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Rocket Mortgage Classic Rd. 3 Tee Times for competitive Moving Day rocket,mortgage,classic,rd,tee,times,for,competitive,moving,day,sbnation,com,golf,us-open-golf,golf-majors,golf-pga-tour,golf-news

On: June 29, 2024 By: admin

Welcome to Playing Through’s morning ritual — Golf Talk Today.

Each morning will feature a Golf Talk Today, where the crew will discuss various elements throughout the PGA Tour, LPGA, LIV Golf, and more.

It is Moving Day at the Rocket Mortgage Classic.

Akshay Bhatia and Aaron Rai are tied for the lead at 13-under and remain the only two players without a bogey on their scorecards. For the second week in a row, the tournament is a birdie fest.

The PGA Tour chose to take precautions for Saturday’s round and have the players go off on split tees again as inclement weather is headed toward Detroit Golf Club. Who can take advantage of the track on Saturday and post a low number headed into the final day?

Brew a pot of coffee, grab some breakfast, and settle in as we get you ready for the third round of the Rocket Mortgage Classic.

Notable names who missed the cut at the Rocket Mortgage Classic

The cut line for the Rocket Mortgage Classic sat at 4-under, the second lowest in the tournament’s short history. The top 60 and ties make the weekend in Detroit, but check out the biggest names that are headed home early.

Popular golfers who missed the cut at Rocket Mortgage
Keith Mitchell: 3-under, 70-71
Michael Thorbjornsen: 3-under, 68-73
Tom Kim: 3-under, 73-68
Francesco Molinari: 2-under, 72-70
Daniel Berger: 2-under, 70-72
Robert MacIntyre: 1-under, 71-72
Brendon Todd: 1-under, 71-72
Jackson Koivun (a): E, 72,72
Miles Russell (a): 74-70
Kevin Kisner: 2-over, 75-71
Gary Woodland: 2-over, 70-76

Rocket Mortgage Round 3 Tee Times (ET):

*tees off from 10th tee

10:48 a.m. — Ben Silverman, Vince Whaley, Justin Lower

10:48 a.m.* — Ryan Fox, Matt Kuchar, Rickie Fowler

10:59 a.m. — David Skinns, Jacob Bridgeman, Luke Clanton (a)

10:59 a.m.* — Matti Schmid, Patton Kizzire, Ben Griffin

11:10 a.m. — Bud Cauley, Davis Thompson, Ben Kohles

11:10 a.m.* — Rico Hoey, Aaron Baddeley, Nate Lashley

11:21 a.m. — Chris Kirk, Nick Hardy, Andrew Novak

11:21 a.m.* — Hayden Buckley, Kevin Streelman, Ryan McCormick

11:32 a.m. — Nick Dunlap, Dylan Wu, Will Zalatoris

11:32 a.m.* — Maverick McNealy, Blaine Hale Jr., Carl Yuan

11:43 a.m. — Michael Kim, Robby Shelton, Hayden Springer

11:43 a.m.* — Max Greyserman, Peter Malnati, Taylore Moore

11:54 a.m. — Zach Johnson, Patrick Rodgers, Nicolai Højgaard

11:54 a.m.* — Callum Tarren, Patrick Fishburn, Harry Hall

12:05 p.m. — Roger Sloan, Min Woo Lee, J.J. Spaun

12:05 p.m.* — Chris Gotterup, Taylor Pendrith, Nico Echavarria

12:16 p.m. — Neal Shipley, Joe Highsmith, Jhonattan Vegas

12:16 p.m.* — Mark Hubbard, Pierceson Coody, Ryan Moore

12:27 p.m. — Jake Knapp, Wesley Bryan, Sam Stevens

12:27 p.m.* — Brandon Wu, Kevin Yu, Davis Riley

12:38 p.m. — Eric Cole, Cam Davis, Joel Dahmen

12:38 p.m.* — Luke List, Beau Hossler, Ryo Hisatusne

12:49 p.m. — Troy Merritt, Erik van Rooyen, Cameron Young

12:49 p.m* — Chandler Phillips, Nicholas Lindheim, Ben Jones (a)

1:00 p.m. — Akshay Bhatia, Aaron Rai, Taylor Montgomery

ICYMI: Top stories from the Rocket Mortgage Classic and across professional golf

Check out these stories:

PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh stepping down; not renewing contract

Paige Spiranac reveals eye-popping handicap; quiets trolls with impressive receipts

Former Rocket Mortgage Classic champion making more memories, records first PGA Tour hole-in-one

Padraig Harrington deep dives into worst golf swing advice ahead of U.S. Senior Open

U.S. Senior Open: Golfer makes mind blowing consecutive holes-in-one that will make your jaw drop

Rocket Mortgage: Neal Shipley finds no learning curve, contends in 1st professional PGA Tour start

Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, be sure to follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.

