Carrie Williams, the executive director of the Illinois PGA, has no problem calling this week’s 39^th annual Chicago Golf Show “the unofficial kickoff to the Chicago golf season.’’ That is what it has become for more than three decades.

The annual mid-winter event begins its three-day run on Friday (FEB 23) at the Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont. All the major Chicago golf organizations are involved with the Chicago District Golf Association expanding its role in its third year as the event’s presenting sponsor.

Attendees will be greeted by a panoramic view of a new CDGA Town Square that will cover 11,000 square feet and encompass, among other things. two side-by-side Longest Putt competitions.

The CDGA is also partnering with Best Hole-in-One to present a new Break the Glass Challenge in the new club Demo Day area.  Attendees will also be offered a free round of golf courtesy of GolfVisions, which operates 14 area courses.

Show hours are noon-6 p.m. on Friday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. on Sunday.  Adult admission is $7 on Friday and $12 on the weekend days. For youth 12-15 it’s $4 all days and those under 11 will be admitted free.

CHAMPIONS TOUR: Batavia-based club manufacturer Tour Edge is lamenting the Achilles injury that sidelined its prime ambassador, Bernhard Langer.  Langer was set to defend his title in the Chubb Classic, a Florida event in which he tied Hale Irwin’s record PGA Tour Champions 45 victories in 2023.

Langer, 66, took sole possession of the record by winning last year’s U.S. Senior Open and had announced plans to make his last appearance at the Masters a few days before the injury sidelined him indefinitely.

The Chubb event was shortened from 54 to 36 holes when rain deluged the Tiburon course in Naples last Sunday. Stephen Ames was declared the champion after the course was deemed unplayable

Finishing in a tie for second was Mark Hensby, who has a sterling record in Illinois. He won the Illinois State Amateur in 1994, the Illinois Open in 1996 and the John Deere Classic in 2004.

HERE AND THERE: Illinois will again be limited to three local qualifiers for the men’s U.S. Open but berths in the finals of the U.S. Women’s Open will be on the line at Briarwood, in Deerfield, on May 13. That’s the first of 13 non-local qualifiers for U.S. Golf Assn. championships to be conducted by the CDGA this year.

Pine Meadow, in Mundelein, hosted successful Illinois PGA Super Senior championships for men in recent years.  Now Pine Meadow will hold one for women Aug. 27-28.  It’ll be conducted in age-based flights – 60-64, 65-69, 70-74 and 75 and over.

Jeff Kawucha, who had been at Oak Brook Golf Club, is now the head professional at The Preserve at Oak Meadows in Addison.

 

 

Doug Ghim developed his golf skills first growing up in Arlington Heights and he progressed all the way to the PGA Tour.  Last week he even put himself in position to win for the first time at the WM Phoenix Open.

Ghim got off to a good start, shooting 65 in the first round.  In the second he was pelted with beer cups after he made birdie at the par-3 16^th hole at TPC Scottsdale, and he was tied for third place after seven holes when darkness halted play in Saturday’s weather-delayed third round.

So far, so good. The Phoenix crowds are known for being big and boisterous.  Last week’s was even more so.  The tourney reported crowds nearing 250,000 for the week, and that was deemed a PGA Tour record. At the par-3 No. 16 hole the fans were particularly unruly, to put it mildly.

Even the usually mild-mannered Zach Johnson, the U.S. Ryder Cup captain, snapped at them,  he was saying he was “sick of it’’ and to “just shut up.’’

Ghim hung on through the craziness to tie for 12^th, his best finish in four starts this year and an indication his game is taking shape after missing the cut in his first two tournaments.  Ghim tied for 13^th the previous week at the Farmer’s Insurance Open. Phoenix was a bigger money event, and Ghim pocketed $187,000.

His thoughts on the impact of the rowdy weekend crowds weren’t recorded but they may have affected Northbrook’s Nick Hardy, who has had a solid start to the season.  He survived all five cuts and was hovering in the top half of the leaderboard at Phoenix until shooting a 78 in the final round,

The always gentlemanly Luke Donald, the European Ryder Cup captain, didn’t survive the cut at Phoenix but got an indication what his Euro squad might experience when the Ryder Cup is played on American soil in 2025.

