What can we take away from the PGA Tour’s vibe-free Signature snoozefest at Trump Doral? Plenty.
Cameron Young established himself as the favorite heading into the PGA Championship after a resounding six-stroke victory at Trump Doral. The 30-year-old posted a 19-under-par 269 total to beat Scottie Scheffler by six strokes.
Young took the Cadillac Championship wire-to-wire with less than his best par-5 play (-3) or approach precision (48/72 greens, 38’3” proximity, SG 26th).
The city-raised reformed street gang member* led the field in birdies (24) and Strokes Gained Putting (7.062). His power off the tee remains his greatest attribute after posting a 311.7-yard, all-drives average.
Young has been on an incredible run. His stroke play finishes since missing the cut at The Open last year: 1-5-11-T4-T9-10-T22-T41-T55-T7-T3-1-T3-T25-1
He calls penalties…on himself. At No. 2 Sunday he was assessed a stroke penalty for a breach of Rule 9.4 (player causing ball at rest to move) and then made 13’6” putt to save par.
Scheffler’s game is not far from his best form. The so-so first rounds and occasional off-days approaching greens popped up at Doral but in far less worrisome fashion. In his final start before the PGA at Aronimink Scheffler hit 56/72 greens with a 40’10” proximity average, finishing 6th in Strokes Gained Approach. And he seemed as miserable as ever on the course!
Justin Rose’s new irons from McLaren Racing didn’t get off to the best start. Granted, they may not have received a fair shot after Rose hit only 29 of 56 fairways and needed a final round 68 to finish T62. But when the Tour’s leader in greens in regulation hit a fairway, the new clubs did not shine: he lost 1.311 strokes to the field, hitting 48/72 greens.
Rory McIlroy and five other top 15 players did the right thing avoiding a hot and humid Bermudagrass test that will play nothing like Aronimink.
As brother Matt took the week off, Alex Fitzpatrick put his Zurich Classic-enabled PGA Tour card to excellent use. A final round 67 landed Fitzpatrick a T9 finish and a $500,000 check. Yes, $500k. What a farce. But good on Alex.
Following a bogey-free weekend and final round 64, World No. 54 Adam Scott will be inside the world top 60 status ahead of the U.S. Open’s May 18th OWGR cutoff. After playing next week’s PGA Championship, the 2026 U.S. Open at Shinnecock would be Scott’s 100th straight major.
It’s time for the Blue Monster moniker to decamp to Boca Vista Phase 5 and buffet dinners at 3:45 pm. Stretched to 7,739 yards with firm greens featuring a big first bounce until Sunday’s inch-of-rain, 59 of the 72 players finished under par. Half the “Monster” holes played under par. The field finished -330.
The Tour’s return to Miami was an optics disaster for the new leadership and board members who bequeathed “Signature” status on this mundane effort.
At least the event provided a signature example of what it looks like when a tournament has no legacy, no ties to the community, poorly-timed scheduling, and a bloated, unsustainable purse. The Cadillac Championship also provided a convenient reminder that no-cut, limited fields are particularly drab in a splintered, post-WGC world.
Worse, the purveyors of mundane mess managed to make LIV look good.
That dying entity drew better crowds in its April playings at Doral. LIV also had a much more impressive buildout and managed to exude atmosphere. (No, I’m not saying this needed a DJ spinning Careless Whisper remixes.)
But this was the first event created from scratch by the PGA Tour’s newly renamed “Events” business—you know, the one that’s expected to be a driver of profit for the Strategic Sports Group. They gave us a dreary, cheap-looking product in a major market that had little interest in seeing the Tour return.
We’ve been told that this combination of the SSG wisdom and a CEO coming from the NFL was supposed to bring fresh perspectives. They would bring in beancounting-forward entities at Fenway Sports for fresh approaches to big time golf. This one looked more like a nightmarish hybrid of John Henry’s 2026 Red Sox and Steve Cohen’s dismal Mets. Other than CBS’s continuing to push innovation on the telecast front, there were no signs of a fresh approach. Throw in brilliantly scheduling the Cadillac Championship on the same weekend when F1 was in Miami, sprinkle on some lack of appreciation for what makes a market or golf tournament click, and the frugal-looking presentation hardly gave the Tour’s new owners “brand equity”. Or whatever nonsense will get Blankie his 11% return.
Thought: maybe instead of hitting the majors up for money, the Tour should ask for advice on how to put on a tournament? Just one idea.
Still, it was astounding to see how few people bought tickets the first three days. For those old enough to remember what it looks like when people attend a tournament at Doral, I can confirm it used to be a festive, fun event to watch when kicking off the Florida swing.
In May, when it’s 90 degrees and $90 to get in before fees and exhaustive security searches, it’s a wonder they drew anyone at all. Throw in the Trump factor as he polls in Jimmy Carter territory, and the event needed a creative approach to compensate for various constraints. But at least that massive charitable contribution will…
Nelly Korda pulled off the only feat more difficult than capturing a major: winning the week after a dominant victory in a Grand Slam event.
In taking the Riviera Maya Open at Mayakoba, the 27-year-old captured her 18th LPGA Tour title and third victory this season. Korda has become the youngest American to reach 18 wins since Nancy Lopez and now sits just four points shy of the LPGA Tour’s Hall of Fame.
Korda was less crisp off the tees and into El Cameleon’s greens following the incredible ballstriking performance at Memorial Park. Korda made up for hitting 31 of 56 fairways by taking only 109 putts. She finished four clear of Arpichaya Yuboi and five ahead of Yu Liu.
There was a brief scare when Korda shook off pain in her wrist after hitting a ball off a hardpan lie. But it never came up after the round. Instead, someone wanted to know why Korda was smiling so much over the final nine.
“At the end of the day, we get to travel the world and we get to do what we do as our job, which is so crazy to think,” Korda said. “We’re at an amazing resort in Mexico. It’s very hot out, but we’re enjoying ourselves so much. We’re playing in front of a great crowd in a great place. What is there to frown about? We’re in a sense living our best life.”
The LPGA has three more events ahead of the U.S. Women’s Open Presented by Ally June 4-7.