Rocket Mortgage: Neal Shipley finds no learning curve, easily in mix rocket,mortgage,neal,shipley,finds,no,learning,curve,easily,in,mix,sbnation,com,front-page,golf,golf-pga-tour,golf-news

On: June 28, 2024 By: admin

Neal Shipley is no longer an amateur golfer but officially a professional. He made his PGA Tour Americas start last week at The Beachlands Victoria Open and finished T9.

Shipley received a sponsorship exemption into the Rocket Mortgage Classic to make his first PGA Tour start as a professional. He is no stranger to the PGA Tour, though, as he took the world by storm at The Masters and U.S. Open.

The former Ohio State Buckeye finished low amateur at both majors, becoming the second player in the last 25 years to achieve this feat. Viktor Hovland was the other player to do it in 2019.

Friday at Detroit Golf Club saw him card a 4-under 68 to follow his Thursday 5-under 67 score. He sits at 9-under total and four shots behind the leader, Akshay Bhatia. Despite being a new kid on the block, Shipley does not consider it.

“With my experience with the majors, I don’t feel like there’s a big learning curve for me,” Shipley said.

“Pretty fortunate to have had two great experiences at Augusta and Pinehurst. I’ve been in the mix at both at certain times throughout the week, so I feel comfortable. I had a great week last week as a professional as well. So getting settled in and playing good golf, and good golf travels no matter if you’re an amateur or a professional.”

He began his day with a bogey on the par-4 2nd but rebounded and put together a solid round. Shipley recorded two more birdies on the front, then three more on the back nine as he came home in 33 strokes.

In six rounds to start his professional career, Neal Shipley has already made 42 birdies and an eagle. He is currently tied for seventh at 9-under after 36 holes at the PGA Tour’s Rocket Mortgage Classic, which means he will make the cut for a third time against PGA Tour players

— Gerry Dulac (@gerrydulac) June 28, 2024

The 23-year-old is No. 4 in strokes gained approach to the green, picking up +4.296 shots. He is also T10 in strokes gained total at +5.970.

“Had a good first two days so far. Played steady golf today, which I was pretty happy about,” he said. “Hope to keep that up in the weekend and maybe even go a little bit lower. Throw in a low round tomorrow, and we’ll be right in the mix.”

Shipley sits in a good spot heading into Saturday and the rest of the weekend. His PGA Tour journey does not stop in Detroit, as he will also play in next week’s John Deere Classic.

Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.

UFC 303 paths to victory: How can Jiri Prochazka get revenge on Alex Pereira? ufc,paths,to,victory,how,can,jiri,prochazka,get,revenge,on,alex,pereira,sbnation,com,front-page,mma,ufc,ufc-events-ppv,golf-news

On: June 28, 2024 By: admin

Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka are set to run things back.

This Saturday, Pereira and Prochazka rematch their UFC 295 light heavyweight title fight in the main event of UFC 303. The first time these two met, Pereira knocked Prochazka out in the second round to become the UFC’s ninth two-division champion. This time, the two meet on short-notice as they step in to save the day following Conor McGregor’s withdrawal from the event due to injury.

How will each man approach this fight, and how do they take home the win? Let’s take a look.

Paths to Victory for Alex Pereira at UFC 303

When these two first fought, I picked Pereira to win with relative ease because Prochazka’s offense, while potent, is not backed up by elite defense, meaning Pereira would have ample opportunity to counter. That’s less than ideal for Prochakza given that Pereira is one of the hardest punchers in the sport. And I was half right. Yes, Prochakza did walk headlong on to Pereira’s offense repeatedly, but what actually did him in was the low kicks.

