Scottie Scheffler (left) and Dustin Johnson are in the pre-Masters spotlight. (Joy Sarver Photos)
Dustin Johnson and Scottie Scheffler don’t play on the same pro golf tour any more, but their play will be intertwined over the next three weeks.
Scheffler needed a week’s rest during the Florida Swing’s conclusion at the Valspar Championship last week, but – being a Texas native – he’s playing this week in the Texas Children’s Houston Open.
A champion in both the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Players Championship in Florida, he’ll be going for three wins in a row in Houston. The last player to win three in a row? Johnson in 2017, but an asterisk is needed here.
One of DJ’s wins was in the World Golf Championship Match Play Championship. If Scheffler wins in Houston he’ll be the first to win three straight starts in stroke play since Rory McIlroy did it in 2014.
Johnson’s great run eight years ago led into the Masters. He was at the top of his game then but took a fall after arriving in Augusta and withdrew the day before the tournament. The freak episode still haunts him.
“I never felt unbeatable,’’ he said in an interview this week leading into the next LIV Golf League tournament April 5-7 at Doral in Miami, FL. “But I always feel that, when I’m playing my best, no one can beat me.’’
He doesn’t look back at the injury at Augusta much, but – when prodded — will say that without it “I’d have two green jackets instead of one. I had a fantastic prep that week.’’
Johnson won his Masters in 2020, when no spectators were allowed on the course because of pandemic concerns. Now, with golf’s first major championship three weeks away and Scheffler playing so well, Masters talk can’t be avoided.
After the PGA Tour stop in Houston that circuit has the Valero Texas Open opposite the LIV event at Doral. Johnson will be one of 13 LIV players in the field at Augusta National. Last year the fledgling circuit had a good showing, with Brooks Koepke and Phil Mickelson tying for second behind Jon Rahm. Rahm has since left the PGA Tour to join LIV.
“Miami’s going to be a great week,’’ said Johnson. “There’ll be a lot of guys grinding, especially those going to the Masters.’’
Johnson was LIV’s most important early signing and the dominant player in 2022 — the circuit’s first season when only eight tournaments were held. He was the circuit’s leading individual and his 4Aces won the team title.
He wasn’t as successful in 2023 and at the conclusion of the 14-tournament second season he was second to Talor Gooch in LIV career money, Gooch having earned $46.4 million and Johnson $44.4 million. And that’s on top of the reported $150 million signing bonus Johnson received to leave the PGA Tour.
This season Johnson has one win in four LIV starts but couldn’t crack the top 20 in the last two in Saudi Arabia and China. He’s third in the tour standings behind Joaquin Niemann and Rahm.
Even with LIV not playing this week Johnson has had an eventful week. His 4Aces team got a new general manager with the hiring of Chris Rosaasen.
“I’ve known Chris for many years, witnessing how he has built multiple successful brands,’’ said Johnson, the 4Aces captain and part-owner. “Chris’ vision for the team aligns perfectly with what we aim to achieve.’’
Johnson, meanwhile, is taking aim at winning another Masters and says Doral will be “good preparation.’’
“Doral’s a fantastic golf course. It’s fair and tough, and it’s long. You have to use all the clubs in your bag,’’ said Johnson, who has won events at Doral on both the PGA and LIV tours.
Now Peter Malnati will stand out for more than just playing with a yellow ball. (Joy Sarver Photos)
PALM HARBOR, Florida — “Cinderella Story’’ is a term used way too much in the sports world. Peter Malnati certainly fit that description when he won the Valspar Championship on Sunday, however.
Here was a 10-year member of the PGA Tour getting his second victory nine years after capturing his first. In seven previous Valspars he had made the cut only once. He had played in only three major championships but now he’s expecting his first invitation to the upcoming Masters.
There was no reason to think Malnati could win the Valspar. This season he missed four cuts in eight starts, shot 81 in the last round of The Players Championship the week before his win on the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort and had only one top-10 – a tie for ninth at the Cognizant Classic of the Palm Beaches, the first of the four events on the Florida Swing.
Until Sunday Malnati was notable mainly for being one of the few players to use a yellow instead of a white golf ball. At least it seemed appropriate for a player with a colorful ball winning the “most colorful event on the PGA Tour.’’
