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Cam Young won in dominating fashion at a seemingly dormant Doral. Now, we have a Big Four in the men's game, as Nelly dominates on the LPGA. And, the LIV Golf reality seems to be setting in for some stars.
Young and vibrant
One of my favorite things about competitive golf — particularly at the highest level — is seeing a player realizing in real-time that they are finally reaching their full potential. That’s what is happening to Cameron Young this season.
The world No. 3 ran away with a six-shot win at the Cadillac Championship over the weekend, earning his third PGA Tour title and first Signature event. Add that title to his win at The Players, and it’s clear that Young is on the ascendance.
“I think the self belief just continues to build. I put myself in plenty of good places over the course of the last four, five years of the recently I've started to come out on the better side of it,” Young said after his win.
There’s a Big Four on the PGA Tour for the first time in a while, with Young in a company with Matt Fitzpatrick, Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler. Scheffler has been the runner-up in his last three events — once to each of the other three guys. Golf needs stars, and a new one is developing before our eyes.
The great news is that Young feels he’s not anywhere near his peak, and he is thinking about a longer-term journey to the top.
“I think I keep just slowly improving in I think all really the different areas of the game,” he said Sunday. “I think I'm slightly better just everywhere than I was a year ago. That's the goal, just keep incrementally getting a little bit better.
“When you do that I think the good weeks come together and they look more like this as opposed to finishing second, third, fifth, where you had a chance to win and didn't. So it's just very, very small progress and it's showing up in the results.”
Young isn’t the favorite for the PGA Championship next week, but it’d be foolish to consider him anything less than a big threat to win the Wanamaker trophy at Aronimink.
For my thoughts on LIV Golf’s reality setting in, scroll down!
Also, good news! Every subscriber of The Break at the end of July will be entered into our huge giveaway contest we’re running through men’s major season. Our winner will get a package worth more than $2,000.
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Nearly invincible Nelly
Nelly Korda won again on Sunday on the LPGA Tour, going back-to-back at the Riviera Maya Open at Mayakoba to follow on her third-career major win at The Chevron Championship.
Korda could have backed out after a dominating win in Houston, but she showed up to have a working vacation with her fiance Casey. She did her job and had a great time doing it. She’s back as a dominant-looking No. 1 after winning three times already this season.
So far, Korda has lost to exactly two players this season: Hyo Joo Kim in consecutive weeks at the Fortinet Founders Cup and Ford Championship, then to Lauren Coughlin at the Aramco Championship in Las Vegas.
What’s even better is that Nelly seems to be more open to using her platform to grow the LPGA. She went on the Pat McAfee Show on Monday to talk about her run, patiently and enthusiastically answering the questions of a host who definitely isn’t a hardcore LPGA fan. She’s openly talked about loving to see the kids who come to cheer her on and wanting to be an inspiring force to get them involved in the game.
Hopefully she chooses to play in Women’s TGL (WTGL), which debuts this fall and has a strong lineup already. She may also be able to use her profile to negotiate more crossover opportunities with the PGA Tour players competing in SoFi Center, helping the LPGA reach a different audience.
If everything goes as she hopes, there’s a very good chance Nelly Korda could qualify for the points-based LPGA Hall of Fame by the end of the season. That would be an amazing achievement for a 28-year-old player, and it would only further cement her status as potentially the player of her generation.
The Links
We have a good slate of events this week, with the PGA Tour’s Carolinas doubleheader of the Truist Championship at Quail Hollow in Charlotte and the OneFlight Myrtle Beach Classic in Myrtle Beach. The LPGA is in New Jersey for the Mizuho Americas Open, where Michelle Wie West hosts and is actually playing this year. The DP World Tour is in Spain for the Catalunya Championship, and the PGA Tour Champions are in Houston for the Insperity Invitational. LIV Golf Virginia is happening at Trump National D.C. in northern Virginia.
- The PGA Championship field and alternate list are out for next week at Aronimink
- Everything fantasy and betting-related for the Truist Championship and the OneFlight Myrtle Beach Classic is live (but too much to list here)
- Scottie Scheffler has committed to play in the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities in Minnesota in July
- The R&A is considering the possibility of a Simulator Open Championship that could include elite players or be more of a recreational event
Check out our Facebook and Instagram pages. I post lots of stories in graphical form over there, as well as great video from players talking at tournaments — it’s more than I can post on the website!
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From the GNN Clubhouse
- Course grassing underway as Kawonu Golf Club moves toward 2027 opening
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- Pure Michigan Golf: Five Michigan golf properties, destinations earn national recognition
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LIV Golf’s new reality
There is perhaps no clearer example of the new reality setting in for LIV Golf players than Jon Rahm. Rahm agreed to a settlement with the DP World Tour over back fines owed and to play an additional event above the minimum requirements so he can maintain membership and remain eligible to play in the 2027 Ryder Cup for Europe.
Rahm had been fighting this thing tooth and nail, saying he didn’t want to pay the fines and didn’t want to agree to play more than the minimum — even though eight of his LIV Golf peers had already taken that deal.
Now? Now he doesn’t have the cards.
As anyone who pays attention knows, LIV Golf is in — and this is putting it charitably — limbo. The Saudi Public Investment Fund has pulled their money, and the fund governor, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, has resigned as LIV Golf board chair. LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil is in desperate search of investors, team owners and any other way he can get money to keep the league going. It’s an enormous ask to find truly billions of dollars to invest in a league that has cost somewhere $5 billion and $8 billion to the Saudis.
Rahm was asked at LIV Golf Virginia on Tuesday about the possibility of big changes needed in LIV Golf’s structure to potentially stay alive. He acknowledged the reality of the situation.
“I do believe that for the business plan to change, whatever they're coming up with, there will need to be some concessions on our part, yeah,” Rahm said.
Rahm has damaged his reputation in a lot of golf circles these last few years. He probably thought he could be a bridge to a PGA Tour-LIV Golf agreement back in 2023 when he shockingly joined LIV. And he figured he would be paid handsomely by the Saudis to do it, then get to go back to whatever unified tour followed. That didn’t happen. Rahm then has been obstinate about paying DP World Tour fines, and his performance in the majors has tanked since going to LIV Golf. He’s kinda chucked away three of his best years as a pro in this endeavor.
Still, Rahm, who has a non-disparagement clause in his contract (just like every LIV Golf player), seems to still be somewhat dug in on finishing his lucrative LIV Golf contract.
“We want to be here. It's been a lot of fun. I want to keep competing. I want to keep sharing some time with [my team],” Rahm said. “But only time will tell.”
