Value Report: Austin Championship

Man, oh man, is it fun when these young phenoms get going. Gutted to lose out on Ben James’ first victory, but to get pipped by the 19-year-old Blades Brown with a Sunday 63 is an easier pill to swallow. It’s been hard to catch up on the projection for Blades, let alone the field ownership, as he is naturally so popular every time he plays on Tour, and clearly that isn’t going to slow down after this performance. That win, in addition to Jackson Koviun at the 3M, Michael Thorbjornsen at the Rocket Classic, and Michael Brennan picking up two in two months, creates just an absolute riot of a time on Tour right now for the young guns. Austin seems set up for another one too, so let’s finish out this fall with more fireworks!

Yes, it was an improvement week over week in the Value Report, but not nearly to the expectation we need to deliver on with just two of our five golfers making the cut. Cam Davis wound up as a top-25 scorer on the slate, giving back a majority of his position on Sunday, but still with enough scoring that I’d call him a win on the week. Ben Silverman was a bit frustrating, too; first in ownership, as he wound up being one of the most steamed plays of the slate. Then, from a play standpoint, he looked like he was ready for a weekend rise after sitting T16 at the halfway point, but stalled out, settling for the T33. Karl Vilips must’ve run a bit too close to the sun, as he opened with a 66 on Thursday to sit T9 and then went completely backwards, missing the cut sadly after a 74. Then last up are Tom Hoge and Justin Lower, who showed zero signs of life from the start despite the great setup.

Now we move on to the Austin Championship, which actually has the ethos to be quite a cool event. They did an awesome job with sponsors’ exemptions, and the local ties to the area draw in so many strong Texas players across the board. I miss dearly the WGC Match Play that was played at Austin Country Club and really hope this event hits the same level of support. It’s also now or never for me in the contributor contest as I stare down the punishment with just two slates to play. One big week, though, and we can flip the script, so let’s do it big in Texas!