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Matt Fitzpatrick had a three-shot lead, lost it on 18, then hit the shot of the year on the same hole twenty minutes later. That 4-iron deserves its own highlight reel.
IN THIS ISSUE
Fitzpatrick Hit a 4-Iron That Should Be Framed
Rolapp Said 'We're Thinking About It.' That's the Whole Story.
Rahm Won by Six. The Chaos Around Him Was Louder.
The Anti-Slice Driver and The Putter That Keeps Winning Majors.
The ACC Championship wraps in Wilmington, Pinehurst Trip Report ($5K Donald Ross Package)
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PGA TOUR . RBC HERITAGE
Fitzpatrick Hit a 4-Iron That Should Be Framed
Matt Fitzpatrick chunked a chip on 18 to blow a one-shot lead, watched Scottie Scheffler tap in for par, and somehow walked to the playoff tee box calmer than anyone in the building. Then he hit a 4-iron from 204 yards over the bunker to 13 feet and buried the birdie putt while the crowd was still chanting U-S-A.
That's two wins in three starts for Fitzpatrick this spring, both at Harbour Town (his second title there) and Innisbrook. He's now seventh in the world and climbing fast. The man Scheffler can't shake isn't named Rory. It's the quiet Englishman who keeps showing up with a 4-iron when it matters most.
Two wins in three starts. Both times he had to beat a world No. 1 to do it.
$3.6 million. 700 FedEx Cup points. And a crowd he turned from hostile to silent in one swing.
PGA TOUR . LIV GOLF . GOVERNANCE
Rolapp Said 'We're Thinking About It.' That's the Whole Story.
Reports last week said the Saudi PIF is preparing to cut LIV Golf funding beyond 2026. If true, the breakaway league's viability collapses. PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp went on The Pat McAfee Show and offered exactly five words that matter: "I think we're thinking about it." He stopped short of promising a new return pathway for LIV players but acknowledged the Tour is reading the same headlines everyone else is.
The Koepka precedent is the template. Brooks came back this season under the now-expired Returning Membership program, paying $5 million to charity and working his way back into Signature Events. That window closed February 1st. Rahm and DeChambeau missed it. But Rolapp's language was deliberate: "We'll react when we have an opportunity to react." Translation: the phone lines are open. They're just waiting for the contracts to expire.
DeChambeau's deal expires in December. The clock is already running.
ALSO THIS WEEK
Rahm Won by Six. The Chaos Around Him Was Louder. — Jon Rahm closed with a bogey-free 64 to win LIV Golf Mexico City by six shots, his second LIV title this year.But the storyline wasn't the golf. It was everything else: a CEO memo assuring staff that funding was secure through year-end, a power outage on Tuesday, streaming going dark for two hours during Round 1, and Bryson DeChambeau withdrawing Sunday with a wrist injury. LIV announced it's returning to Chapultepec in 2027, which reads more like a reassurance press release than a scheduling decision.
Hannah Green Wins LA Championship for Third Time in Four Years — Green came back from six shots down on the back nine and buried a 12-foot birdie putt in the playoff to beat Sei Young Kim and Jin Hee Im.
Cadillac Championship Returns to Doral — The PGA Tour signature event at the Blue Monster runs April 29 through May 3 with Fleetwood, Schauffele, Thomas, and Lowry already committed.
Chevron Championship Moves to Memorial Park — The LPGA's first major of the year tees off Thursday in Houston with Nelly Korda, Jeeno Thitikul, and defending champ Mao Saigo headlining the field at Memorial Park.
LOOKING AHEAD
Zurich Classic at TPC Louisiana
The PGA Tour's only team event tees off Thursday at TPC Louisiana. Four-ball and foursomes over four days, $9.5 million purse, and the kind of format that rewards chemistry over raw talent. Names to watch: Defending champs Ben Griffin and Andrew Novak, plus any high-profile pairings that emerge once the field is finalized. It's the lone non-signature event between the Masters and PGA Championship, so expect some big names to sit this one out.
Performance Golf SF2: $350 Slice Insurance
If your miss is a persistent fade-to-banana, this is the most honest attempt at fixing it with hardware. The SF2 driver from Performance Golf stacks a 3-degree closed face, deep heel weighting, flatter heel-side bulge, and a counterbalanced 45-inch shaft into one package. All-titanium this time (the SF1 was aluminum), which means a thinner, faster face. At $350 with 12 degrees of loft, it's built for the player who needs to see the ball turn left before they can trust a swing change. Not a magic wand, but a real tool for a real problem.
TaylorMade Spider Tour: Six Wins and Counting
Every conversation about putters right now ends at the same place. The TaylorMade Spider Tour family has won six times through the first handful of events this season, including back-to-back Masters for Rory McIlroy, and both Scheffler and Fitzpatrick were rolling Spiders at Harbour Town. The Pure Roll insert, a blend of Surlyn and aluminum with 45-degree grooves, is what converts blade guys into believers. Koepka and Morikawa have both switched this year. At $350, it's not cheap, but the on-Tour résumé is hard to argue with. Demo one before you dismiss it.
ALSO THIS WEEK
PUTTR x Vertex: AI Putting Coach for the Home Setup — If you already own a PUTTR smart mat, the new Vertex sensor integration might be worth your attention. The 9-gram Vertex clip-on captures face angle, rotation, and rhythm while PUTTR's camera tracks ball speed and miss direction. The AI coach correlates the two in real time, showing you exactly why you missed, not just that you did. Available to PUTTR Club members now; Vertex sensor sold separately. Not cheap as a combined system, but the cause-and-effect data is genuinely useful for structured practice.
Cardinal Rules: Stanford Takes ACC Title on Carolina Soil
The ACC Women's Golf Championship wrapped up Sunday at Porters Neck Country Club in Wilmington, and Stanford walked away with its first conference title after a dominant 3-0 sweep of SMU in the match play final. Paula Martín Sampedro, who also won the individual crown earlier in the week, clinched the deciding point with a 4&3 win to cap the weekend.
Four Triangle-area programs made the match play bracket, so the local storylines were plentiful even if the trophy headed west. Duke knocked off NC State 3-1 in the first round before falling to Stanford in the semis. UNC pulled off an upset over Wake Forest and pushed SMU in the semis, though Reagan Southerland's 2&1 win was the Tar Heels' only point. The depth across ACC women's golf in this part of the state is worth paying attention to as the NCAA postseason approaches (selection show is April 29 on Golf Channel).
Pinehurst Trip Report: What $5K Actually Gets You
A detailed trip review from an out-of-state visitor confirms what locals already know: the Donald Ross Package (four nights at the Carolina Hotel, five rounds, breakfast and dinner) runs about $5,000 per person before caddie fees, tips, and surcharges ($250 for No. 2, $150 for No. 10). The shuttle system works, the bag-tag logistics are seamless, and No. 2's raised greens still punish anyone who doesn't commit to putting from off the green. If you've got friends asking about a Pinehurst trip, this is the honest budget number to share.
ALSO THIS WEEK
Triangle Course Slope Ratings vs. Major Venues — The Triangle Business Journal compared local course slope ratings to PGA Tour major venues to see how your home track stacks up.
Back Nine Golf Expanding to California — The indoor simulator franchise is opening in Turlock, CA this summer with four bays and 24/7 member access, continuing its national growth.
That's your read this week.
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