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Where Have You Gone Rory Sabbatini?

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It was just a few months ago that Rory Sabbatini put his foot in his mouth claiming Tiger Woods was "as beatable as ever."

Well Rory has found a way to get on Tiger Woods’s last nerve yet again. How’d he do it? By skipping out on the last round of the Target World Challenge citing "personal reasons" at first, a story which his agent has now changed to "shin splints." Sabbatini was in last place going into the final round of the tournament after rounds of 81 and 76, but packed up his locker yesterday. Sabbatini will still collect his $170,000 last place check despite not finishing the tournament. When asked about the situation, Tiger Woods said, "A lot of different things going on, and I’d like to try and get to the bottom of it when I’m done here, and we’ll see what happens." Regardless of what his reasons might have been, Sabbatini’s move was questioned by many players in the field, Mark Calcavecchia said, "I think I could have toughed it out one more round. I don’t think the fans missed him."

Bud Martin, Sabbatini’s agent told the media, "He had shin splints that were bothering him yesterday. He went home overnight and worked on them with his trainer, and they weren’t getting any better. He said he wasn’t going to risk it." Fred Couples in particular was especially critical of Sabbatini. When told about his withdrawal, Couples likened the story to Roger Clemens’s denial of the accusations in the Mitchell Report and said, "He should give [his check] back to the foundation."

Sabbatini has an uncanny knack for doing or saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. Looming like a dark cloud over his four PGA Tour victories, Sabbatini’s actions have a rather distasteful history. When the name Sabbatini comes to mind, it is linked to the memory of him storming off the 17th green while Ben Crane had not yet even hit his approach at the 2005 Booze Allen Classic. Despite the harsh criticism he drew from that incident, Rory continued to protest, utilizing his wife who would occasionally don a shirt with "Keep Up" in bold lettering. Sabbatini reasoned the protest saying, "There are some players who could certainly use some help with their pace of play." However, there surely are more tactful and civil ways to express the same message.

Yet, that has never quite been Sabbatini’s style. Earlier this year he ignited a storm of controversy by calling Tiger Woods "the most beatable he’s ever been," at the Wachovia Championship. Woods went on to beat Sabbatini at the Wachovia and again at the WGC Bridgestone Invitational. Whether Sabbatini makes these comments out of frustration, or simply to seek a reaction, his antics are increasingly non-professional considering his inability to back up his brash statements.

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10 Comments

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  1. Dan

    Dec 20, 2007 at 4:49 pm

    The (supposed) lion that roryed like a mouse, and as far as I’m concerned he is just that a little mouse, who should give back his unearned cheese to the Tiger Foundation.
    Good bye to this bad mouthed, ill mannered, disrespectful, _ _ _ hole !

  2. chris carroll

    Dec 20, 2007 at 12:40 pm

    I feel that rory needs to grow up because this is a game of ettiquete, sorry if I mispelled that, and the way he acts is rediculous. I also liked it how Tiger stuck it to him at the wachovia after he ran his mouth.

  3. Alan

    Dec 19, 2007 at 6:49 pm

    I used to like the guy. I thought a “personality-not a clone.” Now I realize he is a clown, not clone. WD without good reason, assuming he doesn’t return the check, well I no longer care for the clown.

    Good riddance.

  4. Hal Hintze

    Dec 18, 2007 at 9:33 pm

    Rory Sabbatini is living proof that in order to attend Q School one need not complete IQ School.

  5. Jason Michaels

    Dec 18, 2007 at 8:58 pm

    I am speechless… There is no excuse for this.
    Hey Bud Martin please ask poor old Rory a question for us!

    If he was in 1st place going into the final round do you think he could have toughed it out then?

