High times for the circuit riders

Writing from Castle Rock, Colorado

Wednesday, August 21, 2024

The password for this week in golf is high.

High altitude.

High revenue.

High stakes.

First things first. Castle Pines Golf Club is the highest-elevation course on the PGA Tour. It was in the days of the International, the modified-Stableford tournament that, like this course, was the realized dream of oil tycoon Jack Vickers. The clubhouse sits – or teeters – at 6,332 feet, more than a thousand feet higher than a mile. Sherpas handle the valet parking.

That elevation makes for both exalted views – of the Jack Nicklaus-designed course, of the fine homes of the local mountain climbers, of the breathtaking Front Range – and a dire dearth of short hitters in this week’s BMW Championship. Ludvig Aberg, who is not short, is even longer this week. He said he took Tuesday’s practice round and today’s back nine of the pro-am “to adjust the baseline.” His normal 170-yard 7-iron goes 190 up here near the treeline. His driver? That’s classified.

Billy Horschel knows about this kind of thing. He won the BMW at Cherry Hills, 20 miles closer to Denver and 1,000 feet lower, a decade ago, then won the following week at East Lake.

“I think it's set up for some risk-reward and you're going to see some stuff with that altitude and the ball going,” Horschel said. “You're going to see some shots fly a long ways and you're going to see some shots come up way short.”

Justin Thomas, noting that a pause before a shot after walking uphill would be a good plan, said of contending, “it's just going to be who can control their distance the best and take advantage of those opportunities when they get them.”

The scorecard maxes the yardage out at 8,130, a world record, though it won’t play quite that long. Still, when an eight is the first number, it draws attention.

Second, the return of the BMW – ye olde 121st Western Open to those with more white hair than black – to the Denver area means a bonanza for the Western Golf Association.

The WGA has sold more hospitality for this year’s tournament than last year’s record-setter at Olympia Fields, which netted $5.5 million for the caddies-to-college Evans Scholars Foundation while hosting about 120,000 spectators. Regular tickets sold out weeks ago, though tournament director Vince Pellegrino said Tuesday some individual hospitality tickets remained. How many people will walk the course is unknown. The threat of hypoxia may be a factor.

Whereas a generation ago the Western Open was happily ensconced at Butler National Golf Club, and thence at Cog Hill Golf & Country Club, BMW, which arrived on the scene in 2007, wanted to move the renamed tournament around the country because it wanted to move cars.

The WGA went along because it wanted to please its then-new sponsor, and then discovered a double plus. Bringing the circus to a town that hadn’t seen it – St. Louis, Indianapolis, Denver, Baltimore, Philadelphia – meant boffo box office, and offered the WGA the chance to expand the Evans program, lining up with similar organizations around the country.  That in part is how the WGA now has more than a thousand caddie-scholars in school.

This year’s carnival, next year’s BMW is at Caves Valley near Baltimore, 2026’s at Bellerive near St. Louis, and 2027’s at Liberty National, across New York Harbor from the Big Apple. A Western Open in the east. Go figure.

Third, and of most interest to the spectators, is this week’s competition, which happens to be the last real tournament of the PGA Tour season, and with $20 million on offer – $4 million to be stuffed in the winner’s wallet. In Castle Pines, currently 46th in Golf Digest’s top 100 American courses, they’ll find a Nicklausian layout which allows one to belt it in places and demands precision in others.

Rare is the non-major layout where few in the field have played, but this is one of them. There’s a lot of turnover on the PGA Tour in 18 years.

Jason Day, who played in the International finale in 2006, didn’t remember a lot beyond the first hole’s drop and noted chances on the sixth and seventh holes.

“It’s all kind of fuzzy after that,” Day said.

Thus so is the outlook for who’ll grab the J.K. Wadley Trophy on Sunday afternoon, but the usual suspects – Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, no longer confused for each other, at the top of the point and money lists, is where to start looking.

