Golf Thread

[Cricket Warrior]

Rory McIlroy: World number two consults Tiger Woods' ex-coach Butch Harmon before Masters

Rory McIlroy has consulted Tiger Woods' former coach Butch Harmon in a bid to address the issues in his game prior to his latest bid to win The Masters.

World number two McIlroy will become the sixth player to win all four men's majors if he wins next week's Masters.

But with just one top-20 finish on the PGA Tour this season, the 34-year-old has sought Harmon's help.

Harmon, 80, worked with Woods for his first eight major wins before splitting with the then-world number one in 2002.

"I went last week to see Butch Harmon for a golf lesson," McIlroy told the I Can Fly podcast.

"I've seen him over the years, like once every few years. I'll say, 'Hey, Butch, can I just come see you and you can take a look and see what you think'."

McIlroy's long-time coach is fellow Northern Irishman Michael Bannon, although the four-time major winner has also worked with Englishman Pete Cowen.

Florida-based McIlroy added that when he was leaving for the airport for his trip to meet Harmon in Las Vegas, his daughter Poppy asked him where he was going.

When he said he was going for a golf lesson, McIlroy added: "She said, 'Dada, you already know how to play golf'. That's probably the best piece of advice I've gotten in the last three years."

Harmon has also coached Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Greg Norman to major triumphs.

McIlroy has made nine unsuccessful attempts at Augusta to complete the career Grand Slam, with his best finish a second place behind Scottie Scheffler in 2022, in addition to five other performances in the top 10.


BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Texas Open: Rory McIlroy six shots off lead as Akshay Bhatia sets pace

Akshay Bhatia shot a nine-under-par 63 to open up a three-shot lead after the first round of the Texas Open.

Fellow Americans Brendon Todd and Justin Lower are tied for second at the Tournament Players Club in San Antonio.

Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy is six shots off the lead after a bogey-free 69 in his final tournament before The Masters next week.

"My game over the last few months has been quite volatile, so [I am] pretty happy to play a solid round," he said.

World number two McIlroy made three birdies, including a 13ft putt on the par-five eighth, in blustery conditions.

The four-time major champion has been working with Tiger Woods' former coach Butch Harmon to make minor adjustments to his game.

"He gave me a tiny little something that I went with. It's felt a little better over the last two weeks and felt pretty good out there," McIlroy told PGA Tour.com., external

"What I've been trying to do the last couple weeks is no different than what I've been trying to do previously. He just sort of gave me a different way to do it."

Scotland's Martin Laird and Englishmen Tommy Fleetwood and Matt Fitzpatrick are eight shots off the lead on one under.


BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy lost ground at the Texas Open with a level-par 72 in the third round.

The world number two was six shots behind leader Akshay Bhatia but is now 10 adrift after the 22-year-old American fired a four-under par 68.

McIlroy made only one bogey over the first two days but started Saturday with a double bogey.

Although the 34-year-old gave himself hope when he birdied his last two holes, Bhatia then did just the same.


BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

LIV golfer Joaquin Niemann says the breakaway tour needs to be recognised in the official world rankings because the current system can be "a lie".

With LIV events not given ranking points, Chile's Niemann is 91st in the world yet among the favourites to win the Masters at Augusta on Sunday.

He won two of LIV's first three events in 2024, continuing his form having won the Australian Open in December.

"Right now the game is divided and it is not helping," Niemann said.

"It is hard to get a ranking system where everyone is happy."

Niemann, 25, has been given a special invitation to play at the Masters, which begins at Augusta National on Thursday and concludes on Sunday.


BBC

 

[hassan918]

Akshay Bhatia overcame a shoulder injury and a stunning surge from Denny McCarthy to win a play-off at the Texas Open and seal his Masters spot.

Bhatia was six shots clear at the turn before McCarthy, 31, birdied eight of his last nine holes to reach 20 under.

Bhatia also birdied the final hole to force a play-off but hurt his shoulder celebrating the crucial putt.

The 22-year-old was able to play on after treatment and sealed his second PGA Tour win at the first extra hole.

