Reigning U.S. Open champ outpaces field by three strokes with a Zenergy 3.0 17” putter grip and 13 REVL Player Cord grips.

Wixom, MI – SuperStroke, the No. 1 Putter Grip in golf and the leader in innovative Tour-proven golf grip technology, congratulates two-time major champion Wyndham Clark on earning his third PGA TOUR victory of the season at the BMW Championship. Firing rounds of 64-64-65-70, Clark outlasted the field by three shots, finishing 17-under-par and goes into the TOUR Championship with peak momentum.

Clark, who plays with 13 SuperStroke REVL Player Cord club grips on his clubs and a SuperStroke Zenergy Tour 3.0 17” putter grip, led the field in Strokes Gained: Total (12.4) and holed 21 Birdies over the four playoff-event rounds. His 17-under finish (263 total strokes) was paced by three hot rounds that pushed his lead to five strokes after 54 holes. With this victory, Clark took home the $3.6 million winner’s purse and 750 FedExCup points.

“Congratulations to Wyndham Clark on winning the BMW Championship, his third victory on the PGA TOUR this season,” said SuperStroke Vice President of Marketing Ryan Harris. “When Wyndham gets things going – with REVL Player Cord club grips on his clubs and a SuperStroke Zenergy Tour 3.0 17” putter grip in hand – he’s one of the finest and most clutch players in the game today. Wyndham has made a serious case for PGA TOUR Player of the Year with really incredible play this season.”

The REVL Player Cord Club Grip is built for players who demand total control and unwavering confidence, the SuperStroke REVL Player Cord delivers the ultimate blend of traction, feedback, and all-weather performance. Engineered with a premium ACE Material + Cord compound, this grip combines exceptional durability with a responsive feel trusted by the game’s best players.

The UT texture pattern provides enhanced surface traction and control through every swing, while the cord-enhanced construction ensures a secure connection in any condition from humid summer rounds to pressure-packed tournament moments. The REVL Player Cord grip is already a TOUR-winning grip and quickly becoming the grip of choice for elite players, the REVL Player Cord is designed for golfers who prefer a tour-preferred feel with unmatched consistency and performance.

REVL Player Cord Size Specs:  

Standard
Length: 10.7″
Weight: 51g
Core: 0.60″
Diameter: 1.08”

Midsize
Length: 10.7″
Weight: 54.5g
Core: 0.60″
Diameter: 1.18”

Developed with direct feedback from Tour players, the Zenergy Tour 3.0 17” putter grip, which is 6.4 inches longer than the standard grip, provides golfers with unique benefits, including the ability to achieve an armlock setup by positioning the grip up the forearm. Additionally, the Tour 3.0 17” grip can serve as a counterbalance option, resulting in a more consistent stroke by shifting the weight above the hands and elevating the balance point of the putter.

Part of SuperStroke’s groundbreaking Zenergy line, the Tour 3.0 17” features: 
 
Enhanced SPYNE® Technology – The new SPYNE® Technology has an improved, embossed ridge along the underside of the grip, engineered to make it easier to square the face at impact.
 
New Multi-Zone Texturing – Strategically placed texture in high-sensory areas designed to optimize feedback and comfort from the incredibly soft polyurethane outer layer.
 
No Taper Technology – Our patented No Taper minimizes grip pressure with an advanced parallel design that enables golfers to quiet their hands and add consistency to their stroke. 

Tour 3.0 17” Size Specs:  
 
Width: 1.26”
Length: 17”
Weight: 93g
Core: 0.6”

SuperStroke grips are trusted by hundreds of top professional golfers. In 2025, SuperStroke users won 66 tournaments on golf’s major tours, including 25 tournaments on the PGA TOUR, for a total of more than $68 million in first-place prize money in those events.

SuperStroke’s putter grip line is a product of relentless innovation, fueled by feedback from more than 600 tour pros. From signature shapes and sizes to cutting-edge materials, SuperStroke delivers unprecedented features into every putter grip while connecting golfer and putter like no other product on the market.     

