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Emma Raducanu gives coaching update after Indian Wells agony

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Emma Raducanu lost 6-1, 6-1 to Amanda Anisimova in the third round of Indian Wells on Sunday.

Emma Raducanu has confessed that her future collaboration with Mark Petchey remains uncertain after her swift 52-minute defeat to Amanda Anisimova.

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The British player was outmatched by the No. 6 seed in Indian Wells, losing 6-1, 6-1 in the third round on Sunday. This leaves her temporary coaching arrangement with Petchey in an ambiguous state. Currently, Raducanu is without a permanent coach and isn’t actively seeking one.

She relied on her former mentor, Petchey, in Indian Wells, as he was already present in his capacity as a Tennis Channel commentator. However, he will remain in California to fulfill his broadcasting duties, while Raducanu must shift her focus to the upcoming Miami Open.

“Mark helped me out a lot this week, and it was nice to be on court with him again,” the world No. 24 shared with Sky Sports following her harsh defeat to Anisimova. “But he will be commentating for Tennis Channel this week, probably until the end, so I don’t know how much time I will get with him before Miami.”

Although Raducanu may not have much opportunity to train with Petchey before the next WTA 1000 event in Miami kicks off next week, she acknowledges there’s plenty to improve upon after her loss to Anisimova, conceding it wasn’t “easy to take.”

The British No. 1 elaborated: “It was difficult to come close to putting my stamp on the match. That goes with playing Amanda – she is that sort of opponent who likes to put her stamp on it first.

“I have to take some positives. The first match here was better than a lot of matches I have been playing recently. I had a great first match, felt in a really good place with my game. But a match like that is never easy to take. I couldn’t really get into the rally. The ball felt very quick to do anything off of and to try and survive in the point was very difficult.”

Raducanu has claimed victories over current and former top-10 players Jessica Pegula, Emma Navarro, and Maria Sakkari. However, she has consistently struggled against those at the top tiers of the sport and recognizes the need for change.

“If I’m not feeling it, that gap feels more evident in terms of weight of shot, in terms of power. You just feel a little bit behind and your punches aren’t landing as much as theirs are. I need to be aggressive when playing those players, but I think there’s still a long way to go to be doing that,” she continued.

The British player will face additional pressure in Miami next week, as she is defending 215 of her 1,645 ranking points after making it to the quarterfinals there a year ago. An earlier loss could negatively impact her ranking.

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Jordan Spieth must put one club back in his bag for the first time since 2017 if he is to win again

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Jordan Spieth has shown really positive signs on the PGA Tour so far in 2026.

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However, Spieth isn’t quite back to his best just yet and he’s struggling to actually get into contention on Sundays.

The 32-year-old has played really well at The Players Championship this week but his scores of 73 and 68 haven’t done him justice.

Spieth last won on the PGA Tour in April 2022 and he’ll be desperate to taste victory once again this season.

On Friday afternoon, Spieth shared his frustrations after finishing his round at The Players, after finishing with a double bogey on his final hole.

His golf game in general is in excellent shape right now but he’s simply not scoring as well as he should be.

That has very much been the case over the past few seasons really.

And judging by his stats, there is one root cause of his problems.

Jordan Spieth should trial a new mallet putter

Spieth’s struggles over the past few years have stemmed from his poor putting.

In fact, Spieth has finished outside the top 100 in strokes gained putting three times and outside the top 60 twice over the past seven seasons.

He has shown slight improvements on the greens on the PGA Tour this season and is ranked 17th in strokes gained putting in 2026.

However, he has struggled once again on the greens at The Players Championship, losing 0.460 strokes to the field.

The 13-time PGA Tour winner is a rare commodity in this day and age in the sense that he still uses a blade putter.

Many of the world’s best golfers have switched to mallet models over the past few years in an effort to become more consistent putters.

Players like Scottie Scheffler, Tommy Fleetwood and Rory McIlroy have all vastly improved their putting in recent times and they all put that down to the mallet putter.

Maybe it’s time for Spieth to follow those guys and make a switch in the putting department.

Spieth has played around with mallet models during practice at times throughout the years, but he has only used a deeper-faced putter once during a tournament.

The 32-year-old from Dallas, Texas, trialled a Scotty Cameron T5W Tour Only mallet putter at the Byron Nelson Classic in 2017, but the experiment didn’t last long.

Spieth put his trusty Scotty Cameron 009 Tour Prototype back in his bag immediately after the Byron Nelson finished.

Jordan Spieth must give a new putter time to work

The fact that he switched back so quickly doesn’t bode well but he should consider making the change on a long-term basis now.

It’s fair to say that Spieth didn’t give the mallet putter a sufficient chance back in 2017, but he has struggled so badly on the greens recently that a change of equipment is exactly what he needs.

A common misconception is that Spieth is a poor driver of the golf ball. In fact, he is quite the opposite.

He was ranked 15th in strokes gained off the tee in 2024 and has finished outside the top 38 only once since 2021.

Spieth’s main issue over the past seven years has been his putting. This is no a mini-blip, it’s a prolonged period of time where his trusty old putter has failed him.

It’s time for the three-time major champion to make a big move by adding a mallet putter to his bag.

He may find it hard to move on from his Scotty Cameron 009 Tour Prototype, but a mallet should theoretically help him win again and that should be all that matters.

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Another stunner from Rory McIlroy, who says he and wife have reversed course on divorce, per report

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Rory McIlroy began the PGA Championship last month with news that he had filed for divorce from his wife, Erica Stoll. Now, a couple of days away from the start of the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2, the World No. 3 golfer says the couple has reversed course.

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“Over the past weeks, Erica and I have realized that our best future was as a family together. Thankfully, we have resolved our differences and look forward to a new beginning,” McIlroy told the Guardian news outlet.

McIlroy, 35, and his wife have been married for seven years and have a daughter, 3-year-old Poppy. He filed for divorce on May 13 in Florida, the day after winning the Wells Fargo Championship.

The Guardian reported that McIlroy downplayed internet reports about his dating life in the aftermath of the original divorce announcement. “There have been rumors about my personal life recently, which is unfortunate. Responding to each rumor is a fool’s game,” he said.

McIlroy did a press conference earlier in the day on Tuesday at Pinehurst without being asked about his marital situation. He appeared to be in good spirits and said he is “more confident than ever” that he will win a major championship while experiencing a dry spell of 10 years at the biggest events.

 

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Sad golf news of the day: Jason and Amanda Dufner are getting divorced

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And just like that, one of golf’s “it” couples is no longer even a thing. In a sad twist, Jason and Amanda Dufner are getting divorced, according to Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard.

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Hoggard’s report says Amanda filed for the divorce March 16 and the two have been separated since Feb. 17. Court document reportedly cited an “irretrievable breakdown of the marriage,” and “a complete incompatibility of temperament that the parties can no longer live together.”

Amanda will receive a gross sum of $2.5 million, while Jason will keep both of the couple’s houses in Alabama. No word on who is gets custody of Prince Louie. In 2014, Dufner was 32nd on Golf Digest’s top 50 earners list, pulling in more than $7 million in both on- and off-course earnings.

In a true sign that things are over, Amanda has deactivated her popular Instagram account. Say it ain’t so!

Like Tiger and Elin and Rory and Caroline, we’re always sad to see the end of a golf power couple. Since they were married in May 2012, they’ve provided golf fans with a fun look into their lives together. Some of the highlights:

That trip included Amanda giving golf a try:

And of course, the famed butt squeeze seen around the world after Jason won the 2013 PGA Championship:

We wish the best for both Jason and Amanda, but we’ll miss them together.

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