“This tournament was a nice precursor to what New York and Bethpage might feel like,’’ said Donald. “It’s quite the atmosphere, the rush, the intensity. There’s nothing quite like the energy you feel as a player playing (in Phoenix).’’

SHOW TIME: Nick Anderson, the former University of Illinois basketball star, and long-time NFL place-kicker Robbie Gould will be featured at the 39^th Chicago Golf Show, which has a Feb. 23-25 run at the Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont.

Anderson will be on the show’s Main Stage on both weekend days to promote his Flight 25 Foundation partnership with the Chicago District Golf Association Foundation. Gould, a CDGA ambassador, will also be appearing on the show’s Main Stage.

HERE AND THERE:  Ghim won’t play in the Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles this week.  That’s where Tiger Woods will make his season debut.  Hardy will be in the field there.

Wheaton’s Kevin Streelman, battling a back injury the last three weeks, had hoped to return at Phoenix – the PGA Tour stop closest to his Arizona home.  He didn’t make it, though, and will also miss the Genesis stop.

Jamie Nieto, formerly head professional at The Preserve at Oak Meadows in Addison, is now assistant professional at The Fox in St. Charles.

The U.S. Golf Association has announced Illinois’ three local qualifying sites for the men’s U.S. Open – Stonewall Orchard, in Grayslake, on April 24; Cantigny, in Wheaton, on April 29; and Illini Country Club, in Springfield, on May 13.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wheaton’s Kevin Streelman has been the Chicago area’s most successful PGA Tour player since joining the circuit in 2008, and has $26.7 milllion in career winnings to show for it. This season, though, hasn’t started well.

Now 45, Streelman has been one of the circuit’s most durable players but this season started with missed cuts at the Sony Open and American Express Championship. Last week’s  Farmer’s Insurance Open was even more painful however.

Streelman shot 71 in the first round, then withdrew. He later tweeted that he had “strained something in my lower back badly.’’ The injury happened when he hit a wedge shot out of heavy rough. He won’t be playing in this week’s AT & T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the next stop on the West Coast swing.  That’s an event Streelman has played well in. He finished inside the top 20 as an individual every year since 2016 and was the runner-up in 2020.

He also teamed with football player Larry Fitzgerald to win the team title in 2018 and 2020, leading Streelman to call Pebble Beach “my favorite stop on tour.’’

Streelman lives in the Phoenix area now.  “I hope to rest for a week and hopefully be 100 percent for the Waste Management (Phoenix Open). One of the most popular tournaments on tour, it’s two weeks away.

HARDY’S HOT: Northbrook’s Nick Hardy is off to the best start of the Chicago connected players.  He made the cut in all three of his starts, the best finish being a tie for 37^th at the Farmer’s Insurance Open last week.  He’s in the field at Pebble Beach.

Arlington Heights’ Doug Ghim had missed cuts in his first two starts but bounced back with a tie for 13^th at the Farmer’s. He didn’t enter the Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

LIV GETS GOING: The LIV Tour, which added Masters champion Jon Rahm to its roster for its third season, opens its 14-tournament campaign in Mexico on Friday. Rahm also brings in his own team, with Tyrrell Hatton the most notable of the other three members. That’ll boost the field from 12 to 13 teams.

LIV shifted its pre-Masters tourney from Florida to Trump Doral in Florida in March, leaving Chicago’s chances of having an event this season in serious jeopardy.  Rich Harvest Farms, in Sugar Grove, hosted tournaments in the fledgling circuit’s first two campaigns and owner Jerry Rich invited the tour back for 2024 but the invitation hasn’t been accepted yet.  The only hopes left are for Rich Harvest to be picked for one of LIV’s two season-ending events in September. No sites have been announced for those.

SHOW TIME: The Chicago Golf Show returns to the Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont Feb. 23-25.  Show hours will be noon-6 p.m. on Feb. 23, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. On Feb. 24 and 9 a.m.-4 p.m.on Feb. 25.  Tickets are $7 for adults and youth 16 and over on Friday and $12 on the weekend days.  Rates will be $4 on the weekend for youth 12-15 and there’ll be free admission for those 11 and under.