For more details on SuperStroke’s range of innovative golf grips and to keep up with the latest news from the company, visit https://superstrokeusa.com.     

About SuperStroke      
Since launching the first line of oversized putter grips in 2009, SuperStroke’s mission has been to help golfers make every swing and every stroke the best it can be. This commitment to offering high-performing, innovative products has helped SuperStroke users earn more than $500 million on major professional tours around the world, as well as propelling amateurs to shoot their career-low rounds.      

In addition to custom grips, SuperStroke offers a full range of officially licensed products to help golfers show their team spirit on the course. This includes both putter and club grips from college, NFL, and NHL teams.       

One of the most trusted brands on all major tours around the world, SuperStroke’s team of ambassadors includes three-time major champion Jordan Spieth, eight-time winner on the PGA TOUR Patrick Cantlay, 2019 PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year Sungjae Im, and world-renowned putting coach Phil Kenyon. In addition to the company’s beloved putter grips, SuperStroke offers a full lineup of club grips allowing golfers to experience the benefits of SuperStroke technology in every shot.      

More information: https://superstrokeusa.com/.      
 

Media Contacts:      
Kevin Frisch PR      
Carl Mickelson      
(512) 797-2673      
carl@kevinfrischpr.com      

Kevin Frisch      
(989) 614-0241      
kevin@kevinfrischpr.com  

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I had played Royal Lytham & St Annes before, last November, when the course looked very different compared to the present day, in this sunniest of summers.

I certainly didn’t walk off the famous 18th green with harsh sun and wind burn last winter, that’s for sure. I have no complaints though, and never will when taking the magical drive down Links Gate and into one of the most iconic venues in the sport.

The Ladies European Tour had kindly invited me to play the course the day after Shiho Kuwaki beat Esther Henseleit in a playoff to win the AIG Women’s Open.

What a venue for the best women’s players to compete on. It certainly beat a few of them up, and crowned an outstanding winner, who didn’t come out of the blue quite so much as some have suggested, having won twice this year on the LPGA of Japan Tour.

In its baked, white guise with stunningly crisp and fast greens, I took to the course at 10.30 am, and gratefully cracked a 4-iron into the heart of the first green – that daunting par 3. Unfortunately, I couldn’t maintain that quality for each of the 18 holes, but you don’t want to hear about that anyway.

What I think you’d prefer to hear about is the golf course – which has now hosted the Women’s Open six times, and will host The Open Championship for the 12th time in 2028, bookending a gap of 16 years without it.

While it was a fascinating privilege to experience what the best players in the women’s game had experienced, it is difficult not to look ahead and ponder how the best men’s players might get on at this compact and challenging links on the Fylde coast.

Here is what I picked out…

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A concerning Par 5 trend on The Open rota

The 2024 Open at Royal Troon featured the longest hole in Open Championship history. The par-5 6th was extended to 623 yards, 22 yards longer than when the famous Ayrshire track hosted the event in 2016.

This beat the record previously set from The Open the year before at Royal Liverpool – the par-5 15th hole was stretched to 620 yards. All in all, Troon was 195 yards longer between Opens.

The new 14th hole at Royal Birkdale that we saw at this year’s Open was 602 yards, and if you squint, it isn’t too dissimilar from the par-5 7th at Royal Lytham & St. Annes. Each of them is extremely long, with bunkers running up both sides. The green at Lytham is smaller than the one at Birkdale, but they’re both precariously perched and punish inaccurate approaches.

The 11th hole at Lytham is a wide par 5 with bunkers on each side, too. As much as I never, ever criticise golf courses, or architects, especially at world-class venues, I fail to see the imagination here. The 7th at Lytham is a little more narrow than the 11th, but at 589 yards, again, this matches the trend.

In the sport’s battle against distance, the R&A has decided that the only way to truly test the best and most powerful players in the game on par 5s is to make them into airport runways, and construct them in a straight line.

