ORLANDO, FL. – The biggest show in golf wrapped up on Friday at the Orange County Convention Center, and the 69th PGA Merchandise Show was a bit different than the previous 68 stagings. The pandemic forced cancelation of the show in 2021 and the two-year hiatus took its toll Normally the show has about 1,000…
Daily Herald Columns
LPGA’s T of C turned into the `Annika Show’
LAKE NONA, FL. – Annika Sorenstam didn’t win on Sunday but – as the only woman in a 50-player group of celebrities that included famous sport stars like Roger Clemens, Greg Maddux, Brian Urlacher, Jeremy Roenick, John Smoltz, Sterling Sharp and Tom Glavin, the 51-year old golf legend did just fine. No doubt she was…
Malpede, Morrison announce their retirements
The 69th PGA Merchandise Show is coming up this week in Orlando, FL., and that’s generally a big week for club professionals nation-wide who use the big event at the Orange County Convention Center to begin preparations for another season. It won’t be quite the same this year for two of Chicago’s longest-standing club leaders….
Medinah announcement might be highlight of 2021 Chicago golf season
That horrible pandemic made 2021 a difficult year for everybody, but it was somewhat less so for those in the Chicago area golf industry. The courses were busy, the big events were back on schedule and an extraordinarily large number of facilities took on expansion projects. The biggest was at Heritage Oaks, the Northbrook Park…
New additions open at Poplar Creek, Fox Run courses
While most area golf courses are in the process of closing for the season, a couple are just kicking into high gear thanks to the completion of some major construction work. The Bridges of Poplar Creek, an 18-holer in Hoffman Estates, has opened its new Toptracer Range. It features 10 covered, heated hitting bays. While…
Olympia Fields will host another BMW Championship in 2023
The PGA Tour’s 2021 season concluded on Sunday, but the circuit – along with the Western Golf Association – made an announcement on Monday that will have a huge effect on the Chicago golf community for years to come. After a two-year absence the PGA Tour will be back in the Chicago area in 2023…
Jin Young Ko’s epic win caps off a big week for the LPGA
NAPLES, FL. – The PGA and LPGA tours concluded their 2021 seasons on Sunday, and the women went out with a bigger bang than the men. The PGA Tour reached its high point a couple months ago with the staging of the FedEx Cup Playoffs and the Ryder Cup. Those were tough acts for…
Szokol makes it into the LPGA’s most lucrative tournament
The golf season has a series of climax events these days. The PGA Tour had its season climax in either September, when the FedEx Cup Playoffs concluded, or October, when the Ryder Cup ended. Take your pick. PGA Tour Champions concluded its season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs last Sunday when Phil Mickelson won the last…
Flavin claims first PGA Tour check — almost $100,000 — with his Dad on bag
Monday qualifiers are a way of life for Patrick Flaviin, the budding golf touring pro from Highwood. One of only two players to win both the Illinois State Amateur and Illinois Open in the same year, Flavin estimates he’s played in 30 such nail-biting rounds in hopes of getting into tournaments on either the PGA…
Small, Biancalana will play in a golf major in 2022
Mike Small considers himself a golf coach first and a player second, but he proved again how good a player he can be in qualifying for another major championship last week — this one of the senior variety. The University of Illinois men’s coach was free to compete after his Illiini concluded the 2021 portion…