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‘Absolutely disgusting’ – LPGA pro blasts Augusta National for its role in major venue change

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Sunday evening saw the final round of the Chevron Championship, the first major of the LPGA season.

Nothing much in that, except it is the last time that the Mission Hills course will have held the event after a 51-year run.

On Friday, Danielle Kang spoke up about the increased sponsorship and the impending move to Houston, admitting that, “Traditions are tradition, but for me, like there is nothing permanent than change.”

However, in an interview with The Desert Sun, three-time Solheim Cup player Christina Kim has much stronger words for the golf hierarchy and, in particular, Augusta National.

After missing the cut at the Dinah Shore Tournament Course, the 38-year-old lamented, “It’s very bittersweet. This tournament’s been very important to me over the years for a lot of reasons, and I’m really sad to be leaving.”. She continued, “I wish that there was more willingness from all parties including the people (making decisions) here to have found a way to make it work so that we could’ve stayed here.”

Having held a major since 1983, it is no surprise that many LPGA players are feeling bittersweet about the move, but Kim makes pointed suggestions that accuse Augusta National of mistreating the event, including moving the ANWA to a competitive slot on the third day (Saturday) of the major.

“Truth be told, I’m not gonna lie. I’m really upset with Augusta National. Because there’s no reason why we couldn’t continue to have this tournament be the first major in professional golf,” Kim told the publication. “And I think it’s absolutely disgusting what they’re doing and I have no problem saying that. It’s bull hockey what they’re doing.”

Never one to hide her opinion, Kim is also unhappy about the way the Augusta National Women’s Amateur is being run.

“It barely qualifies as the bare minimum of allowing those girls one practice round and giving them a playoff to see who’s going to make the cut into the final round at that place.”

Very few, including Kim, have an issue with the increased funds coming into the LPGA, but she suggests that tradition could have prompted a more concerted effort to keep the event at the course.

“I know there were attempts made to try and see if the date could change because Augusta was doing what Augusta does,” she said. “But it did not work for the region here either, so unfortunately, it would be easy to say there’s no one to blame other than Augusta National, but that’s neither here nor there. Everyone could have worked… I’m sure everyone did everything they think that they could’ve done to keep the tournament here. But the reality is we’re not coming back…….for now at least.”

“Maybe a big corporation will step up and see — like the American Express did for the men — that the women belong here in the desert,” Kim said. “The golf here is incredible, the people here are amazing, the culture here is fun, it’s artsy, it’s inclusive, it’s diverse, and it fits right in with the ethos of the LPGA so there’s no reason why they shouldn’t have a tournament here. It’s just very bittersweet.”

With two-top 10 finishes and a couple of top-20s in 17 starts in the event, Kim still keeps some desire that there will be a turnaround.

“The foundation has already been established. The people. The ones that really matter. The heart and soul of the LPGA coming to the desert are the fans. One can always hope that something can come out of this.”

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TaylorMade signs 15-year-old AJGA Rolex Junior Player of the Year to an NIL contract

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This week, TaylorMade Golf announced that they’ve signed AJGA Rolex Junior Player of the Year, Miles Russell, to an NIL contract.

In a statement, TaylorMade called Russell “nothing short of remarkable”.

“Miles’ record setting success at his young age is nothing short of remarkable and we are excited he chose us to support him in his growth as a golfer to continue to accomplish his career goals. Identifying and developing the top junior talent in the world has always been a priority for us at TaylorMade. Miles and his family epitomize the type of athlete and human being we are looking to add to Team TaylorMade.”

Russell has broken plenty of records in recent months. This season, he was named American Junior Golf Association’s Rolex Boys Player of the Year, making him the youngest male player to receive the award. The record was previously held by Tiger Woods who was about 10 months older than Russell at the time he received the award.

At age 14, J he became the youngest player ever to win the Junior PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass at age 14.

The 15-year-old also played in his first Korn Ferry Tour event on Thursday, the LECOM Suncoast Classic, and shot a first-round 68.

In the aftermath of the agreement, Russell released a statement.

“I have had a great relationship with the team at TaylorMade for years now and couldn’t be more excited to continue to work with them in the future. TaylorMade has a history of developing the top junior talent in the world to help reach their goals of becoming PGA TOUR and major championship winners. I am looking forward to working with the team to reach those and other goals I have laid out for my career.”

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Group of PGA Tour caddies sign endorsement deal with underwear company

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In an interesting turn of events, a group of PGA Tour caddies have signed an endorsement deal with an underwear company.

Geno Bonnalie (Joel Dahmen), Aaron Flener (J.T. Poston), John Limanti (Akshay Bhatia) and Joel Stock (Will Zalatoris) and John Ellis (Wyndham Clark) have signed a deal with the underwear brand, SAXX.

Here are some details about the endorsement deal:

  • The deal eclipses six figures in total value, extending what last year marked the first significant apparel agreement with a group of pro caddies. Of note, Geno and John Ellis appeared in the Netflix docuseries, Full Swing.
  • The caddies will wear SAXX underwear, shorts and polos on and off the course.
  • SAXX will donate $100 to the Testicular Cancer Foundation for every birdie made by the caddies’ players for the rest of the season.
  • SAXX will bring the Ball Masters to the masses at the Travelers Championship, hosting a fan activation with underwear giveaways, photo opportunities, appearances from the Ball Masters and more.
  • Fans can become an honorary Ball Master, which includes a year’s worth of underwear, among other things. Go to SAXX.com/ball-master-application from now until June 15 to enter.

The partnership is great for the caddies and also represents a great cause.

Check out the video they shared on YouTube:

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Man charged with stealing millions of dollars worth of memorabilia from Augusta National

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Augusta National

According to a report from the Chicago Tribune, a man has been charged in Chicago with stealing millions of dollars’ worth of memorabilia from Augusta National.

The man, Robert Globensky, was charged with transporting the memorabilia across state lines.

The report states that between 2009 and 2022, Globensky allegedly transported “millions of dollars’ worth of Masters golf tournament merchandise and historical memorabilia” from Augusta National “and transported to Tampa, Florida, knowing the same had been stolen, converted and taken by fraud.”

The document was filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

Per the court records there is no mention that Globensky worked for the golf club.

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