There’s a lot more to Peter Malnati than being a PGA journeyman who finally ended a winless dryspell, however. Malnati is a photogenic guy with an infectious smile. That’s a good thing, because he’ll likely be taking interviews for something more than being a PGA Tour champion in the coming weeks.
Malnati, 36, has recently been named one of six player directors on the PGA Tour Policy Board. He’ll be closely involved with the seemingly endless negotiations toward a merger of the PGA Tour and the LIV Golf League.
Malnati was all smiles en route to his first win in nine years, but he also showed his serious side.
He didn’t make any political statements on that issue during his speech at the Valspar trophy presentation on the course, but he opened up a bit in a more in-depth session afterwards.
“I’ll say something in here that I didn’t say out there because I think it’s important and relevant,’’ said Malnati. “When my son Hatcher was born in 2019 I removed all my social media from my phone. I don’t do social media anymore, and I’m a happier person because of it. Not that it’s bad, social media isn’t bad. But for me I didn’t use it particularly well because I always read comments and I wanted to use it to be interactive. It wasn’t healthy for me, so I removed it.’’
The result is that Malnati doesn’t “know specifically what is being said about me, about the PGA Tour, about our sport in general. But I know the direction that it has been going for the last couple years.’’
His feelings about the influx of bigger money, smaller field events seemed clear. That concept has a downside. On the Florida Swing the Cognizant Classic of the Palm Beaches and Valspar weren’t weren’t signature events like the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Players Championship.
The API had a $20 million purse and The Players $25 million. The Cognizant was at $9 million and the Valspar at $8.4 million. That’s a big discrepancy.
“We don’t have tournaments to play in if we have communities that think these tournaments don’t matter,’’ said Malnati. “I just want them to know that every event on the PGA Tour matters because it matters to the community where you play, and we’re going to make a difference. That was something I felt like I needed to say.’’
Malnati won’t take a week off to celebrate his win. He’ll tee it up in the $9.1 million Texas Children’s Hospital Houston Open this week. After that comes the $9.2 million Valero Texas Open.
Those are the lead-ins to the Masters, first of the year’s major championships with a hefty purse that won’t be announced until the week of the event, and the $20 million RBC Heritage Classic.
Malnati can play in all of them now.
“That’s really important,’’ he said. “We put an emphasis – and I think rightfully so – on getting the top players in the world to play together more often. I have work to do to consider myself in that group.’’
Malnati found a swing that works after some years of struggling on the PGA Tour.
Peter Malnati uses a yellow golf ball to win the Valspar tourney. (Joy Sarver Photo)
PALM HARBOR, Florida — The winners at PGA Tour events are frequently emotional, but Peter Malnati was in tears immediately after his last putt dropped at the Valspar Championship on Sunday.
Malnati, 36, won his second title nine years after his first. He had qualified for only three major championships and never made it to the FedEx Cup Playoffs.
This year he had four missed cuts and only one top-10 finish while doubling as a recently-named Player Director on the PGA Tour Policy Board. That has put him in the forefront of the complicated negotiations over the proposed merger with the Saudi-based LIV Golf League.
While that’s a time-consuming extra job Malnati had been better known as one of the few players to use a yellow golf ball. He switched from white to yellow balls because one of his sons “liked them.’’
“He’s gotten over it now,’’ said Malnati, holding one son while fighting back tears during his first post-round televised interview. “But it still makes me think of him.’’
Malnati, along with his wife Alicia, attended the University of Missouri before Peter turned pro in 2009. They have two sons – Hatcher and Dash. They were more in the spotlight at the Valspar, which offers an unusual opportunity for players to put what they want on their caddy’s bibs. Malnati chose honor his sons.
Keith Mitchell started the day with a two-stroke lead on Malnati, who was in a three-way tie for second. Mitchell faded to a 77 in the final round while Malnati shot 67 and won by one stroke over Cameron Young. Malnati posted a 12-under-par 272 for the 72 holes and earned $1,512,000.