Pereira is perhaps the best calf-kicker in MMA. He’s so adept at kicking the legs without any setup, making it extremely hard to read. And that’s especially bad for Prochakza who operates from a long stance with a lot of weight on the front foot. Aleksandar Rakic chopped the lead leg out from Prochakza, and was dominating the fight, until Prochazka went wild man on him and simply overran him with offense. That’s a much more difficult proposition against someone with the firepower and technique of Pereira.

What this means is that for Pereira, the path forward is simple: make this fight like the first one. Chop the front leg, defend takedowns, and clip Prochazka when he starts to get wild. On top of that, Pereira also should look to double jab, setting up the straight right hand. Because Prochakza fights with his hands down, his first instinct on defense is to slip and then slide back. The double jab with a follow up puts Prochakza in the tough spot of being at the end of his defense when the power shot comes in. Double jabs and calf kicks, that’s the name of the game on Saturday for Pereira.

Paths to victory for Jiri Prochazka at UFC 303

Despite the fact that he got stopped in the first matchup, Prochakza enters Saturday saying he’s not going to change the gameplan. That seems like a bad idea. After all, the definition of crazy is doing the same thing and expecting different results.

In the first fight, Prochakza approached it in the same way he approaches most people, a little bit of everything. He shows Pereira a ton of different looks on the feet, scored one takedown, and even stunned Pereira in the second round with a barrage of long punches that “Poatan” didn’t see coming. It’s a smart way to fight most people: but Pereira is not most people.

Keeping opponents on their toes is usually a good strategy. The more they have to consider, the harder things get for them. Except in this circumstance, when Prochakza spent the second round consenting to a striking battle with Pereira, that was just playing to his opponent’s strength. Sure, you can win that way. But it’s wiser not to.

The simplest way to beat Pereira is to take him down. That almost entirely negates his offense, meaning Prochakza has the best chance to win the fight. And while Pereira is better than many believe at wrestling and grappling, Prochakza proved he can do it. His first plan of attack should always be getting this to the floor and once it’s there, it should be about control. Prochakza’s wild tendencies extend to the ground as well and that’s how Pereira stood up in the first fight. The focus should be getting Pereira down and then keeping him there. Let offense come afterwards.

Of course that doesn’t mean be afraid of Pereira’s striking. No fighter can win a fight if they just punt on one phase of the game entirely. Prochakza had a good amount of success on the feet using a ton of feints to keep Pereira off balance. Using plenty of that, plus more body work should be the focus in striking. Prochakza has a sneaky front kick to the body that would serve him well, and the body work should open up other opportunities both up top and into clinches, where Prochakza than then look to take things to the floor.

X-Factors

According to Prochakza, the biggest x-factor is Pereira’s use of “spiritual forces” to gain an unsporting advantage in the fight. But any good samurai should be able to negate the mystical powers deployed against him, so I’m calling that a wash. No, the x-factor in this fight is the short-notice.

Per most reports, Pereira was not originally keen on stepping in to save this event on just a few weeks’ notice, and was in fact in Australia at the time. Add in that he’s recovering/still dealing with some broken toes (coincidentally the same issue that led Conor McGregor to withdraw from the event) and it’s fair to wonder what version of Pereira will step into the cage on Saturday. No fighter competes at 100 percent, but is Poatan even at 75? We’ll see.

On the other side of things, Prochakza is also stepping in on short notice but rumor has it he was training like normal. If so, that’s definitely an advantage heading into this fight.

Could all of this be nothing? Of course! It’s rumor, speculation, and conjecture. But if Pereira shows up and can’t move as well or runs out of gas in the later rounds, everyone will look back and think we should have seen this coming.

Prediction

Because of the short notice, I do believe this fight is closer than last time, but I’ll guess the same result happens. Prochakza has some tools to make things difficult, but his insistence that he’s not changing the plan and his odd obsession with Pereira’s “spiritual powers” makes me think “BJP” didn’t learn any real lessons from the first encounter. In that case, Prochakza is basically hoping to high-roll a knockout blow against Pereira, which could always happen, but the more likely outcome is another fight where Jiri runs headlong onto Pereira’s best weapons.

Alex Pereira def. Jiri Prochazka via knockout (punches) — 4:34, Round 3.

Poll

Who wins the rematch at UFC 303?

