Major(s) News & Notes, November 7th, 2024
Major(s) News & Notes, November 7th, 2024
McIlroy makes swing tweaks and talks merger. Plus, Whan speaks, Lincicome retires, Walker Cup invites, Smith's Captaincy extended, Quotables, This, That and Reads.
Days to The Masters opening tee shot: 151
Rory McIlroy dropped a post-election day bombshell.
“Locked myself indoors in a swing studio for three weeks,” said the owner of one of golf’s all-time most prized swings as he prepares for the Abu Dhabi HSBC Classic. “[I] just hit balls into a blank screen or net and just focused on my swing, focused on the movement of my swing and focused on movement of my body patterns. Had a live feed on a TV in front of me of where the club was, and just trying to get the reps in of making the motion that I want to make.”
I probably don’t remind you how much this sounds like that old quote from Ben Hogan about his swing and practice.
“The secret is in a swing studio aided by a live TV feed.” Or, something like that. A dirt reference might have been pinched in there somewhere, too.
Anyway, at least McIlroy is merely fine-tuning his swing and not trying to reinvent his pretty perfect wheel. Nor did he appear to be attempting to remind us that players and catchers are soon reporting to TGL training camp.
The four-time major champion and the 2024 U.S. Open runner-up said it’s been 18 months since he’s had a schedule opening to make a swing change. And the purpose of not seeing what the ball is doing?
“Because if I just hit balls on the range, I'm just going to react to whatever ball flight I've just seen.”
The press conference remarks came prior to the DP World Tour event in the Middle East and hours after Donald Trump was declared the winner of the U.S. presidential election. In McIlroy’s press availability session, reporters asked McIlroy for comment on last weekend’s Sun report suggesting a deal was wrapping up for a PGA Tour stake to be held by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia.
“It’s the first that I’ve heard of it,” McIlroy said before revealing that the Transaction Subcommittee of Some Other Subcommittee was set to be briefed later Wednesday.
McIlroy made more news and even drew a strong rebuke for saying the news of Trump’s election “clears the way a little bit” to crafting a PGA Tour-PIF deal free of regulatory inspection.
“He might be able to,” McIlroy said with a flippant giggle that comes across better visually than it did in print. “He’s got Elon Musk, who I think is the smartest man in the world, beside him. We might be able to do something if we can get Musk involved, too.”
The video gives off a mildly facetious tone dotted with giggles.
“Yeah, I think from the outside looking in, it’s probably a little less complicated than it actually is,” McIlroy continued more soberly. “But obviously, Trump has a great relationship with Saudi Arabia. He’s got a great relationship with golf. He’s a lover of golf. So, maybe. Who knows? But I think as the President of the United States again, he’s probably got bigger things to focus on than golf.”
Besides hopefully having better things to do than finding a solution that gets ex-Cleeks back under the PGA Tour umbrella, the idea that an uncomplicated solution requires the “smartest man in the world” may reinforce the sense of a “privileged bubble” surrounding men’s pro golf. Golfweek’s Eamon Lynch:
Instead, what McIlroy inadvertently did was reinforce a widespread perception of myopic entitlement among Tour players. Millions of people awoke this morning with leaden uncertainty about things that actually matter — economic stability, support in times of war, global alliances, civil rights, basic healthcare, immigration status. That environment is sufficiently fraught without a golfer idly speculating on whether the election might be a treat for those impatient to get their hands on some Saudi riyal.
While the comments read as Lynch depicts, the tone is far more innocuous compared to the printed version immediately lambasted—five alarm irony alert—on the smartest-man-in-the-world’s stinky sump of a social media site.
It’s no secret professional golf is losing regular viewers to the thriving recreational game, perceived focus on money over pure competition, a shortage of must-watch players, and a primary media partner (Comcast) not doing the contractually-obligated minimum as cord-cutting accelerates.
The smartest man in the world is not needed to solve such a conundrum.
This week’s notes from the major championship world include fun insights and intel (for November!). We start with Mike Whan going on a beautiful bluntness bender, news of a two-time major winner retiring this week, an assortment of Walker Cup moves, and nice array of Quotables, This, That, and Reads.
Whan On The Money Arms Race And Rollback
Mike Whan did not hold back while discussing a variety of topics with Golf Digest’s Max Adler.
