Bezuidenhout Wins Alfred Dunhill To Continue His Impressive Rise

South African Christiaan Bezuidenhout held off Sean Crocker to win the 2020 Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek. And while the 26-year-old’s second win came over a so-so field, Bezuidenhout picks up a win in his native land, comfortably moves inside the all-important world top 50 (41st), and has solidified himself as a player-to-watch heading into 2021.

But as Brentley Romine reminds us, it’s the Bezuidenhout journey that is even more incredible.

Bezuidenhout has much to be proud of. For those who need a refresher, here are the spark notes: Bezuidenhout nearly died when he was 2 years old after unknowingly drinking from a Coke bottle that had been contaminated with rat poison. The poison took a toll on his body, affecting his nervous system and causing a stutter, which in turn led to bouts with anxiety and depression. When Bezuidenhout turned 14, his doctor prescribed him medication that helped him “enjoy my life again,” Bezuidenhout wrote last year in a blog post for EuropeanTour.com, but the beta blockers were also a banned substance, and despite Bezuidenhout being adamant that he filled out the proper paperwork, he was disqualified from the 2014 British Amateur and subsequently banned for nine months.

“It felt like my life was over. ... I was inconsolable,” he wrote in the same post. “However, I eventually turned this into energy to help me come back stronger.”

His emotional post round interview and the Director’s Cut of the final round highlights.

Watch highlights of Christiaan Bezuidenhout winning the 2020 Alfred Dunhill Championship from Leopard Creek. ► SUBSCRIBE: http://et.golf/Subscribe Welcome to...

President Trump Issues Less-Than-Pleasant Architectural Assessment

As the 45th President winds down his tenure, Donald Trump made his 292nd visit to one of his properties on Thanksgiving day.

If I were the third hole at Trump National Washington D.C., I’d be concerned about my architectural future after this shot, assessment and reaction…

Donald Trump got in a few holes before his Thanksgiving dinner, but it went about as well as the election for him ... and he was VERY vocal about it.SUBSCRIB...

What's Missing From The PGA Tour-European Tour Strategic Alliance News?

We knew the sides were talking months ago. Then news on a mega-tour merger went silent as the focus turned to merely getting 2020 golf tournaments off the ground.

Then we got the Friday-after-Thanksgiving news.

Belaboring the cynical timing of Friday’s “landmark strategic alliance” announcement could grow tiresome, but it’s also hard to filter much of anything out of the detail-light European Tour-PGA Tour release without returning to the odd rush to share so little detail.

This much is apparent: Jay Monahan joins the European Tour Board of Directors and with it, he brings a check of an undetermined amount to own a stake in their impressive television production operation. Less apparent: how much of that is an investment in a media operation versus a quick way to help the European Tour’s finances?

In a call with UK writers, ET Chief Keith Pelley refuted the idea that this was about finances:

.@EuropeanTour CEO Keith Pelley on "strategic alliance" with @PGATOUR :"Emphatically, this is not a merger. I read 1 tweet that said a takeover is inevitable because of the situation that we are in. We are categorically not in financial difficulties, that is simply wrong."

— Phil Casey (@pcaseysafc) November 27, 2020

But as the AP’s Doug Ferguson writes: “The announcement comes toward the end of a devastating year financially for both tours. The PGA Tour has lost more money than Europe because of its size, though it had more in reserve to handle the crisis.”

Setting the finances aside, this looks like the PGA Tour blocking a European Tour acquisition/merger/strategic partnership/just friends/whatever-you-want-to-call-it deal with the Raine Group. They are holders of the proposed Premier Golf League that was declared dead back in March.

The dance of living dead!

Golfweek’s Eamon Lynch exclusively declares today’s announced deal another nail in a coffin purportedly already six feet under when the pandemic loomed. Lynch writes:

The historic alliance announced Friday between the PGA Tour and European Tour came after months of tense negotiations, and fended off a rival bid to take a stake in the European circuit by the private equity group fronting the Premier Golf League, multiple sources have confirmed to Golfweek.

Back in March Lynch wrote the PGL “scheme” was “condemned to failure”, which begs the question, why the need for today’s fending off deal? Lynch explains this way:

The prospect of Raine Group — and by extension, Premier Golf League — gaining a foothold through the European Tour caused dread among executives at the PGA Tour, which views the PGL as a potential existential threat should it successfully lure major stars away with the promise of huge paydays.

There is life after death!

A number of sources said the Raine Group proposal was always unlikely to win favor with the European Tour’s board and was being used as leverage to secure better terms from the PGA Tour, which was keen to ensure the PGL did not secure the infrastructure and tournament network from which it could launch its own rival operation.