Rocket Mortgage Classic: Akshay Bhatia sees more results, keeps lead rocket,mortgage,classic,akshay,bhatia,sees,more,results,keeps,lead,sbnation,com,front-page,golf,golf-pga-tour,golf-news

On: June 28, 2024 By: admin

Akshay Bhatia put together another strong round at Detroit Golf Club to maintain his lead at the Rocket Mortgage Classic. He signed for a bogey-free 5-under 67 to sit at 13-under total.

The two-time PGA Tour winner leads the morning wave by two shots as Taylor Montgomery and Troy Merritt sit at 11-under. Merritt fired off an 8-under 64 to move up 38 spots.

Bhatia did not make as many birdies but kept his scorecard clean for the second straight day. He began his day on the back nine and recorded three birdies. Two more birdies came at the 1st and 7th hole.

One of the wildest moments of the morning came at the par-5 17th when his ball rolled into a drain on the course.

“Never seen it. Rules official’s never seen it, so it was kind of one in a million chance that ball goes in that small hole in that drain, so it was pretty funny,” Bhatia said. “That’s probably the craziest [lost ball].”

Detroit Golf Club and left-handed golfers do generally not mix well, but Bhatia’s game is nearly perfect for this track.

“It’s a ball-striker’s golf course, a lot of wedges,” he said. “That’s my strong suit, especially inside, I would say, 150 yards, so I think that’s why I like this golf course. I don’t think there’s a difference lefty or righty.”

He currently leads the field in strokes gained total at +10.372 and in strokes gained approach to the green, picking up +5.666. The 22-year-old has also only missed three greens in the past two days.

This week will be about who can make the most birdies and avoid costly mistakes. After such a strong round, Bhatia built off that momentum.

“I feel like when you know you’re playing well, then you feel like you can hit all the golf shots that you need to hit to make a good golf score,” Bhatia said. “I think the difference in situations maybe it’s a little harder, but out here, you can easily make five, six, seven birdies.”

So far, he has 11 birdies, one eagle and 24 pars on the week. If the No. 29 ranked golfer avoids disaster and can keep down the pedal, his third career win and second after the Texas Open might be within reach.

With the afternoon groups left to play, Bhatia will have to wait and see if anyone matches his score and who will likely join him for Saturday’s final tee time.

Senior Open: Padraig Harrington deep dives into worst golf swing advice senior,open,padraig,harrington,deep,dives,into,worst,golf,swing,advice,sbnation,com,front-page,golf,golf-champions-tour,golf-news

On: June 28, 2024 By: admin

Playing golf well takes a lot of time and practice. Even the greatest players in the world continue to fine-tune their craft throughout their careers.

Swing advice comes from all over: the teaching pro at the golf course, YouTube, Twitter or the extra guy who got added to the foursome.

Recent Golf Hall of Fame inductee Padraig Harrington is no stranger to working on his game. He is a range rat, loves to find ways to play golf better and enjoys helping weekend golfers.

However, with good advice comes terrible tips.

Instead of providing some of the best swing tips, he decided to do the opposite ahead of the U.S. Senior Open.

“I don’t know what the best one I’ve got because there are all sorts of things at different points in your life that really are important,” Harrington said. “It’s easier to pick up on the worst piece of advice.”

Harrington shared three things that he considers to be the worst swing advice he has gotten.

“Staying still is probably the worst thing,” he said. “Keeping your feet still on the ground. Keeping your head still. Keeping your head down. Swinging slowly. These are all terrible things.”

The tips given are all things that could benefit a player’s swing if done correctly.

Keeping your feet still is not nearly as common as it used to be. Now, people can use their feet to generate more power and hit the ball farther.

Harrington did a video a few years back about why keeping your head still is not good advice.

Swinging slowly could hurt players when generating power. Golfers should learn to swing hard and then teach themselves how to contact the ball properly.

Power is such a game-changing skill in golf that not everyone has.

Golf is a unique sport. It is not like other competitive things. No two golfers have the same swing.

“Golf is quite counterintuitive,” he said.

Harrington explained what his first coach, Howard Bennett, told him about the golf swing.

“People who don’t play golf, if they came to golf and did the absolute opposite of what they think, they’d be better off,” Harrington said.

The three-time major champion has tried many different tactics and knows what does not work.