Source: BBC

 

[hassan918]

Masters tee-times for rounds one and two: McIlroy, Woods, Rahm & Scheffler pairings​

Rory McIlroy will get his 10th attempt to complete the career Grand Slam under way at 15:42 BST on Thursday when the Masters starts at Augusta National.

The Northern Irishman plays with the only man ranked higher than him in the world, 2022 victor Scottie Scheffler, and fellow American Xander Schauffele.

Spain's defending champion Jon Rahm is out in the group before at 15:30, alongside England's Matt Fitzpatrick.

Five-time winner Tiger Woods is among the later starters, going out at 18:24.

Record six-time winner Jack Nicklaus, three-time champion Gary Player and twice winner Tom Watson will hit the ceremonial opening tee shots before South Africa's Erik Van Rooyen is first to tee off at 13:00 (08:00 local time).

The final group of 2020 Masters champion Dustin Johnson, 2021 Open winner Collin Morikawa and England's Tommy Fleetwood will get under way six hours later.

Masters tee-times for rounds one and two: McIlroy, Woods, Rahm & Scheffler pairings

Rory McIlroy will get his 10th attempt to complete the career Grand Slam under way at 15:42 BST on Thursday when the Masters starts at Augusta National.

www.bbc.com

 

[FearlessRoar]

Day one of the Masters at Augusta has been delayed due to the weather

Gate openings and tee times have been delayed until further notice. The first round will not begin before 9am (2pm UK)

Sky News

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Masters 2024: Bryson DeChambeau leads as Scottie Scheffler and Danny Willett chase

Bryson DeChambeau leads by one from Scottie Scheffler after the first round of the Masters was completed on Friday.

The LIV golfer finished seven under par but world number one Scheffler showed ominous touch in his bogey-free 66.

Max Homa and Nicolai Hojgaard were among 27 players finishing their rounds on Friday and both are at five under, while Tiger Woods hit a one-over 73.

England's 2016 winner Danny Willett, playing his first tournament since September, is four under par.

The performance of Willett, given his struggles with injury surprised even himself. The 36-year-old underwent shoulder surgery in late September and was expected to be out for at least 12 months but has returned within six.

"I was still unsure on Monday if I was going to play or not," Willett, who holed a 20-foot birdie putt on the 18th to move within three of the lead, told Sky Sports.

"I've been sat at home watching guys play golf on TV for six months. It's good to be back."

Rory McIlroy hit a 71 and defending champion Jon Rahm a one-over 73.

Masters 2024: Bryson DeChambeau leads as Scottie Scheffler and Danny Willett chase

Bryson DeChambeau shoots a seven-under-par 65 to lead by one from Scottie Scheffler on storm-shortened first day at the 88th Masters.

www.bbc.com

 

[BouncerGuy]

Tiger Woods breaks cuts record at Augusta as Scheffler, DeChambeau and Homa share lead

American trio Scottie Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau and Max Homa share the lead while Tiger Woods made a record 24th consecutive halfway cut at the Masters.

Homa's 71 was one of only eight under par rounds on a blustery day two at Augusta as he improved to six under.

Round one leader DeChambeau shot a 73, while Scheffler scrambled a 72.

England's Tommy Fleetwood and Danny Willett are five back at one under, but Rory McIlroy's challenge faded with a 77 that leaves him at four over.

Willett had been four under on the 18th tee but a wayward drive and taking two shots to get out of a greenside bunker led to a triple-bogey seven.

Defending champion Jon Rahm conceded he had been "fighting all day" as he signed for a 76 and squeezed into the weekend on five over, one shot inside the cut mark.

Woods, who carved out a 72 to reach halfway on one over, insisted after his round that "anyone who makes the weekend has a chance".

It was a tough day for all the players, with strong and gusting winds playing havoc throughout and contributing to glacially slow play, with balls moving on greens and sand being blown from bunkers.

The only player to shoot in the 60s was Masters debutant Ludvig Aberg whose three-under 69 saw him surge into the top seven on two under.

