Andrew Putnam Archives - Golf Digest Middle East

Sahith Theegala’s caddie ‘fired’ tour player Andrew Putnam, and now they’re in RSM’s final round together

Golf Digest Middle East — Sun, 20 Nov 2022 09:41:15 +0000

By Tod Leonard
Will it be bad blood when Sahith Theegala and Andrew Putnam step onto the first tee on Sunday, each having a chance to win the RSM Classic? Probably not, considering they are two of the more well-liked players on the PGA Tour and they are both alums of Pepperdine University. You know, Wave pride and all of that.

Putnam, who at 13-under is one stroke off the co-lead of Ben Martin and Patrick Rodgers, is 33 and graduated from the cliffs of Malibu, California, in 2011. His has been a journeyman’s career at this point, with his lone PGA Tour victory having come in the 2018 Barracuda Championship. Theegala, also 13-under, is a 24-year-old who was the swept the 2020 NCAA postseason awards at Pepperdine and made a sizeable splash on the big tour in his rookie season. Yet he’s still looking for a maiden win after already posting seven tops-10 in the last 15 months.

There is also another Pepperdine connection that makes their final-round pairing at Sea Island Golf Club just a little bit juicier. Theegala’s caddie is Carl Smith, a former Pepperdine player and assistant coach who took up looping on the PGA Tour in 2015. Before that, he’d followed much of Theegala’s youth career and was a key, along with head coach Michael Beard, in convincing Sahith to choose Pepperdine.

But — and here’s where it gets intriguing — at the time Theegala turned pro, Smith was caddying for … Putnam, his former Waves teammate. When the time came for Sahith to go to Korn Ferry Tour Q-School, Smith talked to Putnam about looping for Theegala that week, and Putnam did the gentlemanly thing and obliged.

It ultimately backfired on him when Theegala earned his PGA Tour card.

“[Smith] told he wasn’t going to bounce to [Theegala’s] bag,” Putnam recalled on Saturday. “They made it through and then he ended up firing me.”

That’s a tough deal, though Putnam contends that he’s understanding of it.

“It was all good,” he said, “because Carl recruited Sahith, and he had always wanted a young rookie who he could show the ropes, and I was OK with it.”

Putnam was asked how he thinks Smith has helped Theegala.

“I think more than anything, probably just making him comfortable out here,” he said. “When you’ve got a good friend on your bag, I think that just makes it easier just to get adjusted to being on the PGA Tour when you’re playing with all these bigger names and people you watch on TV. I know having a good friend on my bag early on was helpful and having my brother [Michael Putnam] ahead of me was extremely helpful. I’m sure Carl, he’s a very even-keel-type presence, so that’s probably helped Sahith to get off to such a good start.”

For his part, Theegala called Putnam “one of the nicest guys on tour”.

“He’s helped me a little bit last year just kind of coming on the scene. His demeanour is incredible on the course. He’s so even-keeled. But I feel like he kind of fools a lot of people in that he’s a killer. His iron game is absurd.”

Putnam and his current caddie, Jordan Guilford, have been doing just fine in this early portion of the season. They’re 8-for-8 in cuts made and, with a second-round 62, Putnam contended deep into the Zozo Championship before tying for second.

The post Sahith Theegala’s caddie ‘fired’ tour player Andrew Putnam, and now they’re in RSM’s final round together appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Rickie Fowler nearly shoots career-best PGA Tour score, tied for 36-hole lead at Zozo Championship

Golf Digest Middle East — Fri, 14 Oct 2022 12:50:48 +0000

By Shane Ryan
The rain was gone in Chiba, Japan, and with clear skies and a dry course, a resurgent Rickie Fowler shot a bogey-free 63 to jump into a tie for first at the Zozo Championship on Friday. It was just one stroke shy of his best score in 13-plus seasons on the PGA Tour — a 62 at the Waste Management Open in Phoenix more than a decade ago — and also just a shot behind the best round in the field. That honour belonged to Andrew Putnam, whose 62 put him at 10-under, tied with Fowler heading into the weekend.

