PIP Meet The PIFSIPSIA! Saudi International Names Sponsor, More Stars To Field

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After intense, last-minute negotiations, the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia has been named title sponsor of the Saudi International. Terms of the deal were not announced.

This means the full tournament name is the Public Investment Fund Saudi International Powered by SoftBank Investment Advisors, or, as they might want to call it around the LIV Golf team’s Slack: PIFSIPSIA.

More alarming for the PGA Tour and European Tour should be the continued addition of players to February’s field. Besides now having commitments from five of the world top 10, they’ve added Tony Finau, Patrick Reed, Matthew Wolff, Cameron Smith, Marc Leishman and Lucas Herbert. The allure of the Asian Tour!

The gold rush and late adds seem to be fueled by the PGA Tour’s “stand” against the existential threat, which included creating the widely-mocked PIP and granting of releases with meager consequences for players passing on the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. It’s a far cry from last summer when players were supposedly going to face membership expulsion for jumping ship. But the Saudis went out and got themselves some Asian Tour co-sanctioning and the snowball is picking up speed.

As Rex Hoggard notes here in the best possible light, the Tour was “slow” to grand competing event releases. If that’s the best they’ve got in their arsenal, it’s going to be a long year at the Global Home.

The PIF has assembled an impressive field at this point and sets up the potential for some fascinating names finding their way into the AT&T Pebble Beach field. As in, half the Champions Tour, all Korn Ferry grads, and definitely some Beljan’s and Uresti’s. Shoot, at this pace they may be the headliners!

Anyway, For Immediate Release with the new tournament logo included:


Reed, Finau, Smith join the world’s best with the PIF announced as new title sponsor for Saudi International powered by Softbank Investment Advisers 

January 3rd, King Abdullah Economic City, North of Jeddah:  An array of international stars has been added to the line-up for next month’s PIF Saudi International powered by Softbank Investment Advisers – in what will be the Asian Tour’s strongest-ever field.

With the Public Investment Fund (PIF), announced as the new title sponsor and a field packed with the world’s best players, the landmark tournament is set for a record-breaking edition when it returns to King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club, 3-6 February 2022.

2018 Masters Champion Patrick Reed will once again be returning to Saudi Arabia, playing in every tournament since the inaugural event in 2019. Another US Ryder Cup star confirmed is Tony Finau, who finished runner-up to Dustin Johnson last year and will be looking to go one better to kickstart his 2022 season.

Alongside four of the world’s top 10, the tournament will also see several new faces with a debutant for Matthew Wolff, one of golf’s hottest young talents. Further newcomers to KAEC will be exciting Australian trio Cameron Smith, Marc Leishman and Lucas Herbert. Frenchman Victor Perez will also join a star-studded field competing for an increased prize purse of $5 million and one of the highest OWGR point totals in international golf. 

Previously announced players announced include defending champion Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Louis Oosthuizen, Sergio Garcia, Xander Schauffele, Tommy Fleetwood and Phil Mickelson.

Even An Orangutan Can Drive A Golf Cart

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Longtime readers know one of the worst parts of this whole blog thing is the consistency with which news feeds share horrendous stories of golf cart accidents. So this post is for all of you who think they’re extra clever to drive carts like total shmucks.

Because we learn in this glorious video: even an orangutan can drive a golf cart. What a cool customer!

Besides consisting of the most soothing 3 minutes you’ll enjoy today, there is also this glorious bit of tiger trolling:

I’m not clear where this was shot, but based on scenery, the orangutan’s age and the amount of knuckle hair, this could be any Tuesday in The Villages.

The full video:

Daly Says "The Media" To Blame For Underreporting His Litany Of Health Problems

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undoctored image of john daly from the full send podcast

GolfMagic.com’s Andy Roberts listened to John Daly on the Full Send podcast so we don’t have to and shared a key exchange. The topic was Tiger’s jab at John Daly for taking a cart and a purported apology from Woods at the recent PNC Championship dinner.

Sitting behind a beer, ashtray for his diabetes-assisting cigarettes and a plate of fried chicken, Daly offered this regarding Tiger:

"Yeah, but he didn’t know the facts because the media, ‘the media’ (sarcastic gesture) didn’t tell him I had diabetes and I had a bad two knees and my hips out and all this stuff," Daly said on the podcast. 

"He apologized to me at dinner the other night. I mean, he’s fine. I love Tiger."

You know John is right. No one could look at him sitting there smoking, drinking and looking like a man just a few years under 100 and know he’s unwell.

He’s also right about “the media” having a key job to do: to probe and delve into the personal health records of pro golfers to help keep Tiger Woods informed of what ails them. You know, because Tiger reads so much media and just adores privacy breaches.

It seems Long John is also claiming he was one of the few people to text Tiger after his most recent car accident. Daly sent an eloquent missive.

He added: "Look, I was the only guy that texted him going through all this. Besides JT (Justin Thomas) and a couple of other players, when he had that wreck, I was the first one to say ‘Hey man, get better and do good.’

"And at the dinner, when I was Santa Claus, he says, ‘Man, thank you so much for the texts. It means a lot to me.’ And that meant a lot to me."