McIlroy, Scheffler and Xander Schauffele were one of the last groups to finish and took six hours and two minutes to complete their 18 holes.

Danish debutant Nicolai Hojgaard is two off the lead after mixing four birdies with five bogeys in his 73. He is one ahead of two-time major winner Collin Morikawa and Australian Cameron Davis.

Woods makes history at Augusta

Before the tournament, Woods jointly held the record for most consecutive cuts at tournaments played with Fred Couples and Gary Player on 23.

When he began his streak of made cuts in April 1997, 17 of the players in this week's field were not even born.

On Friday, Woods needed to finish five holes from round one before swiftly moving into round two.

Previously this year, he had only played 25 holes at a tournament before he withdrew through illness from the second round of the Genesis Invitational in February, so walking 23 in one day was likely to be a challenge.

However, despite his physical exertions, the 48-year-old American showed all his nous to navigate a rollercoaster front nine where he carded three birdies and three bogeys.

With the wind strengthening as his round progressed, he produced a series of fine par putts and a birdie on the 15th, after dropping a shot at 14, to stay well above the cut line.

"I'm tired. And I'm really really hungry, I could do with some food and some caffeine," said the 15-time major champion when asked how he felt after his round.

American group lead the way

In 87 previous Masters tournaments, the United States have supplied 63 of the winners. At the halfway stage, this edition is heading the same way.

World number one Scheffler looked marginally more ruffled in the weather conditions than he had when shooting 66 in the first round but again showed impeccable course management to join the leaders.

He briefly dropped two shots back when bogeying the seventh but immediately rebounded with a birdie and held the outright lead midway through his round.

An uncharacteristic mistake at the par-five 13th, when he hit his second shot into the stream protecting the green, cost him a shot but he played conservative golf for the rest of his round to ensure he stayed at the top.

After an impressive opening round of 65, DeChambeau battled tentative putting and swirling winds to try and maintain his lead.

His highlight came at 13 when he found the trees off the tee so opted to play his second down the 14th fairway and then hit his third to 14 feet and holed the birdie putt.

However, he came unstuck at the last when he misjudged the wind when hitting his second shot and ended up 65 feet from the pin. A three-putt bogey followed.

"That was one of the toughest tests of golf I have had in my life," said DeChambeau. "The conditions were so difficult.

"Shooting one over par was not bad. I have a chance and all I can ask for is to play my way into an opportunity come Sunday."

Meanwhile, Homa, who was playing with Woods, enjoyed a sparkling start, birdieing the second and the fourth to join DeChambeau at the top of the leaderboard on seven under.

He briefly led the tournament after DeChambeau bogeyed the fourth and, after dropping a shot on the 11th, he parred his way home.

McIlroy and Rahm among many to struggle

After shooting under par for the first time in six years in his opening round at the Masters on Thursday, McIlroy was only six shots off the lead.

However, amid the swirling winds, he went backwards on Friday.

Bogeys at five and seven were followed by a damaging double bogey at the 11th when he found the water.

Rahm also struggled. One over after round one, he made three bogeys plus a double bogey, but found excellent birdies on 15 and 16 to ensure he made the cut.

At least they will both play this weekend. The Open champion Brian Harman dropped 11 shots on the final eight holes of his first round early on Friday and although he responded with a level-par 72 in round two, his nine-over total sees him eliminated from the tournament.

He was joined on that number by 2015 Masters winner Jordan Spieth, who imploded at the 15th in round one, making a quadruple-bogey nine, and posted a 73 in round two. The 2020 Masters champion Dustin Johnson is also going home after finishing on 13 over.

It was also a tough day for England's Justin Rose who dropped five shots to end up at seven over.

However, Vijay Singh, who won his Green Jacket in 2000, did make the cut at the age of 61. The popular Fijian bogeyed the 18th to finish one over for round two and four over for the championship.

BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Masters 2024: Scottie Scheffler earns second Green Jacket at Augusta National

World number one Scottie Scheffler won the Masters for a second time after a commanding performance at Augusta National demonstrated why he was the red-hot pre-tournament favourite.

Scheffler, who led overnight by a shot, hit a four-under 68 in Sunday's final round to finish four clear on 11 under.

Sweden's Ludvig Aberg shot 69 to finish runner-up on his major debut.

England's Tommy Fleetwood (69) ended joint fourth with American pair Collin Morikawa (74) and Max Homa (73).

Fleetwood put together an impressive round to make a late charge up the leaderboard and record his best finish at the Masters.

Masters 2024: Scottie Scheffler earns second Green Jacket at Augusta National

World number one Scottie Scheffler wins the Masters for a second time after keeping his nerve at Augusta National as his rivals faltered.

www.bbc.com

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Masters 2024: Scottie Scheffler's win at Augusta and Ludvig Aberg's runner-up to be cherished

Assessing Scottie Scheffler's imperious Masters success, it was worth recalling the season of 2009 when Tiger Woods seemed destined to sweep all before him at the majors, only to emerge empty handed from all four of the biggest tournaments.

Back then Woods was an undisputed world number one. Before the Masters he won at Bay Hill, before the US Open he triumphed at Memorial, he added the AT&T National title in the build up to The Open and won at Firestone before the US PGA Championship.

Each time he arrived at that year's majors he came in as red-hot favourite but faltered - he even missed the cut at the Turnberry Open. In the build up that week, I remember being asked on air whether we should bet on the field or Tiger?

I chose Woods and soon after earned admonishment from former Ryder Cup captain Bernard Gallacher - then the most seasoned voice on our BBC 5Live commentary team - for my naivety.

"Always take the field in golf, if you're given the choice," he advised.

This sport, like few others, is so incredibly unpredictable. The influence of the weather, the time of day, the variables of topography and talent conspire to confound all too regularly. We should view Scheffler's latest achievement in this context.

To win any tournament you have to beat a large number of opponents. In this case it was 88 rivals to land the title at the 88th Masters. At the remaining majors the will be trying to beat 155 others each time.

To win a tennis grand slam - and this does not diminish such a feat - a champion must win seven matches. More often than not the better player prevails, which is why it is easier to predict who will be there at the sharp end of a grand slam.

Masters 2024: Scottie Scheffler's win at Augusta and Ludvig Aberg's runner-up to be cherished

Scottie Scheffler confirmed himself as the best golfer on the planet with Sunday's Masters victory but Ludvig Aberg's performance should not go unnoticed, writes Iain Carter.

www.bbc.com

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Rory McIlroy: 'I'll play the PGA Tour for the rest of my career' - world number two dismisses LIV Golf link

Rory McIlroy says he will play on the PGA Tour "for the rest of my career" as he quashed rumours of him making a big-money move to LIV Golf.

A report by City AM on Sunday said the four-time major winner had been offered $850m (£683m) to join the Saudi Arabian-backed circuit.

But McIlroy dismissed the report in an interview with Golf Channel, external on Tuesday.

"I honestly don't know how these things get started," said the Northern Irishman, 34.

"I've never been offered a number from LIV and have never contemplated going to LIV."

McIlroy has been one of LIV Golf's most vocal critics since the breakaway tour was launched in 2022.

However, he admitted to feeling like a "sacrificial lamb" after a framework agreement between the PGA Tour and the Public Investment Fund, which funds LIV, was announced in June last year.

Rory McIlroy: 'I'll play the PGA Tour for the rest of my career' - world number two dismisses LIV Golf link

Rory McIlroy says he will play on the PGA Tour "for the rest of my career" as he quashes rumours of him making a big-money move to LIV Golf.

www.bbc.com

 

[Cricket Warrior]

American world number one Nelly Korda equalled an LPGA record by winning her fifth tournament in a row as she claimed the first women's major of the year at the Chevron Championship in Texas.

Korda, 25, started the final round one shot behind the leader, South Korea's Ryu Hae-ran.

But her three-under par on a gusty course saw her finish on 13 under to win by two shots.

