This father-son duo will play together on PGA Tour for first time at Myrtle Beach Classic
This father-son duo will play together on PGA Tour for first time at Myrtle Beach Classic
Fans looking at the Oneflight Myrtle Beach Classic field this week may think there is an error in the pairings with two players listed under the last name Byrd but they aren't seeing double. That's because veteran pro Jonathan Byrd and son Jackson are playing together in a PGA Tour event for the first time.
'This is a bucket list item for me,' Jonathan, 47, a five-time Tour winner said of playing with his 17-year-old son, one of the top junior players in the country. 'Probably three, four years ago when I started to see him develop and become quite a good player as elite junior player and win tournaments and represent his country in the Junior Ryder Cup and Junior Presidents Cup, it started to become apparent to me that this kid is probably going to have an opportunity to turn pro.'
Jackson is a three-time American Junior Golf Association All-American, including a first-team selection in 2024. He is the second-ranked junior golfer in the country according to the AJGA. He'll be a freshman in the fall at Clemson, his father's alma mater and where his Uncle, Jordan, is the head men's coach since 2021.
'I would say he's much more advanced than I was at 18 from a just skill level,' Jonathan said, noting that Jackson drives it 30-50 yards longer off the tee with regularity. 'I win half the time. He wins half the time. We have a pretty good match these days. But I'm leaning more on experience, and he's leaning on just kind of raw youth.'
The elder Byrd may be selling himself short. Jonathan was a three-time All-American at Clemson between 1997-2000. He is in his 23rd year on the PGA Tour, earning Rookie of the Year honors in 2002 and playing in 487 events while racking up 26 top-five finishes and 46 top 10s beyond his handful of wins.
Father-son tandems in golf date all the way to Old and Young Tom Morris. Of more recent vintage, Bill Haas, son of Jay, has notched six Tour titles, including the FedEx Cup; Kevin Stadler, son of Masters winner Craig, claimed the 2014 WM Phoenix Open; and Kevin Tway, son of PGA Championship winner Bob, hoisted the Safeway Open trophy in 2018. But good genes never helped Gary Nicklaus, son of 18-time major winner Jack, to the winner's circle.
Jonathan, who is eyeing PGA Tour Champions eligibility in three years, and Jackson are both competing this week on sponsor exemptions, and while both will be in the same wave on Thursday and Friday, they will not be in the same group.
'It was more about me being able to hang on long enough so maybe we could play in a tournament together. I probably felt more pressure than he did for this to happen,' Jonathan said. 'I hope he gets the opportunity to do this as a profession because I think he's very talented, and he doesn't need a whole lot of help from Dad anymore. I just have to let him run.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Tiger Woods Injury: Is PGA Tour Star Golfer Playing in US Open Today?
Tiger Woods Injury: Is PGA Tour Star Golfer Playing in US Open Today? originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The 125th U.S. Open has officially teed off today, Thursday, June 12, at the historic Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pennsylvania. With 156 top golfers in the field, including World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and defending champion Bryson DeChambeau, fans are buzzing with excitement. But there's one name notably missing from the list: Tiger Woods. Advertisement The 15-time major champion is not competing in this year's U.S. Open, marking his third straight major tournament absence of 2025. Back in March, Woods revealed that he suffered a major injury during training. He underwent surgery on March 11, a minimally-invasive tendon repair performed by Dr. Charlton Stucken. Four-time Masters winner Tiger Woods on the practice green at Augusta NationalJack Gruber / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images Though the procedure went well, the 49-year-old is expected to be out for the rest of the 2025 season. This injury adds to a long list of setbacks for Woods from spinal fusion surgeries and knee issues to a life-threatening car crash in 2021. Despite his resilience, this latest Achilles rupture raises serious questions about his future in the sport. Woods won the U.S. Open three times in 2000, 2002, and 2008. His last appearance at the U.S. Open was in 2024, where he missed the cut. Advertisement He also appeared at the 2024 Masters, finishing last at +16. Since then, he's been focused on recovery, with no confirmed timeline for a return. Still, Woods shared a bit of wisdom ahead of Oakmont's challenge. 'You just have to hit the golf ball well, and it favors longer hitters just because of the degrees, the complexes,' Woods said per Fox News. Whether or not we see him compete again, his presence continues to influence the game. Related: US Open Course Renovations Expected To Give Former Champion Major Advantage This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 12, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Brooks Koepka Gets Brutally Honest on Tension With Coach on 'Bad Habits' at US Open
Brooks Koepka Gets Brutally Honest on Tension With Coach on 'Bad Habits' at US Open originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The 125th U.S. Open teed off at Oakmont Country Club, and as expected, the brutal course setup challenged even the best players in the world. While only 10 players managed to shoot under par, J.J. Spaun surged ahead with a bogey-free 66, fueled by a record-setting 31 on his first nine. Brooks Koepka is in the mix too, carding a solid 2-under par 68 to tie for third, just two strokes behind Spaun. Advertisement Koepka had a standout moment with a 42-foot eagle putt on the par-5 fourth hole, then bounced back from even par with birdies on 17 and 18. But the story behind the scenes is just as intriguing. Koepka opened up about a tough session with coach Pete Cowen that lasted 45 minutes in a bunker. The golfer admitted that the coach had an intense discussion with him over "bad habits" he had developed. Brooks Koepka lines up his putt on the 17th green during the first round of the U.S. Open golf tournament. Bill Streicher-Imagn Images 'I just sat there, and he scolded me pretty well," Koepka admitted during a Thursday media session. "But yeah, it's just a matter of executing what the field's first perception of where I've been." Justin Thomas even came over to check on him during this intense bunker session. Advertisement "Yeah, (with) Pete, I'll keep that between us," Koepka added. "... I wasn't happy with it. But it was something I think you need to hear, or I needed to hear, at the right time. And it's not the first time he's done it." This honesty and grit may just spark a turnaround. After missing the cut at the Masters and PGA Championship, Koepka looks determined to get back in the major conversation. As for his career earnings, Koepka isn't just stacking trophies as the star has accumulated money on both the PGA Tour and LIV Golf. According to Spotrac, Koepka raked in $29.8 million from his time on the PGA Tour and a whopping $44.1 million with LIV Golf. Advertisement Koepka's total career earnings stand at a massive $95 million, with $21 million coming from majors alone. Now, with a strong start at Oakmont, Koepka looks ready to add to that total. Related: Tiger Woods Injury: Is PGA Tour Star Golfer Playing in US Open Today? This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 13, 2025, where it first appeared.
