Golfing News & Blog Articles

Team golf has been one of the casualties in pro golf’s civil war.

For evidence, just look at the rosters for this week’s Presidents Cup at Royal Montreal Golf Club in Canada. The Presidents Cup—which is run by the PGA Tour—is missing at least a handful of LIV players who used to compete in the event. Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Cameron Smith and Joaquin Niemann would definitely add to the match if they could play.

Most golf fans don’t care too much about the Presidents Cup so missing those players isn’t anything to cry about. However, negatively impacting the Ryder Cup—an event with an illustrious, passionate history—would be worth a few tears.

We’ve already seen LIV’s existence affect the Ryder Cup. Henrik Stenson was supposed to be the European captain before he left for LIV and got the boot from the DP World Tour which runs the European Ryder Cup. Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia, Paul Casey, Martin Kaymer, Graeme McDowell and Lee Westwood were among the defects who weren’t included in Rome. None of them were likely to play but they could have been vice-captains. All (or at least most) of them figured to be eventual captains in the future.

But for the most part, the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome didn’t have any noticeable omissions. The U.S. team had Brooks Koepka (the only LIV player involved) and the European team wasn’t really missing any key cogs. (The American side, which is organized by the PGA of America, took a softer stance than the Europeans who had to protect their DP World Tour against LIV.)

A common misconception amongst amateur golfers is that par-3s are easy but that could not be further from the truth.

Our on-course data partner, Shot Scope, has pulled the stats on mid- to long-range par-3s to reveal some interesting insights on how amateurs fare on these holes.

Many clubs will include a “Magic Twos” prize pot alongside the competition in their weekly medals to reward those that successfully birdie any par-3s, and for good reason, as we will soon find out.

From 150-200 yards, what can we expect on a par-3?

Immediately, we can see that the vast majority of golfers are more likely to miss the green than hit it from between 150 and 200 yards.

Let that sink in …

“Forward press putting” is a technique where your hands and wrists are pushed ahead of the clubhead at setup and remain in that position throughout the stroke. Many golfers adopt this method as it helps improve the impact position and create a more consistent strike. However, while it can be an effective technique, it’s not without its challenges. Overdoing the forward press can lead to issues like delofting the putter or misaligning the clubface. Let’s dive into the pros and cons of forward press putting so you can decide how much—if any—forward press should be part of your game.

Pros of the forward press in putting

Promotes better acceleration through impact

One of your goals on the putting green should be to ensure your hands travel toward the target after impact. Keeping your hands moving toward the target promotes acceleration through the ball.

For those who tend to slow down when approaching the ball, there is often some inconsistency in speed and distance control.

Forward press putting pushes the hands ahead and keeps them moving that way towards the target.

Helps square the clubface

Some players keep their clubface square throughout their stroke. Others open it a bit and then close it through impact. If your putts tend to miss to the right, you may be leaving the clubface open at impact. A forward press stroke can square the face and increase accuracy.

Sorting out the usual pre-match issues. Plus, some lively press conference moments and a potential injury issue for the International men.*

Just over 20 miles from the gates of Augusta National sits Aiken Golf Club, a South Carolina muni with tons of character.

The post This Augusta-area muni is a must-play during Masters week appeared first on Golf.

GOLF Top 100 Teacher Tim Cooke says focusing on these 3 things will improve your golf IQ, make you a better player, and lead to lower scores.

The post 3 ways to raise your golf IQ, and lower your scores in the process appeared first on Golf.

The Presidents Cup is set to get underway this week at Royal Montreal Golf Club. Here's who is playing for the U.S. and International teams.

The post Presidents Cup rosters, records: Meet the U.S., International teams appeared first on Golf.

In today's edition of Play Smart we turn to Lee Trevino as he shares the biggest key for hitting solid shots with your irons.

The post Lee Trevino says this is the biggest key for hitting solid iron shots appeared first on Golf.

Nothing can boost your confidence like knocking in a testy 4- or 5-footer. But those putts aren't gimmes. Here's how to make more of them.

The post A go-to drill to never miss a short putt again appeared first on Golf.

Golfzon, the operator of the world's first and largest screen-golf tour, is set to launch a spinoff circuit in the United States.

The post Make way, Tiger and Rory — another U.S. screen-golf tour is set to launch appeared first on Golf.

Match play is all about pressure. At the Presidents Cup in Montreal, these 6 players are feeling the most of it.

The post 6 players under the most pressure at the Presidents Cup appeared first on Golf.

In this addition of Ask Alan, our Alan Shipnuck takes reader questions about the golf world.