But if he had to thank you for the texts there’s a strong likelihood this means he never responded in the first place. No? Yes?

Anyway, I’m sure the vast media entourage covering PGA Tour Champions action will do better in the future by making sure to probe for every detail of Daly’s health issues. This will keep Tiger better informed and the media will be doing its job in John’s world.

And Heaven knows, Tiger could not have otherwise known of Daly’s issues.

If you’d like to subject yourself to more torture, the interview synopsis on YouTube should give you some idea what kind of time waste you’re in for:

Epic show this week boys. Legendary golfer John Daly sits down with Bob, Kyle, and Salim at the original Hooters in Tampa, FL. to cover everything from John’s partying stories, beating Tiger Woods with his son, loving “Daddy Trump,” and much more.

You were warned:

PIP Pandemonium: Phil Declares Victory, Tour Says Not So Fast, Morikawa Posts Dog Photo In Late 10th Place Play

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As the (not secret any more) Player Impact Program hurtles toward its year one conclusion, the silly bonus pool is wrapping with a deservedly absurd finish.

Phil Mickelson declared PIP victory two days before the calendar ended the comical bonus pool. This, despite just one top 10 against the under 50’s this year—the 2021 PGA Championship—Mickelson apparently used four Champions Tour wins to accrue the magical number of Google searches, Meltwater mentions, MVP Index points, Nielsen scores and Q-rating strength to edge Tiger Woods for the $8 million first place prize.

The closest you’ll get to a PIP victory speech since it’s a private matter:

You have to give Phil credit with the late rush of Tweets and replies while playing to the angry bro mobs, a key demo for accumulating Meltwaters by stirring up some virus questions and replying to Elon Musk.

Oh, but not so fast says Golfweek’s Eamon Lynch:

Maybe Phil’s premature celebratory Tweet will ensure victory? Or will the Commissioner and his team of independent analysts who tabulate Player of the Year totals find a way to de-Meltwater Phil’s late run?

These are just the kind of ramifications one deals with when the subject is a cockamamie concoction created for all the wrong reasons. Robert Lusetich summed up the farce best here:

Imagine that, discriminating against the youth trying to grow the game. Sad.

Speaking of the next generation, dream-demo Open Championship winner and dignified user of social media Collin Morikawa reportedly will finish 11th. This means he misses out on last place’s $3 million.

But showing vision and wisdom beyond his 24 years, Morikawa made a last ditch effort with social media gold: celebrating his 11th place finish with humor (on Twitter), and birthday well wishes to his labradoodle. Sources say the indices give extra weight to dog posts—and then triple that for any doodle—so there may still be hope for young Morikawa to crack the top 10 once that independent firm digs into the numbers!

Not since Freddie Tait posed with his dog Nails has a golfer’s dog potentially played such a key role in the game.

And then there’s Jim Herman, coming home strong even as they’re breaking down the bunting, packing up the barricades and still making his valiant PIP plays:

What a time for the game!

Quadrilateral: Major(s) News & Notes, December 30th, 2021

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Quadrilateral Exclusive: Mike & Mike's USGA Holiday Letter

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Trump's Scotland Losses Blamed On Brexit

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Despite £3.3m in emergency support from the UK government during 2020’s pandemic, Trump properties at Turnberry and Balmedie show the businesses lost £4.7 million. Severin Carrell reports for The Guardian.

The resorts reported heavy losses due to their enforced closure during the lockdowns: the headline loss for Turnberry was £3.4m, after a £321,000 profit in 2019, and £1.3m at Balmedie, compared to a loss of £1.1m in 2019.

The story notes that this is the ninth consecutive year that Trump International near Aberdeen has reported a loss.

Also from the filing: the Trump’s blamed also Brexit for impacting the family business, notes The Daily Beast’s Justin Rorhlich.

Three months before he won the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Donald Trump gave himself a new nickname: Mr. Brexit. After the nation voted to break away from the rest of Europe, Trump appeared at Turnberry, his golf course in Scotland, and commended the Brits who “took back their country.” He later said Brexit was “a great advantage for [the] UK.” But, in true Trumpian fashion, Brexit wasn’t great for Trump personally. According to a financial disclosure filed with Scottish authorities and signed by Eric Trump, Brexit “impacted our business as supply chains have been impacted by availability of drivers and staff, reducing deliveries and availability of certain product lines.”

Turnberry has since seen higher prices, which have “increased from additional freight and import duty charges,” the filing states. “Staff availability has been a challenge from a combination of wage inflation with retail and logistics sectors increasing wages to attract staff due to increased business levels,” it says. And, it explains, “[T]he staffing pool has been reduced with lack of access to European staff for businesses in general resulting in greater demand for individuals previously available to the resort.”

Who could have seen that coming?

State Of The Game 118: Is The Sandbelt Invitational The Future Of Golf?

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A special Sandbelt Invitational post-op analysis with co-founder Mike Clayton offers an in-depth look at the event that offered mostly young Australians the chance to play tournament conditions at some of the planet’s best.

Plus, we touched on Tiger’s return, the latest Saudi and PGA Tour moves and what we’re looking forward to in 2022.

The Apple option.