PGA SHOW AFTERMATH: Two frequent winners in International Network of Golf contests – John Iacono of Zero Friction and David Glod of club manufacturer Tour Edge – were successful again in the ING Industry Awards presented Thursday at the 71^st PGA Show in Orlando, FL.

Both Chicago area companies were honored in the Product Ingenuity categories, Iacono for his just-introduced Stride remote control golf bag and Glod for his company’s latest driver model.

The ING Media Awards were also announced, with Steve Kashul’s Golf Scene topping the television show category.  The Chicago area also had four Outstanding Achievers in the Media Awards – Dave Lockhart (TV show), Ed Sherman (features), Rory Spears  (radio) and Len Ziehm (features).

 

 

The Chicago District Golf Association won’t announce its 2024 tournament schedule until Dec. 6 but it will include two major additions.

For 90 years the Illinois Women’s Golf Association, a group based downstate, conducted the Illinois Women’s State Amateur as well as its state championship for senior players.  With IWGA membership dwindling, those events would likely have been discontinued had the CDGA not stepped in.

The Women’s State Amateur will be switched from a match play format to a 54-hole stroke play event.  It’ll be held June 10-12 at The Grove, in Long Grove. In addition, changes in the U.S. Golf Association’s exemption process means that the champion of both the Illinois women’s and men’s state amateur championships will receive exemptions into the U.S. Amateurs.

While The Grove also hosted last year’s Illinois Women’s State Amateur, the men’s version will make a rare departure from the Chicago area in 2024.  It’ll be held July 16-18 at the Atkins Golf Club at the University of Illinois in Champaign.

LIV IN LIMBO:  Rich Harvest Farms, in Sugar Grove, hosted well-received tournaments on the LIV Tour the last two years, but a return in 2024, is uncertain.  LIV owner Jerry Rich invited the circuit back, but the latest LIV schedule didn’t include a Chicago stop.

That doesn’t mean there won’t be one, though.  The circuit plans another 14-tournament international schedule and three dates are still open. An April 5-7 event is planned at a U.S. facility and the season-ending individual and team championships, like held in late August or early September, don’t have announced sites yet either.

BROZEK’S BACK:  Casey Brozek, a former Illinois PGA president, has landed the director of golf position at Medinah Country Club. He replaces Marty DeAngelo,, who took a position in Naples, FL.

Brozek was head professional at Crystal Lake Country Club for 16 years before moving to a director’s position at Quail West in Florida. Brozek arrives at Medinah as the club prepares to re-open its No. 3 course, which has undergone a year-long renovation, and is scheduled to host the President’s Cup matches in 2026.

INDIA APOLOGIZES: Deerfield’s Vince India, the reigning Illinois Open champion, regrets having  violated the PGA Tour’s Integrity Program and plans to continue competing after his six-month suspension expires on March 17, 2024.

A regular on the Korn Ferry Tour, India admitted gambling on golf tournaments in which he did not compete. He issued his apology on social media outlets.

“I’m confident I’ll grow from this….and ultimately come out a better person and player and continue my goal to play golf at the highest level,’’ said India.

JDC PAYOFF: The John Deere Classic, Illinois’ only annual PGA Tour event, announced that its Birdies for Charity program produced a record $14.1 million payoff for its 478 participating charities from its July staging at TPC Deere Run in downstate Silvis.

 

 

 

The Illinois Golf Hall of Fame will induct its 20^th class on Friday, Nov. 10, and selection committee chairman Tim Cronin says “it couldn’t be more diverse or vibrant.’’

Heading the six-member class are two long-time club professionals, Tim O’Neal and Bruce Patterson, and Dr. Randy Kane, who served as the first Chicago District Golf Association turfgrass director from 1985-2006.

Also headed for enshrinement are Taylorville’s Dave Ryan, who has dominated the state’s senior amateur competition for more than a decade; Margaret Abbott Dunne, the first woman to win an Olympic competition in 1900; and Harry Collis, who excelled as a player, club professional, course architect, superintendent and turfgrass innovator over a 40-year career spent mostly at Flossmoor Country Club.

