Tiger the caddie, JT and Homa’s safari, McIlroy’s Boston trip | Rogers Report
Tiger caddies for Charlie, Max Homa and JT go on a safari, Rory heads to Boston
Notah Begay III Junior Golf National Championship, Max Homa, Boston Common Golf
Hello friends, and welcome back to the Rogers Report! Between going to the Patriots game with my dad on Sunday (which was a loss for the team, but a win for me in terms of being the favorite child) and a TGL event at Fenway with David Ortiz and Pedro Martinez on Monday, I am feeling very in tune with the Boston sports world right now.
Shout out to The Golf Shop of St. Andrews, where I purchased my sweatshirt a few weeks ago. If it looks familiar, here’s why.
Boston Common Golf event
As a Boston gal, I was very bummed when the Playoff event at TPC Boston was taken off the schedule. I grew up going to the tournament with my junior golf friends and our head pro, and continued to go every year throughout college. I looked forward to the U.S. Open at The Country Club for years, and was bummed when it was over because I thought it meant that professional golf wouldn’t be back in the area for quite some time.
I’m definitely still learning the ins and the outs of the TGL, but I was very excited to see the Boston Common Golf team at some local spots Monday. I attended their press conference in the morning, where the players talked about the league and their schedule, and Keegan Bradley shared just how excited he is to represent his favorite city.
As someone who grew up going to Fenway Park, it was cool to see the players take in one of my favorite spots — one from where I have lots of memories.
I’m sure their tour of Fenway was great, but I can’t help but think that my personal anecdotes would’ve added a nice touch to their time there. Oh well.
On Monday evening, I attended a launch party back at Fenway. Kira Dixon hosted a panel, and David Ortiz and Pedro Martinez kept everyone on their toes. When asked about his golf game, Ortiz said, “You want to know the last time I played 18 holes? Never.” Martinez talked to Adam Scott, Rory McIlroy, Tyrrell Hatton and Keegan Bradley about Boston sports fans, and he danced all around the stage and told Hatton that he reminded him of his old teammate, Dustin Pedroia. Martinez then said he’d call Hatton “Pee Wee,” because that’s what he called the second baseman.
I got to catch up with McIlroy for a few minutes, and from one Irish person to another, I welcomed him to Boston with open arms. His initiation to Beantown will be complete when he gets screamed at by a local for taking too long to order Dunkin Donuts.
Also, I hit a few golf balls via VR for the first time last night and I am all in on it.
Tiger Woods the caddie
Our favorite 15-time major champion was on the bag for his son, Charlie, at the Notah Begay III Junior Golf National Championship in Louisiana over the weekend. And he looked great.
Listen, I may not know much about the technicalities of the golf swing. But I do know a thing or two about walking. As someone who has been putting one foot in front of the other for almost 29 years, I can confidently say that Tiger is doing it well here.
If I didn’t know any better, I would think this is the stride of a man who hasn’t had to go under the knife multiple times for his leg and ankle. And most important, he looks a lot more comfortable than he did at the Masters. It was hard not to wince watching him take on the fairways at Augusta, so this seems like a lot of progress. I’m happy for him! And happy for Charlie, too, of course. As for the kids in their group at the tournament, I cannot imagine what it’s like teeing it up in front of an 82-time PGA Tour winner.
Charlie, I hope your dad’s yardages were correct and that he grabbed all the pins for you over the weekend.
And folks, just as I’m writing this we have an update from the looper himself…
The Homas and Thomas’ safari
Justin Thomas, Max Homa and their better halves are making the most of their time off. The squad took a trip to Madikwe Reserve in South Africa to check out the wildlife, and it looked like the trip of a lifetime.
Justin Thomas even tried his hand at some on-site reporting. Watch out, Smylie Kaufman. He could be coming for your job.
I know he was looking at the animals, but Thomas has the old man golf spectator look down. Just look at that focus and stance!
A Ryder Cup party at the Donalds
The Ryder Cup may be over, but the celebrations are definitely not. The Donald family hosted a victory party at their Florida home over the weekend, and there was quite the turnout. My invite must have gotten lost in the mail, but I still hope everyone who attended had an awesome time.
First off, let’s take a look at that cake. Props to the baker who put that together. I struggle with the instructions on the Betty Crocker cake mix boxes, so I have massive respect for the talent that takes.
Friendly PSA: If you are not following Diane Donald on Instagram, that needs to change right now. She is one of my favorite people on the app. You know how the moms in your life are constantly uploading pictures to Facebook? That’s how Diane Donald is with her Instagram stories. As the captain’s wife, she provided a ton of cool behind-the-scenes content from the Ryder Cup.
My favorite photo she shared from the party is the following one of Viktor Hovland with two of her daughters and their friends.
I feel like I know how this went. The gals wanted a picture with Viktor, but were maybe too scared to ask. So Diane facilitated it, and the girls were kind of mortified while it was going on. But the second it was over, they were desperate to get their hands on that photo. Gals, take it from me. I’ve been there. And this will continue to happen for a long time. And in 15 or so years, you will still be talking about this photo.
Okay, folks. What I’m about to show you next is one of the most shocking things to appear in the Rogers Report. Nothing could have prepared me for it.
U.S. Ryder Cup team snub Keegan Bradley was in attendance at the European team’s victory party. I had to play Diane Donald’s Instagram reel a second time to make sure I could believe my eyes. I am desperate to learn how this went down. Is Bradley switching loyalties? Does he live in the neighborhood? What did Luke’s text inviting him to this party look like? All I know for sure is that he still hasn’t unpacked that darn suitcase from 2012.
The Finaus head to Cabo
The Finaus, their family and friends headed to Cabo last week for what I can only suspect was a vow renewal celebration. I’ve looked at the Instagram posts, screenshotted the stories and done some other general sleuthing. They never really named exactly what they were celebrating, but there was a ceremony and a reception so I have to assume they were celebrating their marriage. And it looked like an absolute blast.
Besides the main event, the Finau family had spa days, pool parties, dance parties on a boat and putting competitions.
It’s hard not to have fun when you’ve got a huge family. But this has inspired me to inform my family that we need to bring our celebrations to the next level. Hanging out in the living room with football on in the background simply isn’t going to cut it anymore.
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