The year’s highlights include a PGA Tour success for a former nightclub bouncer, the devastating gambling loss of a bar owner, and the heartwarming golf moment that left everyone feeling good.

Greetings and welcome back to The Grind! On this episode, we must express our deep regret on behalf of the entire Wake Forest community for possibly spoiling any future court-rushing experiences in college basketball. Frankly speaking, it may be a wise decision to outlaw such practices altogether given how frightening my personal experience was when I rushed the court during an undergraduate game against Duke- one can easily get trampled or worse. Interestingly enough, you might wonder what all this has got anything do with golf? Well…the trend seems similar at major golf championships lately where fans seem more eager than ever to be as close as possible to that 18th green – take Kiawah Island in 2021 for example.

Brooks Koepka was clearly displeased with the outcome. However, it is common for losers to express disappointment. This reminds me that Wake achieved victory over Duke in men’s basketball- hooray! The upcoming week promises excitement and anticipation. Now, let’s delve into other topics fueling our conversations.

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Jake Knapp’s story is becoming a familiar one, yet it still amazes many. Just two years ago, this small-statured long-hitting golfer was working as a bouncer at nightclubs. However, after beginning the week with less than 1k Twitter followers and no Wikipedia page to his name, he managed to win on the PGA Tour in only his ninth attempt. This achievement even earned him some playful ribbing from friends who joked that he received the full LPGA treatment!

How fun! This is even more impressive considering that, as reported by statistics expert Justin Ray, he’s the sole PGA Tour champion to have hit fewer than three fairways in their final round of triumph.

Eventually, Jake successfully completed the task and expressed gratitude to his deceased grandfather, Gordon Bowley. The initials of whom he had inked on his left arm as a permanent tribute.

With my father, who introduced me to golf as “Papa”, I couldn’t help but get emotional on Sunday evening. Nevertheless, Jake’s victory secures his desirable job for another two years and puts an end to uncertain times. Before he turns 30 in May, he even has the opportunity to participate in the Masters tournament. Augusta National won’t need any additional security that week since they have a top-notch player like him at their disposal now!

Although Knapp achieved the most significant victory of the week, nobody experienced a greater moment than Ronald Rugumayo. He accomplished an unprecedented feat by being the first Ugandan to qualify for a DP World Tour event at the Magical Kenya Open and make it through to subsequent rounds.

Can’t you agree that this is the most uplifting moment in golf for the year? Looking at it from a different perspective, would make it even more exceptional.

That’s some truly remarkable stuff right there. Although the 31-year-old golfer nicknamed “Mayo” didn’t perform as well over the weekend, it hardly holds any significance. He is regarded as a national icon (owing to his spectacular hole-in-one in last year’s tournament) and revered by golfers across the globe for being an inspiration. Judging from his track record, we can assume that this won’t be Mayo’s final appearance on big event weekends!

After her victory at the Honda LPGA Thailand, Patty Tavatanakit has returned to the winner’s circle of the LPGA. Overwhelmed by emotions, she confessed that playing in front of a crowd gave her an added advantage despite feeling nervous throughout. “I’m finding it hard to express how I feel right now,” said Tavatanakit who was supported and cheered on by fans during the competition.”

The 24-year-old with exceptional skills emerged victorious in the Ladies European Tour’s Aramco Saudi Ladies International last week, winning by a whopping seven shots. It is safe to say that she has made an impressive comeback.

Capital One’s The Match returned for its ninth edition and many argue that it was the best one yet. Admittedly, I may sound like a company man since Golf Digest along with our parent company WBD were involved in this event. However, I am all in on supporting millions of dollars raised for charity as well as enjoying night golf at The Park with Charles Barkley, Ernie Johnson and other members of TNT crew including Paul “Biz” Bissonnette who appeared on our electric Loop podcast last week.

I’m purchasing Rory McIlroy’s closest-to-the-pin shot that led to victory, Lexi Thompson’s impressive eagle, Max Homa’s engaging on-course persona and Rose Zhang for simply being herself. It is worth noting that she had a 9 a.m. class at Stanford the following day; truly admirable! I highly recommend checking out Christopher Powers’ comprehensive recap of all the exciting moments from this event.

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The Match lasted past my bedtime, ending just after 10:30 p.m. ET, despite only playing through 12 holes and a closest-to-the-hole tiebreaker. I must admit that it was for the cause of charity but nevertheless, players should try to speed up their game! However, kudos to Max Homa who played remarkably fast even while chatting with his partner Christina Kim mid-shot. Hopefully next time we can keep within the timeframe of 7-10 pm for viewers’ convenience.

The bet made by the daring bar owner in Binghamton was beyond rational: he placed a whopping $6,575 on Carl Yuan to emerge victorious in the Mexico Open following his ill-fated pre-tournament tweet. The outcome of said wager did not pan out as expected but that didn’t seem to dampen his spirit – even with only days remaining, he held onto some hope and relished every moment of this exciting experience.

He may have to consider increasing his Happy Hour prices. Nevertheless, don’t dwell on it; you’ll succeed in the future. And when we say next time, we mean later this week:

Wishing all the best to that individual and Keith Mitchell.

Encountering a massive alligator charging towards you: Over the years, there have been numerous astonishing viral videos circulating on social media. Nevertheless, this one featuring wildlife could be considered as the most wildly insane.