The 2018 Women’s British Open at Royal Lytham & St. Annes gave us another compelling finish and the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational provided another great champion. The Barracuda Championship saw players improving their postion for the PGA Tour Playoffs and the Fiji International had a thrilling final round. Read on to find out what happened at these events as well as the 3M Championship, a PGA Tour Champions event that nearly had a 59.
2018 Women’s British Open Report
Women’s British Open First Round Notes
In the first round of the 2018 Women’s British Open, Minjee Lee of Australia fired a 7-under par 65, giving her a one stroke advantage over Mamiko Higa of Japan, who shot a 66. Five players were tied for third place at 5-under par 66; Georgia Hall, Sung Hyun Park, Teresa Lu, Mi Hyang Lee and Pornanong Phatlum.
Royal Lytham & St. Annes was nearly defenseless as the wind was down, the fairways were running and the greens were receptive. In all, nineteen players shot under 70 and forty-four broke par. Number one ranked player and current U.S. Women’s Open Champion Ariya Jutanugarn shot a 1-under par 71, as did former Women’s British Open Champion at Royal Lytham & St. Annes, Catriona Matthew.
Women’s British Open First Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of LPGA Tour
Women’s British Open First Round Leaderboard
1 Minjee Lee -7 65 2 Mamiko Higa -6 66 3 Georgia Hall -5 67 3 Sung Hyun Park -5 67 3 Teresa Lu -5 67 3 Mi Hyang Lee -5 67 3 Pornanong Phatlum -5 67 8 Sandra Gal -4 68 8 Lydia Ko -4 68 8 Mina Harigae -4 68 11 Angel Yin -3 69 11 Brooke Henderson -3 69 11 Moriya Jutanugarn -3 69 11 Yu Liu -3 69 11 Florentyna Parker -3 69 11 Carlota Ciganda -3 69 11 So Yeon Ryu -3 69 11 Lydia Hall -3 69 11 Madelene Sagstrom -3 69 20 Bronte Law -2 70 20 Celine Herbin -2 70 20 Cloe Frankish -2 70 20 Brittany Altomare -2 70 20 In-kyung Kim -2 70 20 Wichanee Meechai -2 70 20 Mi Jung Hur -2 70 28 Tiffany Joh -1 71 28 Angela Stanford -1 71 28 Jessica Korda -1 71 28 Shanshan Feng -1 71 28 Pernilla Lindberg -1 71 28 Lizette Salas -1 71 28 Marina Alex -1 71 28 Sei Young Kim -1 71 28 Ally McDonald -1 71 28 Phoebe Yao -1 71 28 Camilla Lennarth -1 71 28 Ariya Jutanugarn -1 71 28 Catriona Matthew -1 71 28 Charley Hull -1 71 28 Nelly Korda -1 71 28 Annie Park -1 71 28 Jennifer Song -1 71
Women’s British Open Second Round Notes
Pornanong Phatlum of Thailand grabbed the lead in the second round with her second straight 67, putting her at 10-under par for the championship and one stroke clear of three players. Georgia Hall of England, who was named for the state where the Masters is held, was in the group one back at 9-under after a 68, as was first round leader Minjee Lee, who shot a 70, and Mamiko Haga, who remained in contention after a 69.
Scores were a little higher in the second round at Royal Lytham & St. Annes as a misty rain fell and players found it a bit more difficult than the first round, although scores were still pretty good. Ariya Jutanugarn and Catriona Matthew matched scores again with 70 and moved up into a tie for 15th at 3-under par.
Women’s British Open Second Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of LPGA Tour
Women’s British Open Second Round Leaderboard
1 Pornanong Phatlum -10 67 67 134 2 Georgia Hall -9 67 68 135 2 Minjee Lee -9 65 70 135 2 Mamiko Higa -9 66 69 135 5 Teresa Lu -8 67 69 136 6 Sung Hyun Park -7 67 70 137 7 So Yeon Ryu -6 69 69 138 8 Florentyna Parker -5 69 70 139 8 Lydia Ko -5 68 71 139 8 Madelene Sagstrom -5 69 70 139 8 Mina Harigae -5 68 71 139 8 Brooke Henderson -5 69 70 139 8 Pernilla Lindberg -5 71 68 139 14 Brittany Altomare -4 70 70 140 15 Ariya Jutanugarn -3 71 70 141 15 Catriona Matthew -3 71 70 141 15 In-kyung Kim -3 70 71 141 15 Lydia Hall -3 69 72 141 15 Hyo Joo Kim -3 72 69 141 15 Mi Hyang Lee -3 67 74 141 15 Jessica Korda -3 71 70 141 15 Celine Herbin -3 70 71 141 15 Yu Liu -3 69 72 141
Women’s British Open Third Round Notes
Pornanong Phatlum maintained her one shot lead over Georgia Hall through 54 holes after both women shot 3-under par 69 in the third round. Phatlum shot a 3-under 32 on the ouward nine and then held on with even par 37 on the inward side. Hall made birdies at 15 and 16 to go along with a birdie at the final hole to climb back to within one.