Historians: I do believe this is the first time the head of a 21st century governing body has tied the need for tighter distance regulation to prevent losing course options for future championships. Whew! That only took 30 years.
As always, I recommend reading the full piece for context, but here are some highlights:
On limiting distance gains in the future. “A change that I would’ve liked to implement in 2026 will now happen in 2028 and 2030. A difference that I wish would’ve been 22 yards for the longest hitter will probably be more like 12 yards. Of course, those 12 yards will be gone in 20 years. The goal isn’t to set us back, but to slow the pace by which we’re obsoleting courses from hosting championships and qualifiers.”
On resisting “stakeholders” who have not signed on to the proposal. “Many of these same stakeholders have said to me in a quiet room, ‘I’m glad this is your decision and not ours.’ In the end, we reduced the impact of this change so that the overwhelming majority of amateurs won't know the difference or experience the difference. Would I have liked the difference to be larger? I would have, but I wasn't willing to upset the amateur game to do it.”
On the “Keepers of the Cups” campaign that raised $10 million from donors in 2023. “As a business, we’re in good shape right now. But if you look at our 130-year history, we've gone through some big ups and downs. What can we do during good times to make sure the bad times are less painful for the people that count on us? This might get me in trouble, but what couldn't we endow? Why not our U.S. Amateur and our U.S. Women's Amateur and the Senior Amateur and the Women's Senior Amateur?”
On what he calls a “significant arms race with money” in golf. “When I took this job our women's U.S. Open purse was $5.5 million and now it's $12 million. Our men’s purse was $12 million and now it's $21.5 million. Those massive chunks of difference speak to your earlier point about TV rights. If those are going in different directions, we've got tough choices ahead. If that doesn't keep you awake as a CEO, you're not spending time on the right stuff.”
On the current media rights fee of around $100 million annually and prospects for getting a similar in the next USGA contract. “Like home prices, nobody likes what they're paying for TV rights. But whether you're talking Major League Soccer, U.S. Open tennis, golf or anything else, nothing's delivering for TV like live sports right now. And nothing delivers like a major on Father's Day weekend.”
On that last point, interviewer Adler suggests NBC believes the USGA package is only worth the current $40 million pro-rated fee Comcast pays since Fox paid off the majority to get out of the deal. Nice nugget for prospective bidders.
Two-Time Major Winner Lincicome Retiring
Twenty years after Brittany Lincicome led the 2004 U.S. Women’s Open as an amateur, the two-time major champion is retiring. The 39-year-old spoke to Beth Ann Nichols before this week’s “The Annika driven by Gainbridge at Pelican” LPGA event.
“My dad said when I turned pro, ‘Give me 10 years, and then you can retire,’ ” she told Golfweek. “Here we are, 20 years later.”
Lincicome won two Dinah’s in 2009 and 2015 while recording 12 top 10’s in majors. She played six Solheim Cup’s while serving as an assistant captain as part of 2024’s victorious effort.
Walker Cup Practice Invitees Announced
Luke Clanton is keeping the door open to remain an amateur and lead the United States at next year’s Walker Cup. The talented Florida State sophomore and World No. 1 amateur has accepted an invitation from the USGA’s “International Team Selection Working Group” for December’s practice session at McArthur Golf Club, Seminole Golf Club and The Bear’s Club.
Given his recent play in pro events and the PGA Tour success of 2023 Walker Cupper Nick Dunlap (two 2024 wins), Clanton will be enticed to turn pro soon. He is just a few points from earning a PGA Tour University “Accelerated” card after making U.S. Open cut, where he became the first amateur in championship history to post back-to-back sub-70 rounds. Clanton recorded consecutive top 10s on the PGA Tour last summer with a T-10 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic and an impressive second-place finish at the John Deere Classic.
Clanton has continued to play Tour events this fall in hopes of earning the final six points necessary to automatically qualify in the non-college senior portion of the program. Should he fail to reach 20 points by next spring, Clanton can still look forward to a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play in a Walker Cup at Cypress Point.
