By Tod Leonard
Will Zalatoris was precocious throughout his early golf career. He qualified for the U.S. Junior Amateur at the age of 12 and four years later captured that championship. He then earned the Arnold Palmer Scholarship as a freshman at Wake Forest, notched four wins in his college career and set the Demon Deacons’ season scoring average record.

It seemed like only a matter of time before Zalatoris would make his mark in the pros, and after trending upward in the Korn Ferry Tour’s return to golf after the coronavirus break, the 23-year-old secured his first title on Saturday in the TPC Colorado Championship at Heron Lakes in Berthoud, Colo.

Zalatoris closed with a three-under-par 69 to finish at 15 under and edge by one shot Chase Johnson, who charged with a course-record 63—fashioned with 10 birdies. While the $108,000 first prize pushed Zalatoris to the top of the KFT money standings, it was nearly as big a day for Johnson, who had only conditional status entering the week and now, with a $54,000 check, has secured his card for the rest of the season.

The win is an exclamation mark following a fine run of play in which Zalatoris finished T-6, T-3 and solo fourth in the three events since the Korn Ferry resumed play following a three-month break due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Zalatoris had two other top 10s in the first five tournaments before play stopped.

“Finally,” a smiling Zalatoris said afterward. “It’s been probably four years since I won a golf tournament. It still hasn’t sunk in. It’s kind of crazy. I told Ryan [his caddie] that we’re going to the [U.S.] Open. We’re one step closer to getting a [PGA] tour card. Two more to go.”

Zalatoris, who started last season with no status but earned his Korn Ferry card with six top-25 finishes, has set his sights on a “battlefield” promotion to the PGA Tour that three wins would afford him. There will be no promotions via the KFT standings at the end of the year because of the truncated schedule caused by the coronavirus.

“I feel like it’s a new level of comfort,” Zalatoris said after his second round in Colorado. “Last year, it felt like every single week I needed a top 25 to play the next week. This year, being a year and a half long, it’s basically go win three times. … I’m trying to get to the PGA Tour as fast as I can. The goal is trying to win three times, and in a weird way that kind of frees me up.”

Though he’s been successful at every level, Zalatoris also has watched six members of the 2017 U.S. Walker Cup team on which he played reach the PGA Tour. Even his current roommate in Plano, Texas, Davis Riley, notched his first win earlier this year in the KFT’s Panama event.

Zalatoris now has a pro trophy of his own.

“Finally get one on my side of the hallway,” he said.

The post Will Zalatoris scores much-anticipated first win on Korn Ferry Tour appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The 18-year-old, Dubai-based Indian No.1 is one of 25 players exempted into the 156-player field after his breakout run to the semifinals of the under-19 USGA championship at Flint Hills National last July.

He’ll tee it up with Americans Fulton Smith and Luke Ludwig at 9.09am local time (5.09pm UAE time) on Monday on Baltusrol’s Upper course before playing in the penultimate group in Tuesday’s final round of strokeplay on the slightly shorter Lower course Tuesday at 11.57am (7.57pm UAE time).

The top 64 players advance to the matchplay knockout stages and the spotlight will be on Thomas in the second round, and more specifically the back nine on Tuesday, after he let golden opportunities slip in last month’s St. Andrews Links Trophy and The (British) Amateur Championship.

The MENA Tour trailblazer had been T-22 after an opening 72 on the par 70 Royal Aberdeen and comfortably on track to make the top-64 at the 123rd edition of the British Am. But as was the case at the St Andrews Links Trophy at the Home of Golf the previous week, where Thomas went from contending after 27 holes to somehow missing the 36-hole cut, he struggled with another five-over homeward nine.

“I love links golf so I loved playing those two weeks on some of the best links courses the world has to offer but unfortunately, my back nine game on the second days was where I fell short,” Thomas told Golf Digest Middle East.

“I’m looking forward to [Baltusrol] in New Jersey. Going forward, just keep working on the same things I’ve been working on… The game is in good shape, I just need to figure out a better way to start scoring on those back nines and I’m sure I’ll come back swinging.”