Rocket Mortgage Classic: Akshay Bhatia’s low massive bogey-free start rocket,mortgage,classic,akshay,bhatia,s,low,massive,bogey,free,start,sbnation,com,front-page,golf,golf-pga-tour,golf-news

On: June 27, 2024 By: admin

Akshay Bhatia brought his momentum from finishing runner-up at the Travelers Championship to Detroit for the Rocket Mortgage Classic.

He carded an 8-under bogey-free 64 at Detroit Golf Club on Thursday with six birdies and an eagle.

“I guess I missed one green today, so I got that up and down,” Bhatia said. “All in all, I hit it pretty nice with the irons and made some putts.”

Bhatia birdied two of his first four holes but would settle for seven straight pars. Then his putter got red hot for him.

In his final seven holes, the 22-year-old went 6-under, coming home in 30 shots. That included a birdie-eagle-birdie finish.

“Yeah, it’s always nice to finish like that,” he said. “This tournament’s always kind of a birdie-fest, so birdies and eagles help a lot. It’s nice to finish that way.”

Last week’s Travelers Championship was also a birdie fest. Prior to that, the U.S. Open and Memorial tournaments put players to quite the test.

For Bhatia, though, he appreciates both challenges.

“Played the U.S. Open, it was really hard. Then you come last week and this week, and you’re making a lot of birdies, so you feel like it’s pretty fun again,” Bhatia said. “I think a mix of it is really good, and I’m just happy we get to play an old-school golf course for once.”

The two-time PGA Tour winner enjoys classic golf courses like Detroit Golf Club. It fits his game well. As one of the better iron players on Tour, he likes the shot choices that come with playing this track.

“I feel like I can be creative like I normally am,” he said. “It’s also nice because these greens are pretty tricky. They have a lot of small slopes, but they’re soft, so you can still be aggressive towards a couple of these pins.”

Bhatia leads the Rocket Mortgage Classic by one shot after the first 18 holes. Taylor Montgomery and Michael Kim sit behind him at 7-under.

He plays Friday at 7:18 a.m. ET alongside Stephen Jaeger and Min Woo Lee.

LIV Golf’s Lee Westwood wishes U.S. Senior Open adopted this policy liv,golf,s,lee,westwood,wishes,u,s,senior,open,adopted,this,policy,sbnation,com,golf,golf-champions-tour,golf-news,liv-golf

On: June 27, 2024 By: admin

Lee Westwood opened the U.S. Senior Open at Newport Country Club with an impressive 4-under 66, but nobody could have guessed that he felt bothered by a longstanding policy out on the course.

And no, it is not the fact that this championship is 72 holes, unlike LIV Golf events and tournaments on the PGA Tour Champions, which are 54 holes.

“I think I can manage it,” Westwood said of the 72-hole competition.

“It’s playing in trousers that’s bothering me more.”

Unlike other top men’s circuits, LIV Golf allows players to wear shorts. The PGA Tour and major championships, meanwhile, do not let men dress in anything but pants during competition.

“72 holes won’t be a problem,” Westwood continued.

“It’s looking down and seeing me legs in trousers. I prefer to get me legs out.”

With his legs out last week, Westwood posted his best finish in a LIV Golf event since joining the Saudi-backed circuit in the summer of 2022. He parlayed that T-3 finish with a strong start at Newport Country Club, where he sits in a tie for third with Padraig Harrington, Jeff Maggert, Alex Cejka, and Bob Estes at 4-under. This group is three strokes behind leaders Richard Green and Hiroyuki Fujita, who carded 7-under 63s on Thursday morning.

“Playing a bit more, I think, and just having a run of a few weeks where I’ve not put the golf clubs down altogether. This is a good time of year to play a few tournaments. When I’m not at tournaments, keep my eye in, do a bit of practice. Weather is getting a bit better in England so green conditions are a bit better and that makes me want to practice. Yeah, that’s basically it. Just that sharpens me up,” Westwood said of his recent stretch of strong play.

“Always played well and been sharper when I’ve not gone home and put the clubs away. It’s a balancing act. I don’t want to play all the time now, and I can’t play all the time. It’s just not good for my body. I try and do what I can when I’m away from the golf course. I focus more on the gym work and staying flexible and strong. Injury prevention more than anything.”