The following players accepted invitations to the practice session ahead of next year’s matches September 6-7:
Evan Beck, 34, Virginia Beach, Va. (Wake Forest, class of 2013)
Parker Bell, 20, Tallahassee, Fla. (Florida, junior)
Blades Brown, 17, Nashville, Tenn. (high school class of 2026)
Luke Clanton, 20, Hialeah, Fla. (Florida State, junior)
Ethan Fang, 19, Plano, Texas (Oklahoma State, sophomore)
Stewart Hagestad, 33, Newport Beach, Calif. (USC, class of 2013)
Max Herendeen, 19, of Bellevue, Wash. (Illinois, sophomore)
Ben James, 21, of Milford, Conn. (Virginia, junior)
Noah Kent, 20, of Naples, Fla. (Iowa, sophomore)
Jackson Koivun, 19, of Chapel Hill, N.C. (Auburn, sophomore)
Michael La Sasso, 20, of Raleigh, N.C. (Ole Miss, junior)
Bryan Lee, 20, of Fairfax, Va. (Virginia, junior)
Tommy Morrison, 20, of Dallas, Texas (Texas, junior)
Jase Summy, 20, of Keller, Texas (Oklahoma, junior)
Brendan Valdes, 21, of Orlando, Fla. (Auburn, senior)
Jackson Van Paris, 21, of Pinehurst, N.C. (Vanderbilt, senior)
The 2025 team will be light on Walker Cup experience, with only Hagestad (2017, 2019, 2021, 2023) and Ben James (2023) having previously played the matches.
“The amateur golf talent in this country is impressive, and I’m thrilled to gather with this group for a practice session next month,” said Captain Nathan Smith. “We have a strong list of young men attending; a mixture of seasoned veterans as well as up-and-comers of the game. I’m excited to spend more time with this group.”
Smith Retained For 2026 Matches At Lahinch
The USGA also announced that Smith will be retained as captain for the 2026 Walker Cup matches at Lahinch. Smith played on three consecutive Walker Cup Teams in 2009, 2011 and 2013, earning the clinching point in the 2013 USA victory at the National Golf Links of America in Southampton, N.Y. He amassed a 3-4-1 record in his three Walker Cup matches. In 48 USGA championships, Smith has won four U.S. Mid-Amateur Championships (2003, 2009, 2010, 2012) and the inaugural 2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship with partner Todd White.
“Given the tight turnaround between the 2025 and 2026 Matches, it was clear to us that Nathan should return as captain and provide the team with a consistent leader during the unique situation of two Walker Cups in two years,” said USGA Chief Championships Officer John Bodenhamer.
Due to other international competitions and golf in the Olympics, the USGA and R&A agreed to move the Walker Cup matches to even years beginning in 2026.
Quotable
DP World Tour Chief Guy Kinnings on the feeder tour perception. “Whenever people say ‘you are a feeder tour’, I reply ‘no, we are not’. Have a look at what this tour is with unbelievable national Opens with so much history. If part of it is to feed talent through, then absolutely because it allows the best talent in the world to come through in the game and that will always be a result. You see the winner of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, Ding Wenyi, taking up his card on the Challenge Tour and that’s because people see the benefit of that being a pathway and that, in turn, should improve the quality of the golf and the golfers on what is the global tour.”
Tom Fazio on damage to Augusta National’s 16th green. “Having trees fall on your green, what does that mean? You pick up the trees, you fill in the divots and holes they left. Then you re-sod and you’re ready to go.” 🤔
This And That
Volunteer applications are now open for the 2025 Walker Cup at Cypress Point.
Now live: the 10th annual Alister MacKenzie Benefit Auction with tee times at some pretty terrific places. The auction ends on November 13th.
Chevron Championship winner Nelly Korda revealed that she’s part of 2025’s Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue. The first photo shared on Instagram:
Reads
🎼 Jason Heller on the late icon Quincy Jones’ 20 best-producing efforts.
To class up this joint, enjoy Jones’ arrangement of Frank Sinatra and Count Basie’s rendition of Fly Me To The Moon. Remember, the same person arranged this and also produced Beat It. I believe they call that range. Godspeed.
As a fellow Irishman I like Rory and he's one of the few golfers I enjoy watching - blessed with natural ability. However, he's consistently displayed a talent for failing to engage his brain before opening his mouth over the years and once again I can only shake my head. You have to wonder about his Management Team down the years. Tiger had the art of speaking for 10 minutes and saying nothing. It's a skill Rory ought to have learned by now. He's not a kid anymore.
Thank you for the Quincy Jones arrangement and the Rory context. Cheers.