KURT KITAYAMA PARLAYS RED-HOT WEEKEND INTO 3M OPEN VICTORY
Kurt Kitayama wasn’t sure he would qualify for the final two rounds of the 3M Open. It turned out to be a weekend to remember.
Kitayama shot 6-under-par 65 and held on to win the 3M Open by one stroke Sunday in Blaine, Minn., for his second PGA Tour victory.
“I feel like the game has been trending, and for it finally to kind of pay off now has been awesome,” Kitayama said.
Kitayama finished at 23-under 261 at TPC Twin Cities for a one-stroke decision on Sam Stevens, who posted 66 on Sunday. Kitayama made a total of 20 birdies in the two weekend rounds.
Prior to that, he wasn’t certain he would make the cut in this tournament.
“On Friday, I was fighting my swing trying to find something,” Kitayama said. “Went to the range, trying to find something.”
He definitely discovered what was needed.
Kitayama, who tied a course and tournament record with a third-round 60 on Saturday, pretty much rode that wave of momentum. He had birdies on the first three holes Sunday — including a chip-in from the greenside rough on No. 3 — and was 5 under through six holes on the way to a 29 on the front nine.
But after a bogey on No. 11, his lead was just two on England’s Matt Wallace, who had already completed his round. Kitayama rebounded with birdies on two of the next three holes.
Yet it took him three putts to finish the par-3 17th, with the bogey cutting the margin to one stroke. But Stevens, who had birdies on Nos. 14-16 to pull within striking distance, was all over the place on the 18th with his first three shots into the rough and scrambled for par.
Kitayama, in the next group, had a smooth final hole and won it with par.
The tournament title locked up a position for Kitayama in the FedEx Cup playoffs with one regular-season tournament remaining.
“Jumping up that much is great,” he said. “The goal is to make the playoffs and give yourself a chance.”
There was another special aspect of the result for Kitayama because his older brother, Daniel, was his caddie for the second week in a row.
Stevens settled for his third top-10 finish of the season.
David Lipsky and Wallace both registered 64s to share the distinction for the best score of the round, and they finished tied for third place at 20 under, along with Pierceson Coody (67) and Jake Knapp (68).
Wallace produced a bogey-free round, but finished with pars on his final three holes.
Chris Gotterup, who was aiming for his second title in three weeks, didn’t make a charge en route to a 69, tying for 10th place at 18 under.
Third-round co-leaders Thorbjorn Olesen (73) of Denmark and Akshay Bhatia (75) tumbled down the leaderboard and finished tied for 14th (16 under) and tied for 25th (14 under), respectively. Bhatia had seven bogeys Sunday.
Kevin Roy also registered 64 on Sunday, ending at 13 under.
PADRAIG HARRINGTON CLAIMS SENIOR OPEN FOR THIRD MAJOR TITLE
Ireland’s Padraig Harrington carded a 3-under 67 to finish at 16-under 264 and claim the ISPS Handa Senior Open at Berkshire, England on Sunday.
The victory marks Harrington’s second major win in four weeks and makes him only the fifth player to win The Open and the Senior Open.
“You want to do things that stand out, and having won a real Open, coming out, winning the Senior Open … it adds a validation,” Harrington said. “… I’m kind of on a high of winning, but then there will be that deep sense of satisfaction knowing that you’ve done both.”
Harrington won The Open in 2007 and 2008, and was on the cusp of winning the Senior Open in consecutive years. He finished second in 2022 and 2023, losing the latter in a playoff, before breaking through this year.
The Dublin native entered the day with a two-shot lead, but never got complacent.
“I don’t want to relax, that has cost me in the past,” Harrington said. “… I get ahead of myself, and you know, sometimes when it’s an easy shot, easy tee shot, I can lose focus.
“So I want to stay hyped up. And to be honest, I think today, because I wasn’t comfortable with my swing, I never let my guard down. I was always into it and focused all day.”
Harrington, 53, started Sunday with an eagle on No. 1. He also tallied three birdies and two bogeys on the day, beating out Denmark’s Thomas Bjorn and Justin Leonard, who finished at 13 under.
Bjorn rolled in four birdies from No. 9 to No. 14, threatening Harrington’s lead. He then bogeyed on 16, putting Harrington out of reach and finishing at 3-under 67.
Leonard notched four birdies and two bogeys on the day for a 2-under 68. He carded 5-under 65 on Friday and Saturday.
“It wasn’t quite as sharp as I was the last couple days. You know, just not able to really hit it close enough to putt pressure,” Leonard said. “I felt like if I could have been 3- or 4-under on the front nine, then, you know, we’re kind of neck and neck.”
Scott Hend (65) finished fourth at 12 under, while fellow Australian Cameron Percy (65) and South Africa’s Ernie Els (66) tied for fifth at 11 under.
JOAQUIN NIEMANN COASTS TO LIV GOLF UK TITLE
Joaquin Niemann captured his fifth victory of the season following a three-stroke win on Sunday at LIV Golf United Kingdom.