After checking in with sources who have knowledge of the Raine Group’s efforts, negotiations between the private equity firm and European Tour had advanced considerably this summer.

Around 50 meetings had taken place this year.

Zoom’s with the player board and Board of Directors had taken place after Raine was given full access to European Tour financials, including the Ryder Cup. That was a risky leverage bluff by Chief Executive Keith Pelley but it does appear to have led to a last-minute deal where the PGA Tour wrote a check to stave off a rival. A dead one at that.

But as one source put it, “To paraphrase Mark Twain: reports of the PGL’s death are greatly exaggerated.”

Beyond the questions of financials and dead proposals, what does this mean for players, fans and sponsors?

For now the alliance appears to be a survival move with benefits TBD. Fans might eventually get a better world schedule that will undoubtedly be streamlined due to the pandemic. Players, however, will face the prospect of a monopoly that some like Rory McIlroy openly lamented with the Premier Golf League’s more controlled franchise infrastructure. And sponsors? Perhaps there is a better solution to the WGC, Rolex, Race to Dubai and FedEx elements that seem to clash instead of delivering better golf tournaments.

Until more exciting details come forward, Andy Johnson’s take sums things up:

The PGA Tour bought a competitor with the same product and from a financial side, a worse one. The PGL has always bet on providing a different product. The positive spin for the PGL is that the Tour has doubled down on the same existing product.

— Andy Johnson 🍳 (@the_woke_yolk) November 27, 2020

This would be like if when Google came out, Yahoo bought up a smaller worse search engine. Google smoked Yahoo because it provided significantly superior products.

— Andy Johnson 🍳 (@the_woke_yolk) November 27, 2020

PGA Tour Acquires Share Of European Tour Productions, Board Seat For Jay Monahan In "Landmark Strategic Alliance"

The European Tour and PGA Tour have finally decided to join forces. And what better day to share this news than than the ultimate Friday news dump window, Black Friday!

Wait, what?

Blow is the PGA Tour release, dropped on the Friday most Americans focus on getting 60% off an air fryer and anything but looking at news. While light on detail despite seemingly positive news for the two Tours, it is hard to get past the odd timing and brevity of the release.

Here is the PGA Tour copy followed by one notable omission when compared with the European Tour’s version.

EUROPEAN TOUR AND PGA TOUR ANNOUNCE LANDMARK STRATEGIC ALLIANCE

* Historic move brings golf’s two leading global Tours together in partnership

* Alliance allows for further collaboration on scheduling and commercial opportunities

The European Tour and PGA TOUR today heralded a significant new era for global golf with an historic announcement of a Strategic Alliance.

The landmark agreement will see golf’s two major Tours explore all facets of collaboration, working together on strategic commercial opportunities including collaborating on global media rights in certain territories.

Certain territories. Tantalizing!

This will come through part of the agreement which sees the PGA TOUR acquire a minority investment stake in European Tour Productions (ETP), the European Tour’s Media Production company, which produces and distributes content internationally. 

That’s the lead news in this? I mean, we all love ETP and they certainly do a fine job but uh, ok. More likely it gets top billing because this was the easiest way for the PGA Tour to send a check that keeps the lights on in Wentworth.

The Tours will also work in partnership on a number of other areas including global scheduling, prize funds and playing opportunities for the respective memberships. Further details of these areas will be announced in due course.

That would have been my lead!

Now to the air quotes…

Keith Pelley, Chief Executive of the European Tour, said: “This partnership is an historic moment for the game of golf and is a fantastic opportunity for both the European Tour and the PGA TOUR to explore ways to come together at the very pinnacle of our sport and work in unison for the benefit of the men’s professional game.

First thing we’ve learned: Tour remains in all caps for the PGA, not for the European.

 “Today’s announcement is the formalisation of a closer working relationship between the Tours in recent years. It was one which was crystalised earlier this year when both Jay and I were part of the working group containing representatives of the four Majors and the LPGA, a group which helped shape the remainder of the golfing calendar for 2020 during unprecedented times.

 “We shared the challenges of working through a year neither of us could have ever imagined and we found definite synergies in many areas of our respective Tours. That gave us the impetus to move forward together and arrive at this momentous announcement we are making today.”

So momentous we are dropping it on a Friday with only one significant detail about acquisition of a minority share in a money-losing in-house television department? Whatever you say Chief Executive!

 Jay Monahan, Commissioner of the PGA TOUR, said, “We are thrilled to announce this further strengthening of our partnership with the European Tour, and we look forward to working together for the benefit of the men’s professional game and for golf fans around the world.”

