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Boston Globe
05-07-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Davis Thompson makes late birdie to break out of a logjam and lead PGA John Deere Classic
About the only player not in the mix was 36-hole leader Doug Ghim, who played his last 10 holes with two bogeys and no birdies and shot 74, pushing him outside the top 20. Advertisement Thompson had a birdie-birdie finish, though he missed an 8-foot eagle attempt on the par-5 17th hole. He will try to become the first player to win back-to-back at the John Deere Classic since Steve Stricker won three in a row from 2009 through 2011. Also at stake for Thompson is a chance to get into the British Open, as a victory would move him to the top of the alternate list determined by the next world ranking. But the final 18 holes feels a lot longer off considering how many players are very much in the mix going into Sunday. 'Nice to have some momentum going into tomorrow,' Thompson said. Camilo Villegas (69) and Austin Eckroat (67) were among four players three shots behind. Matt Kuchar (67) and Auburn junior Jackson Koivun were in the group four back. Thirteen players were within four shots of the lead. Advertisement Of the top 14 players, only Lipsky, Koivun, and Kevin Roy have yet to win on the PGA Tour. Homa is the most proven of the lot, though he has been trying to pull himself out of a deep slump that has left him on the outside of just trying to make the PGA Tour playoffs this year. Homa was steady again, even after one of his rare misses. He was some 40 yards left of the green at the par-5 10th, even going across the road, but managed to escape with par and then took advantage of the scoring holes on the back nine for his 68. Homa last won on the PGA Tour in January 2023 at Torrey Pines. He has been under scrutiny this year for his poor form — more than a year since his last top 10 — while changing coaches, equipment and twice changing caddies. 'Golf has just been very boring for me this year. I haven't had a whole lot of stress, and you want to be stressed out. So I look forward to the butterflies in the morning; I look forward to the first tee shot,' Homa said. 'It's just nice to get to feel that again. It's been a while.' This was not the same TPC Deere Run that yielded low scores over the opening two rounds. The starting times were moved up to avoid afternoon thunderstorms, and hot weather and wind combined to make the greens firmer and fasters. Plus, several of the pins were tucked along the edges, punishing misses on the wrong side. Advertisement No one shot lower than 66 in the third round. There were 28 scores of 65 or better over the opening two rounds. 'Certainly makes for a fun Sunday when a bunch of guys have a chance,' Kuchar said. One of them is Koivun, still four shots back but with a chance to make it two years in a row with an amateur winning on the PGA Tour. Nick Dunlap won The American Express last year in January and left Alabama to turn pro, having $20 million signature events to play. Koivun already is assured a PGA Tour card through the PGA Tour University accelerated program, but is deferring that to return to Auburn. 'It's obviously very inspiring to see what he did about a year ago now,' Koivun said. 'Obviously, to be one of the few (amateurs) to win a professional event would be great. At the end of the day I just got to go give it my best shot and be happy with the result.'
USA Today
28-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
This California course that hosted a PGA Tour event is getting a significant facelift
It has been 20 years since most of the initial construction work was done on the 18-hole golf course at SilverRock Resort and 19 years since SilverRock made its debut in the rotation of The American Express PGA Tour event in La Quinta. That seems a suitable time for the course to require a bit of a facelift. That's exactly what is happening at the city-owned course, where half of the course will be closed for most of the summer. The front nine of the course was closed in May to begin the process of swapping out the old TifSport Bermuda grass planted on the course two decades ago, said SilverRock general manager Randy Duncan. 'It just hasn't been as good a grass as we'd like,' Duncan said of the previous turf. 'It didn't like to get overseeded on top of it, and it was slow to transition. It was starting to impact our overseeding quality because we weren't able to get full coverage of Bermuda grass going into the fall.' SilverRock added Latitude 36 In search of a new base turf for the course, SilverRock, which left The American Express rotation after the 2011 tournament, turned one of its holes into a laboratory in 2024. 'Last summer we took the fifth hole and we experimented with three different varieties of Bermuda grass,' Duncan said. 'We wanted to see how they would do through the season. And we did not overseed any of them. We concluded that Latitude 36 was the best variety of grass for us.' More: Summer discovery: Five Coachella Valley golf courses you should rediscover this summer Developed at Oklahoma State University, Latitude 36 is known for both its drought tolerance as well as a resistance to wear from play and carts. Starting last month, crews at SilverRock began to remove the old TifSport turf throughout the golf course, with plans to hydroseed the new Latitude 36 turf this month. That process included removing tons of grass and dirt from the property. After the dirt was removed, crews worked to shape the fairways back to the original slopes and hills, since removing the old turf with what Duncan calls 'a pulverizer' causes some natural changes to the ground. With such a large project, Duncan said it made sense to tackle some other issues on the front nine. That includes some small things, like laser-leveling the tees on the front nine. 