1. Tour player Netflix docuseries
Our Matt Vincenzi…”The streaming service giant, Netflix has revealed its plans for a docuseries profiling some of the biggest names on the PGA TOUR.”
- “Netflix recently had a great deal of success with a similar show following Formula 1 racing titled, Drive to Survive. It seems they are going down a similar path with the upcoming golf series.”
- “The cast announced for the show has no shortage of superstars and includes: Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Dustin Johnson, Xander Schauffele, Viktor Hovland, Rickie Fowler, Tommy Fleetwood, Sergio Garcia, and many other big names.”
- “A PGA Tour spokesperson said that the organization had been intrigued by “all-access” documentaries for several years, including Formula 1’s Drive to Survive, the NFL’s Hard Knocks and ESPN’s Last Dance but “had not found the right combination of production partners, players, and a distribution partner until now.”
- “Filming quietly began a few months ago, with a handful of golfers sitting down for interviews to get the process started.”
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2. DP World Tour x PGA Tour of Australasia
AP report…”The DP World Tour – formerly known as the European Tour – strengthened its links with the PGA Tour of Australasia by announcing on Wednesday an extension of their partnership through 2026.”
- “The deal will provide members of the Australasian tour more opportunities, such as two additional cards and further exemptions to compete on the rebranded World Tour, as well as an increase in prize money for some tournaments.”
- “The World Tour also has partnerships with the PGA Tour and South Africa’s Sunshine Tour, strengthening its position amid looming competition from a Saudi-backed company – fronted by Greg Norman – which has put $200 million into 10 new tournaments on the Asian Tour.”
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3. Gina Kim turns pro
Joel Beall for Golf Digest…”One of the best amateurs in women’s golf is ready to make the leap.”
- “After securing playing status at the LPGA Q Series last month, Gina Kim has decided to forgo her senior spring season at Duke University and turn pro.”
- “Kim, 21, helped lead the Blue Devils to a national championship in 2019 and was a two-time All-American. In 2021 she captured both the ACC Women’s Golf Championship and the North and South Women’s Amateur. Kim appeared for the Americans in last August’s Curtis Cup, which the United States won for the first time on foreign soil since 2008.”
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4. Wie West
Golf Digest’s Keely Levins…”Michelle Wie West has committed to playing the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions, beginning January 20th, Golfweek first reported. When she tees it up at Lake Nona Golf and Country Club in Orlando, Fla., it will be her first round on the LPGA Tour since June 2021, when she finished T-46 in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.”
- “Wie West played six events in 2021, missing the cut in four of them. Her first event in 2021 was the Kia Classic; at that point, she hadn’t competed on tour in nearly two years. Her time away from the game to heal an injured wrist was extended after she found out she was pregnant. She gave birth to Makenna in 2020, the first child for Wie West and her husband, Jonnie West.”
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One for the Memory Banks is a hilarious, and poignant, memoir about Luke Reese’s fascination-turned-obsession with golf and about the friendships forged by a mutual love of the great game played on great courses. Part travelogue, part biography, part memoir, One for the Memory Banks captures the give and take of competition and conjures these memories and relationships in technicolor. Through vignettes, Luke Reese carries readers on a sweeping journey across the UK and Ireland, introducing them to a motley crew of people who share a passion, and reminding them what makes golf so great.
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5. Cam’s Cameron
From our piece for PGATour.com…”Smith putts with a Scotty Cameron 009M prototype. Generally, the 009M is a traditional Anser-style putter most similar to the retail Newport line. The “009” is a reference to San Diego’s zip code, where Cameron’s studio is located, while the ‘M’ stands for ‘masterful.’”
- “Smith said he put the slant-neck Scotty in play at last year’s Sony Open in Hawaii, pointing out that the club is celebrating its birthday this week at Waialae Country Club.”
- “He’ll certainly want to buy it a gift. The Australian was 10th in Strokes Gained: Putting last season and is fourth in the young 2021-22 campaign. He led the field in that statistic last week at Kapalua, as well.”
- “Smith said he prefers a slant neck and, when considering a new putter last year, told Cameron and company he wanted the neck design in whatever club he would test.”
- “There’s lots of cool stamps in the back there as well,” Smith said. “I’ve always loved the dot on top. I’ve never been a line guy. I feel like I can just feel the putter a little bit better. I don’t get so obsessed with the line. I feel like I’m able to just hit a good putt, and a good putt out of the middle means more chances of going in.”
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6. Incredible feat
Our Jason Daniels…”Ask any handicap golfer their dream shot, and in most cases, it will be the elusive hole-in-one.”…“Some may even say recording an albatross – three under par – is their flight of fantasy.”
- “Imagine, then, recording both in a five-hole stretch.”
- “The Irish Examiner recently highlighted that very feat, performed by Rowan McCarthy, a 20-handicapper playing Wembley Golf Course in Perth, Australia.”
- “A member of the Irish Perth golf society, McCarthy, who now posts as @shankmagic on Instagram, told the Irish Examiner, “On 12, the hole-in-one, it was a beautiful 7-iron, 169 metres, that drew towards the hole, hit the front of the green and leisurely rolled towards the hole and dropped in dead weight.”
- “Then on 15, the albatross, it was 185 metres with a 5-iron, downhill, using the bank adjacent the green, ran towards the hole, hit the flag and dropped. I might have caught that one a bit thin.”
- “According to the golfer himself, “Statistically, the chances of a hole in 1 are 12,000-to-1 and an albatross is 6 million-to-1. The odds of one of each in the same round…who knows? Some say it is 72 billion to one. It is a day I will never forget.”
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