The post Winner’s bag: Tom Hoge and Sahith Theegala at the 2022 QBE Shootout appeared first on Golf.

The post Winner’s bag: Tom Hoge and Sahith Theegala at the 2022 QBE Shootout appeared first on Golf.

These are the clubs used by both golfers to claim victory

Tom Hoge

Driver: Titleist TSR3 (Fujikura Ventus Black 6X shaft), 9 degrees

Fairway Wood: Titleist TS2 (Fujikura Atmos Blue 8X shaft), 13.5 degrees

Hybrid: Titleist 913Hd (Fujikura Speeder 904X shaft), 18 degrees

Irons: Titleist 620 CB (4-iron; Project X 6.5 shafts), Titleist 620 MB (5-9; Project X 6.5 shafts)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM8 (46, 52, 56, 60 degrees; True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 shafts)

Putter: TaylorMade Spider X with a plumbers neck

Ball: Titleist Pro V1 Left Dot

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet

Sahith Theegala

Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5° playing at 9.5°), flat hosel setting with Gen4 ProjectX HZRDUS Black

Hybrid: Ping G425 (17° player at 16°), Graphite Design Di95 hybrid shaft

Irons: Ping i210 (3iron), Design Di85 hybrid shaft, Ping iBlade (4-7), Ping Blueprint. (8-9) (Project X 6.5 shafts)

Wedges: Ping Glide 4.0 46-degree, 50-degree and 54-degree SS grinds (True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 shafts, Glide 2.0 58-degree TS Grind (True Temper S400)

Putter: Ping Karseten Anser 2

Ball: Titleist ProV1

Grips: Golf Pride New Decade Multi Compound

Want to overhaul your bag for 2022? Find a fitting location near you at GOLF’s affiliate company True Spec Golf. For more on the latest gear news and information, check out our latest Fully Equipped podcast below.

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The post ‘That is incredible’: The insane break on this pro’s 4-footer will make you wince appeared first on Golf.

The post ‘That is incredible’: The insane break on this pro’s 4-footer will make you wince appeared first on Golf.

If you watched a certain Tom Hoge birdie putt from the first round of the 3M Open Thursday with no other context, you might not be able to tell.

When Hoge stepped onto the 586-yard 18th hole (his 9th of the day) at TPC Twin Cities, his scorecard was clean, nary a square in sight. Then he reached the green in two. After lagging his 38-footer to about four feet, Hoge was thinking 4. With five other birds on his scorecard, another at 18 would ultimately have given him a tie for the lead at six under with Scott Piercy and Sungjae Im at the end of the first round. 

It wasn’t to be.

Hoge — whose putting this season has been subpar, ranking 123rd in strokes gained — rocked back his putter and struck his birdie try. The putt looked good until it didn’t, snapping hard left just before the hole. Like, hard left.

“Oh, look at that!” said the PGA Tour Live announcer. “That is incredible.”

After that? Bye-bye. His ball kept rolling another nine feet past the hole. It was one of those putts that helps you appreciate the difficulty of pin positions on Tour. Check it out here:

Hoge also missed the comebacker for par, settling for a dispiriting bogey. If he winds up in contention come Sunday, Hoge surely will be kicking himself for this four-putt. Still, at four under as of this writing, the veteran pro is solidly in the mix.

Friday’s second round is an important one for Hoge, who has missed the cut in his last six starts. The projected cut is currently +1, so working the weekend shouldn’t be a problem. But, hey, stuff happens. Hideki Matsuyama made a 9. Wesley Bryan made a 10. And the wind is picking up in Blaine, Minn.

Hoge grew up in Fargo, N.D. (on the border of Minnesota), so is about as close to a hometown hero as we’ll see this week.

Can he bag his second Tour win? First, let’s see if he can exact revenge on the 18th green.

The post ‘That is incredible’: The insane break on this pro’s 4-footer will make you wince appeared first on Golf.

The post How this Tour veteran learned the right way to prepare for a major championship appeared first on Golf.

The post How this Tour veteran learned the right way to prepare for a major championship appeared first on Golf.

The 33-year-old just notched his first-ever PGA Tour victory at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February, and has risen to No. 39 in the official world golf ranking. He’s also playing in all four majors for the first time ever.

Though Hoge has played in eight total major championships since his first in 2015, his last two finishes (T9 at this year’s PGA Championship and T39 at his first Masters in April) have been the best of his career.