'We also took that opportunity to go in and smooth out the transitions from cart paths to fairways,' Duncan said. 'Over 20 years, we get a buildup of six to eight inches from cart paths to fairways. We went in and took the opportunity to smooth a lot of those out and re-did a lot of the fingers coming into our bunker faces so we have easier access to the bunkers. And we got the greens back to their original size.' Desert courses do well with MiniVerde It is the green surface where SilverRock is joining dozens of other courses by bringing MiniVerde, a Bermuda grass with a small blade, to the putting surfaces. One reason SilverRock likes MiniVerde, like other courses in the desert, is the idea that MiniVerde might not need to be overseeded with cool-weather grasses like ryegrass to maintain a green color in the winter. 'That's kind of where I want to go, to eventually be in a position where we may not have to overseed down the road,' Duncan said. For now, golfers wanting to play 18 holes at SilverRock get two trips around the back nine. With most of the work already done at SilverRock, the rest of the summer will be allowing the new Latitude 36 Bermuda base to grow in. Duncan said the plan is to reopen the front nine in mid-August, then shut down the course for a traditional overseeding around the start of October. 'So we've got the front nine, doing that this summer, and assuming city council will approve us to do the back nine, we will do the back nine next summer,' Duncan said. 'So we will be fully re-grassed by the end of summer 2026, front and back nine.'
USA Today
25-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Palm Springs area golf course making switch to new Bermuda grass for base turf
It has been 20 years since most of the initial construction work was done on the 18-hole golf course at SilverRock Resort and 19 years since SilverRock made its debut in the rotation of The American Express PGA Tour event in La Quinta. That seems a suitable time for the course to require a bit of a facelift. That's exactly what is happening at the city-owned course, where half of the course will be closed for most of the summer. The front nine of the course was closed in May to begin the process of swapping out the old TifSport Bermuda grass planted on the course two decades ago, said SilverRock general manager Randy Duncan. 'It just hasn't been as good a grass as we'd like,' Duncan said of the previous turf. 'It didn't like to get overseeded on top of it, and it was slow to transition. It was starting to impact our overseeding quality because we weren't able to get full coverage of Bermuda grass going into the fall.' In search of a new base turf for the course, SilverRock, which left The American Express rotation after the 2011 tournament, turned one of its holes into a laboratory in 2024. 'Last summer we took the fifth hole and we experimented with three different varieties of Bermuda grass,' Duncan said. 'We wanted to see how they would do through the season. And we did not overseed any of them. We concluded that Latitude 36 was the best variety of grass for us.' Developed at Oklahoma State University, Latitude 36 is known for both its drought tolerance as well as a resistance to wear from play and carts. Starting last month, crews at SilverRock began to remove the old TifSport turf throughout the golf course, with plans to hydroseed the new Latitude 36 turf this month. That process included removing tons of grass and dirt from the property. After the dirt was removed, crews worked to shape the fairways back to the original slopes and hills, since removing the old turf with what Duncan calls 'a pulverizer' causes some natural changes to the ground. With such a large project, Duncan said it made sense to tackle some other issues on the front nine. That includes some small things, like laser-leveling the tees on the front nine. 'We also took that opportunity to go in and smooth out the transitions from cart paths to fairways,' Duncan said. 'Over 20 years, we get a buildup of six to eight inches from cart paths to fairways. We went in and took the opportunity to smooth a lot of those out and re-did a lot of the fingers coming into our bunker faces so we have easier access to the bunkers. And we got the greens back to their original size.' It is the green surface where SilverRock is joining dozens of other courses by bringing MiniVerde, a Bermuda grass with a small blade, to the putting surfaces. One reason SilverRock likes MiniVerde, like other courses in the desert, is the idea that MiniVerde might not need to be overseeded with cool-weather grasses like ryegrass to maintain a green color in the winter. 'That's kind of where I want to go, to eventually be in a position where we may not have to overseed down the road,' Duncan said. For now, golfers wanting to play 18 holes at SilverRock get two trips around the back nine. With most of the work already done at SilverRock, the rest of the summer will be allowing the new Latitude 36 Bermuda base to grow in. Duncan said the plan is to reopen the front nine in mid-August, then shut down the course for a traditional overseeding around the start of October. 'So we've got the front nine, doing that this summer, and assuming city council will approve us to do the back nine, we will do the back nine next summer,' Duncan said. 'So we will be fully re-grassed by the end of summer 2026, front and back nine.'
