Andrea Pavan is recovering after falling in an elevator shaft.
ANDREW REDINGTON
Italian pro Andrea Pavan is recovering from serious injuries he suffered in a freak fall down an elevator shaft in a building where he was staying near Cape Town, South Africa, in advance of the DP World Tour’s Investec South African Open.
According to multiple reports, the incident occurred last Wednesday after Pavan, 36, called for the elevator. When the doors opened, there was no car, and not realizing it, Pavan stepped inside and fell three stories.
Pavan underwent surgery on his shoulder and back on Wednesday evening, he said in a statement released Friday through the DP World Tour. “The last two days have been difficult, but I am in very good hands and to have so many players, caddies and staff visit and contact me has meant a lot to me,” he said.
Pavan’s supporters have launched a GoFundMe page to raise money for anticipated medical expenses associated with his treatment and recovery. READ MORE
“It will be nice to be on site, see some of my buddies and talk about something I’ve been doing for 30 years.”
Jim Furyk, the 17-time PGA Tour winner and past U.S. Ryder Cup captain, who will serve as lead analyst for Golf Channel’s coverage of this week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational and next week’s Players Championship. READ MORE
Michelle Wie West, the five-time LPGA winner and 2014 U.S. Women’s Open champion, will come out of retirement to compete in WTGL, the women’s indoor golf league set to launch next winter, organizer TMRW Sports announced last Monday.
Wie West, 36, is a co-owner of Los Angeles Golf Club in the men’s TGL. She joins Jeeno Thitikul, Charley Hull, Lydia Ko, Brooke Henderson, Lexi Thompson, Rose Zhang and Lottie Woad in committing to the new league.
“As an investor in Los Angeles Golf Club and a fan of TGL, I’m excited for the chance to compete again through WTGL, which will be a powerful platform for women’s golf,” Wie West said in a statement. “I’m passionate about growing the game, and TGL has proved how new formats through the lens of innovation and creativity can bring golf to a broader audience.” READ MORE
LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil offered an update on the league’s evolution at a gathering last Thursday of current and potential sponsors and investors in New York, calling the current era “an age of deescalation,” presumably in its competition with the PGA Tour.
In an interview with Sports Business Journal, O’Neil said his goal for this year is to have 10 profitable teams, four profitable events and two limited-partner investments into teams. “We are on our way to that,” he said.
O’Neil’s comments came on the heels of Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund governor Yasir Al Rumayyan’s approval in early February of a $266.6 million capital injection into LIV Golf, bringing the sovereign wealth fund’s total investment in the league to $5.3 billion, according to a Money in Sport newsletter report. LIV Golf’s net spending averaged $100 million per month in 2024 and ’25, a rate at which the PIF’s cumulative investment in LIV Golf is forecast to surpass $6 billion by the end of this year, the report said. READ MORE
Tap-Ins
Australia’s Lucas Herbert qualified for the 2026 Open Championship by virtue of his runner-up finish at the New Zealand Open on Sunday. Herbert, who finished two strokes behind Daniel Hillier, was the highest-placed finisher not already exempt. Alistair Docherty also qualified for the Open by winning the 119 Visa Argentina Open on Sunday. READ MORE
Justin Thomas will return to PGA Tour competition at this week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational, he announced. The two-time major champion underwent microdiscectomy surgery last November. READ MORE
Bryson DeChambeau and club and shaft maker LA Golf have parted ways, Golf.com reported last Tuesday. The manufacturer rebuffed DeChambeau’s bid to become its majority owner, CEO Reed Dickens told the website, leading to a split DeChambeau’s agent confirmed. READ MORE
Brooks Koepka’s $5 million charitable contribution in connection with his PGA Tour reinstatement via the tour’s Returning Member Program will be allocated to Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation ($1 million); 10 beneficiaries Koepka selected and the tour approved, including the ALS Bridge Foundation and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital ($1.5 million); and $2.5 million equally distributed to approved beneficiaries selected by eligible PGA Tour members, such as their foundations or other charities they support. READ MORE
The field for the PGA Tour’s Puerto Rico Open this week will include former LIV Golf competitor Eugenio Chacarra and John Daly II, son of two-time major winner John Daly, who will compete on sponsor exemptions. READ MORE
Jay Madara, the PGA Tour’s 54-year-old executive vice president and chief financial officer, will retire effective March 31, the tour announced last Friday. READ MORE
Compiled by Mike Cullity
