🏌🏻Pro Overcomes Tragedy To Shoot 59

Good morning. The Jordan Spieth craze is for real! John Deere organizers have revealed that ticket sales went gangbusters 24 hours after Spieth confirmed his participation in the tournament.

While Spieth made a slow start, he has an amazing record at TPC Deere run and that makes him an overwhelming local favorite.

Can Spieth catch up and win the title for a third time? You can watch all the live action on Golf Channel and Peacock.

Fun Fact: Within a span of 12 days, Hayden Springer scored the second 59 on Tour this season after Cameron Young at the Travelers Championship. This is the second shortest time span between sub-60 rounds on Tour - Justin Thomas and Adam Hadwin did so in a space of 9 days in 2017.

⛳ This day in history: Like his fellow American Ben Hogan born in 1912, Sam Snead won the Open Championship one time. Snead did it on this date in 1946 at St Andrews, winning at two under par, four shots ahead of Bobby Locke and Johnny Bulla.

ALBATROSS
Springer Shoots 59 To Lead John Deere

Hayden Springer shot a 12-under 59 to open the John Deere Classic, marking the 14th sub-60 round in PGA Tour history. Springer fired an 8-under 27 on the front nine at TPC Deere Run - the lowest nine-hole score on tour since 2000.

It marked the second 59 on tour in the span of three weeks after nobody had shot sub-60 since 2020. Cameron Young posted a 59 in the third round of the Travelers Championship.

Springer, 27, is ranked No 236 in the world and has never won on the PGA Tour. He leads by two strokes after Round 1.

🪦 In Memoriam: In November, Springer and his wife faced the devastating loss of their three-year-old daughter, Sage, due to a rare genetic disorder. Despite their grief, Springer secured one of the five available spots at the PGA Tour Q-School, earning his way into the top level of professional golf for the first time.

Springer is now focused on winning his maiden PGA Tour title - a fitting tribute to his late daughter.

📌 Spieth Undeterred By Slow Start: Jordan Spieth sits T-90 after shooting a 2-under round of 69 but it was an improvement on previous opening rounds at TPC Deere Run – a 1-under 70 in 2013 and even-par 71 in 2015. He took home the leaping deer trophy in fast-closing, epic fashion both years.

While Spieth gained strokes off the tee in Round 1, he lost strokes around the green and putting. He is 10 shots off the lead held by Hayden Springer but Spieth is confident that his experience will come in handy and help him win a third John Deere Classic title.

Click here to watch Round 1 Highlights.

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EAGLE
Tiger Aggravates Locals Ahead Of The Open Championship

UK citizens are not happy with Tiger Woods and Justin Timberlake's proposal building a sports bar in place of a 1930s cinema. The pair, who already own the T-Squared Social Sports Bar in New York, planned to open a new branch in St Andrews, Scotland.

The locals started a petition against the renovation of the New Picture House, garnering about 10,000 signatures. Despite this opposition, Woods and Timberlake remain committed to the location.

The duo plans to proceed with their initial $2 million proposal, potentially keeping just one cinema screen. Woods and Timberlake aim to install sports simulators offering 100 global courses and other sports like football, rugby, cricket, and lacrosse. The bar, with a capacity of 45-50 people, will be open daily from 9 am to midnight and is set to open in spring 2025.

The Old Picture House is close to the Old Course, where Tiger Woods has won The Open twice. However, this year's Open Championship at Royal Troon, just 50 miles away, might stir further controversy in St Andrews.

🎯 How could this Project help Locals? On a positive note, the Woods-Timberlake project will lead to more development and employment. With the new plans, it is estimated that the place will need 40-50 employees, which is much higher than the current 10.

It is said that the current employees will be given the option to stay and continue their jobs.

LOCKER ROOM
What else is making news

LIV Golf: The expansion of the Saudi-backed league seems unstoppable, with the renegade league announcing yet another new office opening - this time in London.

For Sale: Quite possibly the most impressive piece of private golfing real estate, which encompasses a sumptuous house as well as top-notch indoor and outdoor practice facilities, is on the market in Kent - check out the details.

Women's Golf: After the first two rounds of the Ladies European Tour’s Aramco Team Series London event, Leona Maguire and Georgia Hall find themselves at the top of the leaderboard at the Centurion Club.

Equipment Tales: Jason Day reveals how his setup has evolved since his first PGA Tour start in 2006 - click here to know more.

BIRDIE
This Is What Makes The Open Championship Unique

The 2024 Open Championship is less than a couple of weeks away and we take a look at 6 things that make the Major very unique.

⛳️ History: The Open is not only golf’s original Major, it is also the oldest golf tournament in the world. The first Open was held at Prestwick Golf Club in 1860 over three rounds of the 12-hole links course. Eight golfers contested the Championship, with Willie Park Sr claiming the title by two shots.

⛳️ Links Golf: Links is considered the purest form of golf due to the sport’s origins in Scotland. Links courses are shaped by nature and built on coastal, exposed landscape, which presents a unique experience due to unpredictable wind and weather shifts.

This Major is a showcase of links golf, in all its unforgiving and unpredictable glory.

⛳️ Champion Golfer Of The Year: The Open its own set of unique traditions. One that sets the tournament apart is that every year the Open winner is given the title of "Champion Golfer of the Year".

⛳️ The Claret Jug: The Golf Champion Trophy, commonly known as the Claret Jug, is one of the most coveted trophies in sport. It was first awarded in 1872, despite the original Championship dating back to 1860.

Prior to 1872, winners of The Open were presented with the Challenge Belt.

⛳️ Four-hole Playoff: Unlike most PGA Tour events, the Open Championship playoff isn’t sudden-death. Instead, the winner is decided through a four-hole aggregate-score playoff – in other words, the lowest score after four holes.

The first four-hole playoff at The Open happened in 1989, when Mark Calcavecchia beat Greg Norman and Wayne Grady.

⛳️ Medals: The Open winner receives both the Claret Jug and a gold medal, the latter first awarded in 1872 before the Jug was ready, and unlike the Jug, the medal can be kept. The silver medal goes to the best amateur who makes the cut, and the Tooting Bec Cup is awarded to the PGA member with the lowest single round of the week.

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