Niemann carded a 3-under 68 on Sunday to finish 17-under 196 for the tournament at the JCB Golf and Country Club in Rocester, England. The Torque GC captain collected five birdies against two bogeys to add his to his titles at Adelaide, Singapore, Mexico City and Virginia.
Sunday’s victory served as a $4 million payday for Niemann, who began the week by firing his caddie and coach after missing the cut at the 2025 Open Championship.
Niemann’s Torque GC, however, was unable to hold its three-stroke lead over Legion XIII in its bid for its first team title since 2023. Legion XIII shot a staggering 14-under on Sunday to finish at 35-under for the tournament, eight strokes better than Torque GC.
First things first for Niemann, who wasn’t too interested in talking about his individual play on Sunday.
“Well, I’m going to talk for the first two days because today I didn’t feel like I had my best,” Niemann said. “Yeah, it was great. I was able to flow on tough situations.
“I felt like today I was pretty calm, pretty chill, until Bubba (Watson) started playing golf. Yeah, he made it tough for me. I was actually feeling the pressure on 13, 14, but, yeah, just stay in the present. Yeah, was able to hit a great shot on 15. After that put me back into my place.”
Speaking of Watson, he had a stretch of four birdies and two eagles from No. 9 to No. 14. He rolled in six birdies overall to finish in second place at 14-under after a third-round 65.
Niemann put a halt to his charge after sending a shot within five feet of the cup on the 15th hole.
“Yeah, I was pretty happy to see that ball go in that close, and making that birdie I think was huge for the next three holes,” he said.
“Feel like 16 is a good hole for a lefty, so I needed some room to be a little bit more comfortable. So, yeah, I mean, probably looked more easy but it was pretty stressful.”
Caleb Surratt (65 on Sunday) sank six birdies during his bogey-free round to finish at 13-under for the tournament, followed by Talor Gooch (66) at 11-under.
As for team play, Legion XIII captain Jon Rahm was thrilled after his team captured its fourth title this season.
“With all four scores counting this year I thought we played to our advantage. It showed early on and it’s showing now,” Rahm said. “I think the middle of the season none of us played our best. I said last week, I was looking forward to Caleb hopefully having a good tournament and not needing to birdie something like the last four holes for us to win. Good to see the scoreboard and see just that.”
LOTTIE WOAD WINS SCOTTISH OPEN IN PROFESSIONAL DEBUT
Two weeks ago, Lottie Woad was the world’s No. 1 amateur. On Sunday, the 21-year-old Englishwoman became an LPGA Tour champion in her professional debut.
Woad won the ISPS Handa Women’s Scottish Open by three strokes, matching her age at 21-under par after closing with a 4-under 68 at Dundonald Links in Ayrshire, Scotland.
“It’s a pretty good outcome, I guess,” Woad said. “Definitely wasn’t expecting to win my first event, but I knew I was playing well.”
Woad capped a remarkable month with her fifth birdie of the day at the par-5 18th hole. She won the Women’s Irish Open on the Ladies European Tour as an amateur three weeks ago and missed a playoff by one shot the next week at the Evian Championship major before deciding to skip her senior season at Florida State and turn pro.
Woad, who held the lead after the second and third rounds, started strong Sunday with birdies at Nos. 2 and 3. After nine consecutive pars, she birdied Nos. 13 and 14 before a lone bogey at the par-4 16th.
“There aren’t that many scoreboards out, there to be honest,” Woad said. “… I knew it was probably quite tight because I was only a couple under at the turn, but then when I had the two birdies early on the back nine, I’d knew I’d gotten a bit of a lead by then.”
Woad matched the rare accomplishment by Rose Zhang, who in June 2023 became the first player in 72 years to win in her LPGA Tour debut at the Mizuho Americas Open. Beverly Hanson won the Eastern Open in her debut in 1951.
Woad collected $300,000 in her first pro payday and will carry a mountain of momentum into next week’s fifth and final major, the AIG Women’s Open at Royal Porthcawl in Wales.
“Trying to just be up there really,” Woad said of her expectations next week after tying for 10th place last year at St. Andrews. “That’s all you can ask for.”
South Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim matched Woad’s 68 on Sunday to finish in solo second place at 18-under. She reached 20-under with a birdie at the 14th but fell back with consecutive bogeys at Nos. 15 and 16.
Spain’s Julia Lopez Ramirez shot the round of the day with a 7-under 65 to finish in a tie for third at 14-under with South Korea’s Sei Young Kim (73), who closed with a costly double bogey at the 18th.
“My game was in a very good place, very consistent,” Lopez Ramirez said. “I played under par every day. I think honestly that’s a success and growing my game, and I’m excited for having the opportunity to play next week and to show up again.”
World No. 1 Nelly Korda (71) claimed fifth place at 13-under. Denmark’s Nanna Koerstz Madsen (76) began the day tied for second but slipped to sixth at 11-under after a triple-bogey at No. 18.