The headline of Fowler’s fall, of course, is that he’s back with Butch Harmon, having jettisoned his coach of three years, John Tillery, after falling into the World Ranking abyss (he starts this week No. 160 in the OWGR). He’s got a new caddie, too, longtime tour looper Ricky Romano, along with a new set of irons. The full makeover treated him well at the Narashino Country Club.

“It’s always nice to have a clean card,” Fowler said. “I think that was the biggest difference from yesterday to today. Obviously not as much moisture, we had a nice dry day, but on top of that, for me, just kind of cleaning up the card and managed my way around really nicely today.”

That’s an understatement. Fowler made birdie on four of his first eight holes, and just when he seemed to be in cruise control, he made a final surge to close with two more birdies, finishing at seven under for the day and tying Putnam atop the leaderboard. He was particularly strong on the par 3s, carding three birdies on the five short holes, highlighting his improved iron play.

Rolling it ?@RickieFowler gets to -10 and a tie for the lead @ZOZOCHAMP. pic.twitter.com/IDbPXNKtgn

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 14, 2022

Despite the low number, though, Fowler wasn’t exactly ebullient about the technical side of his game.

“The last two days I wasn’t exactly swinging it great,” said Fowler, who is holding a 36-hole lead on the PGA Tour for the 11th time in his career and the first since the 2020 American Express (we won’t remind him he’s only won one of the previous 10). “I kind of did a good job of managing my way around. I’ll get some work in tomorrow before the round and try and exaggerate a few things where I’m a little bit tighter in lines and flights that I want.”

Fowler’s maternal grandfather, Yutaka, is Japanese by birth, and Fowler has long felt an affinity for Japan. Prior to the tournament, he spoke of his excitement at experiencing Tokyo culture again with fewer pandemic restrictions. He singled out the food, which included meals of sushi and ramen to start the week. But though he’s won in South Korea (back in 2011, at the Korea Open), he’s never broken through in Japan, and he’ll try to change that this year.

The swing changes he and Harmon have made give him a fighting chance.

“It’s kind of a combo of old and new,” he explained before the tournament. “I feel like the last three years with Tillery has put me actually in a very good position to make some little changes and I have … a great foundation. Unfortunately, the play over the last few years didn’t really reflect that and so that was a bummer that it just really wasn’t working out.”

Among the big things Fowler has worked on with Harmon, including some time last week in Las Vegas after missing the cut at the Shriners Children’s Open, is keeping a steeper left arm plane. Fowler says that ultimately gets his hands higher at the top and the club in a better position. “[It] gives me more room and space and makes the swing a bit more efficient.”

It’s worked so far, and Fowler knows he’ll have to continue going low to nab his first tournament win since 2019, the year Harmon cut down on his tournament travel and the two split. Fowler’s prescription for doing so is simple — drive well, and play it from the fairway.

As for Putnam, he hasn’t made a bogey in 36 holes, and with his birdie on 18, he briefly set the course record.

“Putter’s heating up,” he said. “This course feels a lot like home, northwest golf. Obviously, the clouds, I’m used to that, a lot of trees, and greens are rolling really smooth, so feel pretty comfortable out here.”

Beautiful approach.
Brutal lip-out.
Birdie for a new course record.@AndrewPutnam1 goes low to take the lead @ZOZOCHAMP. pic.twitter.com/L2Eq7GGMn5

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 14, 2022

Unfortunately for him, he held the course record for perhaps the shortest time ever. Less than two hours later, John Huh finished with a 61, highlighted by six birdies in a front-nine 28. For Huh, a 59 was a real possibility, but he was content to “settle” for the course record — “nine [under] is good enough, I think, for me,” he joked.

Putnam and Fowler will be joined in Saturday’s final threesome by Keegan Bradley, another player trying to reach his former heights. Bradley carded a 65 on Friday to follow his opening 66, and at 9-under he trails by just a stroke. He was particularly happy to make birdie on 9 and 17, two of the toughest holes at the Zozo.

“I just played perfect today,” he said. “It’s one of the best rounds of the year, this whole year. That was great. I had a lot of fun out there and it’s just very stress-free, which is always good. … Man, I’m excited.”

