This seems to happen every year, but someone must be adding days to January. There is no way we still have five days to go.

Oklahoma O.K.

Two weeks after the PGA of America stripped Trump Bedminster of the 2022 PGA Championship, the event has a new venue: Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It will be the fifth PGA Championship hosted at Perry Maxwell’s 1936 design.

In 2019, Southern Hills unveiled a 10-month, $11-million restoration by Hanse Golf Course Design. The project aimed to both restore Maxwell’s work and provide a challenging test for future major championships. The result was a course that intimidates not with length and narrowness but with firm, contoured greens and surrounds. With the PGA Championship now taking place in May instead of August, Southern Hills should be able to put its best foot forward in 2022.

For more on Southern Hills, check out our array articles, videos, podcasts about the club and Hanse’s restoration.

Major Terrain: Southern Hills Country Club – In this video, Andy Johnson and Garrett Morrison discuss the scale of the Southern Hills property and how Perry Maxwell’s routing makes the most of excellent terrain.

Championship Restoration: Southern Hills – This article by Garrett Morrison walks through the history of Southern Hills, the tricky decisions that Hanse and his team had to make during their “renovative restoration,” and what to expect of future championships.

The Art of the Opener: The 1st at Southern Hills – The 1st hole at Southern Hills sets the tone for the rest of the round. In this video, you’ll learn how the opening hole encapsulates the entire course in just one par 4.

The Fried Egg Podcast: Russ Myers – A year and a half ago, Southern Hills superintendent Russ Myers joined the podcast to discuss his past experiences with championship golf and how they have informed his work at SHCC.

The Fried Egg Podcast: Perry Maxwell, Prairie Dunes and Southern Hills – In the fall of 2019, Andy Johnson and Garrett Morrison visited both Prairie Dunes and Southern Hills, two of Perry Maxwell’s most famous designs. They discuss Maxwell’s career and design tendencies, and give their opinions on Gil Hanse’s work at Southern Hills.

U.S. Open prep

After two weeks of middling fields, the PGA Tour kicks it up a notch this week at the Farmers Insurance Open. A number of big names will be in San Diego to get a look at Torrey Pines, which is set to host the U.S. Open in June. Jon Rahm, Xander Schauffele, and Rory McIlroy headline the field. Tee Times

The last time the U.S. Open went to Torrey Pines… well, you know what happened. The 2008 event was brutally difficult, and -1 was good enough to qualify for that legendary Monday playoff. We’ll be curious to see how the recent speed revolution in men’s golf affects Torrey’s ability to defend itself. Will June’s U.S. Open be similar to the 2019 PGA Championship at Bethpage Black or 2000 U.S. Open at Winged Foot, where only bombers had a real chance of separating themselves?

Our guess is yes. We’ve seen over and over that high rough, tight fairways, and pushed-up greens—all characteristics that Torrey Pines has—tend to increase the advantage enjoyed by long hitters. This week at the Farmers Insurance Open will be a decent test of that theory.

Quick Hooks

The second leg of the European Tour’s “desert swing” gets underway on Thursday at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic. Tyrrell Hatton, Collin Morikawa, and Tommy Fleetwood are among the notables. Tee Times

Tough story out of Torrey Pines: Kamaiu Johnson, the Advocates Pro Golf Association Tour champion who earned a sponsor exemption at the Farmers, had to withdraw after testing positive for Covid-19. He was replaced by Willie Mack III. We hope Kamaiu gets another shot at a PGA Tour event soon.

Brooks Koepka and longtime swing instructor Claude Harmon III have parted ways. “I was informed on the Wednesday after the Masters that he wanted to go in a different direction,” Harmon said. Full Story from Eamon Lynch

Rory McIlroy has committed to the Waste Management Phoenix Open for the first time in his career. As of today, Rory plans to play seven events in an eight-week stretch. We assume he’s been hitting the Peloton in preparation. Full Story from Tim Schmitt

Davis Love III has been appointed captain of the 2022 U.S. Presidents Cup squad. DL3 led the U.S. Ryder Cup team to victory at Hazeltine in 2016 and to a narrow loss at Medinah in 2012. All told, he has been vice captain or captain at nine team events since 2010. Nice to have a new face in the mix.

Arizona State leads the way at the Southwestern Invitational. Catch final-round coverage of this big-time collegiate event on Wednesday on Golf Channel.

The Latest from The Fried Egg

Weekly Pool, Week 3: Farmers Insurance Open – Enter our weekly pool for a chance to win Fried Egg merchandise!

Paulie’s Picks: 2021 Farmers Insurance Open – Much like the insurance company, Paulie has seen this event before. And he’s covered it. See who he likes for DraftKings and one-and-done leagues.

Women Worth Televising? – Sunday’s final round of the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions featured three of the top players in women’s golf. And yet, as Will Knights writes, their battle felt like an afterthought.

Zac Blair Hires Tom Doak, Kye Goalby to Design The Tree Farm – After years of dreaming and planning, Zac Blair is making moves on his Tree Farm project in South Carolina. As Garrett Morrison reports in this piece, the Buck Club founder has brought on Tom Doak and Kye Goalby to help design and build the course.

To dive deeper into the details of The Tree Farm, Zac Blair spoke with Andy Johnson on a new episode of The Fried Egg Podcast. Listen on iTunes, Stitcher, and Spotify.

Shotgun Start: The Torrey POPS, PGA goes to Tulsa, DL3 juices the Pres Cup

This Wednesday episode begins with some light Snow Day reminiscing before turning to our shhhhedule for the week. Brendan and Andy start with the Farmers Insurance Open, where a loaded field will also include featured groups with a couple players deep down the OWGR. Then they assess the Jones Family venue and if it will provide even the slightest indication of what might happen at the U.S. Open later this year. Some intel from the ground also reveals another potential driving range controversy as well as some of the details of what “investing” in a pro-am spot gets you this week, including being deputized for the coveted POPS force. Over on the Euro Tour, they discuss another stout field as well as word of some conditioning issues. A news segment is loaded with chatter on Southern Hills getting the 2022 PGA, Brooksy jettisoning Claude, the Women’s Open announcing sectional qualifying sites, and the wild card decision to put some fire into the Presidents Cup at Quail Hollow. Listen on iTunes, Stitcher, and Spotify.

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