August 2, 2018

Welcome to eSouthernGOLF.com, the Southeast’s #1 on line digital magazine for everything golf. For up to date news and reviews on courses, products and places to play, you only have to scroll our pages of information. Our staff of experienced writers are here to bring you, our readers, the latest articles for you to enjoy. Thank you for visiting.

Italian Francesco Molinari won the PGA TOUR Quicken Loans National for his first USA win at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farms, with his TaylorMade clubs wrapped in new Lamkin TS1 grips and a Bettinardi Dass BBZero putter, with a sizzling 62 in the last round.

Louisiana born David Toms won the 39th US Senior Open, his first win on the PGA Champions Tour and first in 7 years at age 51, at the Forbes Five Star and AAA DIamond Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. Toms won the 2001 PGA Championship and 13 times on the PGA TOUR.

Twenty-four year old Sung Hyun Park from South Korea secured her 2nd major title at Kemper Lakes Golf Club to win the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in a playoff with her Seoul sister So Yeon Ryu. Sung Hyun Park means ‘shut up and attack’ in Korean.

The Common Denominator in all three of the above wins was the Titlist Pro V1x ball played by Molinari, Toms and Park.

Sweden’s Alex Noren won the French Open at Le Club National for his 10th win on the European Tour with his Callaway Rogue woods, Apex irons, Mack daddy wedges, Odyssey O-works 1 putter and Chrome X-soft ball.

Scotland’s own Russell Knox won the European Tour’s Dubai Duty Free Irish Open at Ballyliffin Golf Club in Donegal in a playoff. Knox used PING G400 driver and 3-wood, Srixon Z745 irons, Cleveland RTX-3 wedges along with Srixon ZStar XV ball.

It’s a YES for Na! Kevin won his second PGA TOUR event-A Military Tribute at the Greenbrier in White Sulpher Springs, West Virginia by 5 strokes. Kevin had not won since 2011. He has a mixed bag, Callaway Epic Driver, TaylorMade 3-wood and Titlist Irons and 5 wood along with a Pro V1 ball.

Did you see Sei? The scene was the Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic in Oneida, Wisconsin as Korean Sei Young Kim set the lowest 4-day scoring record in an LPGA tournament to win for her 7th win overall . She shot a -31 to beat Annika’s -27, which had been the lowest score in LPGA history.

South Africa’s Brandon Stone shot a 60 with his bag of Ping woods and irons on the last day at the Scottish Open on Gullane Golf Links to win the title.

Titlist Brand Ambassador Michael Kim celebrated his 25th birthday and cruised to his first win at the John Deere Classic by eight strokes at TPC Deere Run to punch his ticket to the Open Championship at Carnoustie. It was also the first win for the Titlist TS2 Driver.

Vijay Singh won the Constellation Senior Players Championship at Exmoor CC in Highland Park, Illinois in a playoff to capture his first major on the Champions Tour at 54.

Thailand has its third LPGA winner; Thidapa Suwannapura won the Marathon Classic on the first hole of a playoff with Brittany Lincicome to win his first LPGA title at Highland Meadows in Ohio.

Former Dallas Cowboy Quarterback Tony Romo won the American Century Championship at Edgewood Tahoe as an amateur, forfeiting the $125,000 payoff.

The real story of the week unfolded at Chicago Golf Club (the oldest 18 hole golf course in the nation) in Wheaton Illinois. Chicago CC, a C.B. Macdonald 1894 design, was one of the five founding clubs of the United States Golf Association, along with Shinnecock Hills, Country Club of Brookline, Ma.,Newport Golf Club in R.I.,and St. Andrews Golf Club in Yonkers, N.Y. The inaugural U.S. Senior Womens Open was played 7/12-15, 2018 at Chicago and won by Dame Laura Davies of England, a 2015 World Golf Hall of Fame inductee and 7-time Order(LET) of Merit winner. It was the 85th win of her illustrious career and first since 2010. The USGA Men’s Senior Open has been contested since 1980. After 38 years the USGA finally acknowledged Women’s Golf and the great ladies who have forged the success of the LPGA.

“Viva Italia!” Francesco Molinari is the 2018 Champion Golfer winning the 147th Open Championship at Carnoustie. He is the first Italian to win the Claret Jug. The Italian Soccer team was not invited to the World Cup for the first time in 60 years, but a countryman winning in Scotland might sooth the hurt, playing the Titlist Pro V1x. Bravo Francesco!

Brittany Lincicome became the sixth lady to compete in a PGA TOUR event playing in Kentucky at the Barbasol Championship on the Keene Trace Golf Club. 2008 was the last time a woman competed. Brittany did not make the cut while Troy Merritt secured his second TOUR win in a Monday finish. Troy, wearing his Galvin Green apparel, played a Wilson D-300 Driver and C-300 irons along with a Titlist Pro V1. Congratulations Troy.

Ariya Jutanugarn, at age 22, won the Ladies Scottish Open by one stroke on Gullane Golf Links for her third victory this year, bumping her back to Number 1 in the world.

Dustin Johnson won the RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ontario for his third victory of the year, maintaining his hold as the Number 1 in the world.

Miguel Angel Jiminez, the most interesting man in golf, secured his second major of 2018 by winning the Senior Open Championship at St. Andrews by 1 stroke over Bernhard Langer. The pony-tailed Spaniard was very emotional about his win at the Home of Golf, “It has always been my ambition to win here. It feels like I am part of history.”

After 17 years as a professional, Englishman Richard McEvoy claimed his first professional victory at the Porsche European Open at age 39 at the Green Eagle Golf Club outside Hamburg, Germany. Well done Richard!

The PGA TOUR announced its 2018 Fall-2019 Summer Schedule and has put 4 consecutive events back in the Florida Swing starting with the Honda Classic in Palm Beach Gardens, 2/28-3/3. March 7th-10th the Arnold Palmer Invitational will be played at Bay Hill followed by The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass, March14th-17th. Completing the foursome, The Valspar Championship on the Copperhead golf course at the Innisbrook Resort in Palm Harbor. The move of the Players Championship from May to March allows the TOUR to move the PGA Championship from August to May and ending the season with the playoffs in August and FedEx Cup Championship on Labor Day. Money is the deciding factor for the TOUR. The viewership during the PGA playoffs reducing the field to 30 players at the FedEx Cup competes with the beginning of the NFL season, which plays into the advertising dollars they can charge. If normal golf viewers are watching football, the cost of advertising is lower for the numbers watching golf. Show me the money!

David J. Daubert – Editor