Alex Elias With the 14th Presidents Cup in the books, Jordan Spieth has now played in more Presidents Cups than any member of the U.S. team, and with that comes past experiences to draw on. Eight years ago, when Europe retained the Cup at The 2014 Ryder Cup, Spieth was one of the few American bright spots going 2-1-1. Seven months later, Spieth won The 2015 Masters, a year in which he recorded five wins, including two majors.
Following The 2022 Presidents Cup at Quail Hollow, Spieth said, "I’m really excited about the week that was this week. I thought that I played some of my best golf of the year this week," when speaking of his dominant 5-0-0 campaign. If Spieth is to carry the momentum he gained from The Presidents Cup into the upcoming season, just as he did in 2014, the script is certainly there, as Spieth Legion (@spiethlegion) said, "I think the confidence he gained from the Presidents Cup is huge. He really needed to see some putts fall and let out a fist pump or two because we really haven’t seen that recently on the greens. It’s nice that that’ll be in the back of his mind come next spring." While The 2014 Ryder Cup is certainly one experience for Spieth to draw on, more recently another Texas alum, Scottie Scheffler, posted a 2-0-1 mark (including a resounding win over Jon Rahm in singles) at The 2021 Ryder Cup at Whistling Straights that he then prolonged into a historic season, recording four wins, including the 2022 Masters.
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Alex Elias PGA Tour Player of the Year: Scottie Scheffler In addition to his win at Augusta, Scheffler won The WM Phoenix Open, The Arnold Palmer Invitational, and The WGC - Dell Technologies Match Play. To go along with his four wins, Scheffler recorded four runner-up finishes, and a staggering eleven Top 10s in 25 events. Statistically, Scheffler finished 4th in SG: Tee-To-Green and 5th in SG: Total. After Rory McIlroy's win at The Tour Championship, McIlroy said, "Scottie Scheffler is going to win the Player of the Year. There's no doubt about that." Rookie of the Year: Cameron Young Cameron Young recorded five runner-up finishes, including a solo second at The Open Championship, in a truly historic rookie season. Between Young's runner-up finish at St. Andrews and a T3 at The PGA Championship at Southern Hills, Young is only the second player since 1958 to finish in the top three in his debut at both the PGA Championship and The Open (Collin Morikawa won both championships in his first start). Notably, Young is the first PGA Tour rookie to earn more than $5 million in a season, with $6.5 million in earnings. Comeback Player of the Year: Tiger Woods Fourteen months after nearly losing his right leg, Woods not only returned to Augusta, but made the cut and finished T47. As for a season long comeback, Adam Scott finished 25th in The FedEx Cup Standings, after finishing 90th in 2021. Comeback Win of the Year: Justin Thomas Although Rory McIlroy is a close second, as he began The Tour Championship six strokes behind Scottie Scheffler, and recorded a triple-bogey on the first hole of the tournament, Justin Thomas's win at The PGA Championship is The Comeback Win of the Year. Thomas entered the Final Round seven strokes behind Mito Pereira, in which Thomas projected as having a 1.2% chance of winning The Wanamaker Trophy. Shot of the Year: Matt Fitzpatrick Matt Fitzpatrick's improbable approach shot on No. 18 at The U.S. Open at The Country Club defined clutch. Fitzpatrick said, "It’s one of the best shots I ever hit, there’s no doubt about it," as Will Zalatoris, playing alongside Fitzpatrick said, "I thought that going for it was going to be ballsy. That golf shot was 1 in 20, at best. To pull it off in that situation is incredible." Putt of the Year: Matt Fitzpatrick