It is the second major of her career.


BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Scheffler wins storm-delayed RBC Heritage

Masters champion Scottie Scheffler continued his dominance by winning the storm-delayed RBC Heritage in South Carolina for his fourth win in five starts.

The world number one, 27, carded a three-under-par 68 in the final round to finish on 19 under and win by four shots from fellow American Sahith Theegala.

Sunday's final round was halted for more than two hours by inclement weather before darkness stopped play from finishing.

Scheffler returned on Monday with a five-shot lead and three holes to play and he wrapped up a comfortable triumph.

He becomes the first player to follow a Masters win with victory at the RBC Heritage since Germany's Bernhard Langer in 1985.

Scheffler is also the first player to win four times in five starts on the PGA Tour since Tiger Woods in 2007-08.

Before his back-to-back wins this month, Scheffler won the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill and The Players Championship in March.

"I got off to a slow start on Thursday but other than that I played some really nice golf in the middle of the tournament and it's nice to be done," said Scheffler.

"I think mentally the last month or so has been as good as I've been in a long time and I think that is why I'm seeing some of the results."

Austria's Sepp Straka was the highest European, finishing in joint fifth with on 14 under, while Masters runner-up Ludvig Aaberg was joint 10th on 12 under.

Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy shot a final-round 74 to finish well off the pace on seven under.


BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

'Exhausted' Korda pulls out of next LPGA Tour event

Nelly Korda has withdrawn from this week's LPGA Tour event "to get some rest" after winning her second major title at the Chevron Championship.

Victory on Sunday gave the American a fifth tour win in five starts, matching a record run achieved by Nancy Lopez in 1978 and Annika Sorenstam in 2004-05.

"After grinding through the mental and physical challenges of four events in the past five weeks, I am definitely feeling exhausted," wrote the world number one on X.

"With so much still to come throughout 2024, I feel I need to listen to my body and get some rest, so I can be ready for the remainder of the season."

Korda's run of victories started with the LPGA Drive On Championship in the last week of January.

The 25-year-old then took seven weeks off before returning in late March to win three events in three weeks - the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship, Ford Championship and T-Mobile Match Play - before claiming the Chevron Championship title.

Korda added that she would be "cheering everyone on from afar" in this week's JM Eagle LA Championship.

Her next scheduled LPGA Tour appearance is in the Cognizant Founders Cup in New Jersey, which starts on 9 May.


BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Ryder Cup stars Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton remain eligible for selection for Europe’s defence of the trophy next year, as long as they pay fines and serve bans that will follow their move to the rival LIV Golf League.

BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

McIlroy & Lowry win Zurich Classic title in play-off

Irish pair Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry have won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans after beating Chad Ramey and Martin Trainer in a play-off.

American Ramey and French player Trainer shot a nine-under 63 to set a target of 25 under.

McIlroy and Lowry birdied the final hole to post 68 and force a play-off.

They parred the first play-off hole to win after Trainer missed his par putt.

It's a 25th PGA Tour title for McIlroy and third for former Open champion Lowry.

They started the final round two off the pace and fell five behind before four birdies in five holes around the turn put them in contention.

American duo Ryan Brehm and Mark Hubbard finished a shot adrift with four players tied on 23 under.


BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Royal Troon will have longest hole in Open history

Royal Troon will have the longest hole in Open history when the Ayrshire links plays host to the 152nd championship in July.

The sixth hole will measure 623 yards - 22 more than it did when Troon staged the 2016 Open - when it hosts the battle for the Claret Jug from 18-21 July.

Two holes later, the players could then play the shortest hole in the championship's long history.

The iconic par-three eighth, the ‘Postage Stamp’, will measure 123 yards on the scorecard but organisers the Royal & Ancient (R&A) is considering reducing that to 99 yards for one round, weather permitting.

The R&A can use a forward tee and a front pin position to create a hole that would play fewer than 100 yards.

Overall though, the R&A's preferred architects Mackenzie & Ebert have generally lengthened the links for the 2024 Open.

