Olympics Schedule Mess: 2016 PGA Moves To July

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The July 25-31, 2016 PGA at Baltusrol is now official, clearing golf of one hurdle related to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.

For Immediate Release:

The 98th PGA Championship at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, New Jersey, will be held the week of July 25-31, 2016, as the PGA of America marks its centennial year by joining the golf world in preparing for the sport’s return to the Olympic Games.
 
The PGA Championship, one of golf’s four major championships, will be played in July for the first time since 1968. The Championship, with the exception of 1971, has been conducted in August every year beginning in 1969.
 
Baltusrol Golf Club, home of many of the most memorable U.S. major championships, was selected in 2008 as the site of the 98th PGA Championship. The Summer Olympics, scheduled for Aug. 5-21, will be hosted in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The men and women golf competitors in the 2016 Summer Olympics will be determined by the Official World Golf Rankings as of July 11, 2016.
 
“The PGA of America is excited for what the year 2016 means for our Association and the game of golf. It promises to be a historic season on many levels,” said PGA of America President Ted Bishop. “We celebrate our centennial; our PGA Championship is being hosted on one of the greatest courses in America and the Olympic Games cap the summer by welcoming back golf as an official sport. We believe that moving up the PGA Championship date that year is a win-win for our viewing audience, our spectators as well as for what is likely to be once again the strongest field in golf.”

2020 PGA Championship To Harding Park

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Looks like Joe Passov beat me to it by about 15 minutes, but here's my GolfDigest.com item for The Loop on Harding Park landing the 2020 PGA Championship.

The decision is a positive for the PGA of America because they are coming west after a 16-year hiatus, but I don't believe the current course, despite it's staggering $23 million PGA Tour Design Services renovation price, is up to the quality standards for a major site.

As I spell out in the item, this also dooms the chances of an international PGA in 2020 to get away from the Tokyo Games. That was always a longshot, but obviously when you weigh Harding Park vs. Royal Melbourne, well, the international option would have been great for fans.

**Story updated with quotes from Sandy Tatum, who spearheaded the renovation of Harding Park over 11 years ago and as you can imagine is delighted with the news.

Karen Paolozzi: Woman Makes Cut In PGA Club Pro!

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From an unbylined AP story on Druid Hills assistant pro Karen Paolozzi becoming the second female player to make the cut in the PGA Professional National Championship where University of Toledo coach Jamie Broce holds the second-round lead.

From the story:

“This is exactly what my goal was,” Paolozzi said. “I wanted to make the cut. I wanted to come here and play well. I was a little disappointed after yesterday, but I knew if I put in a solid round today, I had a chance.”

Video: Colbert Takes On Hack Golf, State Of The Game

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Colbert on golf! Finally.

Tip of the cap to Ashley Mayo for the alert on the Colbert Report's "Sports Report" (that's pronounced Spore Repore) where, at the 5:40 mark, Stephen Colbert and friends take on the PGA Show, Hack Golf and efforts to grow the game.

And I think before any golf writer, Colbert and writers actually have perused the crowd sourcing HackGolf.org website.