🏌🏻 Pro Golf Needs Unity

Good morning. In today’s edition, we bring you highlights from the conclusion of the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitation Tournament, details of PNC Championship where Tiger and Charlie team up, and Rory taking shots on social media. This and much more.

As you prepare for the day, let's take a moment to explore the fascinating world of golf together…

TOP STORY
Lydia Ko, Jason Day Win Inaugural 2023 Grant Thornton Invitational

Lydia Ko and Jason Day are sharing that prize, shooting 26 under for the three days. Ko had an off year on the LPGA Tour, missing the CME Group Tour Championship, but this may be a launch into a better 2024.

Here's the full breakdown of prize money for this inaugural event.

2023 Grant Thornton Invitational Final Prize Money

WIN: Lydia Ko/Jason Day, 26 under: $1,000,000

2. Brooke Henderson/Corey Conners, 25 under: $560,000

3. Madelene Sagstrom/Ludvig Aberg, 24 under: $330,000

T4. Tony Finau/Nelly Korda, Megan Khang/Denny McCarthy; 23 under: $232,500

T6. Leona Maguire/Lucas Glover, Lexi Thompson/Rickie Fowler; 22 under: $185,000

8. Angel Yin/Nick Taylor, 21 under: $170,000

T9. Rose Zhang/Sahith Theegala, Lilia Vu/Joel Dahmen, Charley Hull/Justin Rose; 20 under: $151,666.67

12. Celine Boutier/Harris English, 19 under: $140,000

13. Mel Reid/Russell Henley, 16 under: $135,000

T14. Andrea Lee/Billy Horschel, Allisen Corpuz/Cameron Champ; 14 under: $127,500

16. Cheyenne Knight/Tom Hoge; 13 under: $120,000

Highlights From Final Round

TWEET
Worth Mentioning

THE WEEK AHEAD
Tiger and Charlie Woods Together in Family Event

The last event of 2023 features major champions and family members playing a scramble in Florida.

The PNC Championship is a family affair, with major champions and their sons/daughters/parents teaming up for a fun two-round scramble at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club in Orlando, Florida from December 14-17, 2023.

Vijay Singh and son Qass are the defending champions, other previous winners include John Daly and his son John Daly Jr., Bernhard Langer and son Jason and Justin Thomas and his father Mike Thomas.

2023 PNC Championship Full Field
40 players/20 teams

Cink, Regan | Cink, Stewart

Daly, John | Daly, Jr., John

Duval, Brady | Duval, David

Faldo, Matthew | Faldo, Nick

Furyk, Jim | Furyk, Tanner

Goosen, Leo | Goosen, Retief

Harrington, Ciaran | Harrington, Padraig

Korda, Nelly | Korda, Petr

Kuchar, Cameron | Kuchar, Matt

Langer, Bernhard | Langer, Jason

Lehman, Sean | Lehman, Tom

Leonard, Justin | Leonard, Luke

McGee, Will

O'Meara, Mark | O'Meara, Shaun

Price, Greg | Price, Nick

Singh, Qass | Singh, Vijay

Sorenstam, Annika

Stricker, Izzy | Stricker, Steve

Thomas, Justin | Thomas, Mike

Trevino, Daniel | Trevino, Lee

Woods, Charlie | Woods, Tiger

LOCKER ROOM
What else is making news

Simulated Courses Gaining Popularity: Are simulated courses the new future of golf? According to those madcap bean-counters at the National Golf Foundation, the number of off-course golfers (those going to simulators, driving ranges and entertainment venues such as Topgolf) recently surpassed the number of traditional on-course golfers in the United States.

Pro Golf Needs Unity: LIV Golf's signing of Jon Rahm may not suggest the Saudi-backed league wants peace, but it means the PGA Tour urgently needs an agreement before the fracture grows even larger.

Kirkland Irons Sell Out: Big-box retailer Costco again sent gear nerds into a frenzy Saturday by selling out of their highly anticipated Kirkland Signature players’ irons in just a matter of a few hours.

Mixed Events: PGA Tour players hope Grant Thornton Invitational is the first step toward more mixed events.

Hot Shot: Rory McIlroy takes a shot at Henrik Stenson in social media exchange about Ryder Cup.

DRIVING RANGE
Don’t Use A Line On The Ball For Putting - Do This Instead

With a line, you can point the ball directly at your line, giving you a clear target on the greens. But without a line, you become more in tune with your feel.

“Anytime I use the line, I struggle with my speed,” Rory McIlroy said several years ago. “I’m so into what I’m doing here, that I lose connection with the target. So there are two different trains of thought.”

If you’re more of a feel player, going without a line might be your best bet. However, if you want to see if your ball is rolling end over end or not, using a line is the better option … or so we thought.

Michael Kim has become one of the best follows in professional golf of late, and he recently shared his thoughts on the line vs. no line debate. And according to the PGA Tour pro, using the line on your ball to see how it’s rolling isn’t as beneficial as you might think.

“That’s not the best way to do it,” he wrote. “It’s actually very hard to line up the ball perfectly on top which means the line will roll crooked even with a perfect stroke and greens are imperfect [sic], it can easily bounce offline at the start.”

So what you you do instead to check your stroke? Try a gate drill.

PAR FOR THE COURSE
The 19th Hole

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📖 This day in history: On December 11, 2009, Tiger Woods announces an indefinite leave from professional golf to focus on his marriage.