Welcome to the Monday Leaderboard, where we break down the weekend’s top stories in the wonderful world of golf. Grab an Arnold Palmer, pull up a chair, and make sure you can hoist a golf bag, just in case…
Yuka Saso’s win at the US Women’s Open
You know that old rule about keeping your head down when everyone else is losing theirs? That’s exactly what Yuka Saso did Sunday, shaking off an early four-putt double bogey and a bogey on the 17th hole to stay steady as the competition stumbled. Most notably, Minjee Lee surrendered the lead with a disastrous +8 final lap. Saso managed to complete a steady -2 lap at -4 overall and claim a big three-stroke victory. The victory marked Saso’s second US Open, three years after her win in San Francisco. Saso is the fourth Japanese player, male or female, to win one of the major golf tournaments.
Robert MacIntyre’s moving father-son victory
Something about golf produces unforgettable stories that connect generations. The latest example: Robert MacIntyre, looking for his first career victory on the PGA Tour, entered Sunday’s final round with none other than his father Dougie as his last-minute replacement. MacIntyre maintained the 54-hole lead and extended it to as many as five strokes, but crucial bogeys cut the lead to a single stroke. Big Shot Bob managed to par the final hole for the win, and shortly afterwards dissolved into tears live on TV.
“He was a caddy for a week,” MacIntyre said afterward, “but at the end of the day he’s my dad and it was just – the emotion you saw at the end, it was almost out of sheer disbelief that we did it with him on the bag .”
Charley Hull is exactly what golf needs
With all due respect to Ms. Saso and Mr. MacIntyre, the story of the weekend was LPGA vet Charley Hull. She didn’t win the tournament, but she did win the social media, and in 2024 it’s pretty much the same, right? Hull made waves earlier this week when footage of her smoking on the track went viral:
If this were the 1980s, smoking on the track wouldn’t be such a big deal, but nowadays only John Daly rips the stoves into the ropes. (Hull insists she doesn’t have many of Daly’s vices: “I just smoke,” Hull said Sunday. “I hardly drink. I don’t need to drink because I can actually enjoy myself without it.”)
Add to her lung arrow habit the fact that Hull has to deal with hecklers and turning away requests for dates, and you have the makings of a budding social media superstar. She doesn’t have the resume of some of her peers — her best finish in a major is second place — but she’s having fun, she looks like she’s having a good time, and that puts her miles ahead of pretty much anyone in the men’s game straight away.
“It’s been a bit of a wild week,” she said on Sunday, after posing for selfies throughout the course. “I wish audiences were like that more often.” Soon she might get her wish.
Nelly’s rough ride
Lancaster Country Club took its pound of flesh from the LPGA field. Only two players finished under par – Saso and Hinako Shibuno – and the challenging course overwhelmed virtually every player, including the world’s best. Nelly Korda effectively eliminated herself from contention Thursday when she posted a 10 on the par-3 12th hole and an 80 in the first round. That ended her dreams of a single-season Grand Slam, and directly led to her missing the cut on Friday afternoon. Korda is coming back, but this one will stick around for a while… and conspiracy theorists may be wondering what this tough format means for the men’s US Open, which gets underway next week.
Mackenzie Hughes gets an excellent Canadian welcome
No matter how big your star becomes, you have to start somewhere, and every now and then your path will lead you back to where you started. Mackenzie Hughes learned to play the game just a few miles from the Hamilton Golf & Country Club in Ontario, the site of the RBC Heritage, and on Sunday the gallery responded with fondest welcome messages:
Between Bob MacIntyre’s father, CT Pan’s caddy (see below) and Hughes, this year’s RBC Canadian turned out to be quite a dream-come-true tournament.
The Jordan Spieth Mulligan of the week: CT Pan’s fan caddy
It’s every golf fan’s greatest wish: there’s an emergency and suddenly they need it you inside the ropes! Such a moment happened Sunday when CT Pan’s caddie, longtime looper Fluff Cowan, slipped and injured himself early in the round at the RBC. So a gentleman named Paul Emerson from Aurora, Ontario offered to help, and Pan accepted the offer:
More established caddies took over after two holes, but in those holes Pan managed a bogey and a birdie… so nice work from Mr. Emerson. Also a good memory of the weekend. Always be ready, you never know when the call will come.
Swing away and roll ’em through this week, friends, and we’ll see you back here next Monday!