    Rory! this game is not for you…

  6. Dion Keyser

    Dec 18, 2007 at 1:19 pm

    As a fellow South African I am embarrassed to be associated with him, although he does speak with an American accent these days so if you want you can have him (please)

  7. axel foley

    Dec 17, 2007 at 11:09 pm

    He’s been a miserable twit all his life, so who is surprised when he disrespects the game of golf and its greatest player by his latest stunt. Hopefully, Nike will weigh its options with one of the few bad apples in golf, and hit him where it hurts most. Golfers, being independent contractors, usually only have themselves to answer to, but the boos that he’ll hear from this early next year (cant wait to see Phoenix) could finally begin showing up on his bottom line. The jerk of the world deserves it

  8. bigwhipper

    Dec 17, 2007 at 5:11 pm

    Sabbatini = when great talent happens to bad people

  9. B Miller

    Dec 17, 2007 at 2:21 pm

    There is a Santa Claus after all. It’s not enough for me that Tiger wins: Sabbatini must fail!

  10. Rob

    Dec 17, 2007 at 8:47 am

    I used to like Sabbatini, but his withdrawal from the Target is inexcusable. I think he should at least donate the paycheque back to the charity.

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Photos from the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship

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GolfWRX is live this week at the Wells Fargo Championship as a field of the world’s best golfers descend upon Charlotte, North Carolina, hoping to tame the beast that is Quail Hollow Club in this Signature Event — only Scottie Scheffler, who is home awaiting the birth of his first child, is absent.

From the grounds at Quail Hollow, we have our usual assortment of general galleries and WITBs — including a look at left-hander Akshay Bhatia’s setup. Among the pullout albums, we have a look inside Cobra’s impressive new tour truck for you to check out. Also featured is a special look at Quail Hollow king, Rory McIlroy.

Be sure to check back throughout the week as we add more galleries.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying about our Wells Fargo Championship photos in the forums.

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SuperStroke acquires Lamkin Grips

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SuperStroke announced today its purchase of 100-year-old grip maker Lamkin Grips, citing the company’s “heritage of innovation and quality.”

“It is with pride and great gratitude that we announce Lamkin, a golf club grip brand with a 100-year history of breakthrough design and trusted products, is now a part of the SuperStroke brand,” says SuperStroke CEO Dean Dingman. “We have always had the utmost respect for how the Lamkin family has put the needs and benefits of the golfer first in their grip designs. If there is a grip company that is most aligned with SuperStroke’s commitment to uncompromised research, design, and development to put the most useful performance tools in the hands of golfers, Lamkin has been that brand. It is an honor to bring Lamkin’s wealth of product innovation into the SuperStroke family.”

Elver B. Lamkin founded the company in 1925 and produced golf’s first leather grips. The company had been family-owned and operated since that point, producing a wide array of styles, such as the iconic Crossline.

According to a press release, “The acquisition of Lamkin grows and diversifies SuperStroke’s proven and popular array of grip offerings with technology grounded in providing golfers optimal feel and performance through cutting-edge design and use of materials, surface texture and shape.”

CEO Bob Lamkin will stay on as a board member and will continue to be involved with the company.

“SuperStroke has become one of the most proven, well-operated, and pioneering brands in golf grips and we could not be more confident that the Lamkin legacy, brand, and technology is in the best of hands to continue to innovate and lead under the guidance of Dean Dingman and his remarkably capable team,” Lamkin said.

Related: Check out our 2014 conversation with Bob Lamkin, here: Bob Lamkin on the wrap grip reborn, 90 years of history

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Tour Rundown: Pendrith, Otaegui, Longbella, and Dunlap soar

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Take it from a fellow who coaches high school golf in metro Toronto: there’s plenty of great golf played in the land of the maple leaf. All the greats have designed courses over the USA border: Colt, Whitman, Ross, Coore, Mackenzie, Doak, as well as the greatest of the land, Stanley Thompson. I’m partial to him, because he wore my middle name with grandeur. Enough about the architecture, because this week’s Tour Rundown begins with a newly-minted, Canadian champion on the PGA Tour. Something else that the great white north is known for, is weather. It impacted play on three of the world’s tours, forcing final-round cancellations on two of them.

It was an odd week in the golf world. The LPGA and the Korn Ferry were on a break, and only 13/15 of the rounds slated, were played. In the end, we have four champions to recognize, so let’s not delay any longer with minutiae about the game that we love. Let’s run it all down with this week’s Tour Rundown.