There are bunkers there to gobble up bad lay-up shots, but I think it would be fair to have a concern for this direction of travel. Just adding more yards to these holes doesn’t make them particularly more exciting, especially when The Open leaves town, and the members are to tackle what is left.

Par 3s reward solid long iron play

I mentioned a 4-iron I hit into the 1st hole at RLSA earlier. That was a real thrill, as much as a pleasant surprise. But if you are to find the putting surfaces on the short holes at Lytham, this is what you need to do, if you can.

I hit a 5-iron into the 5th hole, then 8-irons into the 9th and 12th. My tee shot on the 9th was horrific, and annoyed me as this is such a picturesque and perfect par 3 – you don’t want to ruin your experience by virtually losing your ball in the gorse.

While the green on the 1st hole is fairly flat, there is more slope and jeopardy on holes 5 and 9. The 12th green can also punish you if you fail to perform a straight mid-iron. It is on these holes where I suggest you pitch your tent at the 2028 Open. You might just find the winner from the player who can display the best ball-striking when they have an iron in hand, instead of their driver.

The par 3s at Royal Lytham & St Annes

ALSO: The anatomy of a 62 – and what it tells us about the distance debate

The finish at Royal Lytham is brutal

You are made to sing for your supper/earn your money/pull your weight in the last four holes at Royal Lytham. Whatever you’re doing, it is tough.

Even the last five holes – the 14th requires an accurate and long tee shot between bunkers before an approach to a putting surface protected by gnarly greenside traps, and no obvious bail-out.

The 15th hole is just remarkable. You are asked to play a small fade off the tee, but there is more space on the right side of the hole than you would think standing on the tee box. The further left you hit it, the more blind your approach is to a green that really isn’t that big.

Once the players reach this green at The Open, they’re back into the throng and the inevitable hustle and bustle that will surround the 18th tee, and the opening holes down the railway line.

16 could be described as respite. There is, at least, no car park there anymore which Seve Ballesteros famously had to contend with in 1979. It will probably be driveable with the right wind – I had a putter in my hand with my second shot, albeit this was from 50 yards away and my confidence with nipping chips is in the floor.

17 is an all-timer. You fire down a corridor for your tee shot, then shoot left to a green surrounded by sand traps. You can feel the history, and see it marked among the fairway bunkers. There is a plaque that commemorates Bobby Jones’ second shot from the bunkers in the final round in 1926. He made a par from what used to be a sandy waste area, and went on to hoist the Claret Jug.

As I saw my drive soaring through the air on the 18th hole, I actually shocked myself. I’m going to be playing from the fairway with my second shot on 18 at Lytham, I thought. This doesn’t happen to many people. Well, it turns out it didn’t happen to me either.

As my ball came down the left side, it landed in a trap and sand puffed up into the air. Gutted. I chopped out, pulled my third long of the green, then scrambled Gary Player-style for a bogey. All you can see from this tee shot is bunkers, and it is so narrow. What a hole, and what a way to end a brutal stretch of championship golf.

Golf balls are flying everywhere

As my playing partners and I walked down the long par-4 14th, a ball came bounding over from the 13th tee – it is probably the closest I’ve ever been to being struck on the fly on the golf course.

On my walk from the 17th green to the 18th tee, a ball rolled near my feet from the 2nd tee box. This wasn’t a coincidence anymore – it was the nature of the golf course. This could be a particular problem on the opening holes that follow the railway. It is compact, and if there is going to be more than 200,000 fans here in two years’ time, it will be a squeeze.

I hit a fade (try to, anyway). So, I was naturally aiming left on the 2nd, 3rd, 7th and 8th tees with the hope it would spin back in my desired direction. All tour players do now is hit fades, and given they will be aiming away from the out-of-bounds railway line anyway, at least subconsciously, this could cause a problem for fans.

