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Welcome to the Free Drop 5-Minute World Tour, where we get you caught up on the week that was in professional golf.
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On the course, every decision matters to the score you sign for. Off the course, your investments matter to the life you lead and the legacy you leave behind. Warwick Wealth's Investment Specialists will help guide you towards the best possible financial solution.
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Think of them as your off-course caddie. Find yours today!
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Professional Golf
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PGA Tour: Thorbjornsen rockets to maiden title
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Photo credit: Golf Digest/X
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Michael Thorbjornsen carded a Sunday 7-under 63, punctuated by a 72nd hole birdie to win a maiden PGA Tour title in the Rocket Classic at Detroit Golf Club.
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Davis Riley was in the ascendancy heading into Sunday as he led by a shot after opening his campaign with 68, 64 and 63. After a birdie at the opening hole on Sunday, he was behind the 8-ball when he bogeyed three of his next five. He responded well with birdies at the 8th, 10th and 14th but wasn't able to find enough birdies ultimately to truly challenge.
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Thorbjornsen by contrast didn't drop a single shot and made a bunch of birdies. Two in his first four holes set the tone before he found another gear over the back-nine. Red numbers at the 10th, 12th, 14th and 15th propelled the American to a maiden win.
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Playing alongside Thorbjornsen, Xander Schauffele gave the title a good go but despite a 65, still came up two shots shy.
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Instead, Thorbjornsen delivered on the immense promise which saw him earn PGA Tour status by topping the PGA Tour University rankings in 2024.
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LPGA Tour: Shiho wins Women's Open in dramatic fashion
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Shiho Kuwaki won a war of attrition in the final round of the Women's British Open at Royal Lytham & St Anne's, grinding out a 1-under 70 in the final round before defeating Esther Henseleit with a par at the 2nd hole of sudden-death.
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With 18 holes to play, Yealimi Noh was in pole position by three after opening with a 4-under 67 and backing it up with rounds of 70 and 69.
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The final round wasn't as kind. Just one birdie on each nine and five bogeys in all meant she arrived at the 18th needing a birdie just to earn a playoff berth with Kuwaki. As did Henseleit
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Earlier, Kuwaki had mixed three birdies with two bogeys to set the clubhouse target at 5-under.
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Cometh the hour, cometh Esther Henseleit. A perfectly weighted 10m putt that never looked like missing found the bottom of the cup, much to her delight and Kuwaki's bemusement.
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The playoff had no shortage of drama. Kuwaki found the thick rough off the 18th tee which necessitated a lay up while Henseleit found the green in regulation.
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A superb pitch helped Kuwaki save par , doing enough to extend the playoff after Henseleit's birdie try stayed above ground.
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The script flipped on the 2nd playoff hole. Henseleit's tee-shot found the bush off the tee after an unfortunate ricochet off somebody's foot. She was able to find the ball and did well to hack it up the fairway, keeping hopes of salvaging par alive.
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It was Shiho's turn to find the green in regulation. It was also her turn to miss her birdie putt.
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Unfortunately for Henseleit, she was unable to emulate Shiho's par-saving heroics from the hole before, taking bogey while Shiho took the title with a par.
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Korn Ferry Tour: Hitchner wins 5-man playoff
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Photo credit: Korn Ferry Tour/X
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A birdie at the first extra hole saw Derek Hitchner emerge out of an astonishing five-man playoff to win the Utah Championship at Ogden Golf & Country Club.
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The American had a remarkable week. After not having broken 65 in 17 prior starts on Tour, he shot back-to-back 8-under 62 in rounds two and three which complemented a round one 68.
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He shared the lead with teenage phenom Blades Brown though the latter finished a shot outside the playoff after a 68.
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Hitchner signed for a 67 and was joined atop the leaderboard by Cole Hammer (64), Mason Anderson (65), Travis Trace (66) and last week's winner Tommy Morrison who shot 63.
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In the playoff, Hitchner hit a booming 325-yard drive down the left-side of the fairway before hitting a 140-yard approach to 6-feet.
