PGA TOUR – A PREVIEW OF THE 2019 MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIPS

Every year, the competition seems to get tougher on the PGA Tour.  A steady stream of accomplished young players comes into the fold, many of the aging pros are still doing special things on the golf course and in between, the level of international talent is higher than it’s ever been.  

For those of us who like to postulate, it’s almost impossible to predict which golfers will be holding the four major championship trophies by the end of this calendar year.

Personally, I’ll never count out Dustin Johnson, John Rahm or Justin Thomas.  These men seem to always be in the mix during each tour event they play and have the mental aptitude to close the deal in the biggest moments.

Below, I’ll take a quick glance at the venues for the PGA Tour’s four major championships this season and attempt to hazard a guess as to which players will have their names etched in the history books in 2019.

MASTERS TOURNAMENT, AUGUSTA NATIONAL GOLF CLUB (APRIL 11-14)

Certain players seem to do exceedingly well at Augusta National year after year.  (Ex – Spieth, Mickelson, B. Watson, T. Woods).  Having the event held at the same venue for eighty-two years helps players know what to expect.  

But, one of my picks to win this tournament in 2019 is the twenty-four-year-old Spaniard I mentioned above: John Rahm. He finished fourth at the Masters in 2018, tied for twenty-seventh in 2017 and so far this season, he’s made five Top 10s in six events played.  In just two full seasons on the PGA Tour (2017, 2018), he won twice and three times on the European Tour.  It’s only a matter of time before he puts all of the pieces together and gets his first major win.  I have a feeling that could be at Augusta National.

I’ve heard it said that Rory McIlroy is the best player on Tour without a green jacket.  Well, his past four performances certainly show that he is very close to getting the job done.  (2018: T-5; 2017: T-7; 2016: T-10; 2015: 4).  I also like what he’s doing this year.  With only seven weeks until the Masters, currently he is #1 in SG: Off-the-Tee; #3 – SG: Tee-to-Green; and #5 – SG: Total.  If he could get that putter going and have the confidence needed to push through, I like this Irishman’s chances to be sitting with Jim Nantz at the end of the tournament.  There would also be some juicy irony if Patrick Reed put the green jacket on him… Now, there’s motivation!

Justin Rose has to be in the conversation here.  Besides the terrific year he had in 2018 when he finished in the Top 25 fifteen times, won twice (three times with the Euro Ryder Cup team) and became FedEx Champion, he has performed extremely well at the Masters with seven top-15 finishes overall.  

The young, electric Bryson DeChambeau will likely be in the mix on Sunday, April 14.  In 2016, he was the “Low Amateur” (T-21) and in 2018 – T-38. The 2015 U.S. Amateur Champion and NCAA Individual Champion has also played Augusta National a bunch to prepare for the incoming challenges.  If anyone can figure out what needs to be done to win here, it’s this twenty-five-year-old uber-motivated wizard with the charts.

PGA CHAMPIONSHIP, BETHPAGE STATE PARK – LONG ISLAND NY, BLACK COURSE (MAY 16-19)

What’s new this year for this tournament is its movement from August to May on the calendar.  I think this makes better sense for the schedule, as players will now contend at a major each month from April through July and finish with the Tour Championship in August.  

The venue is also new to this event.  Bethpage State Park has never hosted a PGA Championship before, but the U.S. Open was held here in 2002 and 2009 and it is on the schedule for the 2024 Ryder Cup. 

As for playing this course, its last major update was in 2008 by Reese Jones, presumably to prepare for the 2009 Open.  It is known for very narrow fairways, long and unforgiving brutal rough, a lot of expansive deep bunkers, elevation changes, and firm fast greens.  

The biggest story of the week may turn out to be the weather.  I lived in NYC for years and remember May to be a rainy time, but it could also turn out to be beautiful.  The extreme fluctuations that Mother Nature doles out to this region can only add to the fun and challenge for the players.  Wind may be a factor as well, since of course, the location is on an island.

If you think you want to try Bethpage Black as an amateur, take note of what the sign says at the first tee: “THE BLACK COURSE IS AN EXTREMELY DIFFICULT COURSE WHICH WE RECOMMEND ONLY FOR HIGHLY SKILLED GOLFERS.’’  Noted.

So, which PGA Tour players could conquer this place? In the rain.  Wind.  Cool temps. Long and hilly?  I’m going back to the 2002 U.S. Open when a twenty-six-year-old Tiger Woods beat out Phil Mickelson and Sergio Garcia here to get his second U.S. Open win.  In 2009, Mickelson came in T-2 and Tiger T-6.  Sergio and Rory McIlroy T-10.  