The creation of nine new tees means an overall increase of 195 yards to 7,385 - just 36 fewer than the record at Carnoustie in 2007.

There are new bunker positions - on the first and sixth fairways as well as next to the sixth green.

The 15th - which was the 16th before the addition of the new 17th - played 620 yards at Royal Liverpool last year after being stretched by 45 yards since Rory McIlroy's win at Hoylake in 2014.

This year’s championship has sold out, ensuring a record attendance for a Troon Open of 250,000 - an increase of more than 70,000 people from 2016, when Henrik Stenson prevailed in a thrilling duel with Phil Mickelson.


BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Former Ryder Cup golfer Peter Oosterhuis has died at the age of 75.

The Englishman was twice a runner-up at The Open, in 1974 and 1982, and topped the European Tour's Order of Merit from 1971 to 1974.

He later became a TV commentator and was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2014.


BBC

 

[BouncerGuy]

English teen Kim makes cut with Wallace one shot off lead

English teenager Kris Kim became the youngest player to make the cut on the PGA Tour since 2015 as compatriot Matt Wallace dropped to one shot off the lead at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson.

Amateur Kim, 16, followed up his first-round 68 with a 67 to move to seven under par on his PGA Tour debut.

“I'm happy,” said Kim, who hit six birdies and two bogeys in the second round. “I can't wait to get started again [on Saturday].

"I've enjoyed it so much the last couple of days and being here two more days makes it so much sweeter.”

Kim is the youngest player to make a PGA Tour cut since Kyle Suppa did so aged 16 at the 2015 Sony Open in Hawaii.

Overnight leader Wallace carded a five-under par 66, which included an eagle, four birdies and one bogey, to move to 13 under, with American Jake Knapp in the lead on 14 under.

American and world number 20 Jordan Spieth - the highest ranked player in the field - missed the cut by two strokes as he finished on four under par after a second round 70.

BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Pendrith holds nerve to win maiden PGA Tour title

Canadian Taylor Pendrith held his nerve with a birdie at the final hole to win his first PGA Tour title at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson in Texas.

Pendrith trailed Ben Kohles by one shot approaching the last after the American had birdied both the 16th and 17th.

But a bad drive from Kohles on the 18th left him under pressure.

After he missed a par putt, which could have secured a play-off, he was punished by the coolness of Pendrith.

Pendrith had moved to 22 under for the tournament after a birdie at the 12th but he failed to pick up another shot for the next five holes as Kohles made his late charge to move onto 23 under.

But when the 32-year-old Canadian, who had led by one shot going into the final round but who has struggled with wrist and shoulder injuries, was presented with his winning opportunity courtesy of a three foot putt, he made no mistake.


BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Koepka wins LIV Singapore before US PGA defence

American Brooks Koepka won the LIV Singapore event as he builds up to defending his US PGA Championship title later this month.

Koepka shot a three-under-par final-round 68 to finish on 15 under, two shots ahead of Australia's Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith.

"It's all starting to come around. I've put in a lot of work and I like the way things are trending," said Koepka.

"I just need to go back next week and make sure everything continues, do the right stuff and go from there."

Koepka, 34, led by three strokes going into the final round and carded four birdies and a bogey on the way to becoming the first player to win four titles on the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf League.

"I just played very consistently and happy with the way I played all week," said Koepka.

"I made a couple of clutch putts today and the ball-striking was solid. I didn't really think I made too many mistakes. And that's a great feeling when it kind of feels easy."

England's Tyrrell Hatton shot a 66 to finish on 11 under, with Spaniard Jon Rahm a further two shots back on nine under after a 67.

Meanwhile, Spaniard Adrian Otaegui won the China Open on the DP World Tour with a brilliant final round of 65.

The tournament was shortened to 54 holes when the third round was cancelled because of thunder and lightning in the Shenzhen area.

Otaegui, who started the last day five shots behind leader Sebastian Soderberg, carded seven birdies to set a clubhouse target of 18 under par.