So Yeon Ryu moved into third place with a 5-under 67, after starting the day with bogeys on two of the first four holes. Ryu then went on a tear, birdieing the next four holes, then getting three more birdies on the inward nine with no bogeys. Sung Hyun Park, who defeated Ryu in a playoff at the last major, shot 69 and was tied for fourth with Mamiko Higa and Minjee Lee, who both shot 71.
Royal Lytham & St. Annes played a bit more difficult again in the third round as the wind began to pick up as the day went on and the course started to dry out again. The light rain that fell the day before had not been enough to soften the greens and scores edged just a bit higher once more as the afternoon wore on.
Women’s British Open Third Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of LPGA Tour
Women’s British Open Third Round Leaderboard
1 Pornanong Phatlum -13 67 67 69 203 2 Georgia Hall -12 67 68 69 204 3 So Yeon Ryu -11 69 69 67 205 4 Sung Hyun Park -10 67 70 69 206 4 Mamiko Higa -10 66 69 71 206 4 Minjee Lee -10 65 70 71 206 7 Brooke Henderson -8 69 70 69 208 7 Mina Harigae -8 68 71 69 208 9 Phoebe Yao -7 71 71 67 209 9 Yu Liu -7 69 72 68 209 9 Lydia Ko -7 68 71 70 209 9 Teresa Lu -7 67 69 73 209 13 Thidapa Suwannapura -6 72 71 67 210 13 Carlota Ciganda -6 69 73 68 210 13 Ariya Jutanugarn -6 71 70 69 210 13 Brittany Altomare -6 70 70 70 210 17 Shanshan Feng -5 71 71 69 211 17 Jessica Korda -5 71 70 70 211 17 Pernilla Lindberg -5 71 68 72 211 20 Cristie Kerr -4 72 72 68 212
Women’s British Open Final Round Notes
On the final day at Royal Lytham & St. Annes, the wind picked up a little more and the course became, as it had each day before, just a bit more difficult again. Players began to have difficulty holding the green as the day went by, especially on the downwind front nine.
Two players who seemed not to be affected were the final twosome, Pornanong Phatlum and Georgia Hall. Hall birdied the 1st hole to move into a tie for the lead with Phatlum at 13-under par, but Phatlum responded with a birdie at the 2nd to move to 14-under and regain her one shot lead.
So Yeon Ryu and Sung Hyun Park, who had competed in the playoff at the last major, and playing just in front of Hall and Phatlum, got off to terrible starts. Ryu made a triple bogey at the 3rd, and then bogeyed the 4th to fall all the way back to 7-under par. Park double bogeyed the 4th and the 5th, which dropped her to 6-under par.
Ryu would recover, reponding immediately with three consecuitve birdies at the 5th, 6th, and 7th, to get back to 10-under par. But Ryu was now way behind as Phatlum and Hall continued their good play, each making birdie at the 4th, with Phatlum getting three in a row herself, birdieing the 5th and 6th to move to 17-under. Hall matched her at the 6th to claw to within two at 15-under par.
Phatlum would bogey the ninth and the two would head to the inward nine just as they started, with Hall trailing Phatlum by one stroke, but now they were clear of the field. Ryu bogeyed the 10th to fall further back and it looked like a battle between two players for the championship.
Women’s British Open Mid-Final Round Leaderboard
Position Player Score Thru Today 1 Pornanong Phatlum -16 9 -3 2 Georgia Hall -15 9 -3 3 Sei Young Kim -10 17 -7 3 Minjee Lee -10 11 E 5 So Yeon Ryu -9 10 +1
As you can see, Sei Young Kim had the round of the day going, but a bogey at the final hole gave her a 66 and she finished at 9-uner par for the championship. First round leader Minjee Lee was hanging on but a bogey at the 12th dropped her back as well. Ryu went on another birdie run, getting three in a row beginning at the 11th and adding another at the 15th to get to 13-under par, but that was as close as anyone would get.
