Cantlay claims glory but Kuchar is at it again
The Memorial report: What happened at Muirfield Village?
Patrick Cantlay’s finally returned to the PGA Tour winners’ circle after a series of brilliant finishes, including a top-10 at the Masters.
The American hunted down 54-hole leader, Martin Kaymer, with some stunning play on Sunday on his way to a closing 64.
Nerves of steel. 💪
Patrick Cantlay stripes one down the middle.
He entered the 72nd hole as the leader by 2. pic.twitter.com/GrDFkf9Er7
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 2, 2019
Momentum was building from the very beginning and with five birdies in his opening nine holes, Cantlay was in prime position to take advantage of a faltering Kaymer – although his round did feature some brilliant up-and-downs.
"On a scale of 1-10 … that was an 11."
— Peter KostisMagic from @MKaymer59 at @MemorialGolf. 👏#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/sHsqBgwsQU
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 2, 2019
His back-nine followed suit and featured three birdies and even more flawless golf, which included some brilliant putting.
He started the day 4 back.
He's currently 2 ahead.
Patrick Cantlay is -7 thru 14 today.#LiveUnderPar pic.twitter.com/3DCByjrrbG
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 2, 2019
His previous win came at the 2017 Shriners Open in which he beat Alex Cejka and Kim Meen-whee in a playoff.
The Memorial report: Talking points
Matt Kuchar once again grabbed the headlines in the early stages of this week’s event, and unfortunately, it was again for the wrong reasons.
The American has been enjoying a successful season in terms of his golf, but that’s about as far as it goes.
Earlier this year, he was at the centre of controversy linking to his payment of a local caddie that he had employed for his win at the Mayakoba Golf Classic, which eventually led to this statement.
Statement from Matt Kuchar pic.twitter.com/fZWsK8RjzE
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) February 15, 2019
Fast forward to Thursday’s first round at the Memorial and we found Kuchar involved in a rules debate.
The World No. 12 found the fairway with a tee-shot but after one bounce, his ball came to rest in an existing pitchmark.
The first referee was called in as Kuchar believed he was entitled to a free drop due to his ball being embedded, but as the official rightly states, it was not his pitchmark and therefore he is not entitled to any sort of relief.
Have you ever seen anything like it? 🤪
Matt Kuchar lost his battle with PGA Tour rules officials after contesting a bizarre ruling during the opening round of the Memorial Tournament. ⛳
Read in full here: https://t.co/z3OpCfBToe pic.twitter.com/IRpvNmwVwR
— Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) May 31, 2019
Kuchar requested a second opinion and this led to the introduction of a second referee who gave exactly the same answer and showed professionalism when standing his ground and enforcing the rules.
The situation was bizarre and the American’s argument seemed rather unjustifiable.
NCG’s Mark Townsend takes a closer look and explains why “Mr Nice Guy” Kuchar’s reputation is at an all-time low.
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Aside from the inevitable talk of Tiger teeing it up at the Memorial this week, it was Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas who really produced the talking points early in the week.
As the US Open draws ever closer, the world’s best will have one eye on Pebble Beach in two weeks time.
The USGA has received a fair amount of criticism following recent US Opens, particularly in relation to course setup. Rory spoke about the organisation with and element of empathy but also brutal honesty.
The Northern Irishman who won the event in 2011 acknowledged that mistakes do happen, but also mentioned that if the USGA cannot rectify their mistakes this year, then “there could be a problem.”
Rory McIlroy says players should give the USGA another chance to redeem itself at Pebble Beach: https://t.co/lPqOfAqNJf pic.twitter.com/aeao9n8mSq
— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) May 30, 2019
JT also weighed in on the subject and spoke of how he still feels frustrated by the organisation and their course setup a the US Open.
The American has openly criticised some rule changes and believes that players must continue to speak out on issues that they are not happy with.
“It has been good for the game when guys have been a little bit more outspoken and honest."
Justin Thomas remains upset with the USGA and hopes that players will keep calling out the governing body: https://t.co/b9278ViHqN pic.twitter.com/0tSEFwQRBa
— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) May 30, 2019
Joe Hughes
Tour editor covering men's golf, women's golf and anything else that involves the word golf, really. The talk is far better than the game, but the work has begun to change that.
