A Golf Twitter darling’s dramatic win, a PGA Tour ringer’s member-guest conquest and a Ryder Cup snub's 58

Welcome to another edition of The Grind, where we can’t believe the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black is finally here. When this was announced 12 years ago—for 2024 dates originally—it seemed like a lifetime away. And it certainly felt like a lifetime of debating first who would captain (Phil Mickelson was an early favorite), then who would play and people wondering throughout if a New York crowd is a good idea for this contentious event. Relax, people. It will be fine. (Fingers crossed!) In any event, it’s finally time. Well, we still have to wait until Friday, but you get the point. In the meantime, let’s take a New York minute (or two) to get caught up on everything else happening in golf.

WE’RE BUYING

Michael Kim: Now here’s a popular victory that both Americans and Euros can agree on. Kim became the first U.S. golfer to win the French Open in 53 years, proving that he’s not just a great follow on Golf Twitter. And he did it in dramatic fashion with this clutch bunker save on the final hole:

Great job, Michael. And great job recapping it all. In fact, I’m going to stop writing about Michael’s big win and let him do the rest:

Anna Huang: Not only did this 16-year-old Canadian become the youngest Ladies European Tour winner this year, but she won by SEVEN shots.

“Being able to win this at 16 is so insane,” Huang said after. As the father of a seven-year-old daughter who can barely make contact with the golf ball, I concur.

This video: If you’re an American and you don’t get all the FEELS watching this, then, well, you might need to seek help:

Man, that’s good. And that’s the kind of thing that Team Europe always does. Glad to see Captain Keegan and Team USA going all-in on this week. I think they win big.

WE’RE SELLING

Sergio Garcia’s timing: The Spaniard was so disappointed he didn’t make Team Europe that he dropped out of the Irish Open. (He also just may have had plans with Carlos Alcaraz at the U.S. Open.) But maybe he could have gotten Luke Donald’s attention if he had shot this 58 (!) a few weeks earlier:

OK, so probably not. But still, nice round, Sergio. And at least you just had a nice trip to New York. Going back to Bethpage probably wouldn’t have been as fun for you. Also, kind of crazy to think that as a +8 that 58 is only a net 66. Tough.

People playing insane amounts of golf: The USGA shared the most rounds posted this summer and the numbers were crazy:

Don’t get me wrong, this is awesome. For those people. It just makes me insanely jealous. Well, maybe not of the 294-round guy. That might be even a bit too much golf for me. Might.

Playing against an ex-PGA Tour pro at a member-guest: Imagine playing in a member-guest and losing to a team containing a guy who once played for the INTERNATIONAL TEAM at the Presidents Cup? Pretty wild, but that’s what happened at TPC Piper Glen (Thanks to the great Yip Strickler for bringing this matter to everyone’s attention), where former PGA Tour pro Brendon de Jonge played as a +1.9 handicap and made 17 birdies in a 45-hole stretch.

No judgment here, but I’m guessing Sergio Garcia wouldn’t like giving Brendon six shots. Anyway, no matter who wins a net event, there’s going to be grumbling. But there was probably more than normal at TPC Piper Glen this weekend.

ON TAP

The Ryder Cup is here! The Ryder Cup is here! The Ryder Cup is here! To be honest, I get way more juiced up for the four major championships, but due to this year’s venue and all the aforementioned buildup, this really might be the biggest event in golf history. So I’m super excited to be out at Bethpage Black this week. And getting paid to do so like the American players! Good for them! And lucky for me!

Random tournament fact: You’ve probably seen this one by now, but the home team has an incredible 36½-11½ record in foursomes since 2012. This has clearly been the most important factor in the event during this span (although, somehow, the U.S. still lost in 2012), and yet, no one really knows why this is happening as Shane Ryan and others explain in this video:

Hmm.

RANDOM PROP BETS OF THE WEEK

—Justin Timberlake will read another poem at the opening ceremony: 1 MILLION-to-1 odds

—Justin Timberlake will be at Bethpage Black as a fan: Even odds

—Patrick Cantlay will be wearing a hat at Bethpage Black: LOCK

TWEET OF THE WEEK

Team USA’s handle revealed a (new?) nickname for Ben Griffin that no one had ever heard of and no one seems to like:

Benny Booms? No comment. Hopefully, we’ll get Griffin’s thoughts on it at some point this week.

PHOTO(S) OF THE WEEK

Michael Kim absolutely lived it up after winning for the first time in seven years. And why not?

When in Rome, right? Well, Paris, in this case.

VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK (PRO DIVISION)

Keita Nakajima purposely whiffed on a shot during the French Open when he heard something during his downswing:

Tiger Woods would be impressed. And, no, that doesn’t count as a shot. And, yes, it’s a lot different than when a weekend hacker misses by accident.

VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK (KID DIVISION)

How about this 4-year-old making his first hole-in-one?

It’s probably all downhill from here, kid, but congrats!

THIS WEEK IN PUBLIC DISPLAYS OF AFFECTION

Congrats to Doug Barron, who won the PGA Tour Champions PURE Insurance Championship and then dedicated the win to his late father:

Good stuff, Doug.

THIS WEEK IN PUBLIC DISPLAYS OF AFFECTION (ANIMAL DIVISION)

John VanDerLaan picked up his first Korn Ferry Tour title at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship and was greeted on the 18th green by his wife—and their dog!

Bunker is a great name for that good boy.

THIS WEEK IN CELEBRITY GOLFERS

Carson Daly and his son played Cypress Point AND Pebble Beach. On the same day!

Now that’s an epic 36 holes of golf.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“I think the only way he gets attention is by mentioning other people. That is basically what I think of that. To get attention he will mention me or Scottie [Scheffler] or others.” —Rory McIlroy on Bryson DeChambeau. Please, please let these two match up a few times this week at Bethpage.

THIS AND THAT

Congrats to Brandon Holtz on winning the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship. Although I’m not quite sure how I feel about an ex-pro winning and seven of the eight quarterfinalists being former professional golfers. … Congrats to Pat Andrews, who is not an ex-pro, but a great golfer in his own right, on winning the year-long Golf Digest Match Play Championship. Pat defeated Drew Powell in the championship match at Winged Foot, but neither took a photo to mark the occasion so we have none to show here. … Instead, I’ll show a photo of my golf towels drying out at a kids playground:

Big golf dad hack here. Those slides are always wet in the morning.

RANDOM QUESTIONS TO PONDER

How long have I had that Wake Forest towel?

How long will the nickname Benny Booms stick?

How bad will the traffic be on Long Island this week?