Hall birdied the 13th to catch Phatlum at 16-under par, and then both women birdied the 15th to move to 17-under. Hall then followed that up with a birdie at 16 from somewhere between the two places Seve Ballesteros made birdie here on the final day of his two Open Championships, the fairway and the car park to the right.
Like Seve’s drop in the parking lot, Hall’s tee shot came to rest in a trampled down area after hitting a cart. Also like Seve she knocked it from there to within 20 feet and drained the putt to go 18-under and grab a one shot lead. When Phatlum made a disappointing double bogey on the 17th hole, the English crowd was able to celebrate their champion as she walked to the 18th green.
Not even a three putt bogey at the final hole could dampen the spirit of the people surrounding the final hole as Hall tapped in and won the 2018 Women’s British Open Championship by two strokes over Phatlum. It was the first professional major championship for the 22-year old Englishwoman, who once couldn’t afford to travel to the tournaments she gained exemptions for by winning the 2013 British Ladies Amateur Golf Championship.
Women’s British Open Final Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of LPGA Tour
Women’s British Open Final Results
1 Georgia Hall -17 67 68 69 67 271 2 Pornanong Phatlum -15 67 67 69 70 273 3 So Yeon Ryu -13 69 69 67 70 275 4 Sei Young Kim -9 71 71 71 66 279 4 Ariya Jutanugarn -9 71 70 69 69 279 4 Mamiko Higa -9 66 69 71 73 279 7 Shanshan Feng -8 71 71 69 69 280 7 Carlota Ciganda -8 69 73 68 70 280 7 Yu Liu -8 69 72 68 71 280 10 Minjee Lee -7 65 70 71 75 281 11 Jeongeun Lee -6 73 70 71 68 282 11 Thidapa Suwannapura -6 72 71 67 72 282 11 Lydia Ko -6 68 71 70 73 282 11 Brooke Henderson -6 69 70 69 74 282 15 Jaye Marie Green -5 74 69 73 67 283 15 Su-hyun Oh -5 73 70 72 68 283 15 Brittany Altomare -5 70 70 70 73 283 15 Teresa Lu -5 67 69 73 74 283 15 Sung Hyun Park -5 67 70 69 77 283 20 Haeji Kang -4 72 72 70 70 284 20 Madelene Sagstrom -4 69 70 74 71 284
WGC Bridgestone Invitational Report
WGC Bridgestone First Round Notes
Ian Poulter grabbed the lead with an astonishing 8-under par 62 in the first round of the WGC Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club’s South Course. Poulter led by one over Rickie Fowler and Kyle Stanley, who both shot 63. Patrick Cantlay, Si Woo Kim and John Rahm each shot 6-under 64 to sit two back tied for fourth, while Rory McIlroy, Jason Day and Justin Thomas were in a group of seven players tied at 65.
WGC Bridgestone First Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of PGA Tour
WGC Bridgestone First Round Leaderboard
1 Ian Poulter -8 62 2 Rickie Fowler -7 63 2 Kyle Stanley -7 63 4 Patrick Cantlay -6 64 4 Si-woo Kim -6 64 4 Jon Rahm -6 64 7 Rory McIlroy -5 65 7 Jason Day -5 65 7 Luke List -5 65 7 Marc Leishman -5 65 7 Justin Thomas -5 65 7 Kevin Na -5 65 7 Anirban Lahiri -5 65 14 Hao-Tong Li -4 66 14 Patrick Reed -4 66 14 Tommy Fleetwood -4 66 14 Brooks Koepka -4 66 14 Phil Mickelson -4 66 14 Matthew Fitzpatrick -4 66 14 Tiger Woods -4 66 21 Daniel Berger -3 67 21 Aaron Wise -3 67 21 Russell Knox -3 67 21 Gary Woodland -3 67 21 Hideki Matsuyama -3 67 21 Ross Fisher -3 67 27 Matt Kuchar -2 68 27 Paul Casey -2 68 27 Louis Oosthuizen -2 68 27 Pat Perez -2 68 27 Tony Finau -2 68 27 Jaco Ahlers -2 68 27 Byeong-Hun An -2 68 27 Patton Kizzire -2 68 27 Tyrrell Hatton -2 68 27 Ryuko Tokimatsu -2 68 27 Rafael Cabrera-Bello -2 68 27 Adam Scott -2 68 39 Webb Simpson -1 69 39 Xander Schauffele -1 69 39 Wade Ormsby -1 69 39 Alexander Bjork -1 69 39 Dustin Johnson -1 69 39 Charley Hoffman -1 69 39 Zach Johnson -1 69
WGC Bridgestone Second Round Notes
Tommy Fleetwood shot a 7-under par 63 to move into a tie for the lead and Justin Thomas had a 64 to join Fleetwood at 11-under par. Ian Poulter maintained a share of the lead with a 67, while Jason Day and Kyle Stanley sat two shots back in a tie for fourth at 9-under par. Day shot a 66 and Stanley had a 68. Rory McIlroy shot a 67 and Si Woo Kim had a 68 to sit three back at 8-under in a tie for 6th place.
