The big stars were Cameron Smith and Dustin Johnson when the LIV Tour made its Chicago debut at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove last year. No surprise there. Smith was the reigning British Open titlist and will be the defending champion when the Saudi-backed circuit returns to Rich Harvest this week. Johnson, winner of…
Daily Herald Columns
LIV Tour has found Chicago a welcoming place
The LIV Tour was a controversial mystery when it made its first Chicago appearance last year at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove. This week the Saudi-back circuit returns and its TV host, Jerry Foltz, can’t wait. Pre-tournament festivities are on tap for Wednesday and Thursday before the 54-hole tournament tees off on Friday….
Donald is taking some heat for his Ryder Cup picks
The rosters are set for the Ryder Cup matches and, as usual, the captains are catching heat for some of their selections. Europe’s Luke Donald, though, is catching much more than Zach Johnson of the U.S. with the biennial competition beginning Sept. 29 in Italy. Most obvious contrast between the sides involves players who defected…
Rich Harvest is ready for the LIV Tour’s return
Last year’s Illinois golf season had a late addition – a tournament called LIV Tour Chicago staged at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove. The LIV Tour was a new thing then, and Rich Harvest hosted one of just eight tournaments in the controversial circuit’s first season. The Saudi-back LIV Tour is no mystery…
Donald has the tougher job in Ryder Cup selections
The Tour Championship was supposed to be a climax to the PGA Tour season. Not so this year, though Sunday’s duel between Viktor Hovland and Xander Schauffele in Atlanta would normally suffice. Hovland’s wins in the BMW Championship at Olympia Fields and Sunday’s in Atlanta the last two weeks will be hard to forget, but…
Low scores are commonplace when BMW is played in Chicago
Sunday’s rousing finish to the BMW Championship at Olympia Fields was a lot like the wrapup to the tourney’s previous Chicago area staging when fans were allowed through the gates. Based on the scoring, two of Chicago’s premier private courses didn’t seem so tough for the PGA Tour’s best players then. Soft conditions took the…
No Small feat; Illini coach wins 14th IPGA title
Hopefully the PGA Tour’s BMW Championship, which teed off on Thursday at Olympia Fields, won’t have the problems that affected one of the biggest competitions for local players this week. Mike Small, the men’s coach at the University of Illinois, won the Illinois PGA Professional Championship for the 14th time and became the winningest PGA…
PGA Tour returns to Olympia Fields but will miss Nick Hardy
The BMW Championship returns to Olympia Fields this week, but without a local hopeful. University of Illinois alums Nick Hardy and Thomas Detry didn’t survive the first event of the FedEx Cup Playoffs, though Hardy made a great run at it. Hardy was on the bubble for advancement entering the St. Jude Classic in…
Hardy will make his debut in a much different FedEx Cup Playoffs
The FedEx Cup Playoffs, which begin on Thursday at TPC Southwind in Tennessee, were designed to give the PGA Tour a grand climax to its season. Changes in the postseason format and the arrival of the LIV Golf Tour have changed that, however. In the past the FedEx Playoffs started with 120 players. This…
Illinois Open has a crowded field at Flossmoor
The men’s 74th Illinois Open teed off on Monday with the potential of having too many players at Flossmoor Golf Club. State-wide qualifying rounds largely determine the field in the Illinois Open. There are seven of those and one couldn’t be completed because of rain delays. With rescheduling deemed impossible, the Illinois PGA opted…