“That moment of winning a tournament and have your family come out on the green, the big hugs and all that, that’s something I’ve seen other families have and that has been my dream,’’ said Malnati. “ There’s been a lot of stretches in golf over the last nine years when I wondered if I’d ever have that experience. It feels completely surreal.’’
Wheaton’s Kevin Streelman, who led the tournament after Round 1 and was tied for the lead after Round 2, shot 73-72 on his weekend rounds and finished in a tie for 28th with, among others, Northwestern alum Dylan Wu. It was Streelman’s best finish of the season. Defending champion Taylor Moore tied for 12th.
Kevin Streelman, PGA Tour veteran from Wheaton, got off to a fast start in the Valspar Championship before cooling off in the third round. (Joy Sarver Photo)
PALM HARBOR, Florida – The story lines in the first three tournaments of the Florida Swing were certainly different than the one developing in the last one.
The most notable things in the Cognizant Classic of the Palm Beaches, which opened four PGA Tour events in March, was a name change for the tournament (it has been the Honda Classic for decades) and a first-time winner in Austin Eckroat. Scottie Scheffler ruled the next two, dominating the Arnold Palmer Invitational and making history in becoming the first repeat champion in The Players’ 50-year history.
Concluding the Swing was the Valspar Championship, played on the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort. The emergence of veteran players in contention seemed the theme for a while.
Stewart Cink, 50, and Kevin Streelman, 45, played in the final group in Saturday’s third round. Cink has making his 19th appearance in the tournament, one off Brian Gay’s record 20, and made his 500th cut on the PGA Tour. Another veteran, Lucas Glover, was in the tourney for the 19th time and was one shot off the lead after 36 holes.
Streelman led solo after shooting a 7-under-par 64 in the first round and was in a five-way tie for the lead after the second.
He had won his first PGA Tour event on Copperhead in 2013, so that seemed a good place for him to get a much needed career boost.
And it was – for a while.
Hampered by a back injury suffered while hitting a shot out of the rough in California’s Farmer’s Insurance Open in February, Streelman made only one cut – a tie for 32nd place in Puerto Rico — in his first six starts of 2024.
His luck changed when he got to Copperhead, though. Streelman led solo after shooting a 64 in Thursday’s first round and was tied with four others for the 36-hole lead.
Paired with 50-year old Stewart Cink in the final group on Saturday, Streelman got off to a great start, two-putting for birdie on the par-5 first hole. After that, it wasn’t much of a day. His third-round 73 dropped him into a tie for 18th entering Sunday’s final round.
Streelman wasn’t much in the mood to talk about it afterwards, but he didn’t rule himself out of contention, either.
“I’ve just got to attack,’’ he said. “I was only 2-over (on Saturday) and I’m 6-back. I’ve just got to focus on golf on the range and tighten things up.’’
With that he headed for the range in hopes of challenging for the lead on Sunday. Keith Mitchell owns it at 10-under-par 203. Mitchell owns a two-stroke lead on Seamus Power, Mackenzie Hughes and Peter Malnati.
Mitchell finished birdie-birdie-eagle to cap off a 7-under 64. He holed a 7-iron from 190 yards for his eagle to conclude his spectacular finish on Copperhead’s famed finishing holes, dubbed the “Snake Pit.”
“I looked up and something flew in my eye, so I looked away and never saw it come down and land,’’ said Mitchell of his last shot of the day. “It’s an elevated green, so I wasn’t going to see it go in anyway, but I didn’t even see it come down next to the flag.’’
Defending champion Talor Moore is tied for 34th and Arlington Heights’ Doug Ghim tied for 55th. Sam Burns, who won the tournament in 2021 and 2022, and reigning British Open champion Brian Harman were among those missing the cut when the weather-delayed second round was completed early Saturday.
The iconic clubhouse turret at Jekyll Island is the backdrop for croquet players in their traditional white attire. (Photos by Joy Sarver)
BY LEN ZIEHM
JEKYLL ISLAND, Georgia – State parks are a big thing in Georgia, with one in particular standing out — an old place with a sparkling new look.
Needless to say Jekyll Island isn’t your ordinary state park. There are 600 residents on the island, located on the outskirts of Brunswick off the Intracoastal Waterway near the bigger cities of Savannah, Ga., and Jacksonville, FL.
