Henrik Stenson has been drafted in as Pádraig Harrington’s fifth vice-captain for this week’s Ryder Cup match at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin as Europe attempts to retain the trophy it won in France three years ago.
The 45-year-old joins fellow Swede Robert Karlsson, Englishman Luke Donald, Germany’s Martin Kaymer and Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland. The 2016 Open champion made a late bid to earn a spot on the European team but came up short.
Stenson brings a wealth of experience to Harrington’s backroom team. The two-time European No 1 has played in five Ryder Cups – 2006, ’08, ’14, ’16 and ’18 – featuring in three winning teams. He amassed 11 points from 19 individual matches and on his last appearance at Le Golf National he rounded out a perfect 3-0 record by beating Bubba Watson, 5 and 4, in the singles. He also secured the winning point for Europe on his debut at The K Club in 2006, when he defeated Vaughn Taylor, 4 and 3.
“It’s a great honour to get the call and be involved with Team Europe,” Stenson said. “I’ve been part of five Ryder Cup teams in the past and to be given the opportunity as vice-captain to help Europe’s quest to retain the Ryder Cup is exciting.
“Pádraig called me on Monday (last week) and it was not a long conversation. I accepted straight away and I assured him that myself, along with the other vice-captains, are there to help and assist him and the team in any way we can.
“We have a very strong team. It’s a mix of huge experience along with three guys who will take on their first Ryder Cup and that’s a great combination. We have strength in depth, so I’m looking forward to getting out there and seeing the boys perform.
“It’s no secret that winning on foreign soil is always a little bit harder but the boys are ready for the challenge,” he added. “It’s all going to come down to how we play during the week but I have every faith in our team.”
Said Harrington: “I’m delighted to add Henrik to our backroom team. He will bring so much to the team in all aspects both on and off the course.
“Everyone is aware the Ryder Cup can be a tense week at times so Henrik’s renowned wit and sense of fun will benefit our team room immensely. It will also be helpful to have the cool head of the ‘Ice Man’ around should any stressful situation emerge.”
FedEx Cup champion Patrick Cantlay has been named the 2021 PGA Tour Player of the Year as voted by his tour peers, beating out Jon Rahm for the honour.
The 29-year-old American becomes the latest recipient of the Jack Nicklaus Trophy after a superb 2021 season in which he won four times on his home tour, including back-to-back play-off victories in the BMW Championship and Tour Championship.
“The fact that it’s voted on by fellow PGA Tour players, I think that means a lot to me,” Cantlay said. “It wasn’t something I necessarily thought was on the radar middle of the year, but then I closed really well and played lots of nice golf towards the end.”
The PGA Tour indicated Cantlay “was selected for the honour over (alphabetically) Bryson DeChambeau, Harris English, Collin Morikawa and Jon Rahm” but it was probably the Spaniard who ran him closest, although that is impossible to verify because the tour does not publish ballot results.
Rahm did win the PGA of America Player of the Year the previous week, which unlike the PGA Tour’s award uses a year-long points formula to determine the winner. Tournament victories, scoring averages and official money all feature in that equation.
The Spaniard won only once during 2021. That victory came at the US Open, and his overall record in the majors was better than Cantlay’s. The Spaniard accumulated five top-10 finishes in majors played during the wrap-around season. Cantlay’s best performance in a major was tied-15th at the US Open. Rahm led the tour in scoring, strokes gained and earnings and posted 15 top-10 finishes in 22 starts. He may well also have won The Memorial instead of Cantlay had a positive COVID-19 test not forced him to pull out of the tournament while holding a six-shot lead through 54 holes.
This marks the third consecutive year the two annual awards have gone to different players. Brooks Koepka (PGA of America) and Rory McIlroy (PGA Tour) split the awards in 2019 while the following year they went to Justin Thomas (PGA of America) and Dustin Johnson (PGA Tour).
The PGA Tour has announced that the 2022 Korn Ferry Tour schedule will feature a total of 26 tournaments.
They will include the return of its early season international events after they were cancelled last year because of the pandemic.
The 2022 KFT kicks off 16-19 January with the Bahamas Great Exuma Classic at Sandals Emerald Bay, before carrying on to the Bahamas, Panama and Colombia.
The developmental tour will visit 18 different states before culminating with the Korn Ferry Tour Finals and the Korn Ferry Tour Championship in late August and early September.
Korn Ferry Tour members will also enjoy a hike in prize purses, with all regular-season events offering a minimum purse of $750,000. The 2023 season events will feature purses of at least $1 million.