Thomas was beaten 5 and 4 by eventual champion Noah Goodwin in last year’s semifinals in a championship that dates back to 1948 and increased the age limited from U-18 to U-19 in 2016.

Tiger Woods won the title three years straight from 1991 while Jordan Spieth, the champion in 2009 and 2011, was denied a hat-trick when fellow American Jim Liu succeeded Woods as the event’s youngest winner in 2010.

“The run to the semifinal last year was awesome. I played decent in the strokeplay and then I really kicked it up a gear in the matchplay, had some really good games, just played solid, putted really well.

“That’s the key in match play, if you are able to putt well you can progress pretty far. Keeping the pressure on as I did last year to the semis was awesome. It was a good stepping stone for me because it was such a big event.

“I’m going to look at the course as much as I can on the internet, watch the 2016 PGA [Championship] for the lower course even though the matchplay is on the upper course, get an idea of how it looks.

“I’m just going to keep working on the same things because I’m playing solid, don’t need to do much else. Just get my head on straight and swing hard.”

The post Scottish setbacks shelved, Thomas focuses on going one match better in U.S. Junior Amateur appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Ryan Herrington
Jordan Spieth has won 11 PGA Tour events and three major championships in his short but stellar professional career, which makes it hard sometimes to remember the days when the 24-year-old was just an aspiring golfer. Even though those days weren’t that long ago.

In 2010, a then 16-year-old Spieth had begun making a name for himself at the junior golf level, having won the U.S. Junior Amateur title the previous summer (one of two he would win) and being named the AJGA Rolex Player of the Year. In the midst of building an impressive resume, Spieth decided it was worth reaching out to the tournament officials at the HP Bryon Nelson Championship to inquire about something that at the time seemed a little audacious: Getting a spot in the field at a PGA Tour event.

No amateur had received an exemption into the tournament since Trip Kuehne in 1995, and Justin Leonard and Tiger Woods before that in 1993. But Spieth, a Dallas native, wrote tournament director George Conant to make his case, and managed to convince him to let a high schooler play. It turned out to be a good call, Spieth made the cut and was tied for seventh place after 54 holes before finishing the tournament in a tie for 16th place.

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WATCH NOW HOW JORDAN SPIETH PLAYS GOLF AT HOME

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Celebrating the tournament’s 50th playing this week, officials with the now AT&T Byron Nelson released a copy of the letter. As you would have guessed, it has all the fingerprints of something the precocious Spieth would have written, complete with a humorous story about “meeting” Phil Mickelson while attending the tournament for the first time in 2008.

Here’s the letter. Judge for yourself if you think Spieth deserved the spot or not:

The post Read the convincing letter that secured 16-year-old Jordan Spieth his first PGA Tour invite appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The 18-year-old MENA Tour trailblazer has been selected to spearhead India’s four-man team at the 18th Asian Games in Indonesia in August and the world amateur No.17 is clearly humbled by the call-up for what is the continent’s answer to the two-week long, multi-sport Commonwealth Games.

“As an amateur golfer, it is my dream to represent India at the international level and competing in the Asian Games and wearing the Indian blazer means a lot,” the Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club member told the Indian Express. “I played in Asia Pacific Amateur Championship and Nomura Cup for India earlier but when I tee off in the Asian Games, it will be different feeling for me and the whole family.”

Thomas’ father John put the call-up into further perspective by reflecting on the sacrifices the Dubai-based family have made to help their son become one of the best amateur golfers on the planet.

“To see him at the Asian Games opening ceremony will be the biggest reward for us.”

Rayhan Thomas in action at the 2017 Asia Pacific Amateur Championship at Royal Wellington G.C. in New Zealand. Photo Jamie Troughton.

The Asian Games golf tournament, a 72-hole individual and teams strokeplay event to be played at Pondok Indah Golf Club in Jakarta from August 23-26, plugs a gap in a busy summer schedule for Thomas.

He’ll tee it up in the St Andrews Links Trophy on the New and Old Courses from June 8-10 – Justin Rose won the title in 1997 – before contesting the 123rd Amateur Championship at Royal Aberdeen and Murcar Links from June 18-23. Thomas cruelly missed the cut for the matchplay phase of the British amateur by a stroke last year but it did spur him to a historic semifinal showing at the 70th U.S. Junior Amateur.