You may also like:
Golf Digest Middle East presents Oktoberfest 2020
WATCH: Expensive three-attempt horror show for DJ at LIV Golf
LIVE: Updates from LIV Golf Jeddah
Here’s the prize money payouts for each golfer in Jeddah
Phil ‘on the right side’ with LIV Golf
Day 1 pairings for LIV Golf Jeddah
Reed ready to take one for the LIV team
Cam Smith settles into life on LIV
Roshn announced as LIV Golf Jeddah partner
LIV Golf doing more with less
Aramco Team Series ready for return to New York
‘Being a LIV caddie is the best of my career’
Grab your LIV Golf Jeddah discounted tickets here
Here’s a milestone Tiger didn’t want
Prestwick turns back the clock
Dustin Johnson picks up a tidy bonus for winning LIV Golf Individual Championship
LIV Golf Jeddah — all you need to know
LIV Golf pays and plays it forward
Watch: Highlights from the LIV Golf Bangkok finale
Chacarra holds nerve to claim LIV Golf Bangkok

The post Rickie Fowler nearly shoots career-best PGA Tour score, tied for 36-hole lead at Zozo Championship appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Major winners Scott, Glover among four pros to play their way inside FedEx Cup top 70, extend season another week

Golf Digest Middle East — Mon, 15 Aug 2022 10:45:05 +0000

Adam Scott moved on to the BMW Championship after shooting a closing 66 at TPC Southwind to secure a top-10 finish at the FedEx St Jude Championship. Andy Lyons

By Shane Ryan
The PGA Tour/FedEx Cup bubble is a steady source of high drama, from the Wyndham Championship through the Tour Championship.

At this week’s FedEx St Jude Championship, the top 125 players at the end of the regular season fought it out to finish inside the top 70 and keep their playoff experience alive at next week’s BMW Championship.

In the past, when four playoff events were held, it was somewhat easier to climb up from the lower ranks during the course of the playoffs, but since 2019 and the start of the three-eventer, it took a special performance in the very first leg to stay alive.

That was true again in Memphis, and when the final putt had fallen, four players had stepped up sufficiently to go from outside No. 70 to the safety of qualification. Adam Scott, Lucas Glover, Andrew Putnam and Wyndham Clark were the beneficiaries of strong play and, in some cases, a bit of late luck.

Scott’s campaign was one of the most definitive, a closing 66 capping a stellar week and a T-5 finish. That vaulted the Aussie up 32 spots, from 77th to 45th, and was more than enough to secure a tee time at Delaware Country Club.

“What’s satisfying?” he asked rhetorically. “Getting through I guess, but I played really poorly yesterday and somehow shot a decent score. To turn it around and play solid today and give myself a chance to go through, I’m happy with that. I get to play four rounds next week … I feel even though I’m not winning this event, I feel like I’m getting something out of the week.

“I think that’s sometimes the hardest thing at this point in my career is week after week switching the mind on all the time,” he added. “Floating around on autopilot sometimes and that doesn’t get you very far, so I had to focus a little bit more this week.”

One of only two players to gain more ground than Scott in Memphis was Lucas Glover, who finished a stroke better than the Australian at 12-under to secure a T-3 finish. He started the week barely inside the postseason bubble, at 121st, and ended 34th, which not only ensures a continued playoff run but gives him a decent chance to qualify for the Tour Championship with another solid week.

“It’s nice. Kind of a similar situation a couple years ago,” Glover said, referring to his 2019 run. “I had one-and-a-half good weeks and ended up in Atlanta. That was kind of in the back of my head. Thought, you know, just got to get to the next week and then everybody’s got a shot.”

Like Scott, Putnam finished at 11-under and made the bubble cut-off with room to spare, moving from 87th to 47th on the eligibility points list.

