Lauren Walsh has targeted earning a place in the LPGA Tour’s season-ending CME Globe Tour Championship in November as the icing on the cake of what so far has been a terrific rookie season on the US circuit.
The Castlewarden player is currently 86th on the LPGA Tour order of merit, with the top-60 exempt into the tour finale at Tubúron Golf Club in Florida, while the top-100 retain full tour cards. And Walsh’s itinerary when the LPGA Tour resumes in late-September after the Solheim Cup will see her start a busy run-in by playing in Arkansas, Hawaii, Asia (with tour stops in China, South Korea, Malaysia and Japan) before returning for back-to-back weeks in Florida.
“A big goal for this year was to not have to go back to Q-School, to be honest. I wanted to play CME [Tour Championship] in November and hopefully in the next couple of weeks I can jump my way back up and get into that.
“That was the goal at the start of the year and obviously that would mean no Q-School either. Q-School’s a grind, you never want to go [unless] you have to. Fingers crossed, touch wood we won’t be there this year.
“It’s hard for a rookie going out on the LPGA, a lot end up losing their card after their first year and don’t quite integrate as quickly as they would like. But I’m very pleased with where I’m at and hopefully we can have another run at it next year.”
The fine margins of elite golf shown in new R&A documentary
With quite a considered sense of timing, the R&A’s documentary – Margins – contrasting the post-Walker Cup careers of two protagonists from the 2011 match at Royal Aberdeen has landed, just days before this weekend’s 51st match between Great Britain and Ireland against the United States at Lahinch.
In that 2011 edition of the biennial match, James Byrne defeated Jordan Spieth in their singles match, only for the two men to have quite different experiences on turning professional.
The 27-minute long film explores the fine margins that can shape the careers of even the most talented amateur golfers through the contrasting journeys of Byrne and Spieth, who to date has won three Majors in his pro career.
In in-depth interviews, both players look back on their experiences of the Walker Cup and reflect on the opportunities, decisions and circumstances that can influence a player’s career after competing at the highest level of amateur golf.
The documentary is now available to watch here.
Scottie Scheffler of the United States poses with the trophy after winning the final round of the Tour Championship at East Lake. Photograph: Kevin C Cox/Getty Word of Mouth
“I think he knows that he’s got an edge on most guys out here. He doesn’t have to do anything crazy. He can play smart and just kind of pick his spots, stay in it constantly.” – Viktor Hovland tipping the cap to his conqueror Scottie Scheffler after losing out to the world number one by one stroke in the Tour Championship, the finale to the FedEx Cup on the PGA Tour. The Norwegian aims to finish off his year’s work by returning to Europe for three tournaments, including the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.
By the Numbers: 0
There are no Irish players in the field for this week’s DP World Tour stop, the Omega European Masters at Crans in Switzerland.
On this day: September 1st, 1991
If you’d like a piece of trivia, Mark Brooks is the player with the most starts on the PGA Tour with 803 tournament appearances in his career.
One of his seven wins – and second of the season, having won the Greater Greensboro Open in April – came at the Greater Milwaukee Open at Tuckaway Country Club where Brooks compiled rounds of 63-67-70-70 for a total of 18-under-par 270, one stroke clear of Robert Gamez.
The pair were in a tie for the lead through 15 holes of the final round, but Brooks – playing in the group behind Gamez – was able to adopt a safety-first approach over the closing stretch after Gamez bogeyed the 16th and 18th holes, knowing a bogey would on the closing hole would be sufficient to get the victory.
“It’s not a pretty way to finish, but I got the job done. I tried not to let it affect my shot, but it certainly affected my shot selection a few times,” admitted Brooks of playing conservatively over the closing stretch.
Social Swing
Thanks to Ballybunion Golf Club for hosting the GB&I team as they begin their preparation for the 51st Walker Cup at Lahinch – the social media platforms for the Walker Cup after Dean Robertson’s team had a two-day camp at the Kerry links ahead of the match against the United States this weekend.
Casandra Alexander goes wire-to-wire to clinch the KPMG Women’s Open and extend her lead in the LET Golf Order of Merit. Trusting her ProV1 and 14 Titleist clubs, Casandra carded rounds of 63, 66, 69 and 70 to win by three shots and secure her second LET title. #TeamTitleist – the folks at Titleist Europe happy with their player’s success at The K Club.
Three wins, five runners-up and finishing the season No. 1. Those are some numbers to be proud of. Incredible consistency all season long. Congrats on a historic season, Scottie – Tiger Woods no less impressed with Scheffler’s dominant campaign on the PGA Tour.
In the Bag
Joe Dean – British Masters
Driver: Ping G440 LST (9 degrees)
3-wood: Ping G440 Max (15 degrees)
5-wood: Ping G440 Max (21 degrees)
Irons: Ping Blueprint S (4-PW)
Wedges: Ping s259 (50 degrees, 54 degrees and 58 degrees)
Putter: Ping PLD Anser 2D
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Double Dot
Know the Rules
Q: As a player was searching in a pile of leaves, they accidentally kicked and moved their ball as well as a number of the leaves around the ball. The player estimated where the ball originally lay and replaced it on that spot but did not replace the leaves before making their next stroke. What is the ruling?
A: There is no penalty for accidentally moving the ball while trying to find it. In replacing the ball the player is not required to replace loose impediments. This situation is covered by Rule 7.4 and Clarification of Rules 7.4/1.