We note the BMW as the last legit tournament because next week’s cash grab at East Lake once again will be a handicap affair, with the top player starting 10 strokes ahead of the poor guy in 30th – and last – place, and the rest of the field allotted a commensurate number of strokes. So the low scorer for 72 holes may not win if he wasn’t gifted with a fat red number going into the week. (Smartly, the operation running the world ranking pays no mind to the nonsense and awards ranking points based on the real 72-hole score.)

The favored 50 this week are already rich beyond their dreams, so the cash flow is really for accounting and tax purposes. Scheffler, for instance, is the leader of the Tour pack at $29,108,691, a fantastic figure which includes the $8 million he pocketed a fortnight ago for leading the regular season. Whatever money he earns will only keep his accountant busy. But as for glory …

“He's been playing unbelievable golf,” Schauffele said of Scheffler. “I feel like we're all just chasing him. I've done probably the best job of getting the closest to him, but it's still very far away.”

Scheffler, with the Masters, the Olympics, the Players and five other wins, is the player of the year favorite, with Schauffele, owner of the PGA and British Open, a close second.

“I think since I'm in the running I probably would just refrain from voting. I think it would be a bit weird to vote for myself,” said Scheffler, who clearly wasn’t born in Chicago.

Hail to the Viktor

It took Viktor Hovland to finish in a tie for second last week at Memphis to guarantee he’d return as BMW defending champion and have a chance to repeat as Tour Championship winner (and thus playoff winner) at East Lake as well. “I kinda squeaked by,” Hovland said. “And if I have a couple good weeks, I can still win this thing,” he added of the playoff. “I think that’s an exciting thing. It is a playoff for a reason.”

Around Castle Pines

One other name bears mentioning as a contender this week: Wyndham Clark grew up in these parts and has played Castle Pines countless times. If anyone has local knowledge, he does. “Yes, I know some of the nuances that maybe other people don't know. And then maybe where it shows up, altitude is tough to play at, and I'm not here that much playing golf. So I'm a little rusty on my altitude game. But the good thing is I am used to it, and I feel like I have some tricks up my sleeve when I get into certain situations. Maybe it'll come with shot selection and distance control,” Clark said. … Castle Pines course superintendent Scott Pavalko has tournament experience. His previous stops include Cog Hill, where he replaced Ken Lapp in time for the 2011 BMW. He also was an assistant for eight years at Muirfield Village Golf Club, host of the Memorial Tournament. … Beautiful as Castle Pines is, it is not an easy walk, which is to be expected when you build something on the side of a mountain. The course runs up, down and across hills dotted with eight-figure homes, including a few under construction, with a 335-foot difference between the lowest and highest points, about twice that of Augusta National. Some holes probably have 80 to 100 feet of elevation change. The driving range goes up 50 feet from tee to the last target, which means the person driving the picker has to be careful. In comparison, Butler National, host of the Western Open from 1974 to 1990, has about 30 feet of elevation change, most all of it from the first tee on a bluff down to the fairway. … Thursday’s first round will take a page from auto racing and start with a flyover by four F-16s from the Colorado Air National Guard. … Wednesday’s pro-am included a few celebrities, including former Broncos quarterbacks John Elway and Peyton Manning, Chicago industrialist and horse lover Craig Duchossois, and former U.S. Senior Amateur champion and Walker Cup captain Buddy Marucci. Manning topped his tee shot on No. 1, prompting some gallery members to say, “One of us!”

– Tim Cronin

Nikitas realizes lifelong dream in winning Illinois Open

Writing from Flossmoor, Illinois

Wednesday, August 7, 2024

When he was 8 years old, when he was just starting in competitive golf, Charlie Nikitas might have celebrated a victory by coaxing his mom and dad for an outing at Chuck E. Cheese.

Wednesday was different. Nikitas, a 25-year-old from Glenview trying to make his way in professional golf, captured the 75th Illinois Open at Flossmoor Golf Club for his first victory as a pro.

The crystal trophy he was awarded at nightfall for beating Luke Guthrie and Matthis Besard by a stroke after a three-day grind might hold more than a dozen beers. Chances are, before last call Nikitas and his family will have found out exactly how many.