PGA Tour: TP takes TS at Byron’s place

The 1980s was a decade when a Canadian emergence was anticipated on the PGA Tour. It failed to materialize, but a path was carved for the next generation. Mike Weir captured the Masters in 2003, but no other countrymen joined him in his quest for PGA Tour conquest. 2024 may herald the long-awaited arrival of a Canadian squad of tour winners. Over the past few years, we’ve seen Nick Taylor break the fifty-plus year dearth of homebred champions at the Canadian Open, and players like Adam Hadwin, Corey Conners, Adam Svennson, and Mackenzie Hughes have etched their names into the PGA Tour’s annals of winners.

This week, Taylor Pendrith joined his mates with a one-shot win at TPC Craig Ranch, the home of the Byron Nelson Classic. Pendrith took a lead into the final round and, while the USA’s Jake Knapp faltered, held on for the slimmest of victories. Sweden’s Alex Noren posted six-under 65 on Sunday to move into third position, at 21-under par. Ben Kohles, a Texan, looked to break through for his first win in his home state. He took the lead from Pendrith at the 71st hole, on the strength of a second-consecutive birdie.

With victory in site, Kohles found a way to make bogey at the last, without submerging in the fronting water. His second shot was greenside, but he could not move his third to the putting surface. His fourth was five feet from par and a playoff, but his fifth failed to drop. Meanwhile, Pendrith was on the froghair in two, and calmly took two putts from 40 feet, for birdie. When Kohles missed for par, Pendrith had, at last, a PGA Tour title.

DP World Tour: China Open in Otaegui’s hands after canceled day four

It wasn’t the fourth round that was canceled in Shenzhen, but the third. Rains came on Saturday to Hidden Grace Golf Club, ensuring that momentum would cease. Sunday would instead be akin to a motorsports restart, with no sense of who might claim victory. Sebastian Soderberg, the hottest golfer on the Asian Swing, held the lead, but he would slip to a 72 on Sunday, and tie for third with Paul Waring and Joel Girrbach. Italy’s Guido Migliozzi completed play in 67 strokes on day three, moving one shot past the triumvirate, to 17-under par.

It was Spain’s Adrian Otaegui who persevered the best and played the purest. Otaegui was clean on the day, with seven birdies for 65. Even when Migliozzi ceased the lead at the 10th, Otaegui remained calm. With everything on the line, Migliozzi made bogey at the par-five 17th, as his principal competitor finished in birdie. To the Italian’s credit, he bounced back with birdie at the last, to claim solo second. The victory was Otaegui’s fifth on the DP World Tour, and first since October of 2022.

PGA Tour Americas: Quito’s rains gift title to Longbella

Across the world, superintendents and their staffs will do anything to prepare a course for play. Even after fierce, nightime rains, the Quito TG Club greeted the first four groups on Sunday. The rains worsened after 7 am, however, and the tour was forced to abort the final round of play. With scores reverting to Saturday’s numbers, Thomas Longbella’s one-shot advantage over Gunn Yang turned into a Tour Americas victory.

64 held the opening-day lead, and Longbella was not far off, with 66. Yang jumped to the top on day two, following a67 with 66. He posted 68 on day three, and anticipated a fierce, final-round duel for the title. As for Longbella, he fought off a ninth-hole bogey on Saturday with six birdies and a 17th-hole eagle. That rare bird proved to be the winning stroke, allowing Longbella to edge past Yang, and secure ultimate victory.

PGA Tour Champions: Dunlap survives Saturday stumble for win

Scott Dunlap did not finish Saturday as well as he might have liked. After beginning play near Houston with 65, Dunlap made two bogeys in his final found holes on day two, to finish at nine-under par. Hot on his heels was Joe Durant, owner of a March 2024 win on PGA Tour Champions. Just behind Durant was Stuart Appleby, perhaps vibing from his Sunday 59 at Greenbrier on this day in 2010. Neither would have a chance to track Dunlap down.

The rains that have forced emergency responders into action, to save hundreds of lives in the metro Houston area, ended hopes for a third day of play at The Woodlands. Dunlap had won once previously on Tour Champions, in 2014 in Washington state. Ten years later, Dunlap was the fortunate recipient of a canceled final round, and his two days of play were enough to earn him TC victory number two.

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