Westwood began the championship with an eagle on the par-5 1st hole after sticking his second shot to 10 feet away. He made the putt and went on to play his final 17 holes in 2-under, highlighted by four birdies but beset by a pair of bogies on the par-4 8th and par-4 15th.

Not bad for a guy who wishes he could play in shorts.

“You notice most of the guys wear shorts in practice,” Westwood added.

“You can see how many people are comfortable, especially when it gets a bit warm putting a pair the shorts on.”

Maybe that will be another change the professional game adopts soon. But for now, Westwood and every other player at Newport this week will have to continue to don trousers, whether he likes them or not.

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.

PGA Tour: Rocket Mortgage Classic champion drains first ace pga,tour,rocket,mortgage,classic,champion,drains,first,ace,sbnation,com,golf,golf-pga-tour,golf-news

On: June 27, 2024 By: admin

Forty-one-year-old Nate Lashley, who won the Rocket Mortgage Classic in 2019, started this year’s tournament with a bang.

He aced his second hole of the day, the par-3 11th, which measures 217 yards and is typically known as one of the more difficult holes at Detroit Golf Club. It also marked the first hole-in-one of his PGA Tour career.

“It was one of those shots, just a little right of the pin. I hoped it would carry the bunker, but it must have just taken a perfect bounce and gone in the hole,” Lashley said after his 2-under 70 on Thursday.

“Pretty decent shot, but also a lot of luck involved there.”

Lashley pushed his 4-iron a tad, but it caught the side-hill perfectly and rolled right into the hole. After his round, the former Arizona Wildcat revealed that he had previously posted an ace in a Korn Ferry Tour event. He also said he had a hole-in-one on Pebble Beach’s 7th hole, perhaps the most famous par-3 in the world, during an AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am practice round three years ago. Lashley said he had 11 holes-in-one before Thursday’s ace, marking his first during a PGA Tour competition.

“Something I’ll always remember,” Lashley added.

“This golf course has a lot of memories, so just another one right there. Having a hole-in-one, being my first on Tour will be another fun thing for me here in Detroit.”

The highlight of Lashley’s career came at Detroit Golf Club in 2019, when he won the Rocket Mortgage Classic in wire-to-wire fashion. He opened with a 9-under 63 that year and never looked back, winning his first PGA Tour event by six strokes.

He has not won another PGA Tour title since, but he did tie for third at the Farmers Insurance Open earlier this season. His next best finish came at The Players Championship, where he tied for 13th. On the flip side, Lashley has missed nine cuts in 15 events he has played, as he has made plenty of bogeys this season.

More bogies followed after his ace on Thursday.

“A little disappointed with my round today, a lot of bogeys really,” Lashley said.

“I hit it okay, missed a few fairways, and got in some bad spots, but can’t make five bogeys around this golf course. It’s a lot of birdies out there, so hopefully something to improve on [Friday].”

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.

Paige Spiranac drops eye-popping handicap; quiets trolls with receipts paige,spiranac,drops,eye,popping,handicap,quiets,trolls,with,receipts,sbnation,com,front-page,golf,golf-news

On: June 27, 2024 By: admin

Paige Spiranac has more followers than Tiger Woods across social media platforms.

Many love her because she is beautiful and funny. She also loves to clap back at the haters. However, besides these attributes, the influencer is an excellent golfer.

Earlier this year, Spiranac shared that her love for golf had returned. She has played numerous times since then, so on Jun. 26, she posted her handicap on X, formerly known as Twitter, after so many lost it over a swing video.

Spiranc currently holds a +3.4 handicap, according to the USGA Golf Handicap Information Network (GHIN) app.

Of course, her tweet went viral. Many people questioned her number and about handicaps in general.

So, she tweeted her post to set the record straight on handicaps.

“1. A + handicap is better than scratch,” she wrote.

“2. A +3 handicap is good, but nowhere close to competing against the best in the world. I don’t think people realize how good they are, how hard the courses are set up, and all while doing it under extreme pressure. It’s a different game they play.”

So many questions about handicaps from this post!
1. A + handicap is better than scratch
2. A +3 handicap is good but no where close to completing against the best in the world. I don’t think people realize how good they are, how hard the courses are set up, and all while doing… https://t.co/WpRlQyKCoy

— Paige Spiranac (@PaigeSpiranac) June 27, 2024

She then explained how to calculate a golf handicap, which can confuse many players, and whether pro golfers have one.

