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A LaCava father-son caddie pairing at the Arnold Palmer Invitational is the best storyline

A LaCava father-son caddie pairing at the Arnold Palmer Invitational is the best storyline

USA Today06-03-2025
A LaCava father-son caddie pairing at the Arnold Palmer Invitational is the best storyline
You may be familiar with Joe LaCava, the former caddie for Tiger Woods -- he once paid a Tiger heckler $25 to get lost -- who's famous for showing off his New York sports fandom.
But did you know his son, Joe LaCava IV, is also a caddie? And he's on the bag for Joe Highsmith, who just won the Cognizant Classic last week?
MORE GOLF: The 5 best Arnold Palmer Invitational storylines
Here's the best part: LaCava III now caddies for Patrick Cantlay, and with the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational teeing off this week, Cantlay just so happens to be paired with ... Highsmith!
So we're going to see father and son caddies working next to each other this week on Thursday and Friday. Super neat.
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Daniel Berger's Injury Ends BMW Championship Run; FedEx Top 30 Dream Fades
Daniel Berger's Injury Ends BMW Championship Run; FedEx Top 30 Dream Fades

Newsweek

time2 days ago

  • Newsweek

Daniel Berger's Injury Ends BMW Championship Run; FedEx Top 30 Dream Fades

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. In the sports world, few things sting more than an untimely injury. It can derail a season, a career, or a legacy. Just ask Tiger Woods, whose last competitive round came at the 2024 PNC Championship before a lingering ankle injury forced him into extended recovery since March. Golf's history is littered with such stories, and the BMW Championship saw one of them unfold after the third round. On Sunday morning, the PGA Tour announced that Daniel Berger, a four-time Tour winner and one of Woods' longtime admirers, had withdrawn from the final round of the BMW Championship due to a finger injury. Berger was scheduled to tee off at 10:45 a.m. ET at Caves Valley Golf Club alongside Justin Rose but never made it to the first tee. Daniel Berger WD with an injury ahead of his 10:45 a.m. ET final round at the BMW Championship. — PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) August 17, 2025 The injury wasn't entirely unexpected. During Saturday's third round, NBC cameras caught Berger icing his left hand after appearing to jar it during a swing on the back nine. He finished the round with a 2-over 72, bringing his 54-hole total to 2 over par, just outside the projected cut for the top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings. Berger entered the week ranked No. 33 in the FedEx Cup race. A solid final round could have vaulted him into the top 30 and secured a spot at next week's Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. Instead, his season ends one place short. ORLANDO, FLORIDA - MARCH 09: Daniel Berger looks on while playing the 10th hole during the final round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard 2025 at Arnold Palmer Bay Hill Golf Course on... ORLANDO, FLORIDA - MARCH 09: Daniel Berger looks on while playing the 10th hole during the final round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard 2025 at Arnold Palmer Bay Hill Golf Course on March 09, 2025 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by) More Getty Images For the four-time PGA Tour winner, it's a disappointing end to what had been a promising comeback year. Berger missed nearly two seasons due to a debilitating back injury that sidelined him after the 2022 U.S. Open. He returned to competition at the 2024 American Express Championship and quickly proved he still belonged. This year too, the 32-year-old made an impressive 16 of 20 cuts, posted nine top-25 finishes, and nearly returned to the winner's circle with a runner-up at the WM Phoenix Open and a T3 at the RBC Heritage. Additionally, Berger also made the cut in all four majors and climbed back into the top 40 of the Official World Golf Ranking. Though he won't be at East Lake, Berger's performance this season earned him exemptions into all of the PGA Tour's Signature Events next season. More Golf: Bryson DeChambeau reveals LIV's message as PGA Tour bars Ryder Cup tune-up

Is 'one of the best players to never win on PGA Tour' going to finally win this week?
Is 'one of the best players to never win on PGA Tour' going to finally win this week?

USA Today

time31-07-2025

  • USA Today

Is 'one of the best players to never win on PGA Tour' going to finally win this week?

He's long been near the top of everyone's list of "The best golfer who has yet to win on the PGA Tour," but maybe this is the week he finally breaks through. Cameron Young caught fire late in his first round at the 2025 Wyndham Championship, his online scorecard on lighting up with those little fireball icons as he birdied six of his last seven holes, including five straight on Nos. 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18. His birdie at the last came by way of his wedge. After he missed the green to the right, he chipped in for a 3. Young signed for a 7-under 63 on Thursday at Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, North Carolina, his best score in 2025 by two shots in his now 68 rounds on Tour this season. In those rounds, he's only shot in the 60s a total of 25 times. To dig a little deeper, after opening his year with five straight rounds in the 60s, he only managed 20 more sub-70 scores over his next 63 rounds. He has had a stretch in 2025 where he went 18 straight rounds without breaking 70, including an 82 in the opening round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational and an 81 in the third round of the Players Championship. But enough drilling into Young's season. His Thursday 63 at the Wyndham was a work of art, although he downplayed his smoking-hot finish. "To be honest, nothing really clicked, the ball just kind of started going in a little bit," he said. "I started off the day totally the opposite end of that spectrum. I hit it close a few times and missed a few. I think it kind of just evened out and happened to end up looking dramatic on the scorecard, but it wasn't much of a difference really throughout the day." Despite his scorecards as well as making only 13 of 20 cuts in 2025, Young started the week at No. 40 in the FedEx Cup Playoffs standings, safely inside the top-70 cutoff. After he signed his Thursday card, he shot up to 16th, which, should that hold, would make him eligible for all three postseason tournaments. "I think it's just been a progression throughout the year. It's one of those times early in the year where it feels like I'm doing a lot of stuff right and getting nothing for it and the results show the nothing and not the stuff that I felt like was getting better," he said. "It's been a long season and I think I've kind of grown and built some confidence throughout it. It's just a matter of some of that work starting to show and looking forward to doing more of it the next few days." Young's 63 was later matched by Aaron Rai and Nico Echavarria and then bested by Alex Noren's 62 and Joel Dahmen's 61. Young is playing in his 94th PGA Tour event. He has seven seconds, a pair of thirds and 12 top-5s in his career.