And that would be the end.

Here is the one difference between to the two press releases sent to media, included by the European Tour but not the PGA Tour when its release landed 24 minutes later (but included in the PGATour.com online version):

One element of the partnership which can be confirmed today is the fact that PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan will take a seat on the Board of the European Tour.

A board seat is a pretty big deal. It means Monahan gets a close look at all of the European Tour financials, including the Ryder Cup. And from the player’s perspective, this particular bit of news should prompt multiple questions including, “why wasn’t Keith Pelley afforded a similar seat on the PGA Tour Tour Policy Board?”

Just guessing here, but that would have required assembling the current board, a lot of lawyers who’d charge double to work on Thanksgiving, and doing a major re-write of the PGA Tour by-laws that would have taken more time.

In Europe they’ve lately been handing out board seats monthly so clearly it was an easy move for the European Tour to add Monahan. Still, it raises questions.

More analysis to come…

The Economist On Launch Angle Golf

Thanks to reader T for The Economist’s look at launch angle golf as carried out by Bryson DeChambeau to impressive effect.

There is this explanation of how he’s defying trends by launching.

The model’s lessons are intuitive. To thump the ball as far as possible, maximise clubhead speed and launch angle while minimising spin (which causes the ball to soar higher, rather than racing forward). However, most players face a trade-off between these goals, explains Paul Wood of Ping, a club manufacturer. Harder impacts usually mean flatter trajectories. Although the average male player swings faster and produces less spin than in 2007, launch angles have declined since then.

One golfer, however, has escaped this constraint. Bryson DeChambeau, a physics graduate with oddly designed clubs and a voracious appetite for data, is nicknamed the “Mad Scientist”. While the PGA Tour was suspended because of covid-19, he added 18kg (40lbs) of bulk. This has allowed him to swing faster than anyone else. But he has also managed to smash the ball with a high launch angle, rather than a low one—an unprecedented combination that might owe something to his unusually stiff wrists and robotic technique.

Putting Shotlink data to good use, The Economist put together a stunning chart showing DeChambeau’s outlier (for now) status in the launch/speed world:

Also, The Economist’s Editor’s Pick podcast discussed their research at the 14:56 mark.

Video: "Brora Golf Club; Story of a Golf Club"

Cookie Jar Golf did a fine job highlighting the charm of endangered Cleeve Hill and they’ve posted another important short film on Brora Golf Club. Earlier in this grand year you may recall there were concerns about Brora’s future and the positive response to helping one of the world’s oldest and most important courses survive.

It’s all covered in this enjoyable four minutes:

We kick start out 2020 Scotland tour, with Brora Golf Club; Story of a Golf Club! This James Braid classic, that sits largely untouched since 1923 has gained...

Ratings: Basically, No One Watched The 2020 RSM Classic

Despite a very solid field and compelling finish, Golf Channel’s four-round broadcast of the 2020 RSM Classic failed to garner more than a few cataract-free eyeballs.

ShowBuzzDaily with the gruesome ratings showing an average of 346,000 watched the final round, with only 31,000 of those not Villages-eligible.

The post-fall Masters slot and wealth of viewing options made this a no-win situation even with all of the long-bombing athletes today.

"Who could have imagined just five years ago that Jordan Spieth and Fowler...would both be ranked outside the top 50 and all but forgotten heading into 2021?"

A variation of that question gets asked pretty frequently of most anyone who calls themselves a golf writer and there are no easy answers. Derek Lawrenson highlights the recent struggles of Rickie Fowler’s efforts to retool his swing in his weekly Daily Mail column and writes:

The Californian has played in 18 consecutive tournaments without so much as a top-10 finish and is now on the brink of falling outside the world’s top 50 for the first time in a decade.

That’s quite some fall for a man who won six times between 2015 and 2017 after finishing in the top five in all four majors in 2014.

It’s another illustration that while golf might be the slowest of games, it has a fast-changing landscape. Who could have imagined just five years ago that Jordan Spieth and Fowler, back then the two golden boys of American golf, would both be ranked outside the top 50 and all but forgotten heading into 2021?

At 27 and 31 respectively, it’s too glib and easy to say they will be back. It’s certainly the hope given they’re two of the game’s nice guys.

The bald truth, however, in a mentally shattering game, is it’s far from a given.

Another factor that can’t be discounted: both Fowler and Spieth have had incredibly lucrative off-course endorsement careers. No matter how much drive both may have, the financial windfalls inevitably have to chip away at their competitive edge. Oh and the balls goes to far and the future will be all about bashing, so I’m not sure the motivation will be there for players who, at their best, thrive on a variety of skills instead of just driving and putting. That should annoy them or the governing bodies, but so far, not yet.