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Notable golfers who missed the cut at the 2025 U.S. Open include the defending champion
Notable golfers who missed the cut at the 2025 U.S. Open include the defending champion Everyone knew Oakmont was going to be hard, but see which big-name players failed to make the cut at the 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont. Oakmont gives no quarter, challenging every facet of a players game with undulating fairways that are lined with 5-inch rough, deep bunkers, and lightning fast greens. Yes, this is the course where Johnny Miller shot a Sunday 63 to win his U.S. Open back in 1973, but no player's winning score at Oakmont has ever been better than 5 under for 72 holes. At the end of play on Friday, just three players were under par, and several well-known golfers who arrived at Oakmont with aspirations of winning the 125th U.S. Open failed to make the cut, which wound up being at 7 over (147). Phil Mickelson, 8 over (74-74, 148) Phil Mickelson knows all about heartbreak at the U.S. Open, coming in second a record six times at the event, but this one still has to hurt. Micklelson was safely inside the cut line before he made a double-bogey on 15 and another on 17 to push his score to 8 over. Playing late Friday evening, he knew he needed a birdie to make the cut, but missed a 15-footer that would have given him a three on the 498-yard par 4. Ouch. Ludvig Aberg, 8 over (72-76, 148) Playing his second U.S. Open, the Swede arrived at Oakmont ranked sixth on the Official World Golf Ranking, and his opening-round 72 left him in good position, but the former Texas Tech star failed to make a single birdie in the second round. Wyndham Clark, 8 over (74-74, 148) The winner of the 2023 U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club, Clark arrived at the ninth hole (his 18th of the day) needing a par to remain at 7 over, which would end up being the cut line. He found the right rough off the tee and was only able to advance the ball about 100 yards before his approach shot left him 25 feet from the hole. He missed the putt, made bogey and ended up missing the cut by a shot. Dustin Johnson, 10 over (75-75, 150) The winner of the previous U.S. Open held at Oakmont in 2016, Johnson made three birdies in a row on Thursday (on four, five, and six), but was undone by eight bogeys. He then went birdieless on Friday and carded another 75, which included a double on the par-4 15th after his approach shot from the fairway found nasty rough and his 15-foot par putt raced 6 feet past the hole, leading to a three-putt. Bryson DeChambeau, 10 over (73-77, 150 ) The winner of the 2020 U.S. Open at Winged Foot and last season's U.S. Open at Pinehurst, DeChambeau was in good shape after round one, and even after an first-nine 37, he was looking good to make the cut, but the wheels came off as he went double bogey-bogey-bogey on five, six and seven to lift his overall score to 10 over. Bryson's irons let him down on Friday and he never figured out how to putt Oakmont's greens well. Sepp Straka, 11 over (78-73, 151) A two-time winner this season on the PGA Tour, Straka went birdie-free on Thursday and struggled with Oakmont's greens, finishing the opening round ranked 144th in Strokes Gained: Putting (out of 156 players). His iron game improved in the second round, but his 8-over-par Thursday score was too much to overcome. Justin Thomas, 12 over (76-76, 152) An opening-round 76 put Thomas on the hot seat Friday, but if the two-time PGA Championship winner didn't feel the pressure, he must have after making bogey at 11 (his second hole of the day) and double-bogey on the par-5 12th after his par putt and bogey putts both horseshoes around the cup and zipped out. Thomas' 41 for his first nine holes was too much to overcome. Justin Rose, 14 over (77-77, 154) Two months ago, it was Rose, who won the 2013 U.S. Open at Merion Golf Club, who nearly came from behind on the back-nine at Augusta to win the 2025 Masters, but the Englishman failed to make a birdie during his opening-round 77. On Friday, he carded two double-bogeys and a triple-bogey en route to a second "hockey sticks." Shane Lowry, 17 over (79-78, 157) Lowry has a great putting stroke and great touch with his wedges, skills that come in handy at Oakmont, but on Thursday, he ranked 155th in Strokes Gained: Putting, which contributed to his 79. Any hopes the Irishman had of making the weekend at Oakmont were dashed by starting bogey, double-bogey, bogey over his first three holes Friday afternoon. Things got so bad for Lowry that he forgot to mark his ball before picking it up on the 14th green, incurring a one-shot penalty.