Turns out, experience has been a useful teacher for Hoge, and on this week’s episode of Subpar, he explained to hosts Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz how his preparation for major weeks has changed for the better.

News

“I feel like I’m pretty experienced in a lot of these bigger tournaments now, and I just feel like I’ve got a lot more comfortable playing in those,” Hoge said. “I’ve qualified for a few U.S. Opens early on in my career and I felt like I always showed up there, wanted to play 18 holes every day and then go beat balls forever, get all the practice in. By the time we got to the tournament, I was always worn out.”

Hoge said his new way of preparing involves less golf and more rest.

“Now my approach is kind of, just play nine holes each day. I don’t want to say, treat it like a normal Tour event, because it’s not, but I feel like I don’t have to do anything extra or special those weeks, if that makes sense,” he continued. “I can just go out and play and not have to build it up to something that it’s really not.”

So far, so good for Hoge. He’ll tee it up at the third major of the year next week, the U.S. Open at The Country Club.

For more from Hoge, including his penchant for visiting casinos during tournament weeks, check out the full interview below.

The post How this Tour veteran learned the right way to prepare for a major championship appeared first on Golf.

The post This pro is notorious on the PGA Tour for his love of casinos appeared first on Golf.

The post This pro is notorious on the PGA Tour for his love of casinos appeared first on Golf.

How much does Hoge love casinos? Well, it was the jumping off point for his appearance on this week’s episode of GOLF’s Subpar, and a topic he was more than willing to talk about.

“We all know you like to flip cards and roll some dice,” Drew Stoltz said. “How far does a casino have to be away from your hotel for you to be like, ‘No, it’s too far.'”

“Probably a few hours,” Hoge answered. “I would say I’ve been known to do [that] in my past.”

Gear

His game of choice? Craps. Although, when his legs need a short rest, he’ll take a seat at the Blackjack table to play through a few hands.

“Just a little change of the pace here and there,” Hoge said.

In fact, Hoge’s reputation as a casino aficionado is one that is well known on the PGA Tour. As Colt Knost joked, if there’s a casino nearby, once the final putt drops, Hoge is off to the craps table.

“There ain’t no practice afterwards if there’s a casino nearby,” Knost joked.

Hoge did admit that his casino habits have slowed down with age. Now with his wife by his side on Tour each week, he doesn’t head to the casinos nearly as frequently.

But that also has to do with the Tour’s Las Vegas stops the past two seasons. With the Asian swing postponed, the Tour set up shop in Vegas for back-to-back weeks in the fall. And that access did Hoge no favors.

“I’m finally learning, I guess,” Hoge said. “By the end of those two weeks, it almost makes you physically sick walking by a craps table or a Blackjack table trying to get onto the golf course every day.”

Listen to the entire episode of Subpar below.

The post This pro is notorious on the PGA Tour for his love of casinos appeared first on Golf.

The post GOLF’s Subpar: What Tom Hoge has learned from his preparation for Major Championships appeared first on Golf.

The post GOLF’s Subpar: What Tom Hoge has learned from his preparation for Major Championships appeared first on Golf.

—

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This week’s episode is presented by FanDuel Sportsbook. If you’ve never tried FanDuel Sportsbook, what are you waiting for? Go to https://www.fanduel.com/subpar or download the FanDuel Sportsbook app to get started. Be sure to sign up with promo code SUBPAR so they know we sent you.

Disclaimer: 21+ and present in AZ, CO, CT, IA, IL, NJ, NY, or WY. 1st online real money wager only. $10 first deposit required. Bonus issued as non-withdrawable site credit that expires 14 days after receipt. Restrictions apply. See full terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), Call 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (NJ, IA, IL), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY(467369) (NY), or 1-800-522-4700 (WY).

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The post GOLF’s Subpar: What Tom Hoge has learned from his preparation for Major Championships appeared first on Golf.

The post GOLF’s Subpar: Tom Hoge talks his legendary casino stops appeared first on Golf.

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—

Thanks to our official sponsor Dewar’s. Make sure to check out their Reserve Bar listings today: https://www.reservebar.com/collections/house-of-dewars

Get your Rokform speaker today. Go to Rokform.com and get 25% off using code SUBPAR.

This week’s episode is presented by FanDuel Sportsbook. If you’ve never tried FanDuel Sportsbook, what are you waiting for? Go to https://www.fanduel.com/subpar or download the FanDuel Sportsbook app to get started. Be sure to sign up with promo code SUBPAR so they know we sent you.