From junior events to the PGA Tour, Ben Griffin and Ryan Gerard share a special bond
From junior events to the PGA Tour, Ben Griffin and Ryan Gerard share a special bond

USA Today

time30-07-2025

  • USA Today

From junior events to the PGA Tour, Ben Griffin and Ryan Gerard share a special bond

Wednesday steak night has become a tradition unlike any other for PGA Tour pro Ryan Gerard and caddie Alex Ritthamel. It began early this season when Ritthamel, who caddies for Ben Griffin, stayed at Gerard's home during the Cognizant Classic in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. 'Ever since that event, either Ben or I has basically finished top-10 every week that we've done it, so we kind of kept it going just out of superstition,' Gerard said. That includes in New Orleans, where Griffin tasted victory on the PGA Tour for the first time in the team event with Andrew Novak, and Dallas, where he won individually. Just two weeks ago, it was Gerard's turn to notch his maiden Tour title. Not too shabby for teammates at University of North Carolina who are enjoying two of the most notable breakout seasons this year. 'I think I'd like a little credit for making Alex well fed,' Gerard said. Who picks up the tab for dinner is determined by who makes more money in a given week. Each time Griffin won, Ritthamel ended up digging into his back pocket for his wallet to pay for dinner. It almost happened a third time at the Memorial but Scottie Scheffler is a force to be reckoned with and successfully defended his title. 'I was a little bit bummed at Memorial this year when you didn't close the deal,' Gerard told Griffin, 'because I made like $4,000 more than him that week, so then I was on the hook for dinner the next week. Yeah, you know, try and win Memorial next year.' But Gerard happily will buy Griffin's dinner for his wise counsel as Gerard debated flying to Northern Ireland, where he was second alternate for the British Open at Royal Portrush. Griffin told him that he already was in the Barracuda Championship, which was held in Truckee, California, and to go there and win the thing. Gerard did just that and so Griffin is waiting for Gerard to give him his cut of his winnings. 'Just 50 percent of his earnings is all,' Griffin joked. 'I've been looking on Zelle and Wells Fargo and Merrill accounts, nothing's hit yet.' 'If he's so inclined, I will treat him to dinner on a Wednesday night of his choosing,' Gerard promised. These two friends, who were raised little more than an hour apart from each other, first played a junior event together at University of North Carolina's Finley Golf Course when Gerard was 9 or 10, Griffin about 12. They became fast friends, even if Griffin gave him a hard time when Gerard was a freshman at UNC. 'When you get out here and you have like one of your best friends playing practice rounds with you all the time and kind of rooting for you, it was awesome seeing him win multiple times early this year, and inspirational,' Gerard said. 'I can't let him get too far ahead of me in the win column so we've got to rein it in here a little bit. Just to see what he's done all season has been awesome and I hope he continues doing it, and if he continues doing it, I'm going to keep on his heels pushing him.' Griffin took a job selling insurance for a short time before resuming his pro golf aspirations. Gerard witnessed how hard Griffin worked on 100 degree days in the summer to get ready for Q-School. 'It wasn't just a fluke. Like he wanted it from the first moment that I met him, and he got to a point where I feel like it got difficult and there were a lot of decisions that he had to make. "But for him to go out and earn it, really, really dig his heels in and make sure that he wasn't going to let anyone stand in the way of him and his dream when he got his second opportunity,' Gerard said. 'Second chances are rare and when you get them you want to take advantage of them as you can.' Gerard can relate. When he got his latest chance to be in the trophy hunt, he recalled advice from UNC men's basketball coach Roy Williams, who texts Gerard every couple of weeks with words of encouragement. That included reminding him that legendary Tarheels men's basketball coach Dean Smith made it to four Final Fours before he finally got to cut down the nets. Gerard kept his cool to the end in claiming his first Tour title at the Barracuda. 'It's something that you work your entire life for. You never want to get ahead of yourself. You never want to feel like you put the cart before the horse and you let it slip away from you,' he said. 'But walking up knowing that you were going to win a PGA Tour event and I've spent hours and hours and hours on driving ranges and putting greens and golf courses and on airplanes since I was 5, 6 years old with a goal to win, kind of seeing all those moments kind of flash before you to end up culminating in a really special goal with a lot of people that have helped me along the way, it was pretty special.' Worthy of a Wednesday night steak dinner.

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