Jekyll offers a lot of things – a 22-mile bike and hiking trail, the Georgia Sea Turtle Center, the Summer Waves Water Park, The Wharf (a most memorable fun waterfront restaurant), the most enchanting Driftwood Beach, tennis, croquet and fishing centers, horse stables, a campground, a wide variety of lodging and gift shops and 63 holes of golf.
What Jekyll is really all about, though, is history. There really isn’t another place like it.
Those 63 holes of golf are enticing, but they aren’t part of this report. This is to report on a $25 million renovation that touched most areas of the property.
Director of sales and marketing Kevin Baker has been on the Jekyll scene for over 10 years.
“ There was a Master Plan put into effect 10-12 years ago,’’ said Kevin Baker, director of sales and marketing for the Jekyll Island Club Resort. “That included a Convention Center and Beach Village, but it feels different here now because the majority of the big construction is done. A lot of things were completed last year and the Master Plan is pretty much complete now. Just little bits and pieces are still being upgraded.’’
A look back at what Jekyll Island was shows how far it has come. Fifty of the weathiest families in America combined efforts to create what was considered “the richest, most exclusive and most inaccessible club in the world.’’
It opened in 1888 and because a playground for the rich and famous. Its early members were J.P. Morgan, William Rockefeller, Vincent Astor, Joseph Pulitzer, William Vanderbilt and Marshall Field. The club became known as a “Southern Haven for America’s Millionaires.’’
With no roads available, those fortunate few arrived by boat and moved around the island in carriages. Electricity was available on the island before it came to most of the rest of the country. Life was good.
The club had a big clubhouse facing a swimming pool that was 10 feet deep throughout. The Grand Dining Room and Alexander’s lobby bar (named after clubhouse designer Charles A. Alexander) were the most popular hotspots.
Residents could design and build their own homes or cottages, and they all had different tastes. The variety of architectural looks added to the beauty of the place.
In addition to the Jekyll Island Club Resort hotel there were 12 cottages back in those days, and three were addressed in the recent renovation. The biggest was the Crane Cottage, built in 1917 by a member who made his fortune in the plumbing industry. It had 20 guest rooms and 17 baths. In the renovation it was reduced to 13 guest rooms but remains an almost weekly site for weddings.
The San Souci Cottage was the first condominium ownership concept in the United States.
The San Souci Cottage, built in 1896, was the country’s first condominium. J.P. Morgan devised the shared ownership concept, but that’s just one of a series of milestones at the island. The Federal Reserve System got its start at a secret meeting there in November of 1907, when the club was largely empty, and the first transcontinental phone call was also made from Jekyll in 1915.
Everything was wonderful – until it wasn’t.
The Great Depression started the club’s downfall and World War II speeded up the process. Members were afraid that German submarines would invade the local waters and they sold their places in droves, bringing an end to what Jekyll calls its “ Club Era.’’
From 1942 to 1948 the place deteriorated slowly and the furniture used by the rich and famous was left in the homes and cottages. It was all taken to a central location in the 1950s as the former owners didn’t want to take it with them.
The Grand Dining Room in the Jekyll Island Club will resume evening dining this spring.
In 1948 Jekyll went public and was declared a State Park. The old buildings were used by visitors, and some of the old furniture was brought back, but the flavor of the good old days was missing until recently when 200 guest room at the Jekyll Island Club were upgraded.
“Every single guest room was completely renovated,’’ said Baker. “More color was brought into the rooms. In the past everything was painted white. The exterior of the buildings hasn’t changed, but now the colors in the rooms really pop. We maintained the historic rooms. It was a modern take on history. It’s been more like a coastal eclectic look while honoring the past.’’
The rooms have all been tastefully done following a series of ownership changes. All have fireplaces, and the Grand Dining Room was completely renovated and is serving breakfasts and Sunday buffets. Dinner dining will resume in the spring.
The renovated rooms have a coastal eclectic decor with hand-painted murals as the focal point.
“By no means is it modern, but it’s very historic. That’s why people come here,’’ said Baker. “Luxury and style were elevated to a level that it should be. The guest rooms are now at the level of comfort and style of the luxury hotels, but what makes us special is our history.’’