“This is the coolest thing ever,” Nikitas said. “I’ve wanted to win this tournament since I started playing. There’s a lot of pretty cool names on this trophy, a lot of my friends. It just means the world to me. I can’t even explain it.”

Nikitas earned the sudsy celebration, to say nothing of the $20,612 first prize check. Trailing Tommy Kuhl of downstate Morton by three strokes after three holes, Nikitas commenced a run of four birdies in six holes to finish the front nine in 4-under 32, catching Kuhl with a 20-footer on No. 8, and grabbing the lead with a 7-footer for birdie on the par-5 ninth.

Nikitas scored 1-under 71 to finish at 7-under 209, besting Guthrie and Besard, who closed with 4-under 68s to finish at 6-under 210. Kuhl remained in contention until the treacherous par-4 16th, where he was on the back of the green in regulation but putted off the green en route to a double-bogey. A second 6 followed on the 17th, which made his birdie at the last academic. Kuhl ended up with a 2-over 74 for 4-under 212 and solo sixth.

“Brutal,” Kuhl said of his back nine. “Obviously, 16, I want that back. I just ran out of gas, to be honest. It’s no excuse. It was a tough set-up. It kicked my butt down the stretch, but I’ve got to learn from it.”

Kuhl and Drew Shepherd had opened with eagles on the first hole, running down 45- and 65-foot putts respectively. Nikitas, the final member of the threesome, scrambled for a birdie out of a greenside bunker, and knew he was in for a battle.

“I made a birdie and I lost the tee,” Nikitas said. “I knew it was going to be a battle. I was excited for that final pairing. Tommy and I, we’ve been traveling around Canada together. I respect Tommy’s game.”

His birdie on No. 4, a 15-foot putt following an 8-yard wedge, started the charge. A 10-foot bird on No. 6, then the birds on the eighth and ninth, followed by a back nine which was as much a survival test than anything else.

“I wasn’t looking at the board,” Nikitas said. “I wanted to keep my foot on the gas, but it got hard out there.”

Kuhl and Shepherd, who four-putted the second hole and faded from there, had caddies. Nikitas was by himself in a cart. Yet he kept his focus when those about him were losing theirs.

“My family,” Nikitas explained. “There were a lot of fist bumps and a lot of support. I wasn’t alone.”

Nikitas had finished tied for ninth in 2021 and 2023, and tied for 23rd in 2022. Now he’s checked the Illinois Open off his bucket list.

“I started to think about it when I made that (25-foot) birdie on 15, and when Tommy missed (a four-footer for birdie) I figured I had a decent cushion,” Nikitas said. “I knew those last three holes are not easy. Until the last putt on 18 (for bogey after laying up on the par-5), I tried not to think about it.”

Around Flossmoor

The third round scoring average was 74.17, with six holes playing under par. … Alex Creamean of Winnetka was the low amateur, tying for 12th at 1-under 215 with a closing 1-over 73. He’ll be headed back to Penn State in two weeks, but first will play the U.S. Amateur for the first time. … Besard goes back to the DP World Tour in a week, in quest of some big finishes that will jump-start his path to the PGA Tour.

– Tim Cronin

Nikitas leads Illinois Open in advance of marathon final day

Writing from Flossmoor, Illinois

Tuesday, August 6, 2024

Charlie Nikitas gets to sleep on the Illinois Open lead Tuesday night.

However, his dreams may be unconventional. Nikitas, the pride of Glenview, holds a one-stroke lead over Drew Shepherd, David Perkins, Tommy Kuhl and amateur Chase Walts midway through the second round of the 75th state championship, which was beset by storm delays on Monday and played catch-up in howling north winds on Tuesday.

Nikitas, who finished tied for ninth in two of the last three years, is 4-under-par for the championship through nine holes of the second round. The pursuing quartet is 3-under, with Walts through six holes and Shepherd, Perkins and Kuhl each through two holes.