The Shirtless Shark Really, Really Enjoys Playing Fetch With His Dog

The New York Post’s Nicki Gostin handles the big picture, well, better than most details. Also for non-Gram users, their hefty roundup of the best comments is below. Though you can always “view comments” on the post and see the comedic best of humanity in these dark times.

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A post shared by Greg Norman (@shark_gregnorman)

CBS News On Renewed Interest In Golf And Late Nine-Hole Rounds

CBS Moneywatch’s Megan Cerullo doesn’t tell us much we haven’t already read about golf in the pandemic. Still, after years of stories about the decline of the sport’s participation numbers, it’s worth noting pieces like this one, if nothing else to highlight that a resurgence in the game had nothing to do with the opportunity to spend $600 for ten more yards off the tee.

In August, consumers spent a record $331 million on clubs, balls, gloves and other gear — that was up 32% over the year-ago period and topped the previous sales record for that month in 2006, according to Golf Datatech. 

For the first 10 months of 2020, golf equipment sales were up nearly 30% compared to the same period last year, Matt Powell, an analyst with market research firm NPD Group, told CBS MoneyWatch. Training tools, such as hitting screens, swing aids and putting matts are up 75% as enthusiasts practice their technique away from the golf course.

And this is a nice reminder that all that well-intentioned capital devoted to nine-hole ad campaigns could never be as effective as having more people work from home.

The millions of Americans now working from home because of the virus is also boosting golf, with more people sneaking away from their desks to play a quick nine holes. 

The number of so-called short loops as a percentage of complete rounds played is up more than 15% in 2020, according to the National Golf Foundation. 

"This challenges the assumption that golf is an 18-hole sport. People are starting to see the beauty of carving out two hours for nine holes instead of three or four," said Lorentz of the National Golf Foundation. "That could be a real positive for the industry coming out of the pandemic.

"The Masters laid waste to the notion of social justice causing sports' TV ratings decline"

Yahoo’s Shalise Manza Young points out that a 51% decline in Masters ratings was in line with other drops in major sports, placing it as the fourth-worst on the list of significant events after the Stanley Cup, Preakness and the U.S. Open final round 56% drop.

Since almost no golfers partook in social justice causes this year, golf did not suffer a backlash cited as the cause of overall ratings drops:

There have been acknowledgements of the renewed call for racial reckoning that began with George Floyd’s killing in late May, with PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan releasing a statement 10 days after Floyd’s death that followed other corporations who made nebulous commitments to increasing diversity in their ranks, and senior tour player Kirk Triplett played with a BLM sticker on his bag.

But other than a few players participating in the performative #BlackoutTuesday on Instagram in June, there hasn’t exactly been a groundswell of public support for the movement in golf.

So save the “It’s those damn social justice warriors, I just want to watch my sports!” B.S.

RSM: Streb Holds Off Kisner Thanks To One of 2020's Best Shots

I can’t say from the parts I watched that we’ll be talking about 2020’s RSM Classic years or even days from now. But Robert Streb did pull off a couple of minor miracles, starting with an out-of-nowhere week, as documented by Golfweek’s Adam Schupak:

Streb hasn’t finished in the top 125 in the FedEx Cup standings in each of the past three seasons, and his recent form didn’t suggest he’d earn his first title in six years. He had shot in the 60s only three times in his last 12 rounds entering this week, but posted four straight rounds in the 60s, including a 63 on Friday and closed with a 2-under 68 to finish with a 72-hole aggregate of 19-under 263.

“I felt like things were starting to get a little better and I wasn’t quite getting the results, but wasn’t expecting this, either,” he admitted.

Streb’s approach on the second playoff hole was spectacular:

WHAT A SHOT. 😱@therealstrebber nailed his approach on the second playoff hole to win @TheRSMClassic. 🙌 pic.twitter.com/sAmFE6otjR

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) November 22, 2020

439 Yards: It's The Agronomy And The Altitude!

The European Tour kicked off three weeks in South Africa with a bang that got plenty of attention on social media: Wilco Nienaber’s 439-yard drive during the Joburg Open’s first round.

The huge number took on added interest Sunday when Nienaber contended, ultimately finishing second to Joachim Hansen.

But the 20-year-old and his prodigious length—a 337-yard European Tour average in limited starts—has been mentioned by South Africans who witnessed his victory in the 2019 South African Amateur.

Like America’s Cameron Champ, it’s the effortlessness of his swing that might be more shocking (aided by those fairway heights, as a few remaining desperadoes like to claim.)