That is in the spotlight at the Mosaic Museum, which is also the base for daily guided tours. The tours are great, but visitors can check out all parts of the island on bicycles. They’re readily available and can go places where automobiles can’t. Boat trips are also available.
Beautiful sunrises are a regular occurrence from the suites at the Ocean Club.
You don’t have to stay in the cottages or the historic hotel. There’s plenty of other lodging that includes Marriott, Hilton,Westin, Holiday Inn and Days Inn properties
The Georgia Sea Turtle Center is an especially interesting attraction, and it is given extra promotion with stuffed turtles (available for purchase) available in every guest room.
Beach Village gives the island a major attraction entirely separate from the Historic District. Beach Village features the oceanside Eighty Ocean Kitchen and Bar at the Jekyll Ocean Club and a splash pad has been added for youngsters. The Village is also loaded with shops, which makes it an ideal spot to take a relaxing stroll.
Churches are in abundance, too, starting with the Faith Chappel that opened as an interdenominational church for members in 1904. It now offers an Episcopal service and there are also Baptist, Catholic, Presbyterian and Methodist churches.
One thing that you can’t miss are the magnificent trees. The one that stands out is a Plantation Oak. It’s the biggest and oldest – estimated to be about 350 years old – on the property but there are other eye-catching ones, too.
This Plantation Oak is the oldest and biggest of the majestic trees adorning Jekyll Island.
Which version of Scottie Scheffler do you like better — the winner at Bay Hill in 2022 (left) or the one who dominated the API this year?
ORLANDO, Florida — The Arnold Palmer Invitational was a wonderfully competitive event through 54 holes, but not during Sunday’s final round at Bay Hill. In fact, this latest Signature Event on the PGA Tour was downright boring, and you can blame Scottie Scheffler for that.
Scheffler was just too good on a beautiful day, carding the low round of the tournament – a 6-under-par 66 that propelled him to a 72-hole total of 15-under 273. That was good for a five-shot advantage on runner-up Wyndham Clark, but Scheffler led by as many as seven before his last putt dropped.
With a $4 million payoff from a $20 million purse, Scheffler climbed from second to first in the FedEx Cup standings. He won for the seventh time on the PGA Tour and had the widest victory margin in the API since Tiger Woods in 2012. Scheffler didn’t dwell on his good fortune, though.
“I just stayed in my own little space and tried to keep pushing,’’ he said.
The final 18 started with Scheffler and Shane Lowry tied for the lead at 9-under but the tie didn’t last for long. Scheffler birdied No. 1, Lowry made bogey – a quick two-shot swing. Lowry, who finished third, also made bogey on the second hole and was never a contender again. In truth, no one was.
Scheffler won the API for the second time in three years, but his victories were much different. He won the first in 2022 with a one-shot margin over joint runner-ups Billy Horschel, Tyrrell Hatton and Viktor Hovland and posted a 72-hole score of 283 – 10 shots higher than his latest win.
A month after his first win at Bay Hill Scheffler won the Masters. He’s playing better now.
“It would be borderline unfair if he started putting really good,’’ said Clark, the reigning U.S. Open champion. “I never want to wish ill on anybody, but if he starts putting positive each week he’s going to be really hard to beat. He’s the best player in the world right now.’’
Rory McIlroy was impressed, too.
“Scottie has been super consistent week in and week out every time he tees it up,’’ said McIlroy. “It’s incredible.’’
Luke Donald, a former world No. 1, echoed that to conclude his two-week stint on the NBC broadcast team.
“He was so, so consistent,’’ said Donald. “The road to success has so many ups and downs in construction but there were no ups and downs for him today. He was in cruise control all the way. He did everything well, and that’s not easy when you’re leading a golf tournament.’’
In his API title defense in 2023 Scheffler tied for fourth behind surprise winner Kurt Kitayama, who missed the cut in his own title defense this week.
Scheffler will be gunning for a much better showing next week at The Players Championship, the third event of the four-tournament Florida Swing. It tees off on Thursday at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra. Scheffler’s 2023 victory in The Players was his most recent victory until his blowout romp at Bay Hill on Sunday. The Players turns 50 years old this week and no player has been a repeat champion.