WGC Bridgestone Second Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of PGA Tour
WGC Bridgestone Second Round Leaderboard
T1 Ian Poulter -11 62 67 129 T1 Tommy Fleetwood -11 66 63 129 T1 Justin Thomas -11 65 64 129 T4 Kyle Stanley -9 63 68 131 T4 Jason Day -9 65 66 131 T6 Si Woo Kim -8 64 68 132 T6 Rory McIlroy -8 65 67 132 T8 HaoTong Li -7 66 67 133 T8 Luke List -7 65 68 133 T10 Jon Rahm -6 64 70 134 T10 Louis Oosthuizen -6 68 66 134 T10 Tony Finau -6 68 66 134 T10 Marc Leishman -6 65 69 134 T10 Tiger Woods -6 66 68 134 T10 Webb Simpson -6 69 65 134 T16 Tyrrell Hatton -5 68 67 135 T16 Patton Kizzire -5 68 67 135 T16 Ross Fisher -5 67 68 135 T16 Phil Mickelson -5 66 69 135 T16 Anirban Lahiri -5 65 70 135 T16 Rafa Cabrera Bello -5 68 67 135
WGC Bridgestone Third Round Notes
Justin Thomas jumped out to a three stroke lead at 14-under par with a bogey-free 67 in the third round. Rory McIlroy also shpt 67 to move into a tie for 2nd place at 11-under par with Ian Poulter, who shot an even par 70. Jason Day shot a 69 and was in 4th place at 10-under par, four shots behind Thomas and only one behind McIlroy and Poulter. Kyle Stanley shot even par 70 and fell into a tie for 5th place at 9-under with Marc Leishman, who shot 67.
WGC Bridgestone Third Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of PGA Tour
WGC Bridgestone Third Round Leaderboard
1 Justin Thomas -14 65 64 67 196 T2 Rory McIlroy -11 65 67 67 199 T2 Ian Poulter -11 62 67 70 199 4 Jason Day -10 65 66 69 200 T5 Marc Leishman -9 65 69 67 201 T5 Kyle Stanley -9 63 68 70 201 T7 Rickie Fowler -8 63 74 65 202 T7 Jon Rahm -8 64 70 68 202 T9 Louis Oosthuizen -7 68 66 69 203 T9 Tommy Fleetwood -7 66 63 74 203 T11 Patrick Cantlay -6 64 72 68 204 T11 Brooks Koepka -6 66 70 68 204 T11 Rafa Cabrera Bello -6 68 67 69 204 T11 Anirban Lahiri -6 65 70 69 204 T11 Luke List -6 65 68 71 204 T11 Si Woo Kim -6 64 68 72 204 T17 Aaron Wise -5 67 71 67 205 T17 Matt Kuchar -5 68 70 67 205 T17 Webb Simpson -5 69 65 71 205 T17 Tony Finau -5 68 66 71 205 T17 HaoTong Li -5 66 67 72 205
WGC Bridgestone Final Round Notes
Dustin Johnson and Thorbjørn Olesen both made nice runs up the leaderboard in the final round, as both men shot 64 and finished at 10-under par where they ended up in a tie for 3rd place. Brooks Koepka shot a 67 to finish at 9-under par and in 5th place.
Rory McIlroy fell to 8-under par and Jason Day dropped to 7-under after both men shot 73 in the final round. Kyle Stanley moved up to 2nd place with a 68 that left him at 11-under par. But Justin Thomas was able to keep everyone at bay with a solid 1-under par 69 that put him at 15-under par and four strokes clear of the field.
Thomas got his third victory of the season and edged closer to Dustin Johnson in the Fedex Cup and the world ranking. If not for Johnson’s great final round, Thomas would have moved even closer. Thomas now goes into next week’s PGA Championship as both the defending champion of that event, but also as the most recent winner on the PGA Tour.
