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19th Hole

Confirmed: Ernie Els did indeed beat the crap out of Steve Marino aboard a private jet

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Perhaps you’ve heard the rumor that Ernie Els and Steve Marino (a colorful member of the Tour in his own right) put back a few and let the fists fly in Els’ private jet a few years back.

The rumor was further substantiated earlier this month when a friend of a friend to Marino, retired hockey player Mike Commodore, appeared on Barstool Sports’ Spittin Chiclets podcast and said this.

“Marino is…sitting at a bar crushing some beers. Ernie Els walks in and sits down and they have a couple beers. Els is like, “What do you do for a living?” Els has no…clue who this guy is. Marino is like, “Actually, I’m so many spots ahead of you on the money list.” They both laugh. Ernie likes him.”

Els then asked Marino if he was playing a particular tournament in Japan. When Marino said he was, Els said he’d give him a ride back to Florida on his jet. Three months later, they both make the cut at the tournament in Japan, and they finish the tournament. Marino wasn’t sure if Els remembered he’d promised him a lift, but then Els says he invited him aboard his plane…Marino, for his part, is pumped, having never experienced the joys of private aviation before.

“They get on the plane. It’s just the two of them. They’re crushing beers. They take off. Have some food. This and that. They’re having a blast. Marino’s like, ‘This is the greatest time of my life! I’m flying private. I’m crushing beers!’

“They’re standing kind of in the aisle or whatever and Ernie Els comes up to him and says something like, ‘Are you having a good time?’…and Els is like, ‘Now we fight!’ and straight-up headbutts him..hard…Ernie starts throwing him around all over the place, and the co-pilot comes back screaming.”

At this point in the pod, one of the hosts cuts in and mentions that the pilot said something along the lines of, “Ernie not again!” indicating Els has a penchant for such behavior.

Marino apparently, “covered in blood,” decided to try to get some sleep. “At some point, he wakes up, and Ernie Els is towering over him and just strokes him.”

The co-pilot then intervened again, in full parental mode, threatening, apparently, to ground the plane. The two then went to their separate corners and didn’t speak for the rest of the flight.

When the plane landed and Marino went to get off, Commodore said, “Ernie’s there waiting at the bottom of the stairs…and Ernie’s like, ‘Great flight, Steve, we’ll see you around!’”

Commodore also added “it’s confirmed” Marino lost a tooth in the fight(s).

Insane, right? Els, a guest on this week’s No Laying Up podcast,, essentially confirmed this tale of mile-high brawling.

“It was just myself and Stevie coming from Japan to Palm Beach,” Els said. “We had a lot to drink. There was a lot to talk about, and we kind of hugged each other. It was a lovefest on the airplane. Nobody got seriously injured. It was all in good fun. It’s just what guys do and there’s a lot of testosterone running.”

Yes. When there’s a lot of testosterone running, a certain set might take to beat the hell out of each other in private jets. The rest of us will have to be content with shouting at the television and our barroom brawls.

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19th Hole

Rory McIlroy takes shot at Greg Norman while discussing Monday’s Saudi PIF meeting

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Rory McIlroy has recently changed his tune on both LIV and the Saudi Arabian PIF, but according to recent comments, he still isn’t a big fan of LIV Golf CEO, Greg Norman.

While speaking to the media after his final round of the PLAYERS Championship, McIlroy expressed optimism for PIF Governor Yasir al-Rumayyan’s intentions in the game of golf.

“They’re a sovereign wealth fund. They want to park money for decades and not worry about it,” McIlroy said of the PIF.

“They want to invest in smart and secure businesses, and the PGA Tour is definitely one of those, especially if they’re looking to invest in sport in some way.I have spent time with Yasir. I think the people who have represented him in LIV have done him a disservice, so Norman and those guys.

Reportedly, a meeting will be taking place in Ponte Vedra today with the PGA Tour Board of Directors and the PIF. According to Bob Harig of Sports Illustrated, that meeting will include Tiger Woods.

“I think it should have happened months ago, so I am glad it’s happening,” Rory said.

“Hopefully that progresses conversations and gets us closer to a solution.”

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19th Hole

Scottie Scheffler had an interesting response when asked how he ‘quiets the noise’ following Players victory

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After Scottie Scheffler’s incredibly impressive victory at the PLAYERS Championship, he spoke on camera about his approach.

Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee asked the world number one “how do you quiet the noise?”

Scheffler replied, “I just try to do my best to stay in my own little world. You know, I don’t have social media, I spend most of my time on Apple News.”

Scheffler added that he clicks “not for me” when golf articles come up to ensure that he doesn’t see anything regarding golf news.

“I really just do my best to stay out of reading things that are either good or bad about myself. If I’m reading bad things about myself, it’ll frustrate me. If I read good things about myself, my head will get too big. So, I really do my best to stay out of the fray and continue to put in the work”.

Scheffler’s approach has clearly been a good one, as he’s playing some of the best golf of any professional in recent memory.

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19th Hole

Wyndham Clark impresses fans with post-round act following Players Championship heartbreak

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The PLAYERS Championship certainly delivered an exciting finish, with Scottie Scheffler charging from five shots back to start the day to win The PLAYERS for a second consecutive season.

On the 18th hole, Wyndham Clark had a putt to tie the event and sent it to a playoff, but the ball went halfway down before narrowly lipping out at the last second.

Despite of the heartbreaking defeat, Clark stayed back and signed autographs for fans.

Plenty of fans took to social media to express gratitude for Clark showing such class after such a difficult result.

Clark’s appearance on Full Swing season 2 along with his ability to play well in big events have made him quickly rise to the top of the fan favorite list on the PGA Tour.

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