78º

INSIDER

BUBBA WATSON

Our 35 favorite photos from the 2021 Rocket Mortgage Classic

DETROIT – After four days of PGA Tour golf action at Detroit Golf Club over the Fourth of July weekend, the Rocket Mortgage Classic crowned a new champion. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)Mike Mulholland | MLive.comHideki Matsuyama tees off on the fifth hole during the first round of the 2021 Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club in Detroit, on Thursday, July 1, 2021. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)Mike Mulholland | MLive.comFans look on during the second round of the Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club in Detroit, on Friday, July 2, 2021. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)Mike Mulholland | MLive.comFans try to adjust their ponchos to weather a rain delay during the first round of the 2021 Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club in Detroit, on Thursday, July 1, 2021. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)Mike Mulholland | MLive.com

mlive.com

Our 20 favorite moments from second round action at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit

DETROIT – More than half the field is headed home, but there are still 77 players vying for the 2021 Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club in Detroit. Sam, a border collie at Detroit Golf Club looks on from near the groundskeeping complex during the second round of the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit, on Friday, July 2, 2021. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)Mike Mulholland | MLive.comJoaquin Niemann hits his approach shot on the 16th hole during the second round of the Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club in Detroit, on Friday, July 2, 2021. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)Mike Mulholland | MLive.comPhil Mickelson hits a tee shot on the 11th hole during the second round of the Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club in Detroit, on Friday, July 2, 2021. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)Mike Mulholland | MLive.com

mlive.com

How to Watch Round 3 of the U.S. Open (6/19/21) | Channel, Stream, Time

Watch the U.S. Open on FuboTV (7-day free trial)The feel-good story at the halfway mark of the tournament is the two gentlemen leading to the bunch at five-under, that is Russell Henley and Richard Bland. Henley led after Thursday at -4, and only bogeyed once in round two. His only other major he competed in was the 2017 Open Championship, where Bland finished tied for 22nd. What: 121st U.S. Open (Round 3)When: Saturday, June 19Time: 11 a.m. ETWhere: Torrey Pines Golf Course (San Diego, Calif.)Channel: NBCStream: FuboTV (7-day free trial)

mlive.com

Scheffler mows down European stalwarts in Match Play

Jon Rahm, of Spain, right, congratulates Scottie Scheffler on the 17th green after Scheffler won their round of eight match at the Dell Technologies Match Play Championship golf tournament Saturday, March 27, 2021, in Austin, Texas. I just have memories of me and my dad sitting on the couch and watching this guy make putt after putt. AdHe won the Match Play in 2013 and lost in the championship match last time to Kevin Kisner. He scrambled for par, and Spieth missed a 6-foot birdie putt. Spieth went 30 feet long, Kuchar was 6 feet short, and Kuchar won with a birdie.

Broken clubs behind him, Koepka feeling better about game

It's just sometimes results take a little bit longer.”There are photos to illustrate what Koepka did to his clubs, but those stay among his posse. A lot of players feel that way, but not to the point of naming their son after Riviera (Johnson's youngest is River). “I feel like it’s a tough golf course,” Johnson said. “Generally, the quality of golf course they’re played on is at a very high standard and Riviera fits that category. I feel like if you’ve had a good week here, it’s a good measure certainly generally of where your game is at.”

Team Thomas wins PNC as Woods celebrates memory with his son

Charlie's mother, Elin Nordegren, walked the final round at The Ritz-Carlton Club at Grande Lakes, her first time at a golf tournament since the 2009 Presidents Cup at Harding Park. Charlie Woods delivered a great show, unfazed by the 250 spectators (mostly sponsor guests) or the national TV spotlight. But one day he might.”The PNC Championship has the strongest waiting list in golf, and it's always been that way. His son played from tee markers more than 100 yards ahead in some cases, and Woods often waited for Charlie to hit his drive. Woods played only nine times because of the COVID-19 pandemic and only once finished in the top 10.

Dustin Johnson buries some major memories, wins the Masters

Johnson overcame a jittery start that conjured memories of past majors he failed to finish off. He turned that into a command performance, making sure this one-of-a-kind Masters with no fans also had no drama. His five-shot victory was the largest at the Masters since Woods won by 12 in 1997. “As a kid, you're dreaming about winning the Masters, having Tiger put the green jacket on you. 1 player in the world to win the Masters since Woods in 2002, was the main event.

Masters and partners coming to aid of Augusta neighborhood

Augusta National Chairman Fred Ridley announced Wednesday a $10 million donation to help with the redevelopment of what he said were once-thriving communities that have gone through decades of poverty, crime and unemployment. Bernhard Langer received that assurance at the Masters Club dinner Tuesday night with Chairman Fred Ridley. “But the issue is a lot larger than Augusta National and the Masters.”He was only certain that it would not change for the next Masters. And it wasn't in 1976, when Masters Chairman Fred Ridley stayed there for the first time. In fact, Masters Chairman Fred Ridley said it was decided before the pandemic forced the Masters to be postponed in April.

Bubba Watson says he's ready to move past the stresses of 2020 and take on the Masters

2020 has been an unusual year and nobody knows that as well as two-time Masters winner Bubba Watson. The Masters Tournament, usually played in April, will tee off on Thursday due to a delay caused by the pandemic. To cope, Watson said he's turned to cbdMD products (a company he's now sponsored by) to help with anxiety and sleeping and he's also turned to playing video games to zone out and relieve stress. Watson said he frequently plays the golf video game with Tour players when they aren't on the course. Now, from his trailer in Augusta, Watson said he's feeling good and ready to go for his third green jacket.

cnbc.com

A quiet start to empty week at Augusta National for Masters

Instead of Augusta National members and their guests, the course was filled Monday with Tiger Woods and Justin Thomas, Bubba Watson and Jordan Spieth, all of them playing a practice round on a course that only looked the same. The COVID-19 pandemic that shut down golf for three months forced a reconfigured major championship schedule unlike any other, particularly at the Masters. "The things that will be the same is it still means the same to us all, and maybe even more so because we return to Augusta National every year. This is the Augusta National hardly anyone gets to see. When it means going to Augusta National to get ready for the Masters — April, November, doesn't matter — it takes the sting off.

Late birdies let Justin Thomas keep slim lead at Sherwood

He holed a 10-foot birdie putt to tie for the lead, and then followed with a 30-foot birdie putt up the slope on the par-3 17th. It was another grind for Tiger Woods, the Zozo Championship winner last year in Japan, who could only manage a 71. Griffin opened with four straight birdies to take the lead, and he stayed there until the end of the round. Thomas was playing well enough, even if he had little to show for it after opening with two birdies. And when Griffin holed his birdie putt on the 14th, Thomas missed badly from just inside him.

Johnson, Matsuyama tied for lead at tough Olympia Fields

Every par at Olympia Fields is hard work, and Johnson played the final 13 holes Saturday with nothing worse than that. It's what carried him to a 1-under 69 and a share of the lead with Hideki Matsuyama, leaving them as the only players under par going into the final round. I feel like it's fairly similar, just obviously these conditions and the greens are a lot more difficult," he said. Rounds like that go a long way at Olympia Fields, the former U.S. Open course playing like one with its thick rough and rock-hard greens and enough wind to make the fairways look tighter than they are. All of them are one round away on a golf course where small mistakes can lead to bogeys or worse on just about every hole.