19th Hole

Airport luggage mess causes chaos for pros at Monday qualifier

Published

2 years ago

Jun 28, 2022

Golfers, clubs, airlines.

These are three items involved in an unfortunate marriage, and many a story has been told of a player’s bag arriving damaged or not at all.

Related: Justin Thomas hits out at rules officials at Women’s PGA Championship

Indeed, if the likes of John Daly, Graeme McDowell and Viktor Hovland suffer, it’s damn certain that those on the feeder tours and qualifiers will do so. And some.

Related: Lexi Thompson’s behavior following Women’s PGA defeat sparks fierce debate

Go back a few years and European Tour player Thorbjorn Olesen lost two sets of clubs in ten days while, just a couple of months ago, Rob Hudson, attempting to qualify for the PGA Tour Canada arrived at his destination to find the airline had lost both his clubs and contact lenses.

However, we’ve never heard of a complete wipe-out, as seen at this week’s Monday qualifier for the PEI Open.

Monday Q Info (who else?) was the first to break the story on Twitter, reporting that at least 20 players had lost their clubs on a flight arranged just after they had cancelled the previous tournament!

On June 25th, reports are that organizers had no option but to cancel the Elk Ridge Open after one round because of casual water. In a noble gesture, the PGA Tour Canada split the purse evenly between the field – some compensation for the travel and accommodation – but none of them could foresee what would happen over the next day or so.

On arrival at the Prince Edward Island Open, the players found that not a single competitor could retrieve their clubs from the carousel.

According to players on PGA Canada there are still between 50 to 70 players who don’t have their clubs from @AirCanada In the Pro-am today multiple players used borrowed sets from members at the club. Same at the Monday Q.

— Monday Q Info (@acaseofthegolf1) June 28, 2022

Recent pro Harrison Ott spoke to Golf Channel:

“There were about 30 players on my flight, and we all go to baggage claim, and the bags start going around and hardly anybody even claims them. Turns out, they were backed-up bags from previous flights who had their bags not make it.”

Ott, who was joint-leader at Elk Ridge when the event was called off, was one of the lucky ones to find something to play with, cobbling together some clubs and a collared shirt. Incredibly, he shot a 4-under 68 to make it through in 4th place.

Former @VandyMGolf standout Harrison Ott is among the 50 or so Canada players who are missing their golf clubs because of Air Canada issues. Ott was able to Monday qualify anyways today, using a makeshift set and wearing a polo from the pro — with a Coors Light logo on it! pic.twitter.com/6GMxoxiPVB

— Brentley Romine (@BrentleyGC) June 27, 2022

In a similar goodwill gesture to that made at Elk Ridge, Scott Pritchard, the executive director of PGA Tour Canada, told the channel the tour was aware of the luggage problems, and the tour subsequently wrote a $200,000 check that was split evenly amongst the field, giving each player $1,300.

LET pro gives detailed financial breakdown of first week on tour…and the net result may shock you

Published

7 hours ago

Apr 26, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

On Friday morning, Ladies European Tour player, Hannah Gregg, took to social media to share her weekly expenses playing on the LET.

Expenses of my first week on Ladies European Tour:
Flights: $2600
Work Visa: $350
Food: $377
Caddie: $0 because I have an amazing Fiancé
Hotel: $0 because @GregChalmersPGA sorted me host housing for the week! ?
Rental Car: +0 because the Tour Tee guys GAVE me their car ??…

— Hannah Gregg (@hannahbggg) April 26, 2024

“Expenses of my first week on Ladies European Tour: Flights: $2600 Work Visa: $350

Food: $377
Caddie: $0 because I have an amazing Fiancé
Hotel: $0 because @GregChalmersPGA sorted me host housing for the week!
Rental Car: +0 because the Tour Tee guys GAVE me their car
Gas: $165
Entry Fee: $130
Lounge Pass for caddie: $50
Gym: $0
Yardage book: $0
Total expenses: $3672

Made cut, finished 54th, total earned: $1244 Factor in 35% tax on earnings. To break even, needed to finish 24th. To make money, 21st. Guess we have our goals laid out for next event!”

When factoring in Gregg’s free housing, free caddie and free rental car, it’s evident that most LET players would have to finish well inside of the top-20 to make any money.

With ridiculous amounts of money being thrown around in professional golf these days, it’s important to remember the other side of the coin as well. There are countless professionals out there who struggle to get by on their golf salary.

New here?

Find out more about GolfWRX and the GolfWRX forums.

Your Reaction?

LIKE3
LEGIT2
WOW5
LOL1
IDHT1
FLOP0
OB0
SHANK2

19th Hole

54-hole golf tour deemed eligible for OWGR points…but it’s not LIV

Published

1 day ago

Apr 25, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

After a seventeen-month application process, a 54-hole golf tour was deemed eligible for OWGR points.

Unfortunately, for LIV Golf and their fans, it was the Clutch Pro Tour.

After the decision, which is effective immediately, OWGR chairman Peter Dawson issued a statement.

“This is a significant milestone for golf, and OWGR is deeply encouraged by the achievement and the continued efforts in developing the sport of golf in the United Kingdom.”

“We look forward to watching the progress of the Clutch Pro Tour as it continues to play a key role in the development of players from the region,” Dawson added.

OWGR Announcement
Read more here – https://t.co/7J4bFpawqv #OWGR #OfficialWorldGolfRanking pic.twitter.com/ZfBJWCFAm8

— OWGR (@OWGRltd) April 25, 2024

The Clutch Pro Tour operates in the United Kingdom and features a 36-hole cut. It also has an open qualifying school.

New here?

Find out more about GolfWRX and the GolfWRX forums.

Your Reaction?

LIKE4
LEGIT1
WOW1
LOL2
IDHT0
FLOP0
OB2
SHANK5

19th Hole

Charlie Woods attempting to qualify for spot at 2024 U.S. Open

Published

1 day ago

Apr 25, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

As first reported by Bob Harig of Sports Illustrated, Charlie Woods will be attempting to qualify for this year’s U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2.

The first stage of qualifying for this year’s tournament will be an 18-hole local event on Thursday, April 25th, in Port St. Lucie, Florida.

There will be 84 players in the field, five of which will reach the 36-hole qualifier that will take place in June.

Earlier this season, Charlie attempted to qualify for the Cognizant Classic, and struggled, shooting an 86.

If the younger Woods is able to qualify, he will tee it up in the same field as his father in a few months at one of the more historic U.S. Open venues.