In the Final Round of The U.S. Open, Fitzpatrick began his Sunday -2 thru 9, before a bogey-bogey start on the back. Having returned to Even-par on the round, Fitzpatrick's 48-foot birdie putt on No. 13 deemed to be the momentum needed down the stretch, eventually defeating Will Zalatoris and Scottie Scheffler by a stroke. Alex Elias 1960-1970: Quail Hollow Club (1961): Quail Hollow Club, ranked 97th in the U.S. and 5th in North Carolina by Golf Digest, was designed by George Cobb, notably the same architect that designed the Par-3 course at Augusta. Quail is set to host The 2022 Presidents Cup and previously hosted The 2017 PGA Championship. Hazeltine National Golf Club (1962): Hazeltine National Golf Club was designed in 1962 by Robert Trent Jones. Four years later, Hazeltine hosted its first major championship, the 1966 U.S. Women’s Open. Today, Hazeltine is one of only two golf clubs in the country to have hosted every premier championship offered by the USGA and PGA of America, including two U.S. Opens and two PGA Championships. When Hazeltine hosts The 2029 Ryder Cup, Hazeltine will become the first club to host the Ryder Cup for a second time. Hazeltine ranks 3rd in Minnesota and 126th in the U.S. by Golf Digest. Stanwich Club (1964): Stanwich was originally designed by William and David Gordon and opened for play in 1964. Billy Farrell served as the first Head Golf Professional at Stanwich, son of Johnny Farrell who won the 1928 U.S. Open in a playoff against Bobby Jones, and would later serve as the Head Golf Professional at Baltusrol Golf Club. Stanwich ranks 1st in Connecticut and 159 in the U.S. by Golf Digest. The Golf Club (1967): The Golf Club, ranked 43rd in the U.S. and 3rd in Ohio, may be the most authentic of Pete Dye’s transition period of design, when he first chose to defy convention and start building lay-of-the-land layouts like those he’d seen during a 1963 tour of Scotland. 1970-1980: Muirfield Village Golf Club (1974): Founded by Jack Nicklaus, Muirfield Village is named after Muirfield, Scotland where he won the first of his three Open titles in 1966 to complete the first of his three career grand slams. Muirfield Village Golf Club is ranked 15th in the U.S. and 1st in Ohio by Golf Digest. Butler National Golf Club (1974): Butler National Golf Club was founded by Chicago Billionaire Paul Butler. The course was designed by George Fazio, while the construction was overseen by his nephew, Tom Fazio. Today, Butler National is regarded as one of the toughest courses in the country. Butler National is ranked 49th in the U.S. and 2nd in Illinois. 1980-1990: Honors Course (1983): Just north of Chattanooga, The Honors Course was founded by Coca-Cola heir, Jack Lupton and designed by Pete Dye. Hence the name, The Honors Course was meant to honor amateur golfers. Regarded as one of Dye's best, The Honors Course is ranked 1st in Tennessee and 28th in the U.S. by Golf Digest. Wade Hampton Golf Club (1988): After laying untouched for centuries, the Cashiers Valley was first settled in the 1820s. Wade Hampton III first moved to the area after purchasing property from the family of one of the earliest settlers in 1855. Hampton used the Valley as his summer home for many years, including during his service as Governor of South Carolina, United States Senator, and U. S. Railroad Commissioner. After Hampton's passing in 1902, his niece Caroline Halsted and husband William moved to the estate. Dr. Halsted was the premiere surgeon in the country and used the valley as a place to rest and relax. They named the estate High Hampton, in honor of Caroline's uncle. Upon the Halsted's passing, their heirs sold the estate to a group led by E. Lyndon McKee. An industrialist and entrepreneur, McKee transformed the estate into a summer resort. Families continue to visit High Hampton, enjoying old fashioned mountain hospitality. An agreement by the McKee family heirs in 1984 divided the property into the High Hampton Resort and the Wade Hampton Golf Club. Wade Hampton was designed by Tom Fazio and is ranked 26th in the U.S. and 1st in North Carolina by Golf Digest. 