He’ll have a tilt at the 71st edition of the U.S. Junior Amateur at Baltusrol G.C. in Springfield, New Jersey (July 16-23) before looking to avenge his missed cut (by five strokes) at the prestigious 116th Western Amateur at Sunset Ridge Country Club in Northfield, Illinois from July 31-Aug. 4.

After the Asian Games, Thomas is set to represent India again at the Eisenhower Trophy (World Amateur Teams Championship) at Carton House near Dublin from Sept. 5-8 before returning to the Asia Pacific Amateur Championship at Sentosa G.C.in Singapore from Oct. 3-7. Thomas finished T-35 at last year’s Asia Pacific in New Zealand.

India has won three individual medals at previous Asian Games and Thomas, who has verbally committed to play collegiate golf for Rickie Fowler’s former Oklahoma State University Cowboys from 2019 till 2023, would like to be the fourth.

“I know I will not turn professional before that [finishing school in the U.S. in 2023]. So winning a medal in Indonesia will be more than winning a professional tour title. I am very excited about this opportunity.”

The post Thomas thrilled by India call-up for 18th Asian Games appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By John Strege

A professional golfer is not likely to be enthused with having his career defined by a loss, notably one that occurred when he was 17. Yet for 24 years that was Ryan Armour’s burden and its name was Tiger.

In 1993, Armour was on the brink of derailing Tiger Woods’ historic USGA run when he had him 2 down with two holes to play in the U.S. Junior Amateur final at Waverley Country Club in Portland.

“Seventeen and 18 were the two hardest holes on the course all week,” Armour said on Wednesday. “I told my caddie that if I make two pars I win.”

Pars don’t topple immortals.

Armour, 41, was reminded of this—once more—on Wednesday, three days after rerouting the narrative of a career journeyman heretofore uncertain where the journey was taking him.

Henceforth, Armour will be known first and foremost as a PGA Tour winner by virtue of his wire-to-wire victory in the Sanderson Farms Championship on Sunday.

“It’s career changing,” he said from Las Vegas, where he’ll play the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open this week. “I’ve never really had that much job security out there. Now through 2020 I’ll be out here [on the PGA Tour] and not have to worry. It’s a great feeling. There are a lot of people who had a piece in this, first and foremost my wife and kids. They never wavered in support of what I do.”

Armour, however, did waver, even once considering quitting. “I don’t know how close it got, but it wasn’t pretty, like in 2011, ’12 and ’13,” he said. “I dreaded playing golf. I didn’t have a plan in place to succeed, and finally in 2013 I realized I wasn’t getting into any tournaments. I thought maybe it’s time. My wife was like, ‘No, you’re going to play.’ We made some changes, committed to being a more active family, to getting to bed early and getting up early. It was more of a lifestyle commitment.”

After spending most of his career on the Web.com Tour, he returned to the PGA Tour in 2014-’15, again in 2016-’17, and retained his PGA Tour card via the Web.Com Tour Finals in September. His victory on Sunday came in his 105th start on the PGA Tour.

As for Tiger and the 1993 Junior Amateur, it will remain an important part of his biography, if only for what it foretold about Woods’ transcendent talent.

Woods won the 17th hole with a birdie, but at the par-5 18th hole hit his second shot into a fairway bunker that might have spelled doom for mere lesser players.

“A 55-yard bunker shot over another bunker to a tucked pin,” Armour said. “That’s the hardest shot we ever deal with. I just thought, ‘OK, there’s no way he’s winning this hole.’”

Yet Woods hit his third shot to eight feet from the hole. “Under any circumstances, a $2 Nassau on Saturday afternoon, it would have been a great shot,” Jay Brunza, Woods’ caddie and sport psychologist, said then. “With the pressure of his third Junior Amateur at stake, it was unbelievable.”

Woods, of course, made the birdie putt, won on the first extra hole, and followed three straight Junior Amateur championships with three straight U.S. Amateur titles. USGA championships in six consecutive years is second only to Bobby Jones’ record of eight.