The Google option.

Brady Watt Wins The Inaugural Sandbelt Invitational

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Golf Australia’s Jimmy Emmanuel reports on the first-ever Sandbelt Invitational hosted by Geoff Ogilvy and Mike Clayton, won by 31-year-old Brady Watt the former World No. 1 amateur and Perth native. The four-sandbelt course featured, men, women and amateurs. Grace Kim won the low woman pro title.

Emmanuel writes:

All four will leave the event and the spectacular Peninsula Kingswood extremely happy. But so will Clayton, Ogilvy and co. who have created something extremely special that has proven big names and big tents aren’t the recipe for tournament success. Quality courses and a unique learning opportunity for young players a winning combination that might draw the other sooner rather than later.

And in a follow up column, Emmanuel raved:

The four layouts that welcomed the likes of Herbert, Ogilvy, Peter Fowler, Su Oh, Grace Kim and others were the stars of the show. All four are ranked in the top-20 courses in the country and setup as if the Australian Open was finishing on the grounds the day they welcomed the field of a little over 60.

“It’s the best courses that we have, setup as well as they can be setup, with the best players we can find. What else do you need, that’s a pretty good formula,” Ogilvy said of the event to Golf Australia magazine.

Australia has been starved of big tournament golf due to COVID, but our best courses have gone wanting even longer for other reasons. And Ogilvy, Clayton and the rest of the organising crew proved the value of venue when creating something that draws attention locally and overseas, impresses the players and has people wanting more.

Here’s a nice video from the official account:

NGF: "2021 total rounds will exceed last year’s"

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While the final numbers will not be in until January, the NGF’s Joe Beditz says that despite small declines in recent months, rounds of golf will finish up 4-5% in 2021.

He offered this thinking on the rise despite a return to the office for some.

So how do we explain rounds being up over last year? A few thoughts:

1. Lots of golfers continue to have more schedule flexibility than prior to the pandemic, and so afternoon tee sheets are still being filled

2. While the weather this year hasn’t been quite as ‘golf friendly’ as last year, it wasn’t too bad

3. We’ve hung on to many of the new and returning golfers (public and private) from last year

But the main reason rounds are going to finish up: March and April crushed it relative to the previous year. Because half of all courses were closed during those months in 2020, and others had restrictions on play, this year’s comparable rounds were bound to be way, way higher … and they were.

Quadrilateral: Major(s) News And Notes, December 23rd, 2021

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Ratings: 2021 PNC Championship Up Big!

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Tiger and Charlie beat 2020 Tiger and Charlie!

According to Showbuzzdaily.com, the 2021 PNC Championship final round drew a Nielsen 1.43 overnight, with an average of 2.23 million viewers and 404,000 of the cap-on-backwards demo.

The 2020 edition featuring Team Woods and 19 other teams drew a Sunday .98 rating and 1.5 million/280,000 non-AARPers.

Quadrilateral: Seth Waugh's PGA Of America Christmas Letter

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PGA Tour Grants Saudi Releases With Draconian Conditions: Players Must Play Return To Play Pebble Beach At Least Once, Possibly Even Twice!

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Punishment for those collecting seven and eight-figure appearance fees (Photo by Geoff Shackelford)

They weren’t bluffing down there at the Global Home regarding February’s Saudi International and preventing as many as thirty top players from playing the same week as the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Nobody messes with Jay Monahan! He is the Sheriff of all…wait, what?

The potential defectors get to abandon one of the biggest events on the PGA Tour calendar and their punishment will to play Pebble Beach-Spyglass-MPCC over the next two years? All while collecting huge appearance fees and possibly laying the groundwork for fundamentally disrupting the PGA Tour’s business?

Tony Soprano, he is not. Guess Jay’s in the holiday spirit?

Back in July Golfweek’s Eamon Lynch reported that players would be denied releases to play the event believed to be a precursor to a Saudi Golf League. But now Lynch is first to report the releases will be granted for the February 3rd-6th event but with “strings attached.” Some really, really thin strings.

Any player who has competed in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am event at least once in the past five years must commit to play at least once in the next two years (2023 and 2024). Players who have not competed at Pebble Beach in the last five years will need to do so twice in the three years until 2025.

The travesty of it all! How will they cope?

A source familiar with the names of the 30 players who applied for waivers told Golfweek that 19 of them will have to commit to one appearance at the AT&T, while the other 11 will be required to play twice.

Cracking that whip! I half-expected to read they’d be prevented from getting Spanish Bay rooms overlooking the service bay.

One source familiar with the situation told Golfweek that lower-profile players invited to compete in King Abdullah Economic City have been offered appearance fees of around $400,000, with mid-tier players receiving between $500,000 and $750,000. High-profile stars get seven-figure offers. Chartered private aircraft to and from Saudi Arabia is also provided.

Growing the game!

Meanwhile the PGA Tour Twitter account acknowledged this gruesome situation. Remarkably, the PGA Tour has yet to suggest it has any issue with how the country in question sometimes conducts its business. Psssssst: someone tell the Global Home the Fund is no longer invested in Disney and Marriott, so no need to worry about upsetting proud or semi-proud partners.