“We’re excited at what lies ahead,” confirmed Korn Ferry Tour president Alex Baldwin. “The Korn Ferry Tour is experiencing unprecedented growth and fan engagement.
Scotland’s Hannah Darling has made a fast start to American college golf. On her competitive debut, the 18-year-old from Broomieknowe carded rounds of 66, 73 and 66 to finish second behind Julia Johnson (Ole Miss) in the individual competition at the Annika Intercollegiate Presented by 3M at the Royal Golf Club in Minnesota to help her University of South Carolina team romp to a seven-shot victory in the event.
Darling has had a phenomenal season in the UK culminating in a win in the R&A Girls’ Amateur Championship and a solid performance for Great Britain & Ireland in the Curtis Cup at Conwy. She also won the St Rule Trophy, was runner-up at the Helen Holm Scottish Women’s Open Championship and reached the semi-finals at both the Women’s Amateur Championship and Scottish Women’s Amateur.
“She doesn’t overthink things,” said Kalen Anderson, her new South Carolina head coach, when asked what makes Darling such a successful player. “She’s really relaxed and very mature. She literally simplifies the game and is very laid back.
Darling was one of three GB&I players to feature in the top 10 at the Annika Invitational. England’s Mimi Rhodes carded rounds of 71, 70 and 70 to finish in a share of fifth place, while Wake Forest teammate Lauren Walsh from Ireland finished joint eighth.
The European Golf Association and the R&A have named teams for this year’s Junior Vagliano Trophy to be played at Hilversumsche Golf Club in the Netherlands on 8-9 October.
The match pits six of the top girl golfers from the Continent of Europe against their counterparts from Great Britain & Ireland with the Europeans currently enjoying a stranglehold over the trophy having won all five of the matches contested to date.
They will start as firm favourites to extend that sequence with a strong team headed by Germany’s Helen Briem, who won this year’s European Young Masters, and also including Spain’s Cayetana Fernández, Italian national match-play champion Francesca Fiorellini, France’s Constance Fouillet and Swedish pair Meja Örtengren and Nora Sunberg. Örtengren won this year’s German Girls’ Open and Annika Invitational while Sunberg was runner-up in the latter event. All six were members of this year’s victorious Junior Solheim Cup team.
The team will be captained by two-time European Ladies’ Mid-Amateur champion Myrte Eikenaar.
“I’m very excited about the team we have selected which includes such amazingly young and talented players who have shown great form in national and international championships,” she said. “There is little doubt that we will find strong competitors on the (GB&I) side as well but I know that our team will give it their all to win the Junior Vagliano Trophy. I look forward to welcoming the girls at Hilversumsche to experience one of the most exciting matches of the year.”
The European team, captained by 1978 AIG Women’s Open champion Janet Melville, includes Maggie Whitehead who won this year’s English Girls’ Under-16 Open Amateur Stroke-Play Championship, plus compatriots Rosie Bee Kim and Ellen Yates. They are joined by Scotland’s Grace Crawford, Ireland’s Katie Poots and Harriet Lockley from Wales.
“We have a wonderfully talented group of players who are all delighted to be representing GB&I in what will be an exciting contest against the Continent of Europe in the Netherlands,” said Melville. “I’m honoured to captain the GB&I team and to lead these young golfers in such a prestigious match which gives them a fantastic opportunity to compete against their peers from the Continent of Europe.”
There was good news for Japanese golf fans when the PGA Tour announced the 2021 Zozo Championship will be played at Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club in Chiba on 21-24 October.
It follows a year when COVID-19 restrictions forced tournament organisers to switch it to the Sherwood Country Club in California, where Patrick Cantlay beat Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas by one shot to record the first of four victories on the 2021 PGA Tour.
“After moving the Zozo Championship to the US last year, we are excited to return to Japan this October,” said Ty Votaw, PGA Tour executive vice-president, international. “This decision is timely as it coincides perfectly with the game’s continued growth and increased participation in Japan following Hideki Matsuyama’s historic triumph at the Masters tournament in April.”
Halmstad Golf Club has been confirmed as the venue for the 2022 Scandinavian Mixed Hosted by Henrik and Annika from June 9-12. Sörenstam is familiar with the Halmstad course. She played in the 2007 Solheim Cup at Halmstad and also held the 2017 Annika Invitational Europe there.
Once again the European Tour/Ladies European Tour co-sanctioned event will feature 78 women and 78 men playing for one prize fund and once piece of silverware. Co-host Henrik Stenson finished T33 this year as Northern Ireland’s Jonathan Caldwell won his maiden European Tour event.
Colin Callander and Alistair Tait