Armour, incidentally, conceded that this was how he was being remembered. “The media brings it up a lot, I’m not going to lie,” he said. “How can you not? It’s Tiger.”

Perhaps it’s always good, whatever the circumstances, to share space with Woods in a sentence or story, better yet, no doubt, to have rendered Woods’ a footnote to your own story, as Armour has done by joining the ranks of PGA Tour winners.

The post How Ryan Armour demoted Tiger Woods to a footnote to his career appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The 17-year-old Dubai-based Indian No.1 has been confirmed as the top qualifier for Trevor Immelman’s International team ahead of the inaugural Junior Presidents Cup at Plainfield Country Club in September.

It’s another coup for the Dubai Creek member who can add the achievement to a golfing C.V. that already includes the Scottish Boys’ title, an historic maiden MENA Tour title (he was the first amateur to win on the developmental circuit at his home Dubai Creek Open last September) and a memorable run to the semifinals of last month’s U.S. Junior Amateur.

The International team selection was based on the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR). Thomas has leapt to 58^th (from 66) in the latest standings while International team No.2 Karl Vilips (Australia) is ranked 166^th.

U.S. Junior Amateur champion Noah Goodwin (14^th in the WAGR) heads the United States selection which was determined by the Rolex American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) Rankings.

All but the one pick that Immelman, the 2008 Masters champion, and his U.S. counterpart and 2001 U.S. PGA champion David Toms get as captains have been determined for the September 25-26 matches in Edison, N.J.  The final member of each team will be announced in conjunction with the Presidents Cup captain’s selections on September 6. The Junior event is held on the eve of the senior Presidents Cup at nearby Liberty National (Sept. 26-Oct 1).

Here is a look at the Jnr qualifiers:

International
Rayhan Thomas, India
Karl Vilips, Australia
Fred Lee, Australia
Garrick Higgo, South Africa
Sean Maruyama, Japan
Atiruj Winaicharoenchai, Thailand
Christo Lamprecht, South Africa
Naraajie Emerald Ramadhan, Indonesia
Joshua Armstrong, Australia
Wocheng Ye, China
Luca Filippi, South Africa

United States
Noah Goodwin, Corinth, Texas
Trent Phillips, Inman, S.C.
William Mouw, Chino, Calif.
Garrett Barber, Stuart, Fla.
Cole Hammer, Houston, Texas
Prescott Butler, Old Westbury, N.Y.
Canon Claycomb, Bowling Green, Ky.
Turner Hosch, Dallas, Texas
Joe Highsmith, Lakewood, Wash.
Eugene Hong, Orlando, Fla.
Jacob Bridgeman, Inman, S.C.

Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus will serve as honourary captains for the International and U.S. Jnr teams respectively, another once-in-lifetime opportunity for the likes of Thomas.

The correspondence schooled teen will use the defence of his Dubai Creek Open (September 11-13) and the Golf Citizen Classic at the Els Club, Dubai the following week to prepare for New Jersey.

And be sure he isn’t letting his premature exit from the 115th Western Amateur dent his confidence.

RELATED CONTENT: University of Oregon sophomore goes deep to win 115th Western Amateur

Thomas dipped into the red early in both rounds of the prestigious stroke play/match play event in Illinois only to card rounds of 71-74 to miss the initial cut by five strokes.

“It was fun at the Western Amateur, I mean it’s a fantastic tournament, one of the best fields in amateur golf and great to be in that atmosphere again,” Thomas told Golf Digest Middle East, once more articulating a maturity beyond his years.

“Yeah, it was a bit of a disappointment, played solid, was three under after the first eight [to be well inside the cut line in the second round], but then fell apart on the next nine. But nevertheless, try to learn something from it, review, get better and move on.

“I’ve got to try to learn something and make sure I don’t make mistakes like this again. At the end of day it’s all about the experience and I really have enjoyed my American trip. I think it has helped my game greatly.

“The Presidents Cup in New Jersey is going to be huge so I will be coming back to the US and I look forward to competing again.”

The post Thomas tops International team standings for inaugural Junior Presidents Cup appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.