Disclaimer: 21+ and present in AZ, CO, CT, IA, IL, NJ, NY, or WY. 1st online real money wager only. $10 first deposit required. Bonus issued as non-withdrawable site credit that expires 14 days after receipt. Restrictions apply. See full terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), Call 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (NJ, IA, IL), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY(467369) (NY), or 1-800-522-4700 (WY).

Shop the Birdie Juice Collection

Colt Knost “Analyst” T-Shirt

$35

View Product

Get Amongst It Headcover – Colt Knost Edition

$50

View Product

Birdie Juice Pint Glass

$20

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The post GOLF’s Subpar: Tom Hoge talks his legendary casino stops appeared first on Golf.

The post The last 6 PGA Tour winners rank in the top 25 in this key statistic appeared first on Golf.

The post The last 6 PGA Tour winners rank in the top 25 in this key statistic appeared first on Golf.

Hoge’s performance was notable not only because he got the first-win monkey off his back, but also because he continued an interesting trend of Tour winners this season. Let’s dive into the week’s statistical nuggets below.

1. The importance of iron play. Tom Hoge was a force on Pebble’s back nine on Sunday. His inward charge featured four birdies as he hit seven of his nine approach shots inside 20 feet. That deadeye accuracy with his irons was good for second in SG: Approach for the day, and improved his standing on the season in the same category to fifth.

Hoge’s appearance near the top of the charts in SG: Approach continues an interesting trend over the past six events on Tour. With Hoge’s win, the last six Tour winners rank inside the top 25 in SG: Approach for this season. Going back to the beginning of the season, nine of 14 winners on Tour this season currently rank inside the top 25 in SG: Approach.

Practice your ball striking, kids.

2. A well-rounded game. Sungjae Im only has one victory this season, but based on his well-rounded stats, you could argue he should have more. Im ranks inside the top five in five key statistical categories this season, including top 10s, in which he ranks No. 1 on Tour with four this season. The 23-year-old has been among the most consistent players on Tour this season, and another victory shouldn’t come as a surprise.

3. Still No. 1. Hideki Matsuyama didn’t tee it up last week at Pebble Beach, but he still holds onto the top spot in the FedEx Cup standings. The defending Masters champ already has two wins this season, and his game appears to be in form with the Masters looming. Could a repeat at Augusta be in the cards?

Here is the rundown of the PGA Tour’s stats leaders in 10 key categories.

Stats courtesy of PGATour.com

FedEx Cup Standings

Full standings

Top 10s

Full standings

Scoring Average

Full standings

Driving Distance

Full standings

Driving Accuracy

Full standings

Greens in regulation

Full standings

SG: Total

Full standings

SG: Tee-to-green

Full standings

SG: Putting

Full standings

Scrambling

Full standings

NEWSLETTER

The post The last 6 PGA Tour winners rank in the top 25 in this key statistic appeared first on Golf.

The post Winner’s bag: Tom Hoge at the 2022 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am appeared first on Golf.

The post Winner’s bag: Tom Hoge at the 2022 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am appeared first on Golf.

Driver: Titleist TSi3 (Fujikura Ventus Black 6X shaft), 9 degrees

Fairway Wood: Titleist TS2 (Fujikura Atmos Blue 8X shaft), 13.5 degrees

Hybrid: Titleist 913Hd (Fujikura Speeder 904X shaft), 18 degrees

Irons: Titleist 620 CB (4-iron; Project X 6.5 shafts), Titleist 620 MB (5-PW; Project X 6.5 shafts)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM8 (52, 56, 60 degrees; True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 shafts)

Putter: Odyssey White Hot OG Two-Ball

Ball: Titleist Pro V1 Left Dot

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet

Want to overhaul your bag for 2022? Find a fitting location near you at GOLF’s affiliate company True Spec Golf. For more on the latest gear news and information, check out our latest Fully Equipped podcast below.

The post Winner’s bag: Tom Hoge at the 2022 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am appeared first on Golf.

The post Jordan Spieth sputters out as Tom Hoge triumphs at Pebble Beach appeared first on Golf.

The post Jordan Spieth sputters out as Tom Hoge triumphs at Pebble Beach appeared first on Golf.