Max Homa, Sam Burns and Viktor Hovland (left to right) had similar routines for putting at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Facing the hole, they’re straddling the line of their putts to determine the slope of the green. Call this dance-like movement the “Meter Mash?”
ORLANDO, Florida – The second and third rounds of the Arnold Palmer Invitational couldn’t have been more different.
Six players – Shane Lowry, Hideki Matsuyama, Brian Harman, Russell Henley, Scottie Scheffler and Wyndham Clark – were tied for the 36-hole lead, and that was the most co-leaders after 36 on the PGA Tour since the Valero Texas Open of 2010.
That was an impressive leaderboard for the PGA Tour’s latest Signature Event, too, with Harman the reigning British Open champion and Clark the owner of the U.S. Open crown.
Saturday’s third round was different, but had its own type of craziness with constant leaderboard changes.
Will Zalatoris was great early, making four birdies in his first eight holes and opening a five-shot lead after 11. Then he staggered in, making two bogeys before a brutal double bogey on the last hole.
“You play 42 holes of bogey-free and you take it,’’ said Zalatoris, now tied for fourth but just two strokes off the lead. “Obviously the finish wasn’t what I wanted. That’s just Bay Hill. I’m still in the ball game, as frustrating as it was to finish up that way.’’
Three spectators stood out among those following Nick Taylor (left) and Max Homa.
Meanwhile, Rory McIlroy — an early starter — was spectacular on the back nine. He became the first player ever to drive the green on the par-4 tenth, a 365-yard dogleg right, and that gave him the momentum to play the back side in a record 6-under-par 30.
“The difference between the front nine and back nine? Eight shots!’’ said McIlroy. “I just didn’t have any momentum. Then the three on 10 with the tee shot on the green, that got me going.’’
McIlroy salvaged a 68, a boost after finishing outside of the top 20 in his last three starts. He’s tied for eighth, four shots off the lead.
The rivals’ problems enabled Scheffler, tourney champion in 2022, and Lowry to claim a share of the 54-hole lead. Like McIlroy, Scheffler finished strong with birdies at 12, 13, 15 and 16. His 2-under-par 70 on Saturday wasn’t spectacular but it put him at 9-under 207 for three rounds. Lowry, the first-round leader, matched his 70 with birdies at 16 and 17. They’re one swing ahead of Clark, who made bogey on his last hole.
“Here you’ve got to think your way around and stay patient,’’ said Scheffler. “You can make some mistakes, and it’s all about how you bounce back from them. I’m just doing a good job of staying in my head space on the greens. Going to the back nine today I did a really good job of just staying in it as much as I could.’’
Winner of the Masters in 2022, Scheffler will defend his title in The Players Championship next week at another Florida course, TPC Sawgrass.
Justin Thomas wasn’t happy with a chip shot, and it showed in his immediate reactions. (Joy Sarver Photos)
Charley Hull, Carlota Ciganda and Lexi Thompson (left to right) are among the stars in the Aramco Team Series season opener. Ciganda is the defending champion. (Joy Sarver Photos)
CLEARWATER, Florida – The scheduling for the Aramco Team Series opener was unusual, its opening event being slated opposite the PGA Tour’s Arnold Palmer Invitational just an hour away in Orlando.
With a teeoff Friday on International Women’s Day, the Aramco event is unusual enough. Imagine a women’s team event — one put on by the Ladies European Tour (LET) with $1 million in prize money provided by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, which also bankrolls the controversial men’s LIV Golf League — being played on American soil.
After this tourney concludes on Sunday the series will have stops in South Korea, London, Asia and Saudi Arabia.
This women’s tourney at Feather Sound Country Club has a stellar field. The 82 players come from 24 countries and own 39 wins on the European Tour, nine on the LPGA Tour and three in major championships.
Though it’s an LET event, the field includes American stars Lexi Thompson, Brittany Lincicome, Marina Alex and Megan Khang. Top Europeans are England’s Charley Hull and Bronte Law and Spain’s Carlota Ciganda, who won the tournament last year at Trump International in West Palm Beach, FL.