The induction ceremony will be held at The Glen View, in Glenview, which is the home of the Illinois Golf Hall of Fame. The Hall inducted its first class in 1989 and selections are made by a state-wide committee every two years.

O’Neal spent most of his career at North Shore Country Club, in Glenview, and Patterson was the long-time director of golf at Butler National, in Oak Brook. Patterson was instrumental in creating the Illinois PGA Foundation and O’Neal is its current president.

A SMALL MILESTONE: Mike Small, the University of Illinois’ men’s coach, finished third  in last week’s Senior PGA Professionals Championship in Florida and earned one of the 35 berths in next May’s KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, which includes touring professionals, at Harbor Shores, in Michigan.

Small’s most recent success came after he claimed two Illinois Section PGA titles in August. He took the Illinois PGA Championship for the 14^th time and the Illinois Senior PGA crown for the sixth time.  The latter made Small the winningest PGA professional across all of the organization’s 41 sections.

SETBACK FOR INDIA: Deerfield’s Vince India, the reigning Illinois Open champion, was hit with a six-month suspension by the PGA Tour for violation of its “Integrity Program.’’ The program, updated in 2021, is designed “to mitigate betting-related corruption in PGA Tour competitions.’’

India, 34, was suspended for betting on PGA Tour events in which he was not a competitor.  He has been on the Korn Ferry Tour since 2015, has made 176 starts and has career earnings on all levels of the PGA Tour of $662,823.  His suspension started on Sept. 18 and will end on March 17, 2024. India declined to comment on the matter.

HERE AND THERE: Though the LIV Tour hasn’t announced its 2024 schedule yet a tentative version did not include a return to Rich Harvest Farms or any other Chicago area course.  Rich Harvest hosted tournaments in the first two seasons of the fledgling circuit with Cameron Smith winning in 2022 and Bryson DeChambeau this year.

The CDGA has announced its Players of the Year.  Mac McClear, of Hinsdale, and T.J. Barger, of Bloomington, were named co-players of the year and Mike Henry, of Bloomington, won in the Senior division.  All three were first-time honorees in the CDGA competition.

Mike Scully, former head professional at Medinah when the club hosted the 2006 PGA Championship and 2012 Ryder Cup, has moved on to Kinsale, in North Naples, FL.  Scully will be the new club’s general manager and director of golf.  It’s scheduled to open in the fall of 2024. Scully, a member of Illinois’ 1984 Rose Bowl team, is coming to Kinsdale from Streamsong Resort, another Florida venue.

 

 

 

 

 

Andy Mickelson, the director of golf at Mistwood in Romeoville, is the Illinois PGA’s Player of the Year.  He did it with only one win, in the section’s first stroke play event, but his consistency in 10 other competitions earned him enough Bernardi Player of the Year points to win the prestigious honor.

“Winning the Illinois PGA Player of the Year is a huge accomplishment for me,’’ said Mickelson.  “I put a lot of time and effort into my game, and it’s cool to see it pay off.  It seemed like I had a lot of top-10s to go along with the one win but a couple of second place finishes and good runs at our majors helped put me over the edge.’’

Mickelson clinched Player of the Year with a tie for fifth-place finish in the season-ending IPGA Players Championship.

The Assistant Player-of-the-Year award went to Rockford’s Kevin Flack who finished into the top 10 in all nine assistants competitions and won four of them.

BIG YEAR FOR THE HAWK: Brian Carroll, head pro at The Hawk in St. Charles, won, the IPGA Players title for the second straight year at Twin Orchard, in Long Grove.  He had to hold off one of his teaching staff members, Roy Biancalana, and Kevin Flack, from Rockford’s Mauh-Nah-Tee-See Country Club, to get that win.

Biancalana, though, had a great season as well.  He defended his IPGA Senior Match Play title at Chicago’s Ridge Country Club in Chicago and now stands tied with Jim Sobb, the former pro at Ivanhoe, as the only player to win that event three times.  Biancalana took his trio of titles in consecutive years.

LEADER OF THE ARCHITECTS: Michael Benkusky, of Lake in the Hills, has been elected president of the American Society of Golf Course Architects.  He’ll serve in that capacity through the fall of 2024.

