🏌🏻 Rory Hits PGA Milestone

Good morning!

Rory McIlroy added multiple events to his calendar this year to boost his preparations for the Majors including the Zurich Classic - does the win in New Orleans mark the beginning of something special?

He’ll be back in action next week at the Wells Fargo Championship before making an attempt to win his 5th Major at Val Halla.

Fun Fact: In the first-ever PGA Championship in 1916, Jim Barnes' victory earned him $500 in Bronxville, N.Y. at Siwanoy Country Club. In today's dollars, that's worth about $14,000.

⛳ This day in history: On this date in 1961 and 1962, the great Mickey Wright won the LPGA Titleholders Championship at Augusta Country Club.

NEXT ON THE TEE
Tournaments This Week

PGA Tour: The CJ Cup Byron Nelson

📍 When and Where: May 2-5, TPC Craig Ranch, Texas
💰 Purse: $9.5 million
🏌🏻 Headliners: Jordan Spieth, Jason Day, Will Zalatoris

LIV Golf: LIV Singapore

📍When and Where: May 3-5, Sentosa Golf Club, Singapore
💰 Purse: $25 million
🏌🏻 Headliners: Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau, Joaquin Niemann

DP World Tour: Volvo China Open

📍When and Where: May 2-5, Genzon Golf Club, China
💰 Purse: $2.25 million
🏌🏻 Headliners: Jesper Svensson, Matteo Manassero, Jordan Smith

ALBATROSS
Rory Hits PGA Tour Milestone

Rory McIlroy added the Zurich Classic to his calendar in order to boost his preparations for the upcoming PGA Championship. As it turned out, his maiden appearance in New Orleans turned out to be quite fruitful - a win ensured that he bagged his 25th Tour title.

He is now one of just 26 players with 25 PGA Tour victories. The four-time major champion broke out of a tie with Gary Player and Dustin Johnson and now stands alongside Macdonald Smith, Tommy Armour and Johnny Miller.

Key Milestones In Rory's Career:

🚀 Turning professional at just 18 years old in 2007, McIlroy quickly rose to prominence on the global golfing stage.

🚀 His breakout moment came in 2011 when he clinched his first major championship title at the U.S. Open.

🚀 His second major triumph came at the 2012 PGA Championship.

🚀 He won two more Majors in 2014 - The Open Championship and the PGA Championship.

🚀 Along with Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, he is one of three players to win four majors by the age of 25.

🚀 He won the Ryder Cup with Europe in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2018 and 2023.

Read the full article.

TWEET
Worth Mentioning

EAGLE
This PGA Tour Player Finished T-4 Using Training Aid As Putter

Tour players are making news both on and off the field.

We take a look at how Zac Blair successfully implemented a unique strategy at the Zurich Classic and how Jason Day is redefining Golf fashion.

📌 Blair's Unique Putter: While the use of most training aids during tournament golf is prohibited in conjunction with rule 4.3a (6) there are a few that have been approved by the USGA and are placed on the conforming list for use during competitive play.

Zac Blair was spotted using an Evnroll Tour Stroke Trainer golf putter and it clearly paid off, leading to a T-4th finish with playing partner Patrick Fishburn.

Evnroll has made this training aid from the same premium materials they use to make its regular putters. So while this putter training aid may look a little funky compared to some of the best putters, the quality of feel and performance needn’t be questioned.

📌 Day's Own Collection: Jason Day has taken an equity stake in Payntr Golf and will be creating a new collection – a tech classic look that also incorporates Payntr Golf’s proprietary propulsion technology and advanced comfort features – dubbed the X1 Proto.

This is the first time he’s been a stakeholder rather than simply an endorser of a product. As such, he intends to be involved from concept to reveal.

LOCKER ROOM
What else is making news 

PGA Tour: Kris Kim, 16, set to make PGA Tour debut, following in the footsteps of his LPGA mom.

Memorabilia: Masters Gnomes seen On Sale at almost 50 times their original price; demand not waning even weeks after the 2024 Major.

LIV Golf: HyFlyers GC's Andy Ogletree has qualified for his first PGA Championship after finishing second in the OWGR's Federation Ranking system.

R&A Clubhouse: The iconic R&A clubhouse, which was closed for almost two years following the end of the 150th Open at St Andrews, has reopened after extensive renovation.

Coach Sacked: LIV Golfer Adrian Meronk has parted company with coach Matthew Tipper after a disappointing start to his LIV Golf career.

BIRDIE
Top Ranked Golfers Use These Irons

Strokes Gained: Approach the Green is a critical parameter that compares how well a golfer is performing on shots hit from the fairway and off the tee on par 3s.

Golfers who are near the top of Strokes Gained: Approach the Green tend to have lots of birdie chances while avoiding big numbers on their scorecards.

Here is a list of the players who lead the PGA Tour in this category so far this season, along with the irons they typically have in their bag.

5. 🏌‍♀Corey Conners (0.798): Conners uses Ping Blueprint S (4-5), Blueprint T (6-PW), with Project X 6.0 shafts.

4. 🏌‍♀Ryan Moore (0.802): Moore uses New Level 623-MB (5-PW) irons, with True Temper Dynamic Gold Lite X100 shafts.

3. Shane Lowry (0.87): Lowry uses Srixon ZX U Mk II (3), Srixon ZX5 MkII (4), with Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 120 X shafts and Srixon ZX5 MkII (5), ZX 7 MkII (6-9), with KBS Tour shafts.

2. 🏌‍♀Tom Hoge (1.035): Hoge uses Srixon ZX U Mk II (2), with Fujikura Ventus Blue HB 10 X shaft as well as Titleist T100 (4), Titleist 620 MB (5-9), with Project X 6.5 shafts.

1. 🏌‍♀Scottie Scheffler (1.398): The World No 1 uses Srixon ZU85 (3), with Nippon Pro Modus3 Hybrid Tour X shaft, (4), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shaft, TaylorMade P-7TW (5-PW), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts.

Check out the complete list.

DRIVING RANGE
Golf Club In Perfect Position

In today's video, we demonstrate how to get the club in a great position at the top of your swing.

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