🏌🏻 PGA's New World Record Created

Good morning. Weather played spoilsport at the WM Phoenix Open in Arizona (as we’d expected) but we did have an uninterrupted day of LIV Golf action in Las Vegas.

Trivia: A man has won an event on the LPGA Tour. True or False? Answer at the bottom of the email.

Here’s what you’ll read in today’s edition:

🏌🏻 Updates, Leaderboard and Highlights from the WM Phoenix Open and LIV Las Vegas.

🏌🏻 Cristobal Del Solar creates PGA history, Lucas Glover withdraws after missing tee time.

🏌🏻 10 most controversial moments in the history of the LPGA Tour.

That, and a posture drill to maintain your balance in today's edition of Golf Reporter.

⛳ This day in history: This is the traditional date in golf history, in 1834, that the St. Andrews Club was christened the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, with King William IV as its patron.

ALBATROSS
Rain Plays Spoilsport In Arizona, LIV Las Vegas Off To a Smooth Start

WM Phoenix Open Day 1 Update

Five days after weather shortened the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am to 54 holes, storms followed the PGA Tour to the desert. About half the field was able to finish, leaving the rest to return on Friday morning to resume their first rounds.

Sahith Theegala shot 6-under 65 to take the early lead ahead of Andrew Novak (-5), who only managed to complete nine holes. Two-time defending champion Scottie Scheffler (-1) is placed T-18 after six holes.

Other stars like Jordan Spieth and Cameron Young are T-5 while Matt Fitzpatrick is T-8.

WM Phoenix Open Day 1 Leaderboard

Click here to watch the highlights from Day 1.

LIV Las Vegas Day 1 Update

Harold Varner III and Paul Casey each shot a 7-under 63 to share the first-round lead at Las Vegas Country Club. The pair is 2 shots ahead of a four-way tie at 5-under 65, which includes three RangeGoats GC teammates - captain Bubba Watson, Matthew Wolff and Thomas Pieters.

Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Cameron Smith and Tyrrell Hatton are part of a large group at 3 under. Jon Rahm is at 2 under, along with Brooks Koepka and last week's winner, Joaquin Niemann.

RangeGoats GC are on top of the team leaderboard at the end of Day 1.

LIV Las Vegas Day 1 Leaderboard 

Click here to watch the highlights from Day 1.

TWEET
Worth Mentioning

EAGLE
World Record Set and Missed Tee Time

Cristobal Del Solar fired a 13-under 57 at Country Club de Bogota-Pacos at the Korn Ferry’s Astara Golf Championship and become the first player ever to post a 57 in a PGA Tour-sanctioned event.

He tied the world record - David Carey was the first player with a 57, a feat he achieved in the 2019 Cervino Open on the Alps Tour.

Del Solar posted nine birdies and two eagles to create history but he believes there was room for more.

Lucas Glover Withdraws After Missing Tee Time

2009 US Open Champion Lucas Glover had to withdraw from the WM Phoenix Open after missing his tee time. Glover was scheduled to tee off at 8:26 a.m. ET but he was in his hotel room at the time.

He wasn't aware of his schedule until the officials called him just minutes before and confirmed his disqualification.

First alternate Ryo Hisatsune replaced Glover in the field at TPC Scottsdale.

LOCKER ROOM
What else is making news

PGA Tour-White House Partnership: More than a dozen sports leagues and players' associations including the PGA Tour, the NFL and the NBA among others will participate in the White House Challenge to end hunger and build healthy communities. This will provide more opportunities for people to be physically active and learn about nutrition and adopting healthy lifestyles.

Caddie Corner: CBS analyst Colt Knost is Taylor Montgomery's caddy this week at the WM Phoenix Open. Knost, known as ‘The Big Gravy’, was a tour pro of nearly 15 seasons and 199 PGA Tour starts before retiring and joining CBS Sports.

Golf’s New Home: ESPN, FOX and Warner Bros. Discovery have reached an understanding to form a Joint Venture to build a new platform to provide sports streaming service in the US. ESPN+’s PGA Tour Live streaming coverage, ESPN’s Thursday and Friday Masters coverage, Thursday and Friday PGA Championship coverage, and WBD’s coverage of The Match will be included in the new platform.

DP World Tour: South Africa's Zander Lombard and China's Ashun Wu share lead after the opening round of the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters. Niklas Norgaard, Jaco Prinsloo, Haydn Barron and Clement Sordet share third place on four under par.

Tommy Fleetwood: PGA Tour star Tommy Fleetwood was spotted at LIV Las Vegas working alongside Butch Harmon, sparking rumors about his potential move to LIV Golf. Fleetwood was last seen in action at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, where he finished T-31.

Ladies European Tour: LPGA Tour stars Lexi Thompson, Linn Grant and Leona Maguire have confirmed their participation at the LET's Aramco Saudi Ladies International. The event will take place at Riyadh Golf Club from Feb. 15-18 and offers a purse of $5 million.

BIRDIE
LPGA Tour’s 10 Most Controversial Moments

The LPGA Tour doesn't resume until February 22 when the action moves to Thailand for the Honda LPGA tournament. As the players enjoy their long break, let us take a look at some of the most controversial moments in the Tour's history.

Length Of Skirt Must Be Long: During the 2017 season the LPGA introduced a new dress code that focused on plunging necklines, revealing skirts and even leggings. It notified players that any violation would result in a $1,000 fine. Thankfully, the rules are more player-friendly now.

TV Viewer Determines Major: At the 2017 ANA Inspiration, Lexi Thompson was handed a four-shot penalty with six holes to play during the final round of the Major. The infringement had come on the 17th hole of her third round when a viewer had called in from watching on TV. There were two shots for incorrectly placing a marked ball and two more for signing an incorrect scorecard.

‘Cheat' Blalock Clears Her Name: Jane Blalock was accused of marking her ball incorrectly and tapping down spike marks in the 1972 season. She was fined $5,000 and put on probation but successfully appealed against it. She was awarded $13,500 in damages and the LPGA was ordered to pay $100,000 to her attorneys.

The Tournament Without A Locker Room: Players and female celebrities began the the 2023 Tournament of Champions at Lake Nonan without any lockers after a storm damaged the permanent lockers in the women’s locker room. After the news went viral, 36 temporary lockers were installed.

Check out the complete list.

DRIVING RANGE
Posture Drill To Fix Balance

In this video, you'll learn how to maintain your posture during your swing and while striking the ball. This simple drill will help you maintain your balance and improve your ball-striking.

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Trivia answer: True, Sam Snead in 1962