WGC Bridgestone Final Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of PGA Tour
WGC Bridgestone Final Round Leaderboard
1 Justin Thomas -15 65 64 67 69 265 2 Kyle Stanley -11 63 68 70 68 269 T3 Thorbjørn Olesen -10 71 67 68 64 270 T3 Dustin Johnson -10 69 71 66 64 270 5 Brooks Koepka -9 66 70 68 67 271 T6 Aaron Wise -8 67 71 67 67 272 T6 Anirban Lahiri -8 65 70 69 68 272 T6 Patrick Cantlay -8 64 72 68 68 272 T6 Rory McIlroy -8 65 67 67 73 272 T10 Tony Finau -7 68 66 71 68 273 T10 Si Woo Kim -7 64 68 72 69 273 T10 Ian Poulter -7 62 67 70 74 273 T10 Jason Day -7 65 66 69 73 273 T14 Matt Kuchar -6 68 70 67 69 274 T14 Tommy Fleetwood -6 66 63 74 71 274 T14 Marc Leishman -6 65 69 67 73 274 T17 Gary Woodland -5 67 71 69 68 275 T17 Ross Fisher -5 67 68 71 69 275 T17 Zach Johnson -5 69 70 67 69 275 T17 Rafa Cabrera Bello -5 68 67 69 71 275 T17 Rickie Fowler -5 63 74 65 73 275 T17 Jon Rahm -5 64 70 68 73 275
Barracuda Championship Report
Andrew Putnam won the Barracuda Championship at Montreux Golf and Country Club with a total score of 47 points in the modified Stableford scoring system. Putnam had a final round total of 9 points which was good enough for a four point victory over Chad Campbell, who had 11 points for a total of 43.
Final Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of PGA Tour
Final Results
1 Andrew Putnam +47 6 17 15 9 2 Chad Campbell +43 6 4 22 11 T3 John Oda +37 7 9 13 8 T3 J.J. Spaun +37 7 12 10 8 5 Ollie Schniederjans +36 17 8 1 10 6 William McGirt +35 6 2 7 20 T7 Chris Stroud +34 7 6 13 8 T7 Sam Saunders +34 10 13 12 -1 T9 Vaughn Taylor +33 2 6 10 15 T9 Brandon Harkins +33 5 13 3 12
Fiji International Report
Ernie Els thrilled the crowd with a final round 65 at the Fiji International presented by Fiji Airways at Natadola Bay Championship Golf Course to finish at 12-under par. But it wasn’t enough to catch Anthony Quayle who had finished ahead of Els with a 63 and 13-under par for the tournament. Third round leader Gaganjeet Bhullar eagled the 17th hole to move ahead at 14-under par and he parred the final hole to win by one stroke.
Final Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of PGA of Australia
Final Results
1 Gaganjeet Bhullar IND -14 70 69 69 66 274 2 Anthony Quayle AUS -13 75 66 71 63 275 3 Ben Campbell NZL -12 67 66 77 66 276 3 Ernie Els RSA -12 72 70 69 65 276 5 Jarryd Felton AUS -10 67 71 71 69 278 6 Andrew Dodt AUS -8 67 70 72 71 280 6 Jake McLeod AUS -8 72 67 70 71 280 6 Poom Saksansin THA -8 73 68 71 68 280 9 Andrew Martin AUS -6 72 71 70 69 282 9 Matthew Millar AUS -6 71 73 71 67 282
3M Championship Report
Kenny Perry shot a 2nd round 60 to take control of the 3M Championship at TPC Twin Cities in the 54 hole event. Perry shot a final round 69 for a score of 21-under par, which was good enough to hold off hard charging Wes Short, Jr., who shot a final round 63 to finish three shots back at 18-under par.
Third Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of PGA Tour Champions
Final Results
1 Kenny Perry -21 66 60 69 195 2 Wes Short, Jr. -18 67 68 63 198 T3 Glen Day -15 66 65 70 201 T3 Tom Gillis -15 67 67 67 201 T5 Kevin Sutherland -13 67 70 66 203 T5 Bob Estes -13 72 65 66 203 T5 Joe Durant -13 71 65 67 203 T5 Lee Janzen -13 66 68 69 203 T5 Tim Petrovic -13 70 65 68 203 T10 Scott Hoch -12 70 69 65 204 T10 Scott Parel -12 67 69 68 204 T10 Tom Lehman -12 69 66 69 204
Final Round Highlights
Video Courtesy of PGA Tour Champions
