Angry golfers, pro lookalikes and a crazy birthday party

Hello friends, and welcome to another edition of the Rogers Report. With the return of the LPGA, American Express and the HSBC Abu Dhabi Championship, it was a busy week for golf. That’s good news, as it means it’s also been a busy week on golf social media. Let’s dive into it.

The best 7-year-old birthday party?

DJ and Paulina’s eldest son, Tatum Gretzky Johnson, turned seven last week, and they ALL went out for her carnival-themed birthday party. When I say no detail was overlooked, I mean it. There was a carousel, ferris wheel, zoo animals, popcorn machines, magicians, carnival games and more. I have no doubt that this birthday party was more planned than some weddings. After seeing this, I can’t help but think of my own seventh birthday party, which was Dominos pizza, box cake that my little brother had a severe allergic reaction to and whatever the Disney Channel movie that aired that night. Either way, kudos to DJ and Paulina for not only being golf’s “it” couple, but also for building solid street cred for Tatum in his elementary school class.

Brooks Koepka and Jena Sims’ engagement photos

Brooks Koepka and Jena Sims got engaged in March, and they wowed us with some footage from their engagement shoot last week. Jena is wearing the pantsuit and Brooks has cleaned up nicely – although I’m a little nervous that one of them might have slipped on the snow. I definitely would. Either way, I’m excited to see their wedding photos sometime in 2022!

Angry Golfer’s Week

Three different pros took to social media over the weekend for their on-course frustration. Let’s start with Thomas Pieters. In Round 3 of the HSBC Abu Dhabi Championship, Pieters was caught raising his middle finger.

We understood! Slow play can be so boring. At least he looks comfortable. The best part of all? Pieters won the tournament the following day.

Next up is Tyrrell Hatton. Hatton also competed in the HSBC Abu Dhabi Championship at Yas Links. Although he didn’t play as well as Pieters, he also expressed some frustration with the course. Among his quotes on the course was the following: “I wish a bomb fell on it and blew it to oblivion, to be honest.” Ouch!

And last but not least, we have Jon Rahm. We’ve documented Rahm’s behavior on the course before, and as the current world No. 1, it often becomes a topic of discussion. So when an American Express fan filmed this, it ignited Golf Twitter.

My colleague, Sean Zak, broke down the video here, but you don’t have to be an expert to know that saying “”Setup piece s–tf—–g, putting contest week” is probably not It’s a shame because Rahm obviously didn’t intend for anyone to hear this, but with iPhones everywhere, it had to happen.

Note: Rahm’s take may not be as unique as you think. In 1987, the pros asked the commissioner of the PGA Tour to insist that PGA West not hold another event. Check it out:

English confusion Hudson Swafford/Harris

For a while I was afraid to admit that I often confused Harris English with Hudson Swafford. Has anyone else made this mistake? Has it made me a less publicized member of golf? I was relieved to find that Swafford-English speech dates back to at least 2014 online. And it’s not just your ordinary golf fans who confuse the two. In fact, broadcasters did the same on Sunday.

Harris English wasn’t even on the field at the American Express, so I feel a lot better. They have played together a few times on the Tour, but Getty Images have so far only acknowledged their practice rounds. Good luck to everyone if they go head-to-head in the final group on a Sunday afternoon.

Healthy content: Fleetwood and Hovland

It’s always fun to see pros try their hand at something other than golf, especially when said pros have a good sense of humor. Tommy Fleetwood and Viktor Hovland were perfect for this “back to school” exercise. And there’s something so great about Viktor Hovland getting his answers to trivia from a little kid.

Claire Rogers

Golf.com Editor