In the areas to the left of these holes, especially the 2nd and the 3rd, there will be plenty of trampled-down rough, and favourable lies for missing the fairways. They might lead to blind approach shots, but links golf and championship golf can be as much about missing in the right place as anything else, and the players are alert to that, too.

There isn’t much to be done about this. In a more suffocating piece of land and narrower holes, there will be errant tee shots, and there will be fore shouts. Be careful out there.

And finally, the bunkers…

I left the Lytham cliché until last. But, a cliché is a cliché for a reason. You simply cannot go in the fairway bunkers at Royal Lytham & St Annes. The well-protected and nuanced green complexes and surrounds are more than enough to confuse you, and the very best players, so you absolutely do not want to be coming into them having just splashed out of a bunker.

There are exceptions. The bunkers on the left of the 17th fairway do allow you to hit a full iron shot towards the green, if you get a good lie. I was able to hoick an 8-iron out of one and on to the green. But this is a rarity. Most of them are deep and extremely penal.

There are 174 pot bunkers in the fairways and the greens at RLSA. The players will likely be able to tolerate the greenside traps, as they are all too good to be too bamboozled by them.

But again, as I discovered and my playing partners discovered, a bad lie in these deep hazards can make any score possible on occasion.

NOW READ: Royal Lytham deserves The Open – but 2028 will be a serious squeeze

NOW READ: Why The Open will return to Lytham in 2028

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Nearly a century has passed since Gene Sarazen lifted the Claret Jug at Prince’s Golf Club, and the Open Championship is still yet to make its return.

It was the first and only time golf’s oldest major was played on the Kent links. It’s a place that has changed an awful lot since 1932. Extensive work by Martin Ebert has transformed Prince’s into one of England’s finest championship venues.

The recent introduction of its composite course, The Laddie, has also reignited a debate as to whether major championship golf could ever return.

In the latest NCG Top 100s YouTube, hosts Tom Irwin and Mike Robertson aimed to create the ultimate Open Championship routing from Princes’ iconic 27 holes. Here’s the hole-by-hole layout they settled on.

Hole One

An Open venue needs a stern opening test and the first on the Dunes course provides exactly that.

“I think it’s a very difficult opening hole,” said Robert McGuirk, General Manager at Prince’s Golf Club.

“The prevailing wind means it should play into off the left which is a horrible start really. Still 440 (yards) from that back tea which is a decent start.”

Hugging the bunker opens up the best angle into the green, while a conservative line leaves a far tougher approach. All this makes it exactly the kind of uncompromising start you’d expect at a major.

“I think that is an absolutely phenomenal driving hole where you sort of asked to take on as much as that bunker as you want,” Irwin added.

Hole Two

The following stretch of holes is arguably the strongest on the property. Missing out the par three and moving straight onto the third on the Dunes course, this par five features one of the most unusual fairways on the property. They’re rumples across the entire thing that leave players struggling to find a flat lie.

Out of bounds is a mainstay along the right side of the fairway, which creates a classic Hogan’s Alley decision off the tee.

For us club golfers it’s a solid par five test but for today’s top professionals, if this were to be played as part of the Open Championship, it’s likely the tees may be moved forward so it plays as a long par four.

Hole Three

The fourth on the Dunes is another strategic par four. Again, the challenge often lies in the approach rather than the drive.

The elevated green is guarded by deep bunkers, while anything slightly under-hit may have a tendency to run away from the hole. 

“The challenge is in the second shot,” McGuirk explained. “The green set up above you with two very deep bunkers right to the right hand side.

“Catch that weak second shot. And then the green again set up and everything runs away from it.”

Hole Four

A hole that is all about getting your angles right.

Irwin explained how important it is to hug the right side of the fairway to open up the approach, when it comes to the fifth on the Dunes.

Go left off the tee and you’re in danger of finding the big, sleeper bunker.

Hole Five

“I think this is going to be the best hole on the whole course,” claimed Robertson. “Good driving hole. And then the green site is like absolutely epic.”