1990-2000: Shadow Creek (1990): Founded by Steve Wynn, Shadow Creek was designed by Tom Fazio originally as a private club, in which would later be opened to a limited number of MGM hotels. Located in a desert oasis, Tom Fazio manufactured a lush, green setting for golf with serious elevation out of the desert floor, but did so in a way that makes it seem like it was natural. Shadow Creek is ranked 27th in the U.S. by Golf Digest. Sand Hills Golf Club (1995): Because of Nebraska's unique topography, course architects Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw moved only 4,000 cubic yards of earth when designing the course. During two years of surveying the land, Coore and Crenshaw found over 130 "natural golf holes" on the property—defined as locations that had well-defined areas that could easily be converted into teeing areas, fairways, hazards, and greens. They spent much of that time narrowing the list of possible holes to 18 and determining an ideal course routing. Notably, $1.2 million was spent building the course, far less than other highly rated modern golf courses. One major source of savings came about when soil analysis found that the sand on the property had perfectly round grains—making it essentially identical to the "USGA greens mix". Sand Hills is ranked 10th in the U.S. by Golf Digest. Hudson National Golf Club (1996): Hudson National rests on the second highest point in all of Westchester County overlooking the Hudson River valley, a breathtaking location that, back in the 1920s, had been the site of the ill-fated Hessian Hills Country Club. The site was used by General George Washington during the Revolutionary War to keep an eye on the British Fleet as they came up the Hudson River. Designed by Tom Fazio, Fazio dynamited more than 130,000 cubic feet of rock to fit his design into the rocky terrain. Hudson National is ranked 89th in the U.S. by Golf Digest. 2000-2010: Kinloch Golf Club (2000): Originating as an idea to provide the Richmond community with a quality “club for a day” golf facility, the idea quickly faded and the business model to create a very special private golf club was introduced. Designed by Lester George, Kinloch is ranked 1st in Virginia and 66th in the U.S. by Golf Digest. Friar's Head (2003): Designed by Coore and Crenshaw, Rory McIlroy said, "I’m a big fan of what Coore and Crenshaw have tried to do with their golf courses, and Friar’s Head is one of the best I’ve played. Not just for the design, but just for the setting and the scenery. I think 14 and 15 are two of the prettiest golf holes I’ve ever seen. It sort of reminds you of a Cypress Point." Furthermore, Phil Mickelson called Friar's Head his "favorite modern course." Friar's Head is ranked 16th in the U.S. by Golf Digest. Old Sandwich Golf Club (2004): Designed by Coore and Crenshaw, Golf Digest describes Old Sandwich as "hints of Baltusrol, National Golf Links, Pine Valley, Pinehurst No 2 and Chicago Golf Club in its cross-bunkering, hazard placement and sandy waste areas." Old Sandwich is ranked 2nd in Massachusetts and 58th in the U.S. by Golf Digest. Boston Golf Club (2005): Designed by Gil Hanse, Boston Golf Club is a "modern-day Pine Valley." Boston Golf Club is ranked 6th in Massachusetts and 84th in the U.S. by Golf Digest. Sebonack Golf Club (2006): Jack Nicklaus and Tom Doak, two designers with dramatically different styles, used the natural contours and features of the land to create the 38th ranked course in the country. Located in Southhampton beside Shinnecock Hill and National Golf Links, Sebonack features Tom's bunkers and Jack's greens. 2010-2020:
Congaree Golf Club (2017): Founded by Dan Friedkin and Bob McNair (Owner of The Houston Texans), Tom Fazio designed Congaree on an historic 18th-century estate in Ridgeland, South Carolina. Congaree is "A WORLD-CLASS GOLF CLUB WITH A PHILANTHROPIC MISSION AT ITS CORE." The signature philanthropic program of the Congaree Foundation is the Congaree Global Golf Initiative, "an immersive collegiate preparatory curriculum and golf instruction program that serves deserving students from the U.S. and abroad." Ohoopee Match Club (2018): Founded by tech investor and entrepreneur Michael Walrath, Ohoopee Match Club was designed by Gil Hanse on land that was once an onion production. Specifically designed as a match play course, the 2nd hole is listed as a Par 4.5, as are a few others. Ohoopee Match Club is ranked 2nd in Georgia by Golf Digest. |
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