Ciganda and Alex were the only ones among those hotshots to show top form in Friday’s Round 1. Both carded 6-under-par 66s to share the lead with Chloe Williams, of Wales, and Kim Metraux, of Switzerland.
Defending champion Ciganda had a great start (birdies on the first two holes) and a solid finish. “I birdied three of my last five holes. I’m very happy,’’ she said.
This year’s tournament was under the radar because lining up a U.S. site was a slow process. Feather Sound wasn’t assured of hosting until five weeks ago, a very short time for tournament preparation. First-round play was also slow, reaching 5 ½ hours at the end of the day on Friday.
This event, though, is being contested in four-player teams (of three pros and one amateur) for two days. It’s the only team series on any of the pro golf tours.
After 36 holes the top 60 pros will compete for individual prize money in Sunday’s final round with no qualms about going head-to-head with the $20 million Arnold Palmer Invitational, one of the “elevated’’ events on the PGA Tour schedule.
For the record, I’d rather play golf than watch it. If I need to just watch, I’d rather do it live at the course. If I can’t do that I’d have to settle for TV or the Internet. The latter is what I had to do to see Anthony Kim ‘s return to professional golf at the LIV Golf League’s tournament in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, last week.
There was no way I was going to miss this one, though. Curiosity got the better of me. In 56 years reporting on all kinds of golf I had never heard a story as intriguing as that of Kim, a promising young star until Achilles tendon surgery on his left leg sidelined him.
The initial surgery was performed in June of 2013 and he had subsequent problems with his rotator cuff, labrum, spine and hand, and they required six more surgeries in a four-year period.
Until LIV’s stop in Jeddah Kim had not played in a tournament since the 2012 Wells Fargo Championship on the PGA Tour. He could have played sooner, via a Major Medical Exemption, but he didn’t. There’s more to Kim’s story. Kim admitted that, and said he’d tell it “at the proper time.’’
Anyway, Kim decided to retire after all those surgeries, and that lasted for 12 years. Now 38, Kim admitted his comeback was “a long time coming…I’m very grateful for all the highs, lows and lessons learned from the first part of my career. I want to compete with the best players in the world, and I’m on a mission to prove to myself that I can win again.’’
Well, maybe he can and maybe he can’t. His first tournament back created a lot of interest, but his play wasn’t encouraging.
On the first day at tournament site Royal Greens he shot a 76, a round that included a topped second shot (LIV commissioner Greg Norman said a drone distracted him) and an ugly shank. He was dead last after Round 1 and another 76 in Round 2 left him 12 shots behind his nearest rival. The good part at that point? Well, he settled down after a bad start to finish with 11 straight pars. He improved to 74 in the third round but wound up at 16 over par for the tournament while champion Joaquin Niemann was at 17-under.
After the first round Kim said he “played better than the score.’’ There was no comment after the second, but he put a somewhat positive spin to his play over the 54 holes overall.
“Obviously it was a rough week,’’ said Kim, “but I’m excited to play professional golf again and blessed to have this opportunity. I was doing a lot of things well, though I know the scores don’t reflect that.’’
No argument there, but I’m still not giving up on Kim. Here’s why:
Kim was more than just a good young player after he turned pro. After playing for Team USA and the University of Okahoma, he helped the U.S. win the Ryder Cup in 2008 after winning three times on the PGA Tour that season.
In 2010 he tied for third at the Masters, finishing behind only present LIV players Phil Mickelson and Lee Westwood. His most eye-opening performance came in the 2009 Masters when he set a tournament record with 11 birdies in Round 2.
Norman was unrelenting in coaxing Kim into a comeback on his circuit. Convinced that Kim could move the needle for a new tour, Norman made initial contact two years ago to see if Kim might be interested – and it took a while (as well as some talks with PGA Tour personnel) for him to decide he was.
“LIV Golf was launched to create new opportunities for players and fans that drive this sport forward in exciting ways and, when I think of Anthony Kim, I can’t think of a more perfect fit for what we’re trying to do,’’ said Norman. “His talent is undeniable.’’