It proved enough for victory as Guido Migliozzi finished second on 17 under and Soderberg, who went to the 18th level with Otaegui only to hit a double bogey, on 16 under.

England's Paul Waring also finished on 16 under after a final-round 69.

"I had to wait a little bit since I finished, see what was happening in the final group but luckily for me, things turned up well and I'm extremely happy," said Otaegui, whose win earned him a place at the US PGA at Valhalla Golf Club.

"I have been putting well, I was feeling more and more confident through the week with the putter and I knew if I had birdie chances that I could potentially hole a few.

"I think I was actually feeling more calm through the round."


BBC

 

[hassan918]

TGL: Ludvig Åberg and Wyndham Clark team up for Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy's simulator golf league​

US Open champion Wyndham Clark and European Ryder Cup star Ludvig Åberg are the latest golfers announced to be joining TGL, the new Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy-backed simulator league coming in 2025.

Clark and Åberg will join Ireland's Shane Lowry and Min Woo Lee of Australia on the roster of the California-based Bay Golf Club.

Bay GC is owned by former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry along with co-owners Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala.

The TGL is a made-for-TV golf league from Woods and McIlroy's TMRW Sports venture, with the pair among the 24 PGA Tour players committed to competing in six four-man teams from January in Florida.

Its launch was delayed from 2024 to 2025 after damage sustained to the tournament venue at the purpose-built SoFi Center in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, last November.

No injuries were reported and most of the technology was not impacted by the collapse, although damage has been considered too significant in time for the event to launch as scheduled.

The TGL's first three matches will take place on the first three Tuesdays in January 2025, with the rest of the schedule for the six-team league will be announced later.

"It's kind of cool having an international team," Clark told ESPN upon his signing. "We all get along. We've had dinner together, and I'm friends with Shane and Min Woo and getting to know Ludvig better.

"I feel confident about our team, and it's going to be fun."

https://www.skysports.com/golf/news/12176/13130719/tgl-ludvig-aberg-and-wyndham-clark-team-up-for-tiger-woods-and-rory-mcilroy-s-simulator-golf-league

 

[Cricket Warrior]

McKibbin's rise leads to NI Open host role at 21

Tom McKibbin's rise in the golfing world has been further emphasised by him being named tournament host for this year's NI Open European Challenge Tour event.

McKibbin, 21, is touring professional at Galgorm Castle where the event will take place in late July.

The tournament, which returns to the second-tier Challenge Tour calendar after a four-year absence, will go under the banner of 'The NI Open, presented by Tom McKibbin'.

"It's pretty cool to have it this early," said McKibbin, of having his name directly associated with a professional tournament.

"When Gary Henry [the managing director of Galgorm Castle] came to me at the end of the year and suggested the idea, it was something I was very keen about straight away."

Prior commitments during tournament week mean McKibbin won't compete in the event proper, which takes place from 25-28 July, but he will be in action in the pro-am on 23 July.

"I’ll be there playing in the pro-am and I’m sure I’ll come back up on Sunday to see some of the action," added McKibbin, who clinched his first DP World Tour triumph last year with a memorable victory at the European Open in Hamburg


BBC

 

[hassan918]

PGA Championship invites 7 LIV players​

The PGA Championship officially has Tiger Woods in a field released Tuesday that includes invitations to seven players from Saudi-funded LIV Golf, giving the major the entire top 100 in the world ranking at Valhalla next week.

The PGA of America strives to have the top 100 in the world to maintain its reputation for having the strongest field of the four majors, although it is not part of the criteria.

Instead, the PGA uses a catch-all category of “special invitations.” The group of LIV players includes Patrick Reed, whose tie for 12th in the Masters moved him inside the top 100. He is at No. 92, and the invitation keeps alive his streak of playing every major since the 2014 Masters.

The PGA Championship returns to Valhalla in Louisville, Kentucky, for the fourth time on May 16-19. Rory McIlroy won at Valhalla the last time it was there in 2014. The course is best known for Woods winning a playoff over Bob May in 2000 for his third straight major.

