $8 million in career earnings.

The Final Round Drama

Green played all four rounds under par at Sentosa Golf Club, leading the field with two eagles for the week, one in the first round and one in the fourth. She hit 8 of 14 fairways and 14 of 18 greens in regulation in her final round, making three bogeys, four birdies, and an eagle.

The 32-year-old Australian acknowledged feeling nervous down the stretch despite her solid play.

“I felt honestly really nervous out there,” Green said. “I was talking to my caddie, husband and saying, like I don’t know why I’m feeling this way. I haven’t really felt like that in a while but I guess if it’s been that long perhaps that’s why.”

Green’s birdie on the 15th hole proved crucial, giving her a cushion heading into the difficult closing stretch. She made the decision to lay up on the par-5 16th rather than go for the green, ultimately making par before finishing with two soft bogeys.

“I knew that I had enough of a lead to be able to get away with making mistakes coming down the stretch,” she said. “But I think 15 was the real turning point.”

Looking Ahead

Green’s husband will continue caddying for her at the next two events in Australia, including the Australian Open. Her regular caddie is currently unable to leave the United States while applying for a green card.

The victory also holds special significance for Green’s season outlook. When she won Singapore two years ago, she went on to win two other tournaments that season in what became her best year on tour.

“Having a win so early in the season gives me a bit more flexibility with the tournaments that I can play,” Green said. “So I’m hoping that this puts me in good standing for the rest of the year.”

Jarvis Goes Back-to-Back on DP World Tour

Second Consecutive Victory

Casey Jarvis became the second player this season to win consecutive DP World Tour events, following fellow South African Jayden Schaper. The 22-year-old closed with a final-round 69 to win the Investec South African Open Championship by three shots at 11-under par.

The victory at Stellenbosch Golf Club came one week after his breakthrough win at the Magical Kenya Open and carried extra significance: For the first time in the event’s history, the winner received an exemption into the Masters Tournament.

“It’s been a dream of mine since I was a kid to play at Augusta,” Jarvis said. “I thought about it this morning, I tried not to but it was hard not to think about it, but I cannot wait to go there and see how my game compares to the best players in the world.”

Open Championship Qualifiers

The top three finishers at the Investec South African Open Championship also earned spots at the 154th Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. However, with a three-way tie for second place, only the final two spots were available based on Official World Golf Rankings.

Francesco Laporta and Frederic Lacroix secured their places at Royal Birkdale. Laporta, who spent three years on the Sunshine Tour and calls South Africa his “second home,” will make his first Major appearance. Lacroix will make his second Major start after appearing at the 2025 U.S. Open Championship.

Hennie du Plessis narrowly missed out despite chipping in for birdie at the 17th. He found the water with his approach into the final green and made bogey, ultimately losing the Open spot due to his lower world ranking.

Winter Park, FL Connection

Among the notable performances this week was a tie for 43rd by Pierre Viallaneix, a former Winter Park High School Wildcat. As an assistant coach for the Winter Park High School Boys Golf Team, I’ve come to appreciate the caliber of talent that has come through the program over the years. While I arrived after Viallaneix’s time there, I’ve had the opportunity to cross paths with him at Wekiva Golf Club, where he occasionally practices when he’s in Florida and where I coach some of my private lesson students. The kid has got plenty of game indeed.

The Frenchman posted rounds of 71-65-73-69 to finish at 2-under par, earning €6,480.19.

Viallaneix has shown steady improvement this season with a tie for 40th at the Alfred Dunhill Championship earlier in the year. His second-round 65 demonstrated the quality of golf that has him knocking on the door of bigger finishes on the DP World Tour.