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Morning 9: Why Tiger sat Saturday at the Prez Cup

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By Ben Alberstadt
Email me at [email protected] and find me at @benalberstadt on Instagram and golfwrxEIC on Twitter.

December 19, 2019

Good Thursday morning, golf fans. We’re only playing 5 holes this morning! 
 
**We’re looking for advertisers for 2020. Drop me a line if you’d like to talk about getting your message in front of the M9 readership. Banner and native ad possibilities are, well, possible** 
1. Hank Haney suing PGA Tour
ESPN’s Bob Harig…”Hank Haney is suing the PGA Tour for what he says is its role in his firing from a SiriusXM satellite radio show earlier this year.”
  • “Haney, a longtime golf instructor known best for working with Tiger Woods, said in a U.S. district court lawsuit that the PGA Tour “improperly intimidated, enticed and threatened SiriusXM Radio to suspend and ultimately terminate” Haney’s show, which aired on SiriusXM’s PGA Tour Radio station. The lawsuit also said the tour “wanted to settle an old score relating to professional golfer Tiger Woods.”

Full piece.

2. Why Tiger sat Saturday
Harig again…”Tiger Woods surprisingly sat out all of Saturday’s competition at the Presidents Cup because he didn’t feel right physically, according to assistant captain Fred Couples.”
  • “But Couples, on his Sirius XM Radio show, said he and fellow assistants Steve Stricker and Zach Johnson were surprised and tried to talk Woods into playing.”
  • “…Couples said on his show that he was on a headset with the other captains and Woods and “maybe the first time I ever wanted to throw up” when he heard how the conversation was going.”
  • “At about 10 o’clock, (Woods) said, ‘Guys, my body is not going to let me go. I’m not going to play this afternoon.’ Of course, Stricker hopped on and said, ‘Tiger please, can you go in right now and get loose and warm.’ He said, ‘Strick, I can’t do it.’ Zach said, “Tiger, are you sure, you sure?’
3. “Old Man Golf Media” vs “Fanboy Media”
Our Gianni Magliocco…”In contrast to a decade ago, not every golf fan plays anymore, and it shouldn’t be a pre-requisite for loving the sport and expressing opinions on the game. Golf has seen an influx of new followers, particularly thanks to the DFS/Betting world, with the popularity of betting on the sport surging. The new generation of media has tapped into that demand, and it’s no surprise that the PGA Tour has now taken measures to ensure that betting is now more accessible to fans at Tour events from 2020 onwards.”
  • “With this new generation comes the casual playing golfer-a demographic which gobble up 21st-century style content and leave the ponderous old-school journalists scratching their heads. The type of fans that would rather consume a segment where a Tour pro has their guard down being themselves over reading a 1000-word piece over-analyzing a freakish swing such as Dustin Johnson’s which is entirely alien to 99.99% of even the most avid golfers.”
  • “While many long-serving golf writers miss that point, it’s not lost on some of the biggest and most established golf productions such as Golf Channel. There is a reason why the likes of Jonathan Coachman, who from a WWE background, was drafted in to liven up the channel’s PGA Tour Live coverage. That reason is for the new generation of golf fan, and quite frankly, he’s been a breath of fresh air.”
  • “Could the old-guard of journalists do more to be more inclusive to golf’s new fans? Absolutely. Is that likely? Judging by the resentment shown over certain media members excited reaction to a fist-bump with Tiger Woods at the Presidents Cup, it would seem unlikely, and it’s a failing on their part.”

Full piece.

4. Best golf gambling stories of 2019
Stephen Hennessey at Golf Digest…”There was the guy who accidentally bet $20 on Shane Lowry to win the Open Championship, as he intended to place the bet on the U.S. Open. The gentleman, who Jason Sobel of Action Network first reported on, was quite happy to see he won $1,000 kind of by accident. If only we could all be so lucky.”
  • “Then there was guy who hit the most impressive golf parlay of the year. A U.K. bettor hit a four-leg parlay with the most random of events: Xander Schauffele to win in Kapalua; Brooks Koepka to lead the PGA Tour’s money list; Tiger Woods to win the Masters and Jon Rahm to win the European Tour’s Race to Dubai. We certainly respect the move, but we’re still trying to wrap our heads around this one. No matter: The €126,875+ this gentleman claims to have won is enough to take our logic out of the mix.”

Full piece.

5. Discovery acquires Golf Channel Latin America 
Golf Digest staff report…”Discovery announced on Tuesday that it has acquired Latin America Golf, which operates Golf Channel Latin America.”
  • “Launched in 2006, Golf Channel Latin America is a PGA Tour platform, offering 36 exclusive live events per year. The network reaches 17 countries and boasts reporting, analysis and coverage of the sport on its digital side, along with instructional and entertainment programing. Discovery acquired the channel from Simple Networks LLC and Fornaluz Productions, S.A., an affiliate of Inversiones Bahia.”
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  1. Billie Smith

    Dec 19, 2019 at 9:57 am

    Tiger sat out because he’s a chicken to play.

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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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