The most clinical version of Jordan Spieth was on full display all weekend long, as he ball-striked his way around the iconic cliffside design. Through 70 holes, he held a one-shot lead over Tom Hoge, a 32-year-old pro who has never won in 200-plus starts on the PGA Tour. With one swing from Spieth and one swing from Hoge, mere minutes apart, the Pro-Am was upended from Spieth’s 13th-career Tour win to Hoge’s first.

Spieth “flushed” his approach into the par-3 17th, coming up one yard short of clearing the bunker — according to broadcaster Colt Knost — leaving a tricky up and down. Hoge, one shot and one hole back, nearly holed his approach into the 16th, leaving a tap-in for the tie. Spieth missed his par putt on 17. Nine minutes later Hoge made his birdie putt on 17.

Around the time Hoge’s putt dropped, Spieth found his ball under the famous fairway tree on 18, crunched his hybrid into the ground and sent his ball skidding into the fairway bunker. He was two down and out of options. The tournament Spieth looked to have stolen from the field was stolen right back from him, really in just a swing or two. 

“Just picked the wrong shape of shot on 17,” Nick Faldo said on the broadcast. “Hit it center on the wind, it could be a different story.” 

It was easy for Faldo to doubt Spieth, especially in the hindsight. But it also is hard to poke a hole through Faldo’s analysis. Faldo, it seems, wanted a fade from Spieth. Spieth elected for a tight draw with an 8-iron and came up agonizingly short. 

“I felt like I hit a lot of shots exactly where I wanted to and it just — couple yards here or there, couple inches here or there on the greens,” Spieth said on the broadcast after. “I don’t think I need to change anything, just keep doing what I’m doing, and a lot of times those will lip in.”

Rules

Hoge, on the other hand, played crisp, clean, near-perfect golf on the way in. A smooth 5-wood off the 18th tee. A smart layup into the fairway. An 8-iron that bounced at the flag and two putts to more or less clinch his long-awaited first title. When Beau Hossler’s final approach flared into a bunker, it was all but over. 

“It feels pretty good. Almost a little bit in shock,” Hoge said. “It’s been so long since I’ve won anything, I almost forgot to celebrate there on 18.”

Hoge had made 202 starts on the PGA Tour, and finally a victory. With it comes his first invitation to the Masters at Augusta National. It was a long time coming, and he was reminded about that afterward. 

“I’ve always kinda got myself in position and then just felt a little uncomfortable on Sundays out there,” Hoge said. “Finally today I felt great the whole day. Felt real calm kinda standing over those putts you need to make down the stretch. It’s awesome. You work through so many hard times, but to be here and finally pull one off feels incredible.”

Seconds later he hoisted the trophy for the first time. There was a lot more of that coming for him Sunday night. 

The post Jordan Spieth sputters out as Tom Hoge triumphs at Pebble Beach appeared first on Golf.

The post Patton Kizzire beats James Hahn in marathon playoff to win Sony Open appeared first on Golf.

The post Patton Kizzire beats James Hahn in marathon playoff to win Sony Open appeared first on Golf.

Kizzire, who won the OHL Classic in Mexico last fall, closed with a 2-under 68.

That turned out to be the easy part.

James Hahn shot 62 in the final round Sunday and got into a playoff with Kizzire at 17-under 263.

They matched two pars and two birdies on the par-5 18th. They matched pars when they went to the par-3 17th. It ended on the par 3 along the Pacific Ocean when Hahn putted from right of the green to about 8 feet, and his par putt caught the lip.

“It wasn’t pretty,” Kizzire said. “I’ll take it any way I can get it.”

Hahn, who won both his PGA Tour events in playoffs at Riviera and Quail Hollow, had birdie putts from 10 feet and 6 feet on the par-5 18th hole at Waialae Country Club that would have won it. He made a 6-foot birdie another time to extend the playoff.

Kizzire had to get up-and-down from a bunker for par on the first extra hole, making a 7-footer to stay alive. It was the longest playoff on the PGA Tour since Bryce Molder won the Frys.com Open in 2012 in eight extra holes.

It nearly was the most exciting tournament of the year (it’s only the second week) that no one saw. Union workers for video and audio production at Golf Channel events walked out Sunday over a labor dispute, and the network had to scramble to provide limited coverage. They had enough cameras to at least cover the final three holes and the entire playoff, with commentary coming from headquarters in Florida.

You may also like Labor dispute between Golf Channel, live tournament technicians union to impact Sunday telecasts

The post Patton Kizzire beats James Hahn in marathon playoff to win Sony Open appeared first on Golf.