Originally from Iowa, Benkusky’s design portfolio includes two prominent Illinois courses, Canyata, in Marshall, and St. Charles Country Club.  His other credits include Point O’Woods, in Michigan, and Palm Aire’s Champions Course in Florida.

GOULD JOINS CDGA:  Robbie Gould, who played 11 of his 18 National Football League seasons for the Bears, has joined the Chicago District Golf Association as its Brand Ambassador.

A prominent NFL kicker, Gould holds a 2.7 handicap as a golfer and competes on the Celebrity Tour.

“Robbie epitomizes what it means to be Better Through Golf,’’ said Robert Markionni, the CDGA executive director.  “Whether competing as a talented player himself, using the game to give back, or engaging with other golfers, we have long admired Robbie’s affinity for golf.  We look forward to joining forces with him in an effort to elevate the game we all love.’’

 

There’s no need to rehashing this Ryder Cup.  Europe’s 16 ½-11 ½ win in Italy on Sunday was marked by extraordinary emotion, some controversy and more frustration for Team USA, which hasn’t won on foreign soil since 1993.

It was, at least, great theater and there’ll be more of that when the competition is played next at Bethpage Black in New York in two years.

For now it’s most appropriate to focus on just two things: what was the main reason Europe won again, and why did the USA get soundly beaten just two years after its record 19-9 romp at Wisconsin’s Whistling Straits two years ago.

The biggest reason the Euros won was obvious.  Luke Donald was by far the superior captain. And to think that the former Northwestern great wasn’t the guy the European selectors really wanted.  They gave the job to Sweden’s Henrik Stenson first, then took it away when Stenson joined the LIV Tour. Only then did Donald get the job he so badly wanted – and deserved.

Donald played on four European teams and compiled a 10-4-1 record as a player.  He most memorably played a key role in his team’s come-from-way-behind win in the “Meltdown at Medinah’’ in 2012. He also served as a vice captain on two European teams.

No wonder he was choking back tears moments after Rickie Fowler conceded a match to Tommy Fleetwood, which gave Europe the points needed for victory.

“This was always something I dreamed about,’’ said Donald, “and it’s been a wave of emotions, starting with asking myself if I could really do this.’’

Once he got the job Donald had to build a roster without some mainstays of the past.  Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and the six other DP World Tour members who defected to the LIV circuit were ruled ineligible for Ryder Cup selection. U.S. captain Zach Johnson was allowed to pick them, though he selected only Brooks Koepka with his captain’s picks.

Donald built an interesting roster that included Justin Rose, at 45 by far the oldest player in the latest Ryder Cup, and two very young untested rookies in Robert McIntyre and Ludvig Aberg. Then came the speeches at opening ceremonies.  Donald’s was outstanding and inspirational.  It carried over to the competition.

What was the main reason the U.S. lost this time?  That’s pretty obvious, too.  Nine of the 12 U.S. players didn’t compete for five weeks prior to the matches.  If it were one of the four major championships there’s no way any of those players would have bypassed five weeks of tournaments leading in. This year it was vacation time after the FedEx Cup Playoffs. Prior to Whistling Straits there was only a three-week gap.

The U.S. could event get a full team to its lone early practice on the competition site. Two players – Patrick Cantlay and best friend Xander Schauffele – skipped the team trip to Italy because it conflicted with Cantlay’s bachelor party.

The DP World Tour had tournaments right up until the Ryder Cup, and European  team members competed.  Europe players were simply more committed than the U.S. players were. Simple as that.

 

HERE AND THERE

Only Illinois alum Adrien Dumont de Chassart has advanced from the Korn Ferry Tour to the PGA Tour for next season.  The top 75 on the point list still have a chance, and Lake Forest’s Brad Hopfinger (No. 61) and Illinois alum Brian Campbell (75) have qualified for the season-ending Korn Ferry Tour Championship. It tees off on Thursday at Victoria National in Indiana. Only the top 30 move on to the premier circuit.