Wyndham Clark’s chances, however, were on a knife’s edge all day. For a long time, it appeared as though Lee Hodges was going to be the fourth player to go from out to in, and Clark did himself no favours by playing his final five holes in four-over, only avoiding worse trouble with an up-and-down par on 18 to close out a two-over 72. It seemed as though he had blown his chance, especially when Hodges finished with a birdie on 18 to post 65. But fluctuations in the leaderboard late in the day, after both had left the course, hurt Hodges’ final position and brought Clark back to No. 70. It got to the point where a single Sungjae Im bogey on 18 would have brought Hodges back into the mix, but it wasn’t to be.

For each player who fought their way inside the top 70, simple math indicates that someone else must fall out. The most frustrating figure of the bubble dance this week was Anirban Lahiri, who missed the cut by two shots but still had a fighting chance to make the BMW. Instead, he finished 71st in the standings, trailing Clark by just three points. (Moments before the end of the tournament, the margin was a ridiculously slim .072 points.)

Elsewhere, Brendon Todd needed a strong closing round to save his playoff hopes, but shot 75 to slip out of the top 70 after starting the week in 68th place. The final two players to fall from the top 70 were John Huh, who withdrew with a lower-back injury during his second round, and Lanto Griffin, who in late July opted to undergo back surgery and miss the rest of the 2021-22 season, but remained in 69th place at the start of this week.

Sepp Straka, who nearly won the event after six straight missed cuts, rose to eighth place, while Will Zalatoris took over the top spot from Scottie Scheffler with his first PGA Tour victory. Brian Harman, with a T-3 finish, made a huge leap from 55th to 23rd, and now has an inside track to the Tour Championship, while fellow Georgia Bulldog Kevin Kisner used his own T-20 finish to crack the top 30. Trey Mullinax rose from 70th to 40th at 11-under, and two rookies, Tom Kim and Sahith Theegala, also moved inside the top 30 with strong showings. Seamus Power, Shane Lowry, Aaron Wise and Cameron Tringale had the opposite experience — they were inside the top 30, but middling finishes or missed cuts pushed them out, and they’ll have work to do at the BMW Championship.

The post Major winners Scott, Glover among four pros to play their way inside FedEx Cup top 70, extend season another week appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Dustin Johnson closes out 18th career victory with incredible walk-off eagle at the FedEx St. Jude Classic

Golf Digest Middle East — Mon, 11 Jun 2018 05:14:55 +0000

(Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

By Christopher Powers
Dustin Johnson didn’t appear to have his best stuff early Sunday in the final round of the FedEx St. Jude Classic, and it likely still would have been enough to hold off Andrew Putnam, who went on to card a two-over 72. If he was able to turn it on, DJ had the opportunity to run away from the field, similar to how he ran away at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, his first victory this season.

Ultimately, that’s exactly what happened thanks to a slippery, 15-foot par save at the par-4 12th, one Johnson pointed to after the round as a turning point. From there, Johnson made birdies at 13 and 16, and then holed out for eagle with a 9-iron from 171 yards at the 18th. The shot emphatically closed out his 18th career PGA Tour victory and took him back to the World No. 1 spot he owned for 64 straight weeks until being displaced by Justin Thomas last month.

It was an incredible final six-hole stretch that had to be a scary sight for Johnson’s competitors next week at Shinnecock Hills, where he’ll look to become the first player ever to win the week before the U.S. Open and then claim the USGA’s signature championship.

“I’m glad it’s over, for sure,” Johnson said. “What a cool way to end the day, to hole that shot there on 18. Obviously a lot of good things happened this week. I knew coming in I was swinging really well and a lot of confidence in the game, I played really well all week.

“I wasn’t really comfortable until I made that nice putt on 12 for par, and that kind of gave me the boost I needed. I was a little flat starting the day, really couldn’t get anything going. Made that nice putt there on 12, then hit a good drive, good second shot on 13, made birdie. Hit a lot of good shots coming in. It was nice to be back in the hunt, to have the lead, get the juices flowing, feels like it’s been a long time and it’s only been six months. It was a lot of fun though.”

The win is Johnson’s second this season and his second in the event, the first coming in 2012. It moves him into a tie for 43rd on the all-time PGA Tour wins list, joining a group that includes Hall-of-Famers Nick Price and Julius Boros. He’s also tied with Tiger Woods for the most victories since 2008. Next week, he’ll look to capture his second major championship, where he’ll likely be the betting favorite after his performance in Memphis.