That’s Tony Johnstone and Alison Whitacker on the call from Randpark, elevation 5000 feet:

Wilco Nienaber's 439 yard drive 🚀#JoburgOpen pic.twitter.com/AY6NNgPVUM

— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) November 19, 2020

Final round highlights:

Joachim B. Hansen launched a late fight back to clinch a two-shot victory as local favourite and long-time leader Wilco Nienaber faltered over the closing st...

"Masters Final Round Rating Down 51 percent, Lowest Since 1957" And Yet...

Paulsen at SportsMediaWatch summarizes the 2020 Masters ratings and overall huge declines with 2020’s one-off November playing.

Dustin Johnson’s win sank 51% in ratings and 48% in viewership from Tiger Woods’ iconic win last year, which aired in an even earlier timeslot (9 AM rather than 10), but on the tournament’s usual April weekend (6.9, 10.81M). Compared to 2018, the last time the final round aired in its usual late afternoon window, ratings and viewership fell 57% from a 7.9 and 13.03 million.

The steep declines and record-lows are in keeping with the overall trend for sports on television since the wave of cancellations and postponements in March. The NBA Finals (7.49M) and World Series (9.79M) both set all-time record lows in viewership, declining 49 and 30 percent respectively from last year. Stanley Cup Final viewership plunged 61% to a 13-year low (2.15M). All three Triple Crown horse races hit lows, with each down at least 32%.

While it’s still too soon to say whether any of these playings of major events will turn out to be regretted, I sense that even with huge ratings declines 2020 has reinforced the timelessness of the above-mentioned events.

In a strange way, by playing through it feels like the strength of the time-honored spectacles and their normal place on the calendar has only been strengthened. Whether its the many Masters traditions, or the Derby on the first Saturday in May, or the World Series in front of fans, all of these big time events feel even more indelible after having been deprived of experiencing them in normal ways. No one will questions a return the traditional playings.

But for the events and sports without that backbone of tradition? It feels like the pandemic will accelerate any trends prior to this mess. In the case of golf, tournaments with powerful connections to the past or a traditional timing will be supported by sports fans. The placement and perpetuity of everything else in sports seems up for grabs.

So while the ratings were as low as you can go, the overall sense that the Masters-remains-the-Masters provides more reinforcement that those events with traditions unlike-any-other will thrive because they always known their limitations and strengths.

The Modest Beginnings Of Golf's 2020 Major Champions

NEVER give up on your dreams. From Carolinas Junior Boys' Champion to @TheMasters record-setter. The Carolinas couldn't be prouder of @DJohnsonPGA's accomplishments in this great game. #MondayMotivation at #TheMasters pic.twitter.com/xZ8mz49SmK

— Carolinas Golf Assoc (@CGAgolf1909) November 16, 2020

Nothing against elite country clubs or clubby junior golf circuits, but 2020’s three major championships were each won by sons of less conventional

Collin Morikawa, the PGA Championship winner at Harding Park, got his start at southern California’s Chevy Chase Country Club, which is not to be confused with Riviera.

Bryson DeChambeau, the U.S. Open champion at Winged Foot, refined his game at Madera’s Dragonfly.

And the 2020 Masters winner got his start at Weed Hill driving range, the family operation of golf architect Bobby Weed.

From Adam Schupak’s Golfweek story:

Johnson cut his teeth digging up the sod at the driving range that gave Weed his start in the golf business, Weed Hill. Johnson’s father, the head professional at Mid Carolina Club, would take him there as a young boy. Growing up in Colombia, just over an hour from Augusta National, the Masters was the biggest week of the year and Johnson recalled how every putting contest with brother A.J. was to win the Green Jacket. Here is a where a dream that would one day become fulfilled was born.

“They had lights on the range, and most nights I would shut the lights off when I was leaving,” Johnson said.

And there is this nice recognition of the Weed family:

Weed has built courses around the world, but none is as near and dear to his heart as the driving range he built in his hometown of Irmo, South Carolina.

It was 40 years ago and Weed, a high-school junior, talked his father into letting him convert some bean fields the family owned into Weed Hill Driving Range, where a bucket of balls cost 75 cents and Grandma called the shots until he got home from school.

“I remember getting off the bus and running up the hill and I’d go in there and ask, ‘Grandma, how’s everything going?’ ‘Oh, Bobby,’ she’d say, ‘these people have been out there tearing up your grass,’ ” Weed recalled.

“She would hand wash every ball,” he added. “She’d treat them like they were eggs in a basket.”

Check out the full story here.