Masters Golf Fred Couples, left, Justin Thomas and Tiger Woods walk down the sixth fairway during a practice round for the Masters golf tournament on Monday, April 4, 2022, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) (Matt Slocum)AUGUSTA, Ga. — (AP) — The gates to Augusta National opened a little after 7 a.m. Monday. Woods consumes attention at every Masters he plays. Koepka had surgery on his right knee three weeks before the Masters last year and still was determined to play. He is more concerned with his own game that what Woods has going on, though Koepka can appreciate the walk Woods is facing better than most players. “Look, I'm happy he’s becoming healthier and able to play golf,” Koepka said.
wftv.com(AP Photo/Terrance Williams) (Terrance Williams)ATLANTA — (AP) — Phil Mickelson is returning for his 13th consecutive Ryder Cup, this time without his clubs. “I’ve been staying in close contact with both Freddie and Phil, talking about all things Ryder Cup, for a while now,” Stricker said. “They provide honest and impactful feedback, and both have such a passion for the Ryder Cup. “Fred Couples texted me this week and said it looks like he’s going to be one of the assistant captains, and so he’ll be up there,” Cantlay said. It will be the second time Couples is an assistant captain at the Ryder Cup.
wftv.comThe PGA Tour has selected Love to be U.S. captain for the Presidents Cup in 2022 at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina. He was captain when Europe rallied from a 10-6 deficit to beat the Americans in the 2012 Ryder Cup at Medinah, and he was Ryder Cup captain for a rare U.S. victory four years later at Hazeltine. He also was an assistant captain in the Ryder Cup under Corey Pavin in 2010 and Jim Furyk in 2018 and is on the staff of Steve Stricker this year. The Presidents Cup was supposed to be played this year until the COVID-19 pandemic led to the Ryder Cup being postponed one year to this September. ... Tony Finau has 35 finishes in the top 10 since the start of the 2016-17 season on the PGA Tour without winning.
Johnson grew up about an hour away in South Carolina, and the Masters is the one major every Southern kid dreams about winning. Johnson already had become owner of a label not talked about enough: The best player to have only one major. He went from a 12-foot eagle putt for the win to a three-putt par to finish one shot behind. And then he delivered the key shot, an 8-iron down the slope to a pin tucked on the corner shelf. It will be the shortest time any Masters champion gets to keep the green jacket with him.
Langer, a two-time Masters champion and ageless wonder, gets to play two more rounds. He became the oldest player to make the 36-hole cut at the Masters, topping the record by Tommy Aaron in 2000 by 33 days. Tiger Woods constantly cites Langer and Fred Couples as examples of Masters champions who can find their way around the course and post good scores. When golf returned from the pandemic in June, Langer teed it up twice on the PGA Tour because the 50-and-older PGA Tour Champions had not resumed. Langer still decided to check on the policy on Tuesday night during the Masters Club dinner for past champions.
By the time the Masters ends Sunday, fans might still be debating whether that’s good for the game. Earlier in the week, DeChambeau was out on the practice range experimenting with a 48-inch-long driver — right up against golf’s rulebook and nearly two inches longer than most players use. In one memorable episode, the Masters tournament committee shelled out several million dollars to buy a piece of land about the size of four parking spaces from the country club next door to move back the 13th tee. During his practice round with Woods, they began comparing notes. At the 505-yard, par-4 11th, DeChambeau hit a pitching wedge and asked Woods, “What did you hit in ’97?”Woods replied: pitching wedge.
He has everyone curious about whether his bulk and his behemoth tee shots can undress Augusta National. “It's a substantially easier golf course for him than it is for everybody else,” said Justin Thomas, who joined DeChambeau, Woods and Fred Couples for a practice round at the start of the week. More recently, it was the excitement at home in Dallas when one of his drives carried just over 400 yards. “Every day I’m trying to get faster and stronger and I’m trying to hit it as far as possible,” DeChambeau said. Rory McIlroy still believes Augusta National provides the proper test no matter how far DeChambeau or anyone else hits it.
A balky putter cost him any shot at a second U.S. Open title. Unable to get much going from the start, Johnson closed out his tournament with a even-par 70 on Sunday in final round. The 2016 U.S. Open champion opened this year's tournament with a 3-over 73 and never really got on track at Winged Foot. “I felt like I hit a lot of good putts, just none that went in the hole,” Johnson said. Fred Couples (1979), Brad Faxon (’83) and Phil Mickelson (’90, ’91) and are among previous low amateurs at the U.S. Open.
Tirico is one of many announcers who has had to trade the press box for a home office. Tirico will be in the corner of his office in Michigan, some 1,300 miles away. The soft return of golf includes testing for COVID-19, thermal readings, social distancing and limited access. Rich Lerner from Golf Channel is doing play by play, with NBC analysts Paul Azinger and Gary Koch. You could get a lot of people become Matt Wolff fans if he has the game he showed in Minnesota, Tirico said.