A stroke further in arrears at 2-under are Belgian Matthis Besard and amateur Alex Creamean of Winnetka, each of whom are at 142 through 36 holes, along with Luke Gannon, who has played 11 holes, and Timothy Lim, who had just made the turn when the hooter blew at 7:47 p.m.

With a favorable weather forecast, the plan is to complete the second round on Wednesday morning – with some players having as many as 16 holes remaining – then make the cut, repair the field and reset the cups for the final round, among other agronomical matters. Ideally, the leaders would start by about 3 p.m. and finish around 7:30 p.m.

Nikitas might toss and turn. There are 15 players under par, 23 at par or better and 32 within five strokes of him.

Of the aforementioned protagonists, Besard, who opened with a 3-under 69 and followed it with a 1-over 73 thanks to bogeys on the 16th and 17th, has the most unusual pedigree. He’s in the field because he went to school at Illinois, a.k.a. the Mike Small Finishing School. (Three other Fighting Illini – Kuhl, Dylan Meyer and Luke Guthrie – are in the top 16.) Besard is also a full-time DP World Tour member, and a month ago tied for sixth in the BMW International Open, one of the bigger tournaments on that circuit.

Why is Besard here? Some of his Illini buddies convinced him to play, and as he’s just moved to Chicago with his girlfriend, he fancied the idea. But he’s still playing the previously-named European Tour in the hope of first, keeping his status for next year, and second, eventually qualifying for the PGA Tour through that route.

“The first year on a tour is difficult because you’re learning where to go,” Besard said. “If I came over here and played the Korn Ferry Tour (in 2025), I’d be starting over.”

The best second round so far belongs to Curtis Malm, who ignored the north wind gusting to 25 mph and finished off a 4-under 68 on the last 18 holes of the 26 he played Tuesday. He would love to add a second title to the victory in 2000 he accomplished at Royal Fox as an amateur.

“My putter got a little hot,” Malm said. “It’s one of the hardest rounds of golf I’ve ever played. I didn’t have a great start – doubled the 16th and 17th in the morning, which kinda chapped my backside. But even par (through 36 holes) is a great score out here.”

The first round ended in a three-way tie between Perkins, Shepherd and Kuhl at 4-under-par 68, with Gannon, Nikitas, Besard and Walts a stroke behind.

Perkins’ 4-under score was achieved despite a watery double-bogey on his last hole Monday, the par-3 seventh, which played only 100 yards in the first round.

“The double was just a bad swing, but I’m in a good spot,” Perkins said. “It was nice to come out this morning with a lower breeze with that shot into 8.”

He parred No. 8, birdied No. 9, and came home in 2-under 34 to join Shepherd and Kuhl.

“This is a little bit different than the tests I’ve been experiencing up in Canada,” Kuhl said between rounds. “I love this type of grind and this type of course. A lot of it was patience today and it was a very solid round for me.”

All three of the leaders finished on Tuesday morning, then had a long wait to resume play, with Perkins and Shepherd starting at 6:50 p.m., and Kuhl at 7 p.m.

“It’ll be nice to get away from the course for a little, maybe take a nap,” Shepherd said, who looked fresh when he teed off under dark overcast skies.

Walts, from Flower Mound, Tex., also finished in the morning. He’s eligible for the Illinois Open because he’s a temporary resident of the state while interning at Twin Orchard Country Club in Long Grove. He was 1-under until making an eagle 3 at the dramatic 18th, a 530-yard par 5 with a treacherously sloping green.

Around Flossmoor

Eric Hoff was disqualified for an incorrect scorecard, which he discovered after looking at his score online. Danny Mulhearn and amateur Dave Kohley withdrew. … The average score in the first round was 76.17, with the 435-yard third hole playing the hardest, at .37 over par. Four players eagled the drivable par-4 330-yard fourth in the opening round, which at 3.98 barely played under par. … At nightfall, the second-round average was even higher, at 77.78.