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The other four also found the putting surface, Morrison actually hitting his approach to 3 1/2 feet.
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To a man, Trace, Hammer and Andersen all missed.
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Hitchner didn't, leaving Morrison with a putt to extend proceedings.
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He came up an inch shy, his putt skirting the left-edge to confirm Hitchner's victory.
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HotelPlanner Tour: A first win for Franssen in Estonia
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Photo credit: HotelPlanner Tour/X
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Rory Franssen shot a 5-under 67 to emerge a three-shot victor in the Estonian Challenge at Estonian Golf & Country Club which represented a maiden HotelPlanner Tour title for the Scotsman.
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The 27-year-old had trailed Andrew Wilson through three rounds. Wilson opened with rounds of 67, 66 and 68 to lead on 15-under.
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Franssen outscored his playing partner on Sunday though. He made five birdies on the day, with four of them coming on the back-nine at the 11th, 12th, 16th and 18th.
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Wilson struggled to sustain any meaningful momentum. Despite birdies at the 3rd, 8th and 9th he dropped shots at the 5th and 17th as a second Tour title went abegging.
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PGA Tour Champions: Johnson continues 2026 hot streak in Portugal
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Photo credit: PGA Tour Champions/X
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Zach Johnson won for the fourth time in 11 starts in his debut season on PGA Tour Champions, claiming a two-shot win in the Portugal Invitational after a final round 7-under 65 at The Els Club Vilamoura.
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The American trailed the trio of Padraig Harrington, Stewart Cink and Rory Sabbatini through 36 holes, the leaders playing the first two rounds in 13-under.
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Sabbatini's challenge flamed out with a 4-over 76 on Sunday while Harrington shot 70 and Cink a 68.
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They were all left looking up at Johnson who birdied his first three holes before additional birdies at the 7th and 9th. The back-nine was quieter but effective enough. Red numbers at the 11th and par-4 18th saw Johnson post a tournament total of 19-under, a mark Cink fell two shots short of matching.
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Amateur Golf
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SA Strokeplay Championship: Newman storms to victory
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Bryan Newman secured a resounding 5-shot victory in the SA Strokeplay Championship.
Newman started the event with a superb 10-under 62 which featured 11 birdies. On three occasions Newman made three birdies in a row
He didn’t let up in round 2, carding a 6-under 66 to build a 5-shot advantage over Juan Coetzee.
Coetzee battled to a 7-over 79 in the final round and tumbled out of contention. Though Newman struggled to a closing 74 that featured five bogeys in four holes from the 12th, he did more than enough to eclipse runner-up Ivan Verster who closed with a 69.
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Steenberg Open: Loubser wins Steenberg Open by one
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Westlake Golf Club's Pietie Loubser shot rounds of 4-under 68 and 69 in the Steenberg Open to prevail by a shot from Joshua Wiese of Atlantic Beach.
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On a brilliant day for scoring, Loubser scored brilliantly. Beginning on the 10th, he birdied the 11th, 12th and the tough 13th to set an exemplary tone for the day. Bouncing back from a drop at the par-3 17th with a birdie at the 18th, Loubser then consolidated his position with a run of three pars.
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A bogey at the 4th was quickly forgotten as he birdied the 8th and 9th to ensure a one-shot advantage over Wiese heading into the afternoon round.
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Again he birdied the 11th, 12th and 18th holes but gave a shot back at the long par3 14th which played 205m on the day. Another bogey-4 came at the 2nd but Loubser gained it back at the next. Birdies at the 5th and 8th offset a bogey at the 6th and proved crucial to Loubser ultimately holding off Wiese who shot a 3-under 69, matching his morning effort.
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Fun Facts & Scary Stats
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- Per Justin Ray Golf, the last time there were consecutive PGA Tour events won by American players aged 24 or younger was in July 2017.
- Japan has won 5 Women's Majors in the last 3 seasons, the most of any country according to Justin Ray Golf.
- Nelly Korda became the first player since Inbee Park in 2015 to post 4 top-10s in a Major season including multiple victories (Credit: Justin Ray Golf)
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