🏌🏻Bradley In Tiger Out

Good morning! An action-packed week of golfing action is in store with the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour co-hosting two tournaments - the Genesis Scottish Open and the ISCO Championship.

In women’s golf, the stage is set for the LPGA Tour’s fourth major - the Amundi Evian Championship, with World No 1 Nelly Korda all set to make a comeback while LIV Golf resumes after a short break in Andalucia.

For all the latest updates and news from these events, follow our YouTube channel.

Today’s Trivia: This week's Evian Championship is the fourth major on the LPGA Tour - who's the defending champion? Answer at the end of the email.

⛳ This day in history: On this date in 1977, Tom Watson held off Jack Nicklaus to win the Open at Turnberry by one stroke in the famous “Duel in the Sun” when they separated themselves from the rest of the field.

NEXT ON THE TEE
Tournaments This Week

PGA Tour: Genesis Scottish Open

📍 When and Where: July 11-14, The Renaissance Club
💰 Purse: $9 million
🏌🏻 Headliners: Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Viktor Hovland, Will Zalatoris

LPGA Tour: The Amundi Evian Championship

📍When and Where: July 11-14, Evian Resort Golf Club
💰 Purse: $8 million
🏌🏻 Headliners: Nelly Korda, Lilia Vu, Charley Hull

DP World Tour: ISCO Championship 

📍When and Where: July 11-14, Keene Trace Golf Club
💰 Purse: $4 million
🏌🏻 Headliners: Michael Thorbjornsen, Luke Clanton, Joel Dahmen

LIV Golf: LIV Andalucia

📍When and Where: July 12-14, Real Club Valderrama
💰 Purse: $25 million
🏌🏻 Headliners: Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau, Joaquin Niemann

ALBATROSS
Bradley To Lead Team USA In Ryder Cup

Two-time Ryder Cup member Keegan Bradley will lead the United States in the 2025 event at Bethpage Black in Long Island, New York. The 38-year-old Bradley played in the 2012 (Medinah) and 2014 (Gleneagles) Ryder Cups, both of which the US lost to Europe.

Bradley has won 12 times as a pro, including the 2011 PGA Championship. He has been ranked as high as 10th in the world and will be tasked with helping the US win after losing last time to Team Europe.

There are multiple other candidates who were considered for the role including Stewart Cink, Matt Kuchar, and Webb Simpson. The PGA of America ultimately selected Bradley, citing his previous Ryder Cup experience.

⛳️ Woods Turns Down Captaincy: Tiger Woods declined an offer to take over as captain, expressing public concern with balancing ongoing injury rehab, a role on the PGA Tour board, and leading the US.

The 15-time major champion is said to be more focused at the moment on his role in the ongoing merger negotiations between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf.

Watch this story on Youtube

TWEET
Worth Mentioning

EAGLE
Rory Returns To Defend Title @ Scottish Open

Rory McIlroy will return to defend at The Renaissance Club this week and will tee it up for the first time since the US Open. No one has successfully defended their title at the Genesis Scottish Open, with McIlroy looking to end that drought – and win for the third time on TOUR this season.

McIlroy won last year’s Genesis Scottish Open in his debut at The Renaissance Club, and his approach shot on the 18th hole has been memorialized with a plaque from the club. World No 1 Scottie Scheffler has decided to skip the event and that makes McIlroy the highest-ranked player in the field.

📌 Who will challenge Rory? The Scottish Open boasts of a strong field that includes 10 of the top 15 players in the Official World Golf Rankings. Will Zalatoris is set to tee it up after withdrawing from the Rocket Mortgage Classic due to a hip injury while Viktor Hovland is back in action as he looks to make a late-season run into the Playoffs.

But Rory's toughest competitor will be Xander Schauffele, who looks to continue his tremendous 2024 campaign. He has 11 top-10 finishes in 16 events this year, including a win at the PGA Championship.

Rory is the betting favorite though and looks to defend his title at +800 odds while Schauffele has the second-shortest odds to win this week at +900.

LOCKER ROOM
What else is making news 

Donation: Former world No 1 Jordan Spieth pledged a sizable contribution to a Tiger Woods-led renovation effort of historic Cobbs Creek Golf Club, offering a $250,000 grant dedicated toward the construction of a junior putting green.

Rory Spotted: Rory McIlroy and his wife, Erica Stoll, were spotted together at the Ryder Cup dinner. They were joined by fellow Irishman Shane Lowry as well as captain Luke Donald, LIV Golfer Tyrrell Hatton, Tommy Fleetwood and Nicolai Hojgaard.

LPGA Tour: Nelly Korda returns to action at this week’s Amundi Evian Championship after missing the last event due to a dog bite. In fact, she’s already in France prepping for the tour’s fourth major.

Lexi Skips: Lexi Thompson won’t be in the field at this year’s Amundi Evian Championship. Her last appearance at this event came way back in 2019. This is notably Lexi's final full season on the LPGA Tour.

BIRDIE
These Golfers Own The World's Most Expensive Watches

The worlds of golf and luxury watches frequently come together. Given the fame of winning a golf tournament, luxury watchmakers often seek to endorse these celebrities.

Today, let us take a look at golfers who are avid watch collectors, as well as some of the most expensive horological marvels in their luxury watch collections.

💰Tiger Woods: The most expensive watch in Woods' repertoire: A stunning Rolex Day-Date 40 in Everose Gold which is worth a staggering $69,000 in retail prices today. Crafted of precious metals, the Day-Date family of Rolexes are the epitome of horological excellence, exuding elegance and sophistication whilst proffering inimitable Swiss reliability.

💰Jon Rahm: Rahm owns a two-tone Daytona Chronograph in yellow gold and steel, as well as a Rolex GMT-Master II “Meteorite” in 18k white gold with a meteorite dial and blue and red “Pepsi” bezel. While the former is worth about $19,500, the latter commands an even more impressive price of around $60,000.

💰Brooks Koepka: The undisputable crown jewel of Koepka's luxury watch collection is a Rolex Sky-Dweller in 18k Everose Gold, paired with a matching Everose gold Jubilee bracelet. With a retail price of $50,900, the timepiece features a dark rhodium dial and an elegant fluted bezel among other aesthetic characteristics.

In terms of complications, the timepiece proffers an annual calendar and a month display; operating on the Calibre 9002 movement, it also boasts 72 hours of power reserve.

💰Rory McIlroy: The most expensive timepiece in Rory's collection is the Omega Deville Tourbillon in rose gold. It was this watch that accompanied Rory as he hoisted the trophy of the CJ Cup in 2021, marking his 20th PGA Tour win.

While discontinued, the watch is nonetheless worth around $148,000 on resale markets.

💰Viktor Hovland: The most notable mention in Hovland’s collection of luxury watches is his 50th Anniversary Audemars Piguet Royal Oak in 18k gold. Featuring a smoked slate grey Petite Tapisserie dial, the watch operates on an exquisite Caliber 7121 movement that is visible through its exhibition caseback.

Prices of the watch differ across retail and secondary marketplaces, but it has been known to fetch between $70,500 to $165,000.

Watch this Story on Youtube

DRIVING RANGE
Stop Flipping Your Wrists

In today's video, we talk about how to stop flipping your hand through impact.

Advertise in Golf Reporter.