Another week on the PGA Tour, more broken records. On the heels of Jake Knapp’s 59 last Thursday, 24-year-old Joe Highsmith set the low weekend score (128) and low 72-hole score (19 under) at PGA National en route to his first career PGA Tour victory. Highsmith made a 4-footer on Friday afternoon to make the cut on the number. Two 64s later and he is your Cognizant Classic champion.

The win represents a huge milestone for Highsmith, who earned his PGA Tour status via the Korn Ferry Tour in 2023. Initially he struggled to find his footing on the PGA Tour, missing 13 cuts in his first 20 starts on Tour in 2024. Since last fall, Highsmith’s results have been much improved. He rattled off four straight top 20s between October and November, including a legitimate opportunity to win entering the final round of the Black Desert Championship. With the victory this weekend, Highsmith punched his ticket into the Masters, the PGA Championship, and all remaining signature events in 2025 – prime opportunities to see where his game stacks up against the best in the world.

In other notable Cognizant results, amateur Luke Clanton made the cut on Friday, earning his 20th PGA Tour U point to secure his PGA Tour card. The 21-year-old megatalent has now made nine cuts in 11 professional golf tournaments, highlighted by two runner-up finishes (2024 John Deere Classic, 2024 RSM Classic) and a T-41 at the 2024 U.S. Open. The combination of consistency and upside is remarkable for a player of his ripe age. Eclipsing a 190 mph ball speed multiple times at PGA National, Clanton has both the speed and control to contend at the highest level. I am eager to watch his career unfold when he decides to turn professional.

The Bear Hug

Not to detract from Highsmith’s win, but the real story from the week was the neutering of PGA National – once a proud, stiff test on the PGA Tour. Entering this year’s tournament, all of the fairways and tees were overseeded with Ryegrass for the first time since 2014. The result: the lowest first, second, and third round scoring averages of the last decade. Sunday averaged a grueling 70.5 – a half-stroke under par – the fourth-lowest final-round scoring average of the last decade.

Yes, weather played a significant factor. The wind barely showed up for any of the four days, significantly lessening the challenge, which is out of the Tour’s control. You know what isn’t out of the Tour’s control, though? Overseeding the entire golf course, which makes the fairways and rough play much friendlier and more forgiving than under dormant Bermudagrass conditions. As if data, technology, equipment, and perfect agronomic conditions haven’t lessened the challenge of professional golf enough already!  According to the PGA Tour, fans love birdies and green grass, so expect monster television ratings when those get published this week.

Sam Saunders Speaks

Up to this point, I have been consistent in my vocal opposition to sponsor exemptions on the PGA Tour. However, a Golfweek article published at the end of last week may have changed my mind. Adam Schupak spoke with former mule Sam Saunders, Arnold Palmer’s grandson and a current member of the Arnold Palmer Invitational sponsor exemption committee. Saunders went on the record to explain why Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler wouldn’t be receiving sponsor exemptions into this week’s signature event at Bay Hill. As part of his explanation, Saunders offered that nobody has “written a more thoughtful letter and put more effort into requesting an exemption than Rafa Campos,” who received one of the four sponsor exemptions. Not qualified for a signature event? Write better!

In all seriousness, no, this amusing sponsor exemption selection process has not affected my belief that sponsor exemptions should not exist – a position that Saunders seemingly also holds. He went on to say that “these elevated events with limited field…if you really want to do what’s fair, there shouldn’t be any exemption.” He also voiced displeasure with the tournament having a limited 70-man field.

If Saunders’s comments ultimately lead to the abolishment of sponsor exemptions, expansion of signature event field sizes, and restoration of cutlines to the PGA Tour, his legacy may rival his grandfather’s.

The Dame Gets it Done

By Meg Adkins

Lydia Ko was in full control Sunday on her way to her 23rd LPGA victory at the HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore. Her precise approach play and world-class short game snuffed out any hope from her chasers on the back nine. Highlighted by a lengthy birdie putt at the par-3 15th that all but locked up her win, Ko is off to the races as the new season is just getting started and looks primed for another big year. Here are a few more takeaways from Asia’s major:

  • Jeeno Thitikul had a chance to break Jin Young Ko’s record for most consecutive rounds under par. A cold putter led to an even par second round and ended her streak at 32. An even more impressive streak is still intact after her T-2 finish. She now has nine top-10 finishes in a row and 43 top 10s since the start of 2022. Let’s take a pause and let that sink in. We’re seeing an insane level of consistency from Jeeno right now.
  • Firm greens and a couple of breezy days challenged the players and allowed the cream to rise to the top at Sentosa Golf Club. The course leaves a lot to be desired from an architectural standpoint (I lost count of how many shots ended up down in catch basins), but the undulating fairways did require shot-making from a variety of uneven lies. It was a welcome change from the previous week’s birdie fest in Thailand.
  • Catriona Matthew added loads of insight and expertise to the broadcast all week long. During today’s final round, as Lydia’s tee shot on the 15th settled on the wrong tier of the green, she reminded the audience that earlier in the day, A Lim Kim had three putt from that same area. That context and awareness of the difficulty of the putt heightened the moment of Ko’s ball finding the bottom of the cup. As Ko made her way to 18, Matthew commented on how she was about 20-30 yards behind her playing partners Thitikul and Charley Hull off the tee all day long. That advantage was short-lived lived with Ko rarely missing an approach and showcasing her fantastic course management that never let the door open for the rest of the field. Combined with Sophie Walker’s on-course reporting, the Sky Sports broadcast made Asia’s major feel like a big-time event.

This piece originally appeared in the Fried Egg Golf newsletter. Subscribe for free and receive golf news and insight every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.