The last championship of the Chicago District Golf Association’s 110^th season concludes this week when the CDGA Senior Amateur Four-Ball ends its four-day run at Elgin Country Club on Thursday. The CDGA will also conduct the qualifier for the U.S. Four-Ball on Oct. 10 at Bittersweet, in Gurnee.

The Illinois PGA will determine its Player of the Year at the Oct. 9-10 Players Championship at Twin Orchard, in Long Grove.  Mistwood’s Andy Mickelson leads the Bernardi point standings followed by two Rockford players, Chris French and Kevin Flack.  Kyle Donovan of Oak Park and last year’s winner, Brian Carroll of The Hawk in St. Charles, round out the top five. Also on the line is the IPGA Senior Players Championship Oct. 16-17 at Ruth Lake, in Hinsdale.

Golfers on Golf, Chicago’s longest standing golf radio show, has concluded its 33^rd season.

Northwestern concludes its two-day Windy City Classic women’s tournament on Tuesday at the Glen Club in Glenview.

 

 

The results of Sunday’s LIV Chicago tourney at Rich Harvest Farms create the need for another look at the U.S. team for this week’s Ryder Cup in Italy.

Captain Zach Johnson has been criticized for passing on Keegan Bradley as a captain’s pick and choosing Justin Thomas, who had a disappointing (for him) season, instead.  Johnson also had detractors because he put a LIV player on the 12-man team.  Brooks Koepka had played in the last three Ryder Cups, won this year’s PGA Championship and finished second in the Masters.

Second-guessing the captains is always part of the Ryder Cup preliminaries, and European captain Luke Donald has taken heat for not picking Poland’s Adrian Meronk.

In Johnson’s case, the debate resumed after Bryson DeChambeau shot 63 at Rich Harvest to rally for from an eight-stroke deficit to get the victory.  Just a few weeks ago DeChambeau won the LIV stop at Greenbriar, in West Virginia, with a 58-61 performance in the weekend rounds on a course that had hosted the PGA Tour in recent years.

Johnson tweeted about how he was impressed by DeChambeau’s accomplishment at the Greenbriar and strongly hinted he would put him on the U.S. team.  His opinion apparently changed after that but DeChambeau’s play didn’t tail off.  After his win Sunday DeChambeau said he was playing “the most consistently good golf of my life’’ and said he is in better form now than when he won the U.S. Open at New York’s Winged Foot in 2020.

“This stretch is pretty sweet to me,’’ he said, but he’ll miss playing in the Ryder Cup.

“It would have been nice to at least have a call from Zach,’’ said DeChambeau.  “That stings a little.  After all, we’re still golfers out here.  I don’t know who made the decisions, but it would have been nice for him to consider a few more of us because we’re pretty good out here.’’

The future of LIV remains a mystery despite the announcement of a “merger’’ with the PGA Tour and DP World Tour.  There’s no merger yet, and negotiations have been hush-hush. The PGA Tour announced its schedule for 2024.  LIV didn’t.

Rich Harvest owner Jerry Rich declined interview requests on the status of the two-year old stop on his course, and LIV’s Greg Norman was very evident at the tourney, even walking with the leading players on Sunday, but he wasn’t making any comments, either.

A LIV source said the circuit’s schedule for next season would be announced “in four-to-six weeks.’’ LIV has two more tournaments in October to complete its 14-tournament season. It had only eight events in its first campaign.

The PGA Tour’s 2022-23 season ended with the FedEx Playoffs in August, ending its wrap-around scheduling.

As for DeChambeau he’s not reached the level of Hale Irwin in success on Illinois courses yet.  Irwin won the Western Open at Butler National, the U.S. Open at Medinah and took several titles in PGA Tour Champions events, most of them at Kemper Lakes. He retains the title of “Mr. Chicago.’’

DeChambeau’s three in-state wins are impressive, though, and he’s hard-pressed to explain it, just like Irwin was.

“It’s the bluegrass, baby!’’ DeChambeau said.  “It’s really the grass, the air.  I don’t know, but there’s something about the greens.  I’m comfortable.  I grew up on grass like that.’’

Like all the LIV players questioned about the future of their circuit, DeChambeau was quick to defend his tour.  The others, questioned in casual conversation, all said they wanted to stay with LIV rather than go back to the PGA Tour.