Joaquin Niemann, who won the Australian Open in December and has two LIV Golf wins this year, already received an invitation. The surprise was Talor Gooch announcing in an X post on Monday that he had received an invitation.

It was a sign the PGA of America's selection committee was looking at LIV results on their own, as Gooch doesn't play much outside the Saudi league. He won three times on LIV in 2023 and won the season points list.

Other invitations went to Dean Burmester, Lucas Herbert, Adrian Meronk, all of them inside the top 100 in the world. The seventh invitation went to David Puig, the 22-year-old from Spain who is No. 106 in the world ranking. Puig has finished in the top 10 in six of his last seven tournaments on the Asian Tour, including two wins.

LIV will be represented by 16 players, down from 18 a year ago. Among those left off the list was former British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen, who won twice late last year in South Africa in tournaments co-sanctioned by the European tour. He is No. 125 in the world.

The LIV group includes defending champion Brooks Koepka, who goes for a fourth PGA Championship title. He is the only active LIV player to win a major after leaving the PGA TOUR.

Kerry Haigh, the championship director for the PGA of America, has said he would consider deserving players from tours around the world. Invitations were given to Tim Widing of Sweden, who has won consecutive tournaments on the Korn Ferry Tour.

Another invitation went to Kazuma Kobori, a 22-year-old born in Japan who now plays under the New Zealand flag. He has won three times this year in the Webex Players Series on the PGA Tour of Australasia.

The field has 21 club professionals — 20 from the PGA Professional Championship last week, and Michael Block, who qualified by finishing among the top 15 last year at Oak Hill.

The PGA is keeping two spots open in case the winners of the Wells Fargo Championship and the Myrtle Beach Classic are not already eligible. Only four players in the 69-man field at the Wells Fargo Championship have not qualified. The first alternate is Doug Ghim.

PGA Championship invites 7 LIV players

The PGA Championship officially has Tiger Woods in a field released Tuesday that includes invitations to seven players from Saudi-funded LIV Golf, giving the major the entire top 100 in the world ranking at Valhalla next week.The PGA of America strives to have the top 100 in the world to...

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[The Bald Eagle]

Rory McIlroy has called for professional golf to follow the example of the Northern Ireland peace process and seek "a compromise" that brings the divided parties together.

Amid the ongoing schism between the PGA Tour and the breakaway LIV circuit, the world number two recalled the Good Friday Agreement, the 1998 peace deal that helped to end the Troubles in his homeland.

McIlroy said there would need to be concessions made in any deal between the two golf tours and stressed the benefit of reaching an accord soon.

"I sort of liken it to like when Northern Ireland went through the peace process in the '90s and the Good Friday Agreement. Neither side was happy," McIlroy said.

"Catholics weren't happy, Protestants weren't happy, but it brought peace and then you just sort of learn to live with whatever has been negotiated, right?"

Speaking ahead of this week's Wells Fargo Championship in North Carolina, McIlroy added: "That was in 1998, and 20, 25, 30 years ahead, my generation doesn't know any different. It's just this is what it's always been like and we've never known anything but peace.

"That's sort of my little way of trying to think about it and trying to make both sides see that there could be a compromise here.

"It's probably not going to feel great for either side, but if it's a place where the game of golf starts to thrive again and we can all get back together, then I think that's ultimately a really good thing."

McIlroy not returning to policy board
As the PGA Tour and LIV continue to search for a way forward, McIlroy will not return to the former's policy board.

The 35-year-old stepped down from the board in November 2023 to focus on his game.

However, last month he had intimated he was willing to return, stating he felt he could accelerate the pace of merger talks between the two factions.

Despite talks around him replacing Webb Simpson on the board taking place, McIlroy revealed he would instead "just keep doing what I'm doing".

He said: "It just got pretty complicated and pretty messy.

"With the way it happened, it opened up some wounds and scar tissue from things that have happened before and I think there was a subset of people on the board who were uncomfortable with me coming back on for some reason.

Source: BBC