Adam Schenk's late 5-foot birdie on Saturday at the Valspar Championship gives him a one-shot lead over Jordan Spieth and Tommy Fleetwood as he goes for his first PGA Tour win.

- Marc Leishman opened with an eagle and held it together in the middle of his round for a 5-under 66 on Saturday, giving him a two-shot lead over Sergio Garcia going into the third and final round of LIV Golf Tucson.

Matthew Baldwin and Kristian Krogh Johannessen share the lead at the SDC Championship in South Africa, though third-round play on Saturday was suspended due to fading light.

Marc Leishman, keyed by a series of long birdie putts, shot a 6-under 65 for a one-shot lead Friday in the LIV Golf League in Arizona.

Adam Schenk, who is playing for the 10th consecutive week on the PGA Tour, shot a 2-under 69 and has a 1-shot lead at the Valspar Championship.

Hitting a draw in golf is a shot that starts to the right of the target (for a right-handed golfer) and then curves back towards the target. Here are some tips to help you hit a draw:

1. Adjust your stance: Align your body to the right of the target (for a right-handed golfer), with your feet, hips, and shoulders all aimed to the right. This will help you swing from the inside, which is a key element of hitting a draw.

2. Rotate your wrists: As you swing through the ball, rotate your wrists so that the clubface closes slightly, imparting spin on the ball that causes it to curve to the left.

3. Swing from the inside: Take the club back on a slightly flatter plane, and then swing down from the inside. This will help you create the right path for the draw.

4. Practice: Hitting a draw can take some time and practice to master. Try hitting shots with different clubs, and experiment with different swing paths and wrist rotations until you find what works best for you.

Welcome back to another edition of #AskMyGolfSpy where readers like you submit your top questions to our experts here at MGS. You can pass along your questions to the team on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or right here in the comments section below!

For the most part, we don’t have any particular theme to post. You ask questions about basically anything, and we answer them. This week is a little different. With the USGA and R&A announcing a plan to rollback the golf ball, we’re focusing entirely on your USGA Rollback questions.

Q: Tony, you bring up a good point about the LIV Tour.  What rules govern their play? USGA and R&A? They have their own rulebook? – Kilted Golfer

A: I get called an idiot a lot, so you had me at “you bring up a good point.” Like other professional tours, LIV currently plays under the USGA/R&A rulebook but like those other professional tours, they’re under no obligation to do so.

Given the USGA/R&A’s place as a unifying force, it simply made sense for everyone to play by a single set of rules.

Ryan Brehm made a hole-in-one on the par-3 17th hole at Innisbrook for a 5-under 66 that led to a three-way share of the lead at the Valspar Championship.

David Ravetto and Kristian Krogh Johannessen carded 5-under 67s at a windy St. Francis Links course to share the clubhouse lead in the first round of the SDC Championship in South Africa.

There are many famous golf courses in the United States, but here are some of the most well-known:

1. Augusta National Golf Club - Augusta, Georgia
2. Pebble Beach Golf Links - Pebble Beach, California
3. Pinehurst No. 2 - Pinehurst, North Carolina
4. Torrey Pines Golf Course - La Jolla, California
5. Bethpage Black - Farmingdale, New York
6. Shinnecock Hills Golf Club - Southampton, New York
7. Merion Golf Club - Ardmore, Pennsylvania
8. TPC Sawgrass - Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida
9. Oakmont Country Club - Oakmont, Pennsylvania
10. Winged Foot Golf Club - Mamaroneck, New York

These courses have hosted major professional golf tournaments and are considered some of the most challenging and beautiful courses in the world.

 

COBRA KING Forged TEC Black Golf Irons – Key Takeaways

Second-year refresh for COBRA’s player’s distance ironsDBM (Diamondized Black Metal) finish for Forged TECQPQ (Quench-Polish-Quench) finish for more forgiving Forged TEC X$1,299 steel, $1,399 graphiteAvailable now at retail and online

The new COBRA KING Forged TEC black irons are a page out of the latest “Golf OEM Irons Release Playbook.”

It says, in part, that any OEM worth its weight in microspheres must give a popular iron set a mid-life refresh in black.

You could look it up. It’s right there after the section marked, “Use a Buttload of Tungsten.”

So, yeah, the 2022 COBRA KING Forged TEC irons are getting a new suit of clothes for a second-year sales boost. That, by itself, is marginally interesting. But there are a couple of twists that might very well make you look twice.

COBRA KING Forged TEC Black Irons: The Basics

If you want to talk about underrated and underappreciated irons, the conversation probably should start with COBRA. We tried the newly released KING TOUR irons at the PGA Show and came away highly impressed. The KING Forged TEC, meanwhile,  finished sixth overall in last year’s Most Wanted Player’s Distance iron shootout. And its more forgiving brother, the Forged TEC X, was second overall in our Game Improvement testing.

BEST SPIKED GOLF SHOES OF 2023

If all of your friends switched from spiked golf shoes to spikeless, would you make the switch, too?

In a world where droves of golfers are making the transition to spikeless golf shoes, it’s OK to stick with your tried and true spikes. Just because everyone is doing it doesn’t mean you should.

The best spiked golf shoes of 2023 feature stellar traction, ultimate stability and comfort that rivals any of their spikeless counterparts. But, despite the category shrinking at a rapid rate, the host of spiked golf shoe options can be daunting to digest.