What DEFCON is pro golf at right now? That the top two tours can’t get over 100K viewers on a Sunday seems disastrous even for football season. Combined with the lackluster ratings for the playoffs, it really does seem like this sport is in a fast downward spiral! @SarrMaclean

I’m going to say DEFCON 2: a raging crisis that is threatening to turn into mutually assured destruction. The PGA Tour has been badly devalued by the loss of so many key protagonists, and the TV ratings you cite reflect that. The Tour’s new benefactors can’t be happy, either, as the first billion dollars of private equity money was shoveled to players without a dollar going toward upgrading the product. After three seasons and countless billions of dollars, LIV still has only a modest audience and now faces numerous big-ticket personnel decisions as the first wave of signees age out and/or need to be put out to pasture.

A deal to (sort of) reunify the sport is not a magic cure-all, as many former fans have realized that they’re okay not watching golf… and Bryson DeChambeau teeing it up at the Byron Nelson is not going to change that. The tour wars couldn’t have come at a worse time because the pro game was already suffering a glaring personality deficit. Greg Norman, Payne Stewart, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, Vijay Singh…golf enjoyed a quarter century run of charismatic stars, badasses and transcendent talent. Now the PGA Tour is dominated by low-key nice guys who barely make the needle twitch. LIV has all the antiheroes and spicy personalities but they remain mostly out of sight and out of mind. We’ll see how things shake out in the off-season but DEFCON 1 could be coming.

Is Rory’s inability to win physical or mental? Or metaphysical? @Kevinp613

If you watched the FedEx Cup finals, you might remember Scottie Scheffler’s surprising shank out of the bunker on the eighth hole. While it was a rare moment, it reminded us all that even the pros are human. The shanked bunker or wedge shot is likely something you’ve encountered far too often in your own game. If wedge shanks are ruining your scorecard, you’re not alone. Here are three simple tips to ensure you get rid of the shanks for good.

Maintain a more vertical swing path

One of the main causes of a shanked wedge is swinging the club too flat. For many players, this feels and looks like a club that comes inside as the very first move away from the ball. Once the club is that far inside, it is difficult to get it back on plane.

This exaggerated out-to-in path on the downswing leaves the hosel as the first point of contact instead of the clubface.

The result is an ugly shank.

You’ll notice this not just in bunker shots but with any wedge shots around the green. Players have a tendency to do it more often when they are taking a half swing.

Many golfers prefer leather shoes for durability, water resistance, comfort, and a classic look. However, these premium shoes require proper care to maintain their quality. If you want to extend the life of your leather golf shoes and get a few extra years out of them, this guide will cover everything you need to know. We’ve covered you, from pre-round prep to post-round cleaning and storage tips. While avoiding obvious things like jumping in puddles helps, there are additional maintenance steps you can take to keep your leather shoes looking and performing their best.

Pre-Round Leather Golf Shoe Care

Your leather golf shoes probably came with a shoehorn in the box.

Use it!

The shoe horn prevents damage to the heel, which helps ensure a proper fit and can even help prevent blisters. Before you put your shoes on, also take a look at the spikes (if you own spiked shoes) and ensure they don’t need replacement.

Finally, consider rotating your leather golf shoes. If you wear golf shoes every day, try to alternate between two or three pairs. Constant wear with one pair of shoes is not recommended, especially in wet conditions.

It it permissible to lave your marker on the green behind your ball while you make a stroke? Rules Guy has the answer.

The post Rules Guy: Can I leave my marker behind my ball while I putt? appeared first on Golf.

Lydia Ko's surreal summer, Billy Horschel's conflicted feelings, strange Presidents Cup records and more in this week's Monday Finish.

The post Presidents Cup weirdness, Lydia’s fairy tale, Rory vs. Billy | Monday Finish appeared first on Golf.

First mixed Presidents Cup brings together men, women, co-Captains, analytics philosophies and wild "snake draft" scenarios to Royal Montreal.*

Here are 18 observations as Presidents Cup week at Royal Montreal Golf Club begins, including ones on Tom Brady and Aquaman 2.

The post Tom Brady and Aquaman 2: 18 observations as Presidents Cup week begins appeared first on Golf.

What we’ve seen in 15 years of testing here is there’s rarely one brand through the bag that makes the best clubs. We just finished wrapping up hybrid testing here and the Ping G430 won pretty convincingly.

We were sitting there diving through the data and it just made me think like, “I don’t know what is going on at PING golf in the last two, two and a half years, but they have obviously figured something out because It’s rare that we see clubs finish like standard deviations better than others.”

That’s what we’re seeing with so many PING clubs. The PING iCrossover, ridiculous. The PING G430 10K, ridiculous. Like if you can’t hit that in the fairway, you probably need some lessons. It makes everybody pretty good at golf. The hybrid just won by leaps and bounds. The wedge, the wet wedge results they’ve dominated in.

Like the wet wedge, the hydrophobicity thing that they did, like now everybody’s following them on that. The 10k driver, everyone’s following them on the 10k thing.

If I were to pick a single brand to play from top to bottom, minus the putter, it would be PING golf and that goes against almost everything we’ve ever said.