For this course and time of year, I’m also banking on Rickie Fowler to put on a good show.  He’s known for his ability to play in the wind and rough weather.  And, he also fared well in 2016 here at The Barclays (T-7) when Patrick Reed won the trophy in August of that year.  During that event, Spieth and Justin Thomas T-10.  

The only other PGA Tour event held at Bethpage Black was The Barclays in 2012 when Nick Watney won.  On the top of the leaderboard again was Sergio Garcia (T-3) and Dustin Johnson (T-3).  Fowler and McIlroy both finished T-24.  

We should expect to see all of those veteran names on the leaderboard in May, as they know what it’s like to play at Bethpage and have faced its challenges. I like Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, Phil Mickelson and Sergio Garcia to show up big time.

U.S. OPEN, PEBBLE BEACH GOLF LINKS CALIFORNIA (JUNE 13-16)

I’ve never been close to Pebble Beach (or the Monterrey Peninsula), but I can never get enough of seeing it on television when a PGA event is held there.  It looks absolutely breathtaking and I’m happy to see it again in June when it will be showcased as a venue for this tournament.

Professional golfers are very well acquainted with Pebble.  This year’s U.S. Open will be the sixth time it has hosted the event (the seventh will be 2027), and it has been the location for the annual AT&T Pro-Am since 1947. 

Tiger Woods won the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach in 2000.  In 2010, he came in T-4 along with Phil Mickelson.  Not to be overlooked, Matt Kuchar T-6 that year and Dustin Johnson T-8.  

Speaking of Mickelson, he just won the AT&T earlier this month which was the fifth time he held that trophy.  Brandt Snedeker won it twice (2013, 2015), Dustin Johnson twice (2009, 2010), and Tiger reigned supreme here in 2000.  (Yes, they held the AT&T in Feb and the U.S. Open there in June.  Tiger won them both.)

This year, my favorite to win the U.S. Open is indeed Phil Mickelson.  It just might be his best shot at finally getting this accolade in his long list of accomplishments.  It would also be a great story if he followed in Tiger’s footsteps by winning the AT&T and U.S. Open at Pebble Beach in the same year.

Tiger Woods also has a huge opportunity to get his fifteenth major championship right here at Pebble Beach.  I also have a feeling Jordan Spieth will turn things around by this time and be a real contender for this event.  He’s too good to not figure out why he has the yips with that putter.  He won the AT&T Pebble Beach in 2017.

Rounding out my picks will be Paul Casey, the forty-one-year-old Englishman who has been playing the best golf of his life in the last couple of years.  His best result at a U.S. Open was T-10 in 2007, but he’s a different player lately. Can he finally break out and win a major?  

THE OPEN, ROYAL PORTRUSH – DUNLUCE LINKS, NORTHERN IRELAND (JULY 18-21)

Royal Portrush was first formed in 1888 as a nine-hole course and built near a small fishing village.  Over the last 131 years, it expanded and has hosted some of the most important European tournaments which has converted the area into a “world-famous holiday resort”.  

But, Portrush has only once hosted The Open Championship (1951).  It is likely that several of the top American players have never set foot on this course, unless they played at the 2012 Irish Open when it was held there.  The only active players from the US that I could find on that leaderboard were John Daly (finished twenty-fourth) and Keegan Bradley (finished eighty-ninth). However, Phil Mickelson did play there in 2002, according to the course’s official website.   It would make sense for American players to add the Irish Open at Lahinch Golf Club from July 4-7 to their schedules in order to help acclimate themselves to the continent, weather and culture before The Open.

A classic seaside links course, I have read that Royal Portrush was placed on a craggy coastline where the fairways nestle into “natural valleys between towering sand dunes”.  The greens are meant to blend seamlessly into the landscape and the bunkers are mostly natural hazards, lest for a few exceptions including “Big Nellie” at the seventh hole.  

The obvious favorite to win The Open this year has to be Irishman Rory McIlroy. He holds the course record when he shot 61 during the Amateur Open Championship in 2005 and will have his home country cheering him on.

Justin Rose is also among my picks along with Rickie Fowler, Brooks Koepka, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, who have all played well in the UK.  It may surprise you that I’m also adding in Adam Scott to my picks (assuming he continues to play well this season and get his form back) and Bryson DeChambeau.

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Sources :

Official Royal Portrush Website: https://www.royalportrushgolfclub.com
PGA Tour Website: https://www.pgatour.com

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