– Tim Cronin

Weather takes the lead in Illinois Open

Writing from Flossmoor, Illinois

Monday, August 5, 2024

The 75th Illinois Open started and ended with fireworks displays the sanctioning Illinois PGA didn’t pay for. It was Mother Nature, waking the neighborhood around Flossmoor Golf Club with a thunderstorm that pushed back tee times for the first round three hours, then ended play before it was to resume after a second delay.

The only possible beneficiaries were the quartet of players toiling on the Canadian Tour who finished up in Windsor, Ont., on Sunday and made their way across Michigan on Interstate 94 overnight. As it turned out, they all were in or close to the lead on a steamy 92-degree dat when the hooter blew a second time for a second wave of lightning at 4:33 p.m., shifting the schedule for the rest of the state championship well off the original plan. Players were going back to their positions when more flickers and rumbles ended play for the day at 7:10 p.m.

David Perkins of East Peoria and Drew Shepherd of Hinsdale, two of the international travelers, share the lead at 5-under through 15 holes. Perkins tied for 11th in Windsor, while Shepherd, who missed the cut, got an early start home from Canada.

Tommy Kuhl of Morton, who tied for 27th in Canada, was solo third at 4-under through 14 holes. And Glenview native Charlie Nikitas, also 27th in Canada, was tied for fourth at 3-under after his round of 69 and co-clubhouse leader with Monticello’s Luke Gannon.

All of the above are living the vagabond life of the Tour hopeful. All have ridiculously good games, which shows how hard it is to make a living playing golf as a professional. Nikitas and Kuhl, for instance, each made $1,568.57 for their toil in Windsor.

“It’s kind of fun,” Nikitas said of the quick turnaround. “I was saying to my parents my only complaint the last few months is a lack of opportunity to play. So it was an easy decision for me to come from Windsor. I was glad I made the cut and played the weekend there. It wasn’t that bad of a drive. I was never going to say no to playing here. It’s one of my favorite tournaments of the year.”

Nikitas, who has two T-9 finishes in the Illinois Open in the last three years, opened with a birdie on the back nine, then added two more on the front for his bogey-free 69.

“I feel I’m prepared,” Nikitas said. “It’s tough to make money up there. I’ve only gotten two starts, but I’ve made both cuts, and I’ve got enough points to hopefully shuffle in and play the last four.

“It’s tough, but I knew going in. It’s been good to have some guidance from my roommates, who are like my older brothers to me.”

Gannon, without Canadian Tour status, is playing when and where he can. He too has game, having finished second, tied for seventh and tied for third in the Illinois Open the last three years. He had a simple plan for waiting out the delay.

“I sat on my phone and watched Olympic highlights,” Gannon said.

Gannon started on the back and birdied the 18th and first holes to get his round going. But he yearns for more birdies.

“This year, I’ve hit it the best I have in all my years playing professionally,” Gannon said. “The last few months, I’ve been making more birdies, but I’ve made doubles that keep me from getting a win. Like at the NV5 (for which he Monday-qualified), making a double-bogey on a 330-yard par-4. That’s tough when the cut’s minus-6.

“Simple stuff I sometimes do really bad.”

In other words, golf, like bad weather, happens.

Around Flossmoor

Flossmoor owner George Goich birdied the first two holes, bogeyed No. 3, then birdied No. 4 before the hooter blew for delay No. 2. … Even with the second delay, the hope is to finish Wednesday afternoon. The inaugural three-hour delay was more for lightning and getting the course back to tournament condition than rain. Only a quarter-inch of rain hit the course, which barely slowed down the treacherous greens. … Defending champion Vince India posted a 1-over 73. Between this year and last, he served a six-month gambling suspension imposed by the PGA Tour, which boasts BetMGM as its official betting operator.

– Tim Cronin

Rosenmueller passes the NV5 test

Writing from Glenview, Illinois

Sunday, July 28, 2024

Two weeks ago, Thomas Rosenmueller wasn’t sure when or if he’d play golf again. He had to withdraw from a tournament because of an injured neck.

