🏌🏻 John Rahm Denied Title

Plus: Rory McIlroy changes stance on LIV, and more

January 04, 2024

Good morning. Scottie Scheffler is voted the player of the year, ahead of John Rahm, as the PGA vs LIV Golf battle rages on. Meanwhile, Rory McIlroy has softened his stance on LIV Golf, fueling rumors whether he is likely to join. Find out what he regrets about his earlier statements.

That, and the top talking points as The Sentry tees off today.

So, grab your favorite morning drink and let's explore everything golf.

⛳ This day in history: On this date, in 1967, David Toms was born in Louisiana. From 1992 to 2017, Toms was a member of the PGA Tour, where he won 13 events, including one major, the 2001 PGA Championship. He is currently active on the Champions Tour.

ALBATROS
Scottie Scheffler Voted Player of the Year, John Rahm Denied

Photo: Getty Images | Source: BBC

Scottie Scheffler has won the PGA Tour Player of the Year award for the second consecutive season. He has become the first player to achieve this feat since Tiger Woods won the award three straight years from 2005-07.

Scheffler won two titles last season - the Phoenix Open and the TPC compared to the four won by his stiffest competitor John Rahm. Rahm won the Augusta Masters, the Sentry, the American Express and the Los Angeles Open.

Scheffler recorded 13 top-fives and 17 top-10s, both high marks for any player in a single season on the tour since 2005. He received 38 per cent of the vote for the Jack Nicklaus Award and was selected over four other nominees: Wyndham Clark, Viktor Hovland, Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm.

Eric Cole was announced as the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year, receiving the Arnold Palmer Award. He received 51 per cent of the vote and was selected over three other nominees: Ludvig Åberg, Nico Echavarria and Vincent Norrman.

TWEET
Worth Mentioning

EAGLE
Rory McIlroy Makes U-turn On LIV, Regrets ‘Mistake’

Source: Golf Digest

Rory McIlroy has softened his stance on LIV. He 'regrets' making the 'mistake' of being 'too judgemental' of initial players who joined LIV Golf.

McIlroy was earlier very critical of the Saudi-backed league and hit out at the players who left the PGA Tour to join LIV. He has now 'accepted reality' that LIV is a part of the sport.

To me, what I would love LIV to turn into is almost the IPL of golf. The Saudis basically exposed some of the flaws in the structures of professional golf. Hopefully we can all put our heads together and think about what's the best thing for the game going forward.

Rory McIlroy

McIlroy welcomes talks to reunite golf but still believes that the big money being used to entice players to join LIV would still be better spent on helping grow the game at entry level.

LOCKER ROOM
What else is making news

Viktor Hovland: Viktor Hovland has parted ways with his swing coach Joe Mayo ahead of The Sentry. Hovland and Mayo worked together to claim 3 wins on the PGA Tour last season.

Tomorrow's Golf League: Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods' TGL is set to replace NFL on prime-time television during the football league's end-of-season break. TGL will be hosted at the SoFi Centre in Florida, featuring a virtual green that can transform into different courses. The project will be officially launched in 2025.

World Record: Patrick Koenig has broken the World Record for most 18-hole courses played in a year. He played 580 different 18-hole courses in 365 days - an average of 28.6 holes per day and a whopping 10,440 holes overall across the entire year.

Callaway Golf: Callaway Golf has launched its new line of Paradym Ai Smoke woods and irons. It is also set to release its own optimized ball line - the Chrome Soft, Chrome Tour and Chrome Tour X on February 2.

BIRDIE
Who Will Triumph in Hawaii Without Rahm and McIlroy?

Photo: Getty Images | Source: Golf Monthly

The Sentry is set to throw up several key talking points as the opening event of the 2024 season. What should you be looking out for in Hawaii as a cluster of the world's best male players battle it out for the first trophy of 2024?

No Defending Champion

John Rahm won the event last year but won’t be defending his title this year. He has moved on to LIV and is not eligible to play on the PGA Tour.

No World No 2 Either

World No.2 Rory McIlroy will also be absent. He will begin his season with the Dubai Desert Classic on the DP World Tour.

Significant Increase In Prize Purse

An increased prize purse of $20 million is up for grabs - up by $5 million from 2023. The winner will take home $3.6 million.

Caddie Merry-Go-Round

Ludvig Aberg, Tom Kim and Cameron Young will take the field with their new caddies. Aberg has hired Joe Skovron from Tom Kim and Kim has roped in Daniel Parratt. Young’s new bagman is Wayne De Haas.

DRIVING RANGE
How To Hit Irons Consistently

In this video, PGA Golf Professional Rick Shiels shows you the simple and easy way to hit your golf irons more consistently. These simple tips will help you to lower your golf scores, lower your golf handicap and improve your overall gameplay.