Like the third, the sixth on the Dunes plays as a par five for us regular folk but could become a par four for the tour pros. Oh and fellow Open Championship venue Royal St George’s looms in the distance.

Hole Six

Would it be an Open Championship without a drivable par four?

We saw Rory McIlroy driving the par 4, ninth at Royal Birkdale for the 2026 Open Championship and the seventh on the Dunes could provide a similar opportunity. Move the tee forwards and suddenly the green becomes reachable, but only through a narrow entrance. Risk and reward style hole.

Hole Seven

The first par three is a bit of a brute. Measuring at around 220 yards from the back tees, it provides a bit of antidote to some of the shorter holes around Prince’s.

Irwin pointed out: “I think it would lend itself in sort of championship golf that back left pin. No one would take it on, and everyone would be bailing out right and chipping and putting up.’

Hole Eight

Another hole that doesn’t lack length is the ninth on the Dunes course. At nearly 500 yards, it will keep even the biggest of hitters in check.

Hole Nine

The last hole on the front nine is a switch over to the first on the Himalayas course.

“The centreline bunker is the thing for me because it just creates all these strategic options on the tea to play left or take on the carry of a hole that’s under 400 yards and pretty flat,” Irwin noted. “I think it’s got potential to sort of create loads of options for different players.”

Hole Ten

The ninth on the Himalayas is one of the more iconic holes around Prince’s. The famous Sarazen bunkers dominate the left side, while the green is split across multiple levels with several bunkers sitting well short of the putting surface.

“I think it’s a it’s a really cool green complex almost into three levels with the Sarazen bunker to the left and you got the two or three bunkers that sit short the green which fall shorten it,” McGuirk explained. “So give an idea the bunkers are up against the edge of the room but actually 25 yards short.”

Hole Eleven

“Almost worth bringing the open here for just for this hole really (eighth on the Himalayas),” Irwin believes. “It’s like when the US Open went mad and started doing things like having holes that were different pars on different days and had like lots of funky things. This would be like that.”

Depending on conditions, McGuirk is also under the impression that players could hit anything from a seven iron to driver from the tee, creating wildly different strategies each day.

Hole Twelve

One of Prince’s finest long par fours is the fourth on the Himalayas.

Playing into a fierce crosswind, the ideal tee shot favours a fade before asking players to shape a draw into the green.

Hole Thirteen

“When we first started this exercise, this was the first hole (fifth on the Himalayas) I wrote down,” said Robertson. “I really, really wanted to get it in. It’s like the signature par three at Prince’s. It’s got a great story behind it.”

It plays across the property rather than up and down it. The hole introduces a completely different wind direction and Irwin believes it asks a different question from everything else around Prince’s.

Hole Fourteen

Another mammoth of a par five.

The ideal drive hugs the left side, carrying the second bunker to open the hole up. Bail out right and the second and third shots become significantly more difficult.

Even at more than 600 yards, the team felt the sixth on the Himalayas could still be susceptible to modern power.

Hole Fifteen

“I think it’s (the seventh on the Himalayas) one of the best seaside par threes,” claimed Irwin. “Like completely bunkerless. It’s a brilliant hole.”

Depending on the wind, anything from wedge to driver could be required. But one thing McGuirk notes that is for certain is that if you miss it to the right is a near impossible recovery.

Hole Sixteen

The routing moves over to the Shore course for the closing stretch. The second is another quality par five, which for this exercise we have lengthened by another 100 yards.

Strong driving is rewarded, while the green offers plenty of strategic interest for those attempting to reach in two.

Hole Seventeen

The third hole on the same course is a simple in appearance but brilliantly designed par three. Irwin notes that it’s similar to some of the other par threes on the property in that it is a great drone hole.

Hole Eighteen

Every great championship needs a memorable finish and the NCG Top 100s team picked out closing hole on the Shore course to do just that.

