Weekend Round-Up: Rocket Rickie, LIV’s Back & Stanford Wins Senior LPGA
Rocket Mortgage Classic
On the first playoff hole of the Rocket Mortgage Classic held at Detroit Golf Club, Rickie Fowler emerged victorious over Collin Morikawa and Adam Hadwin with a birdie-3. The win marked Fowler’s sixth PGA TOUR title and his first since the 2019 WM Phoenix Open. Fowler's playoff record now stands at 3-2, while Morikawa falls to 1-3 and Hadwin to 0-1 in playoff situations.
Fowler’s victory came in the seventh playoff of the 2023 season and the second at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, with Cam Davis winning the 2021 edition in a playoff as well. The victory also marked Fowler's first top-10 finish since the 2021 PGA Championship, which was held in May.
The runner-up finish for Morikawa was his seventh in 94 TOUR starts, while Hadwin picked up his fifth runner-up finish in 239 starts. Despite the disappointment of falling short in the playoff, both players performed well throughout the tournament and will look to build on their strong showings in future events.
Peter Kuest, who qualified for the tournament through the Open Qualifying Series, finished tied for fourth place, just one shot shy of joining the playoff. Kuest’s performance earned him a spot in next week’s John Deere Classic field and he will be looking to become the first Open Qualifier to win a TOUR event since Corey Conners at the 2019 Valero Texas Open.
Stephan Jaeger tied the Detroit Golf Club’s 18-hole scoring record with a 9-under 63, marking the ninth occasion and third time of the week that the record has been tied. Max Homa also had a memorable moment, acing No. 15 for his second hole-in-one on the PGA TOUR.
Throughout the tournament, preferred lies were in effect for the final round, allowing players to improve their lies on the fairway. This rule change was necessary due to the heavy rain that had fallen prior to the tournament, making the course conditions challenging for players.
LIV Andalucia
THIRD INDIVIDUAL WIN FOR GOOCH; THIRD TEAM WIN FOR TORQUE GC
As Talor Gooch stood over his 12-foot birdie putt on the final hole of regulation Sunday afternoon at LIV Golf Andalucia, his confidence level was extremely high. In addition to making a positive stroke, he imagined the celebration afterward when the putt dropped.
“Just felt like I was going to make it,” Gooch said. “Before I even hit the putt, I was already visualizing the fist pump that was coming with it. I’m glad it went in.”
Gooch’s dramatic birdie at Real Club Valderrama gave him a one-stroke victory over a battling Bryson DeChambeau and makes the RangeGoats GC star the first three-time individual winner in LIV Golf’s young history. Gooch shot a final-round 4-under 67 to finish at 12 under, with the Crushers GC captain at 11 under after his 2-under 69. Smash GC Captain Brooks Koepka finished third at 9 under.
All three of Gooch’s victories in 2023 have come outside his native United States, as he previously won back-to-back events in Adelaide and Singapore to become the first player to win consecutive LIV Golf events.
Senior LPGA
Angela Stanford Wins 2023 Senior LPGA Championship in Her First Start
The final day of play at the 2023 Senior LPGA Championship was a race against the clock with impending weather and darkness trying to spoil the party. After delays early in the morning due to weather, the field took to the course at 1 p.m. ET to try and fit in the final round. When the final putt dropped on 18, the Legends Tour crowned a new champion.
Angela Stanford was five-shots back of the lead when she teed up her ball for the final round of the 2023 Senior LPGA Championship. A bogey-free 65 (-7) would launch Stanford up the leaderboard with a birdie on the last being the winning putt for the championship.
