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19th Hole

St. Andrews, other coastal courses, could soon “crumble into the sea,” report says

Published

6 years ago

on

Could St. Andrews soon be under water? Many of the great golf courses of the British Isles–iconic, historic venues like St. Andrews and Royal Troon–are coastally located. Bearing this fact in mind and meditating on the realities of rising sea levels and climate change, a report from the Climate Coalition shouldn’t come as a shock.

The sister group to over 130 environmental organizations, which describes itself as the UK’s largest group of people dedicated to action against climate change, says golf is facing an “unexpected threat” and that courses could soon be “crumbling into the sea.”

The report, titled “Game+Changer: How climate change is impacting sports in the UK,” says “only a small increase in sea-level rise would imperil all of the world’s links courses before the end of the century.

Indeed, Montrose, one of the five oldest golf courses in the world, is already being eroded by the rising North Sea.

Chris Curnin, director at Montrose Golf Links, says: “As the sea rises and the coast falls away, we’re left with nowhere to go. Climate change is often seen as tomorrow’s problem – but it’s already eating away at our course. In a perfect storm we could lose 5-10 metres over just a couple of days and that could happen at pretty much any point.”

In addition to pointing out how horrific (and economically damaging) it would be to lose any of the foundational courses of the game, BBC golf correspondent Iain Carter makes an interesting point in light of the findings

“This report might also impact on discussions aimed at limiting driving distances because it highlights potential dangers in the maintaining the current trend of lengthening golf courses.”

And of course, an increase in rainfall and extreme weather events adversely impacts the golf industry as a whole in the region. The report finds there was 20 percent less playing time in Scotland in 2016-2016 compared to 10 years prior.

Steve Isaac, director of sustainability for the R&A, says “future threats are very real” for the game.

An unbylined BBC piece highlights the rest of the report’s findings and potential impacts on soccer and cricket

You can read the Climate Coalition’s full report here.

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19th Hole

Phil Mickelson reveals he won’t be pursuing broadcasting career when he retires from golf

Published

22 hours ago

on

May 8, 2024

By

On Tuesday, Chris McKee, a Toronto writer and radio host, wondered aloud on his X account if Phil Mickelson will be a commentator after his playing days are over.

“The second Phil Mickelson retires he’ll instantly become the most sought after TV analyst in golf. Would any PGA Tour broadcaster (CBS, ESPN, NBC or Sky) bring him in or would he have to stick to LIV broadcasts? #LIVGolf”

Mickelson saw the post and responded, saying he’s not interested in moving from the course to the broadcast booth.

“Thank you for the kind words. However, just cuz someone CAN do something doesn’t mean they SHOULD do it. Instead of commentating, I’m going to shoot some Pros vs Schmos 9 hole matches. I’ll share insights throughout as well as talk a little smack. It won’t be the highest quality video but it’ll be fun for me to do and fun to watch I think too.”

While I believe many fans would like to see Phil in the booth, his idea of “Pro’s vs Schmo’s” could certainly be intriguing.

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19th Hole

PGA Tour pro sounds off on ‘unfair’ PGA Championship invites

Published

22 hours ago

on

May 8, 2024

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This week, the PGA of America made some surprising announcements regarding the field of next week’s PGA Championship at Valhalla.

The event now will feature 16 LIV players with Talor Gooch, Dean Burmester, David Puig, Adrian Meronk and Patrick Reed receiving special exemptions.

PGA Tour player, Dylan Wu, took issue with how the exemptions were used and went to X to share his thoughts.

“Why is there never “real” qualifications for the PGA Championship? You have a points list and World ranking invite. Usually just outside top 100 in OWGR gets in. Chan Kim ranked 104th in OWGR doesn’t get in. SH Kim at 107th isn’t in.”

“Jesper Svennson ranked 108th gets in. Tim Widing 120th gets in. Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald gets a spot. A bunch of guys get leapfrogged even though they’re ranked higher than others. Seems like they just invite whoever they want. Unfair to the guys on the edge like Chan and SH”

“Just seems like the world of professional golf is in a weird spot and I love that the tournament invited a handful of great LIV players but figure out a correct system for a major championship where guys know they’ll be in or not. ????”

Fans who replied to Wu seemed to agree that a more definitive ranking system for the PGA Championship should be established.

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19th Hole

Report: LIV star turns down PGA Championship invite due to ‘personal commitments’

Published

2 days ago

on

May 7, 2024

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On Tuesday, the full field for the PGA Championship at Valhalla was released. In some surprising news, a handful of LIV players were granted exemptions including Dean Burmester, Patrick Reed, Lucas Herbert and Adrian Meronk.

The most surprising omission was Louis Oosthuizen. The South African has been one of the most consistent players on LIV this season, and also won two DP World Tour events in the fall.

According to the AP’s Doug Ferguson, Oosthuizen was actually given an invitation, but declined due to “personal commitments”.

In total, there will be 16 LIV golfers teeing it up next week at Valhalla.

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