“The further right you can go is the easier second shot, but again you’re messing with some pretty nasty rough on the right hand side,” McGuirk said. “A wide fairway. It’s 360 yards wide.”

WATCH OUR YOUTUBE VIDEO HERE

NOW HAVE YOUR SAY

If the Open was to return to Prince’s, which 18 holes would you select? Could you see a world in which one of England’s great links hosted the oldest major again? Let us know by leaving a comment or by getting in touch with us on X!

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KBS wins again.

Maketewah Country Club was conquered this week with precision and poise, as a dominant two-shot victory was claimed at the 2026 Kroger Queen City Championship in Cincinnati.

At the center of this week’s iron performance are Titleist T150 irons, fitted with KBS Tour 120 shafts and they were absolutely dialed from the opening round.

For KBS, this latest victory adds to a growing list of wins on the LPGA Tour in 2026  further proof that the Tour 120 continues to be one of the most trusted shafts in professional women’s golf.

If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Justin Kaplan at JustinKaplan@fstshafts.com

Contact: Justin Kaplan 

Email: JustinKaplan@fstshafts.com  

Website: https://kbsgolfshafts.com/

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A complete list of the golf equipment Kristoffer Reitan used to win the PGA Tour’s 2026 Trist Championship

A complete list of the golf equipment Kristoffer Reitan used to win the PGA Tour’s 2026 Truist Championship:

KBS delivered another victory on the PGA Tour this weekend at the 2026 Truist Championship, as the winner leaned on the consistency and performance of KBS throughout the bag to secure the title against one of the strongest fields of the season.

Gaming KBS Tour shafts 130 X in his Ping irons, the champion showcased elite-level ball striking all week long with precise distance control, penetrating trajectory, and exceptional feel under pressure. The KBS Tour profile continues to be a go-to option for players looking for stability, workability, and consistency at the highest level of professional golf.

With another PGA Tour win added to the record books, KBS continues to prove why the world’s best players trust KBS products week after week on golf’s biggest stages.

If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Justin Kaplan at JustinKaplan@fstshafts.com

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Yes, it’s red, white and blue, but the Liberty Line Collection is tons to Philadelphia-inspired details and images in honor of Aronimink’s home town.

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — Philadelphia doesn’t do disposable history. This is the city where independence was argued into existence by men wearing wool coats in the middle of summer and it feels like every brick building downtown has a plaque explaining why the country changed because of something that happened inside. Like Boston and New York, this Northeast is heavy with symbolism, so you don’t have to force it.

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It’s a major week in golf and that means it’s a major week in golf apparel.

Speaking to the media following his stunning victory at the 108th PGA Championship, Aaron Rai reflects on the hard work that he, his family and his support network have put into making him such a hard man to beat.

How proud are you to become the first Englishman to win the PGA Championship since 1919?

AARON RAI: I wasn’t aware of that fact coming into the week, but it got mentioned a couple of times during media interviews on Saturday, so I was aware of it coming into today.

So, yeah, I extremely proud. There have been a lot of incredible English golfers over those hundred-plus years who have gone on to achieve incredible things and had phenomenal careers, so to win this event and then to be the person that’s the first one to have won it in a long time from England is an amazing thing and something to be extremely proud of.

Can you just describe your emotions as you’re playing those final few holes, and your amazing birdie putt 17. How did you manage to keep so calm and produce the kind of golf that you did?

I think, firstly, the golf course really demands it. It was a true major championship setup in terms of how difficult it was, and how penalising it was, but it also rewarded good play. The nature of the course, and the nature of the shots that are required over the last few holes, just require a lot of focus.

The putt on 17 was incredible. I was just trying to focus on speed and get it close. It started to look good line-wise with probably about 15 feet to go, and it slowed up nicely as well – but it was a real bonus to see that one go in.

Aaron, two shots prior to that putt really stood out for me on that back nine. Firstly, the long bunker shot on 13, and secondly your approach on 16. Could you walk us through what you were thinking about on both of those and how pleased you were to pull off those shots in that moment?

