Reminder: Asia-Pacific Amateur On ESPN2 Starting Thursday

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A spot in the Masters is on the line and last year for the golfer named Tianlang Guan or Guan Tianlang captured the title.

All four rounds of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship will be carried by ESPN2 starting Thursday. All times ET:
 

Thursday, Oct. 24  2:30 a.m.  First Round  ESPN2, WatchESPN

Sunday, Oct. 27 4 a.m. Final Round ESPN2, WatchESPN

4:30 p.m. Final Round Highlights ESPN2, WatchESPN

Friday, Oct. 25 2:30 a.m. Second Round  ESPN2, WatchESPN

Saturday, Oct. 26 4 a.m. Third Round ESPN2, WatchESPN

Nanshan International Golf Club in China hosts the 2013 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, and in 2014 Royal Melbourne is the host.

Will Tiger Boycott Golf Channel Interviews Over Brandel?

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Ed Sherman has a roundup of the Brandel-Tiger-cavalier-with-the-rules situation and wonders if this could mean a Tiger boycott of Golf Channel interviews in lieu of the hoped-for trial.

This, even though the original offense appeared on golf.com, where they still have not acknowledged Mark Steinberg's rebuttal to the Chamblee column suggesting possible legal action.

Woods, though, will be looking to get even, and that could put the Golf Channel in the line of fire. There’s not much he can do to get back at Golf.com. The magazine and site weren’t getting any exclusive interviews anyway.

Woods, though, does appear regularly on interviews during tournaments with the Golf Channel. Chamblee’s main work is with the Golf Channel.

I wouldn’t rule out the possibility that Woods might pull an interview boycott with the Golf Channel–at least at the events where Chamblee is on site as an analyst, which are quite a few. It would be a way for the Woods camp to make Chamblee feel the heat.

The World Challenge at Sherwood should provide an opportunity to find out, as NBC/Golf Channel is the tournament's longtime partner. Would he not do an interview Thursday and Friday, and then sit in the NBC booth as he traditionally does on the weekend?

Or perhaps this will be an opportunity for Tiger Marching And Chowder Society Co-Chairs Kelly Tilghman and Notah Begay to intervene?

Christmas For Golf Geeks! New USGA Form 990s Are Posted!

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At 142 pages it's a long one, but the PDF posted by Guidestar and sent in by a mystery reader outraged at the salaries reveals plenty of cash on hand for the non-profit. Plenty.

First off, congrats to the first millionaire in USGA history, Mike Butz! Granted, it's just SVP money in Ponte Vedra, but still admirable for an organization that only nets a profit one week a year.

And another congrats to Executive Director Mike Davis for already making David Fay money in just year two on the job. Again, not even Co-SVP money in Ponte Vedra but the PVGC dues check should clear.

Now, I don't know a lot about hedge funds but I do know that Warren Buffett put his money where his mouth is to prove they aren't the greatest investment tool unless you are the one charging outlandish fees, but it is enlightening to see the USGA's rainy day fund at $299,671,833 is comprised of $80,296,213 in hedge funds or alternative investments, up from $34.5 million in 2009. Naturally, the forms seem unclear on who is doing the investment work.

More than anything, it's a relief to know that Fox Sports television contract money is coming in 2014 to bring in another $50 million a year. That way the USGA can get the rainy day fund to $500,000,000 million by the time the 501C3 non-profit status is tossed and the long-awaited IPO hits.

I look forward to your analysis! Post away...

Royal Porthcawl & Muirfield Top List Of R&A's '16 Amateur Venues

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Another step for Wales and Royal Porthcawl in possibly hosting The Open Championship one day.

And great to see Muirfield hosting something other than The Open:

THE R&A ANNOUNCES 2016 CHAMPIONSHIP VENUES

21 October 2013, St Andrews, Scotland: The R&A has announced the venues for its amateur championships in 2016 which include some of the most prestigious courses in Great Britain and Ireland.

Royal Porthcawl in Wales will host the Amateur Championship for the seventh time and the first occasion since 2002 when Spain’s Alejandro Larrazabal triumphed over Englishman Martin Sell by one hole in the 36 hole final. The preliminary stroke play rounds will also be played at Pyle & Kenfig on the South Wales coast.

It will be the 121st staging of the Amateur Championship which features a field of 288 world-ranked amateur players with the winner earning a place in The Open Championship and the following year’s US Open. Traditionally the winner also receives an invitation to The Masters.

Former Major Champions such as Jack Nicklaus, Sir Nick Faldo, Jose Maria Olazabal, Ernie Els, Padraig Harrington, Darren Clarke and Louis Oosthuizen have all played in the Amateur Championship.

Muirfield, which hosted The Open Championship for the 16th time this year, and its neighbouring course, The Renaissance, will welcome the world’s leading boy golfers when they host the Boys Amateur Championship for the first time in 2016.

In recent years more than half of the 252-strong field has come from across Europe, America, South America, Africa and Asia and the 90th staging of the championship will attract a strong international field once again.

Some of the game’s leading players including Sandy Lyle, Jose Maria Olazabal, Sergio Garcia, Padraig Harrington, Lee Westwood, Graeme McDowell and Luke Donald have played in the Boys Amateur over the years. The 2012 champion, Matthew Fitzpatrick, went on to win the Silver Medal as the leading amateur at this year’s Open Championship and the McCormack Medal as the world’s leading male amateur player.

Peter Dawson, the Chief Executive of The R&A, said, “We are delighted to have such excellent championship venues in 2016. Royal Porthcawl and Pyle & Kenfig will be wonderful venues for the Amateur Championship and we expect the Welsh galleries will relish the opportunity to see leading amateur players in action.

“Muirfield is one of the finest links courses in the world and will provide a stern challenge for the leading boy golfers in the Boys Amateur Championship.”

Elsewhere, the St Andrews and Jacques Leglise trophy matches between Great Britain and Ireland and the Continent of Europe will be played at former Open Championship venue Prince’s in Kent for the first time.

It will also be a first visit for the Boys Home Internationals to Ireland’s most northerly golf course, Ballyliffin (Glashedy Links), which has hosted European Tour and Ladies’ European Tour events.

The Seniors Open Amateur Championship will return to Merseyside at Formby, which hosted the inaugural event in 1969.

The dates for the championships in 2016 are as follows:

The Amateur Championship at Royal Porthcawl and Pyle & Kenfig:  13 – 18 June

Boys Home Internationals, Ballyliffin (Glashedy Links):  2 – 4 August

The Seniors Open Amateur Championship, Formby :  3 – 5 August

The Boys Amateur Championship, Muirfield and The Renaissance:  9 – 14 August

St Andrews and Jacques Leglise Trophies, Prince’s:  26 & 27 August