“I have high expectations going into every week,” he said. “Feel like the game’s in good shape. I’m driving it well, I’m really hitting my irons well. I’m looking forward to next week. I haven’t seen the golf course yet, but I’ll go out and get 18 holes in tomorrow and go from there.”

Putnam, who had made just one bogey through 54 holes, struggled out of the gate on Sunday, making a double bogey at the par-4 first that proved to be too much to overcome. He did still finish in solo second at 13-under 267, six shots back of Johnson but four strokes ahead of third-place J.B. Holmes. It’s the best finish of Putnam’s career on the PGA Tour.

“I had a lot of fun, felt like I handled myself better than my score looked,” Putnam said. “Just didn’t have some putts go my way, first couple holes were a little rough, but overall I felt like I had a great time. Dustin obviously played pretty solid, definitely learn from these experiences.”

Holmes posted a final-round 67 to finish in solo third at nine-under 271. Stewart Cink and Richy Werenski tied for fourth at eight-under 272.

The post Dustin Johnson closes out 18th career victory with incredible walk-off eagle at the FedEx St. Jude Classic appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Andrew Putnam ready for the challenge of facing off with Dustin Johnson in the final round of the FedEx St. Jude Classic

Golf Digest Middle East — Sun, 10 Jun 2018 05:54:36 +0000

MEMPHIS, TN – JUNE 09: Andrew Putnam hits his second shot on the first hole during the third round of the FedEx St. Jude Classic at TPC Southwind on June 9, 2018, in Memphis, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

By Christopher Powers

On Sunday at the FedEx St. Jude Classic, Andrew Putnam will play in the final pairing for the first time in his career thanks to a second-straight six-under 64 on Saturday at TPC Southwind. His reward? He gets to face Dustin Johnson, who kept it rolling in his third round with a five-under 65, putting him in a tie at the top with Putnam at 15-under 195.

Normally, this may have prompted a canned “just treat it like any other round” response from a tour pro still finding his footing on the PGA Tour, but that wasn’t the case with Putnam. He knows this won’t be like any other final round he’s played in his professional career, even though he’s won twice on the Web.com Tour.

“It’s going to feel a little different than the typical Sunday round of golf,” said Putnam, the only player in the field without a bogey through 54 holes. “But I’m excited about it, I’ve earned my way here and I feel like it’s going to be a fun day. We’ll see what happens, just keep going with the game plan and see what we can do.”

The game plan has been a good one so far, especially on the greens, where Putnam has seen noticeable improvement following a post-round practice session after he shot a three-under 67 on Thursday. For the week, he ranks 23rd in strokes-gained/putting.

“I felt like I hit the ball the best my first round and just didn’t get anything to drop,” he said. “Putted a little bit afterwards, matching the line up with the speed. I grew up on poa annua and I think it’s just a little different putting from poa annua to bermuda. I love bermuda too, I putt well on it, it’s just lining up the line and the speed and the last 36 (holes) have been pretty good.”

He’s going to really love bermuda if he can hole a few more on Sunday and capture his first PGA Tour victory, and his first win as a professional since the 2017 Panama Claro Championship on the Web.com Tour.

For Johnson, it was another smooth walk to the clubhouse, as he made just one bogey and six birdies to remain atop the leaderboard. He’s been the best player tee to green this week and leads the field in birdies with 18. A win on Sunday would be the 18th of his career, and his second in this event, which he won in 2012.

Alone in third is 45-year-old Stewart Cink, who carded a six-under 64 that included a hole-in-one on the 144-yard par-3 eighth. This is Cink’s second start since a cancer scare that required him to undergo surgery to have a sizable chunk of tissue removed from the right side of his nose. He’s five back at 10-under 200.

Richy Werenski and Wesley Bryan are tied for fourth at nine-under 201, while Chez Reavie is in solo sixth at eight-under 202.

The post Andrew Putnam ready for the challenge of facing off with Dustin Johnson in the final round of the FedEx St. Jude Classic appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.