Well, it wasn’t “undeniable’’ at Jeddah, and Hong Kong is the next stop. As a “wild card,’’ Kim can play in the rest of this year’s tournaments and is assured a check in each one without the added pressure of letting a team down. He’s got a few months to prove that his skills are still good enough to compete at a high level.
The less-than-ideal start shouldn’t be surprising, and didn’t leave him downtrodden. That’s a good thing.
“I look at being in contention at some time this year,’’ he said. “Everything with LIV has been first class, and I look forward to representing them well.’’
I hope he can. If his play is only slightly reminiscent of what it had been, his would be a feel-good story — and the world can always use another one of those.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is presenting sponsor of the Aramco Team Series.
In these times of turmoil for professional golf tours it was almost shocking to learn about the upcoming Aramco Team Series. Its first event of 2024 is coming up fast — March 7-10 at Feather Sound Country Club in Clearwater, FL.
Imagine an event that is part of the Ladies European Tour (LET) hosting an event on American soil. Then consider that the $1 million purse is being put up by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia – the same group that is funding the controversial LIV Tour in its ongoing battle with the PGA Tour. And The Golf Channel is to provide TV coverage, a rarity for that network to cover an event with LIV connections.
PIF is the presenting sponsor of the entire series and, while best known for its LIV involvement, it also bankrolled the $5 million Aramco Saudi Ladies International, an LET event won by Thailand’s Patty Tavatanakit two weeks ago in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Riyadh is the home base of the Saudi Golf Federation.
While it’s an LET event, the Aramco field at Feather Sound also includes American LPGA stars Brittany Lincicome, Lexi Thompson and Megan Khang. Aramco is a global integrated energy and chemicals company that says it is partnering with the Saudi Federation “as part of the company’s efforts in female empowerment.’’
Lincicome was featured at the tourney’s kickoff press conference. She’ll be playing in the Aramco Series for the first time on a course that is just three miles from her home. She knows the Feather Sound layout well.
“It’s just a beautiful place. I love going there,’’ she said. “Just to have other Tour players see this course is going to be a real treat, because they’re going to love it.’’
Feather Sound was able to get its course ready for tournament play in a hurry. (Joy Sarver Photos)
The tourney got a late start on the promotion end because of delays in lining up a site. Feather Sound was officially notified of its selection only five weeks ago but was still close to being ready to welcome spectators over a week before the start of play.
Feather Sound’s original course was a Joe Lee design that opened in 1976 and was renovated by Kipp Schulties in 2022.
The Aramco Series has an unusual format. It consists of five team events with an individual competition included in each one. There’ll be a player draft in which designated captains are determined off the Rolex World Golf Rankings. They’ll pick one teammate off the LET entry list, get another determined randomly by LET staffers and a third from amateurs chosen by Aramco personnel.
Teams and individuals will compete together over the first two rounds and only individuals will battle on the final day. The prize money will be split, with $500,000 awarded off the team competition and $500,000 off individual play. The professional field will be cut after 36 holes to the low 60 and ties.
LPGA star Brittany Lincicome, who lives near Feather Sound, was featured at Media Day.
The unusual format is no problem for Lincicome, who was recently named an assistant captain for the U.S. Solheim Cup team.
“A team component is something different,’’ she said. “We’re always evolving in the game of golf, and to have the team competition with amateurs and then going into singles – why not?’’
That Aramco Team Series is the only LET event in the United States this year, but it was held for two years in New York and Trump International, in West Palm Beach, hosted last year when Spain’s Carlota Ciganda was the champion. Ciganda will compete at Feather Sound as will England’s Bronte Law, winner of the Lalla Meryem Cup – last week’s third stop of the LET season in Morocco.
Officially named Aramco Team Series-Tampa, this year’s schedule also has events in Seoul, South Korea, May 9-11; London July 2-5, Asia Oct. 4-6 and Riyadh Oct. 31-Nov. 3. All have $1 million purses put up by PIF.
They’re all part of LET’s 46th season, one which includes 31 events held in 20 countries.
Feather Sound got all spruced up for the arrival of the LET’s unique team event.
Dustin Johnson and Scottie Scheffler don’t play on the same pro golf tour any more, but their play will be intertwined over the next three weeks.