“It’s a big scary when you can’t turn your head left and you see two balls and you get super dizzy,” Rosenmueller said. “I had severe migraines. The connection between the skull and the C-0 vertebra was completely locked up. It was a combination of things.”

Thankfully, seeing a specialist not only got him a proper diagnosis but a cure.

“It was quite painful treatment, to be honest,” Rosenmueller said. “I walked out with no more headaches.”

That allowed Rosenmueller to get back on the Korn Ferry Tour last week, where he finished tied for 66th, and this week, where he improved his standing by 66 players.

The 27-year-old German’s closing round of 5-under-par 66 on Sunday brought him in at 25-under 259 and a two-stroke winner in the 6th NV5 Championship at The Glen Club. The outcome, which all but guarantees him a PGA Tour card next year, earned him a $180,000 bounty from the $1 million purse.

Karl Vilips scored a final-round 63 to finish second at 23-under 261. Steven Fisk, Davis Chatfield, Zach Bauchou and Sam Bennett were joint third at 22-under 262. Fisk moved back to the top spot in the series standings with his finish.

The margin of victory was effectively his eagle on the par-4 15th hole, a 32-yard 60-degree spinner of a chip in for a deuce after a 312-yard drive. Coupled with a birdie on the 14th, it snapped the tie with Vilips and gave him a three-stroke lead on the field. Even after a bogey at the 16th, he knew he was in control.

“I had a lot of good chances on holes 6 through 12 but didn’t capitalize on them,” Rosenmueller said. “Then the putt on 14, an eight-foot downhill slider, that was a great putt. And the chip-in on 15, that’s when I realized this was mine for the taking. I saw where I wanted it to land and it came off the club face exactly like I wanted it. It just worked out great.”

Rosenmueller slept on the lead Saturday night, a first for him on the KFT after 63 starts, but he clearly slept well. He birdied three of the first five holes and was on the way.

He counted the victory as his biggest since winning the German Boys Team Championship as a junior. He had won three times on a German mini-tour after turning pro, which got him Challenge Tour status, the step before the DP World Tour, but he abandoned that for the KFT, the path to the PGA Tour.

The decision was not without drama. Rosenmueller decided not to go to PGA Tour qualifying last fall and concentrate on honing his game for a big run on the KFT this year. The biggest change was in his putting. He’s gone from 140th in putting to the top 30, proving the old adage, “putt for dough,” is true.

“Then I made the first cut of the year and missed six in a row,” Rosenmueller said. “I looked like the biggest clown on Planet Earth. You take three months off to get yourself ready and then you play like that?”

Things turned around in April with a pair of ties for 20th sandwiched around a tie for ninth. That ended the cash drain. Aside from the injury withdrawal a fortnight ago, he’s cashed every week since.

“It started to be, ‘I really did take a step,’ but I think I could have done a better job of it going into the season,” he said. “The technique was there, but the playing wasn’t.”

He’d also contemplated quitting two years ago, when the Challenge Tour wasn’t working out and he was bleeding cash, but soldiered on. Sunday’s hurdle of winning was just another in the series Rosenmueller knows as life.

“In 2019, when I couldn’t break 80, I was a week away from quitting golf forever,” he said. “And I was lucky to have sponsors in 2022 or I’d have had to quit playing. I’d have to go work somewhere. Now I’m on the verge of a PGA Tour card.”

Around The Glen Club

Paul Peterson had the round of the day, a 9-under 62 that featured an outward 6-under 29. He finished tied for seventh. … The strong southerly wind made for a chaotic par-5 18th hole. Players trying to reach the green in two were crashing their approaches into the grandstand and hospitality tents behind it. At least one person in the Old National Bank tent was hit by a ball. … Only three of the 75 players in the field scored over par on Sunday, with Erik Compton the high man at 3-over 74. He finished last at 5-under 279, and collected $3,800. The cascade of low scores averaged 67.613 strokes, about 3.4 under the par of 71, on Sunday, and 68.090 for the week.

– Tim Cronin