Those were two really good shots. The bunker shot on 13 was on a slight upslope, which in a way helped me to stay really aggressive on it. But the upslope also made it difficult because it was such a long bunker shot. It was probably 40 yards or so. I just stayed really committed and tried to trust the strike, and it came out extremely well. I was actually trying to hit that probably 12 feet short, and it came out probably a little fast, but it worked out fine in the end.

And the shots on 16. I hit a great tee shot to hold the fairway there. That was a really hard fairway to hit. And the second shot was a great number for a 5-iron. The wind was off the left. The ball was slightly below my feet. So it kind of just suited a shot that was falling off the wind. I hit it very well, great strike, and kind of worked its way down there to 15 feet or so. They were probably two of my best shots on the back nine.

I know your parents made a lot of sacrifices for you to get here, especially your father, who got you into the game. Can just reflect on what all that means and kind of how they got you here?

It’s probably hard for me to really express everything that I feel towards them. I think I’ll get way too emotional to speak. Yeah, starting with my dad, he was with me every day that I went to practice from the age of 4 or 5 years old. He quit his job and started to focus on my golf from a really young age.

I used to read a lot about golf. He used to obviously be active in everything he did with me around the game. My mum has been absolutely incredible as well. She worked extremely long hours to just provide for the house, especially with my dad also not working as much. So, she did a lot of things, and her support has been phenomenal.

Obviously, I would love to share this with them. It would be amazing if they were here. I can’t put into words how much they’ve done in terms of the support, in terms of the care, in terms of love. Again, I wouldn’t be here without them.

You’ve won big tournaments before, but when you looked at that jam-packed leaderboard today, what gave you the belief that you were going to be able to win your first major championship?

That’s a great question. Honestly, I didn’t look too much at the leaderboard. Obviously I knew there were a lot of people that were relatively close, but I think regardless of how bunched that it was, it still required a really good, strong round of golf. Again, the course really demanded it this week, and it was very punishing. As soon as you lost a split-second of focus at any time, whether it was a tee shot, an approach or a putt, you were in danger of dropping shots.

So I think the focus was very much on the golf course, on continuing to run through some good processes, and to just see where that put me during the round. I didn’t really look at too many leaderboards. I had a sense of how things were going from the crowds, but I just did a really good job of playing the golf course and not worrying about anything else.

You’re obviously very connected to your heritage and your Indian and Kenyan roots. I was just wondering what a vision is of modern English sporting success really to have somebody with your background achieving something like this?

I’m very proud to be from England. That’s where I grew up and that’s where a lot of my family still live. But of course, I’m very proud of my Indian and Kenyan roots as well. My mum grew up in Kenya and her side of the family lived there for a number of years before they moved to England. My sister lives in Kenya now and my mum still spends a lot of time there.

Going back a couple of generations, both of my sets of grandparents from my mum and dad’s side were from India. All I can say is I’m very proud to be a mix of all of them.

Golf instruction is at the heart of the PGA Championship, and you have such a longstanding relationship with Me and My Golf. Wondering if you can talk about that, how deep it goes back in your life, and what it means to have their support and win on this stage and celebrates golf instruction?

They’ve been phenomenal. Andrew Proudman and Piers Ward are the two guys involved with Me and My Golf. I’ve known Andrew since I was four years old. He used to work at the pro shop on the driving range me and my dad used to go to. I was four, he was 18, so he was there before he turned professional.

I met Piers when he was 8 or 9 years old. So we grew up in the same city. They started to coach me very soon after that. I was probably 10 years old. When I call them my coaches, I almost feel disrespectful calling them just my coaches. They’ve been so much more to me than that from a young age, also as a teenager, and also on this journey as a professional golfer. They’ve been my mentors, my big brothers. They’ve almost been like family to me.