We want you to experience firsthand the best that the spiked golf shoe category has to offer … regardless of the industry trends.

Proposed rule changes that would limit how far players can drive the ball at elite golf tournaments are "bad for the game of golf," Justin Thomas says.

The PGA of America's curious position on the elite rollback. Plus, Thomas rants, the Tour's offers no-cut misinformation, Scheffler's spicy menu, Couples calls Mickelson a nutbag and much more.

All of this and more in the weekly News & Notes!

Masters champion Scottie Scheffler finally decided on his menu when he hosts the Masters Club dinner, and it wasn't a big surprise -- meat, fish and chocolate chip cookies.

A fade is a shot in golf where the ball curves slightly from left to right for a right-handed golfer, or from right to left for a left-handed golfer. Here are some general steps to hit a fade:

1. Aim slightly left (for right-handed golfers) or slightly right (for left-handed golfers) of your target. This will help account for the curve of the shot.

2. Set up with an open stance. This means that your front foot is slightly farther away from the target line than your back foot, and your front shoulder is pointed left (for right-handed golfers) or right (for left-handed golfers) of the target.

3. Take a slightly weaker grip on the club. This means that your hands are rotated slightly counterclockwise (for right-handed golfers) or clockwise (for left-handed golfers) on the grip.

4. Swing with an outside-in path. This means that your clubhead should approach the ball from outside the target line and then cut across it, imparting the left-to-right spin that creates the fade.

Whether you know it or not, every golfer has his own personal swing problems. You may have been given advise like “Keep your head down or Slow your swing down” but these tips are not helping. You need professional help to sort out the root cause which is preventing you from landing every drive in the fairway.

Your golfing buddies can only advise you on what they see but they most likely can’t give you the proper approach to solve your swing problems.

Key for Golf Success: Longer Drives
Hank Haney recently reminded us in a blog that longer drives are the key to success on every par 4 or par 5 hole. Longer, accurate drives help you shorten every hole. The only way to achieve longer drives is with faster head speeds at the point of impact with your ball. You don’t want to swing harder, but you do want to swing faster by releasing your wrists with whipping action through the ball.

Your success depends on your ability to generate club head speed in the direct line with your target. Swinging with a slicing or hooking action is minimizing your resulting power. They are just as bad as hitting a shot fat or thin. You need a professional PGA trainer using a LAUNCH MONITOR (or golf ball flight analyzer) to measure the rotation of your golf ball and then present the ideal swing changes for your ideal hits.

My personal driver swing defect was identified as a downward slicing swing path. My correction was made by flattening or bowing my leading wrist at the top of my backswing to shallow my swing path as I swing from the inside and up my target line. I’m an aging golfer and I now drive consistently over 200 yards (up to 250). I have virtually eliminated my 100-yard mishits.

Rickie Fowler is set to become the latest golfer to join TGL, the tech-infused golf league being fronted by Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods, sources told ESPN.

What’s your golf vice?

If making golf apparel fashionable is a sin, then VICE Golf has some things to answer for. This week, the German golf brand introduced their new golf apparel line for 2023. The line consists of three flamboyant sub-collections, each with a different theme and color palette.

VICE has earned a reputation as a DTC golf ball company that just happens to make apparel. But of late, the brand is leaning more heavily into the apparel and accessory space. The hope is that the 2023 line will be a “breath of fresh air” for golf fashion. In short, the VICE Golf apparel collection for 2023 is different—and perhaps that’s just what the game of golf needs.

The Details

Three sub-collections: Liberty Club, Florida Scramble, Carry on TraditionLifestyle and performance piecesAvailable now at VICE

Florida Scramble

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The Florida Scramble sub-collection of VICE Golf apparel is highlighted by hues reminiscent of the neon glow of Miami at night and features a signature orange-themed VICE logo that pays homage to Florida citrus. The pièce de résistance of the Florida Scramble sub-collection is the reversible mesh shorts that are sure to turn heads at the club or on the course.

Liberty Club

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As opposed to the rural feel of the Florida Scramble sub-collection, the Liberty Club apparel and accessories play into the urban streetwear vibes of New York City. Golf is often thought of as a suburban game, yet this sub-collection from VICE Golf challenges that notion with a line of trendy golf wear that doubles as a lifestyle line. The classic pinstriped shorts and college-style sweatshirts are the cream of the crop from this sub-collection.

MyGolfSpy Ball Lab is where we quantify the quality and consistency of golf balls. Today, we’re reviewing the 2022 OnCore ELIXR. To learn more about our test process, click here.

About the OnCore ELIXR

The 2022 OnCore ELXIR is OnCore’s value-priced urethane offering. At $30 per dozen, it’s among the more intriguing options at its price point. It’s classified as a mid-launch, low-spin ball.

OnCore ELIXR Construction

The OnCore ELIXR is a three-piece ball with a TPU (injection-molded) urethane cover with a 350-dimple aerodynamic package.

The pattern, along with the fact that it’s produced in Taiwan, suggest it’s manufactured by Launch Technologies. That’s notable because OnCore’s other urethane models, including the Vero series and the prior-generation ELIXR, are produced by Foremost (also Taiwan) and feature cast-urethane covers. Launch Tech produces balls for a number of direct-to-consumer brands, which helps to explain some of the findings we report below.