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⛳️ Straka Steals Philly, Driver Secrets, and Golf Trivia You’ll Actually Want to Answer

⛳️ Straka Steals Philly, Driver Secrets, and Golf Trivia You’ll Actually Want to Answer

Sepp Straka cashes in, your driver gets a glow-up, and we’ve got trivia (plus a putter story for the ages).

Happy Valley Golf Team
May 12, 2025

Good morning. This is your Happy Valley Golf Team newsletter. Let’s get it!

Here’s what we’ve got for you today:

Sepp Straka turns the Truist Championship into his own parade, taking home $3.6M and a win even his mom didn’t see coming.
Learn the one driver tip every coach wishes they’d told you sooner-your buddies will think you’re cheating.
Golf trivia that’ll stump even your most annoying know-it-all friend (yes, we’re looking at you, Dave).
News nuggets: Rory dodges a rogue golf ball, a thrift-shop putter wins big in Japan, and a former NFL QB finds out caddying is way more stressful than getting sacked.

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Unsolicited Golf Tips

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Golf Trivia

Which player finished runner-up to Tiger Woods by a record 15 strokes at the 2000 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach?

Sepp Straka Steals the Show in Philly

Sepp Straka just turned the Philadelphia Cricket Club into his personal victory lap. The Austrian big-hitter outlasted the field at the 2025 Truist Championship, finishing -16 and pocketing a cool $3.6 million. Not bad for a guy whose name most fans still pronounce three different ways.

Sunday Drama: Straka vs. Lowry

The final round started with Straka and Shane Lowry tied at the top, but this was no friendly stroll through the park. Lowry came out swinging, birdieing two of the first five holes to grab the lead. Straka, apparently allergic to playing from behind, promptly eagled the par-5 5th-because why settle for a birdie when you can show off?

From there, it was a rollercoaster:

Straka birdied the 9th to take a two-shot lead.
Then he hit back-to-back bogeys on 10 and 11-just to keep things interesting.
The turning point? The par-3 16th, where Lowry blinked first, carding a bogey while Straka held steady.

Irish Eyes (Not) Smiling

Lowry looked like he might finally end his winless streak, but the golf gods had other plans. He bogeyed two of his last three holes, including a soul-crushing three-putt on 18 that left him staring at the ground like he’d just dropped his phone in a porta-potty.

The Rest of the Pack

Justin Thomas (T2, -14): Another strong finish for JT, who seems to be allergic to finishing outside the top two this season.
Jacob Bridgeman, Tommy Fleetwood, Patrick Cantlay (T4, -12): Solid, but not quite enough to crash Straka’s party.
Rory McIlroy (T7, -10): The defending champ keeps racking up top-10s like they’re frequent flyer miles.
Keith Mitchell: Opened with a 61, then faded faster than your New Year’s resolutions.

The Takeaway

Straka now joins Rory as the only two-time winners on tour in 2025. Not bad company. His game is peaking just in time for next week’s PGA Championship at Quail Hollow, where Scottie Scheffler will be back in action after skipping Philly to, presumably, work on his tan.

Bottom line: Straka’s star is rising, Lowry’s heartbreak continues, and the season just got a lot more interesting.