And the number of times that we’ve been on a golf course or on a driving range in cold winters. I remember we played the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth probably six years ago now, and Piers was on the putting green with me until 11.30pm on a Tuesday night, and then he had to drive two hours back to Wolverhampton, and he was just with me the whole day.

They just go above and beyond for me in every single way. They’ve played a huge part in this trophy and a huge part in my development as a golfer.

Aaron, I know people always like to ask you about the iron covers and the gloves and a few things that you do differently. Golf can often be a game that pushes people to conform a certain way. I’m curious if you felt that pressure, especially as a junior golfer, and how you were able to double down on being yourself?

That’s a great question. I think my dad played a really big role in that. For the most part, it was just the two of us who used to go onto the golf course and practice together, probably up until I was 13 or 14. So I think he was very much an advocate to really just stay in your lane, focus on the things that you can do.

And I didn’t really mix with a lot of other junior golfers, which didn’t give me a perspective of what was normal. So I think he kind of sheltered me to be able to develop in a way that made sense for me, in a way that I guess was a little bit unique with the two gloves and the iron covers.

By the time I began to play more club golf and professional golf, I felt like I was strong enough in why I did certain things to be able to continue to move that forward. I knew the reasons why I do them. I believe in the reasons why I do them. So I had no reason to shift from that as I got older. So, yeah, that’s probably the main reason behind it.

You said you didn’t really mix with other junior golfers. Why was that?

That’s a really good question. Up until the age of around 12 years old I used to play off basically a customised course length, which gradually got longer and longer every year from the age of kind of 7 to 12. I was 12 when I played off ladies tees for the first time. Before that, I was playing off the fairways and trying to make the course short enough for me to score par or better, even as an 8, 9, 10-year-old.

I thought it was a great idea. My dad thought it was a great idea. But that naturally that kind of kept me away from club golf and medal golf. I would still play in junior events, but only in my age group, just to really protect myself and what we were trying to work on and what we were trying to kind of build towards.

Then, when I was about 13 or 14, I was long enough to be able to play off the men’s tees, and that’s when I started to play a little bit of club golf. Again, by that age, I’d gotten so used to practicing a certain way and that started to feel really comfortable. So even though I was maybe good enough and long enough to compete at club level, I didn’t play a huge amount of it. Then within two or three years of that I turned professional, so that was pretty much my journey through to that point.

Was that a method that you borrowed from someone else, or was that one of your father’s own ideas?

I used to play in a tournament called the Wee Wonders, which had a local stage, a regional stage, and a national stage. If you managed to progress through all of those, you qualified to play in the US Kids World Championship. I was fortunate enough to qualify for that at the age of 8 years old.

When we got to America, this was a system that a lot of juniors had adopted at that age of forward tees and gradually making the course longer as you grow, and my dad really thought that idea was great in terms of just installing the abilities and the skills to be able to score and the distance would just follow with age and with growth. So it was after that point that we really stuck to that for the next four years.

Can you just run us through who’s on Team Rai, who your support system is?

Professionally, starting with my sponsor, Shabir Randeree. He’s almost been like a second father to me. He supported me with my golf and travel and expenses. He supported my education as well. He paid for me to go to a private school. He’s been there since I was a kid and gave me so many opportunities that I never would have had otherwise.

Andrew Proudman and Piers Ward from Me and My Golf. Andrew Caldwell from Active Therapy, he’s my trainer and physio. I’ve worked a lot with John Graham over the last two years as well. So, yeah, I’ve got a really close-knit team.

Do you have an idea of what’s next? Are you much of a goal setter in your career? Do you think about things such as Ryder Cups or other titles to tick off?

I try not to consciously focus on it too much. These things are always around, whether it’s the Ryder Cup, whether it’s the next event, whether it’s the next major. So those are things that you can never completely ignore, but I try not to focus on them as real motivations to push me forward.

I hope to continue to move forward in a pretty similar way in terms of practice, training, application towards the game, and we’ll see where that takes me.

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