Yahoo
24-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Rocket Classic Dealt Blow as Five PGA Tour Golfers Withdraw in Less Than 24 Hours
Rocket Classic Dealt Blow as Five PGA Tour Golfers Withdraw in Less Than 24 Hours originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Rocket Classic's field of golfers will look different than originally expected. On Sunday, the PGA Tour announced that Christian Bezuidenhout had withdrawn from the event as the Travelers Championship concluded its final day. It would turn out to be the first in a series of withdraws. Advertisement The PGA Tour revealed five additional golfers have withdrawn on Monday bringing the total to six with the potential for more to come ahead of Thursday's first round. This news comes as the PGA Tour concluded its final elevated event at the Travelers Championship. Stars like Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are among the golfers who will not be competing at the Rocket Classic. There will still be some intriguing names with Rickie Fowler and Keegan Bradley, fresh off his Travelers Championship win, among the field of golfers. Charley Hoffman putts on the 18th green during the final round of The American Express golf tournament at La Quinta Country Club. Abe Arredondo-Imagn Images Charley Hoffman is the latest golfer to withdraw from the Rocket Classic with Hayden Springer set to replace him this week. Additional withdraws on Monday included Brandon Matthews, Eric Cole and Kevin Yu. Tim Widing was announced as a withdraw on Sunday night as well. Newly added golfers include Harrison Endycott, Brandon Matthews, Joe Hook, Anders Albertson, James Piot and David Ford. Advertisement Collin Morikawa is the favorite to win the Rocket Classic amid a revamped field of golfers at +1200, per DraftKings. Patrick Cantlay (+1600) and Bradley (+1800) are closely behind Morikawa in the Rocket Classic odds. Bradley was able to erase Tommy Fleetwood's one-stroke lead heading into the final hole to win the Travelers Championship. "I had a putt to win the tournament, and I just went through my routine, all the stupid cliches that we all say," Bradley told reporters on Sunday. "I just went through my process, my routine. Tommy's -- sometimes I don't like when you see the players hit the putt. "I saw his break a ton and then when I went and felt it with my feet, I felt it at a half degree, and his broke more like a one or maybe more. And I just decided to trust my read because I didn't feel it, and I played mine left center and it went in right in the middle, so what an incredible memory." Advertisement Related: Scottie Scheffler Gets Honest About Life Changes With Wife Meredith, Son Bennett This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 23, 2025, where it first appeared.
Daily Record
06-06-2025
- Sport
- Daily Record
Humiliated golf star racks up a 12 at the RBC Canadian Open in disastrous opening hole
French ace Matthieu Pavon suffered the nightmare in Toronto but incredibly it isn't the worst score on a hole this year Mashed-up Matthieu Pavon was left devastated after carding a disastrous 12 at the RBC Canadian Open. The French star suffered the calamity on the opening hole, the 10th on the course, of his second round at TPC Toronto. Pavon's anguish began with a wild tee shot into trouble and, having got his ball back into play, he hit a fourth into the water. The 32-year-old reloaded and promptly hit his sixth into the drink before doing exactly the same again with his eighth after yet another penalty drop. Pavon finally managed to get his 10th shot onto the putting surface before taking two-putts to sign for a dozen. Such is golf, the shattered star bounced back with two straight birdies, but the damage was well and truly done. It was painful for Pavon, but he did go one better than William Mouw, who ended up with a 13 during his second round of The American Express in January. He made an octuple-bogey, tripped up by the notorious 18-foot-deep greenside bunker. It took him 13 shots to play the famed par five, most of which were caught by TV cameras. Mouw said: 'I'm definitely not the first to get captured by the bunker and make a big number and I certainly won't be the last.' You can get all the news you need on our dedicated Rangers and Celtic pages, and sign up to our newsletters to make sure you never miss a beat throughout the season. We're also WhatsApp where we bring all the latest breaking news and transfer gossip directly to you phone. Join our Rangers community here and our Celtic community here.