Sooner or later, there’ll be a breakthrough and we’ll see what golf will look like in 2024 or 2025.

DeChambeau volunteered a tantalizing picture in his final thoughts before leaving town:

“I’m not going to describe it too much, but a lot of work in the offseason is going on. What I can tell you is that something special is going to happen next year.’’

 

 

 

Golf drama doesn’t get any better than this.

Bryson DeChambeau delivered it in Illinois for the third time on Sunday to win the LIV Chicago tournament at Rich Harvest Farms, in Sugar Grove. In 2015 he won the U.S. Amateur at Olympia Fields, and in 2017 he captured the first of his seven PGA Tour titles at the John Deere Classic in downstate Silvis. His victory on Sunday was more dramatic than both of those.

DeChambeau trailed second-round leader Sebastian Munoz by eight strokes going into the final round. Things changed quickly after he covered his face in a gleeful celebration as an 80-foot downhill, bending birdie putt dropped on the No. 12 hole.

That would get any player going, but DeChambeau took it to extremes.  He birdied No. 14, made pars at Nos. 15 and 16 and then birdied the 17^th and 18^th.  That was his winning stretch in his round of 8-under-par 63, created in the LIV’s shotgun format. His winning total over the tourney’s 54 holes was 13-under-par 200.

“The most consistently good golf of my life,’’ said DeChambeau.  “This stretch has been pretty sweet to me.’’

Amazingly, Rich Harvest wasn’t his best tournament of the year.  In the LIV’s Greenbriar stop DeChambeau shot 58-61 on the weekend to win.  That defies the imagination, but Sunday’s win did, too.

To get the win DeChambeau had to overtake Aniban Lahiri, his teammate on the Crushers – one of the 12 four-man teams competing in LIV tourneys.  After DeChambeau finished Lahiri needed a birdie on the 18^th hole to win the tournament or a par to force a playoff with his Crushers’ captain.

Lahiri got neither. His approach on the tough par-4 was short, stopping on the front fringe of the green.  His first putt was weak, stopping nine feet short of the cup.  His par putt missed, too, and that made DeChambeau a somewhat reluctant champion.

“I still can’t believe it,’’ he said.  “I wanted ‘Ban to make that putt and settle things in a playoff, but it is what it is.  He’s an unbelievable player.’’

Lahiri has yet to win on the LIV circuit but he had three runner-up finishes. Sunday was his fourth.  He kept grinding  but “I was fighting my swing all day.’’

There was a good consolation prize for both. The Crushers won their second team title of the season and clinched a bye in the circuit’s championship.  The team was comprised by DeChambeau, Lahiri, Paul Casey and Charles Howell III.

“As a team together we’re a pretty dominant force,’’ said DeChambeau, who stressed that over his latest individual accomplishment.

“All four of us would rather win (as individuals) but the team got a win that we should pull off,’’ said Lahiri.  “I don’t think we’ve ever been off the podium (LIV’s style of honoring the top three teams and individuals at the conclusion of each tournament).’’

Another strong showing made DeChambeau’s absence from this week’s Ryder Cup matches in Italy more noticeable.  U.S. captain Zach Johnson declared DeChambeau as a captain’s pick after the 58-61 performance at Greenbriar but apparently changed his mind. The only LIV player named to a Ryder Cup team was PGA Championship winner Brooks Koepka. He was deserving, but his 26^th place finish Sunday doesn’t suggest great things should be expected from him this week in Italy.

The Rich Harvest stop, which drew enthusiastic crowds again, didn’t impact LIV’s player-of-year race much.  DeChambeau, with $4 million won for his individual title and his share of the $3 million prize for the Crushers’ team victory, moved him into third place with $12,995,833.  Leader Talor Gooch has won $15,070,012 for the season’s 12 events and Cameron Smith, last year’s Rich Harvest winner, has $13,755,417.

Last tournament to improve on the individual money list is in Saudi Arabia Oct. 13-15.  The LIV season, up from eight to 14 events this year, concludes with its team championship Oct. 20-22 at Doral, in Miami.