“3. You calculate your golf handicap by taking the average score of the best eight of your last 20 scores,” Spiranac wrote.

“Meaning you can still have some pretty shitty rounds and still be a low handicap. Pros don’t keep a handicap, but someone calculated Tiger at a +9 once, which is insane.”

Of course, her explanation tweet brought in the trolls.

One user said she would not break 90 at his home track, but he did not give that course or any other context. Spiranac usually avoids trolls, but she owned this one.

“I shot in the 70s at Pine Valley, which is known as one of the hardest tracks,” she responded. “I haven’t shot in the 90s since I was 13.”

I shot in the 70s at Pine Valley which is known as one of the hardest tracks. I haven’t shot in the 90s since I was 13

— Paige Spiranac (@PaigeSpiranac) June 27, 2024

Talk about mic drop, but that troll did not stop there. He wanted to see her scorecard from Pine Valley.

So, Spiranac uploaded the receipts to the Internet and displayed her scores from some of the country’s most challenging courses.

A 74 at Pine Valley is incredible. A 75 at Oakmont, the site of next year’s U.S. Open, is also astonishing.

The 31-year-old could have just dropped the Pine Valley score, but she put the nail in the coffin when she included Oakmont, Valhalla, and Crooked Stick.

Spiranac owned this troll and reminded the masses that despite her appearance, she is still a fantastic golfer.

U.S. Senior Open: NBC Sports’ Gary Koch returning to competition u,s,senior,open,nbc,sports,gary,koch,returning,to,competition,sbnation,com,golf,us-open-golf,golf-majors,golf-pga-tour,golf-champions-tour,golf-news

On: June 26, 2024 By: admin

Legendary NBC Sports golf broadcaster Gary Koch, who played in the U.S. Open 17 times as a pro and called 22 more on television, will tee it up at the U.S. Senior Open this week at Newport Country Club.

He made it to Rhode Island via sectional qualifying in what will mark his U.S. Senior Open debut.

“One of the reasons I got into television in my 40s is because I figured out it’s a lot easier to talk about some guy making a six-foot putt than me doing it,” Koch said Wednesday before the tournament.

“You’re hoping as a broadcaster to be able to communicate to the viewer hopefully what the player is thinking or maybe the game plan they’ve put together, or we read comments they make about how they’re trying to play the golf course. We spend a lot of time on the golf course, even as broadcasters, checking out the conditions. So I would say there are some similarities, no doubt. But talking about it is a lot easier than doing it.”

Koch has not played competitively since 2018, when he tied for 50th at The Senior Open. Despite that, he arrives in the Ocean State with plenty of confidence and with good reason. Koch, now 71, admitted that he has shot his age at least 100 times, first doing so after he turned 62.

“The reality is I just don’t play much competitive golf anymore,” Koch said.

“On my good days, I should be able to go around this place and post a respectable score. I’m not sure what a respectable score would be based on the conditions. I would say realistically, if I can make the cut and play all four days, then I’ve probably accomplished something I’d be very proud of.”

As long as Koch can keep it in play, he should have a chance to make the weekend.

But the competition within the competition will come down to the battle between broadcasters. Koch’s fellow NBC Sports colleague, Notah Begay III, will also tee it up this week. Koch and Begay III recently called the action at Pinehurst No. 2, where Bryson DeChambeau won his second U.S. Open title.

“I’m sure there will be a little wager on who’s low announcer,” Koch joked.

“But he’s also a lot younger than I am. He probably should give me a few strokes.”

Begay III, who played alongside Tiger Woods at Stanford in the mid-1990s, is 20 years younger than Koch but primarily works as an analyst for NBC Sports.

Nevertheless, the beauty of golf—and this championship, for that matter—is that anyone can play, despite their age. A golfer’s score does not discriminate, as it all depends on who can get the ball into the hole the fastest.

“As I look back over my life of golf, the [United States Golf Association (USGA)] and their competitions have been a huge part of that, no doubt about it,” Koch reflected.

“The very first one was in 1968, the USGA Junior at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts. I was 15 years old. So here we are 56 years later, getting to compete in another USGA Championship. I can’t think of any other sport where something like that could happen.”

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.