In the days leading up to its season-opening tournament this week in Mexico, LIV Golf continued to disrupt the professional game, according to multiple published reports.
Adrian Meronk, who was named the DP World Tour’s player of the year for 2023 after being left off the victorious European Ryder Cup team, reportedly has signed with LIV, according to Tom Kershaw of London’s Times newspaper. Meronk will make his debut at Mayakoba, Mexico, this week, when LIV begins its third season, the report said. As of Sunday evening, LIV had not announced Meronk’s signing.
Meronk, 30, of Poland, pulled out of last week’s Farmers Insurance Open in San Diego, California, in what would have been his first start as a PGA Tour member. He finished runner-up to Rory McIlroy one week earlier at the DP World Tour’s Dubai Desert Classic. At No. 39 in the Official World Golf Ranking, Meronk would be LIV’s biggest recruit since No. 3 Jon Rahm of Spain opted for the Saudi-funded rival tour in early December.
England’s Tyrrell Hatton, who is No. 16 in the world, also is being wooed by LIV, the Times reported. Hatton was listed in the field for this week’s PGA Tour event at Pebble Beach.
However, the Saudis could make an even bigger splash by luring reclusive American Anthony Kim out of his decade-long hiding, Dylan Dethier reported for Golf.com. Kim, a three-time winner in 2008-10 on the PGA Tour and member of the winning U.S. Ryder Cup team in 2008, disappeared from the game in 2012 after struggling with injuries. He has kept a low profile since then. Kim reportedly has been talking with the PGA Tour and LIV Golf about a potential comeback. One big hurdle: a $10 million insurance policy from which Kim has benefitted since leaving golf. READ MORE and MORE
Fresh off of his stunning victory at the PGA Tour’s American Express, University of Alabama sophomore Nick Dunlap rose to No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking on Wednesday.
One day later, the reign ended when he turned pro.
Dunlap, 20, of Huntsville, Alabama, and the 2023 U.S. Amateur champion, jumped two spots in the WAGR after his victory January 21 at PGA West’s Stadium Course. He earned an exemption through the 2026 season on the PGA Tour and spots in the $20 million signature events, then faced a life-changing decision: Stay amateur and complete the college season, or turn professional. Dunlap withdrew before last week’s Farmers Insurance Open to return to Tuscaloosa and consider his options. Remaining atop the WAGR paled in comparison with what awaits him on the PGA Tour, beginning with a professional debut this week at Pebble Beach. READ MORE
Eighteen of the top 20 players in the Official World Golf Ranking were scheduled to play this week’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, which begins Thursday on California’s Monterey Peninsula. Among the top 20, only No. 3 Jon Rahm and No. 20 Brooks Koepka, both ineligible because of their moves to LIV Golf, were not entered. The $20 million tournament will be the second of the year’s eight signature events of elevated purses on the PGA Tour. Unlike in past years, amateurs will compete for only the first two rounds, and Monterey Peninsula will not be part of the course rotation, with only Spyglass Hill and Pebble Beach Golf Links being used. READ MORE
The Cognizant Classic, for years known as the Honda Classic before the automaker opted not to renew its long-running sponsorship after last year’s tournament, appears to be making a comeback of sorts with PGA Tour membership. Often plagued with an undesirable spot on the schedule, the annual stop at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, failed to attract the best players in golf, despite being a home game of sorts for the growing legion of players based in nearby Jupiter. Last week, Rory McIlroy, the world’s No. 2-ranked player, committed to the first stop on the Florida Swing, set for February 29-March 3. READ MORE
“The Match” will be mixing it up for its ninth edition.
For the first time, the made-for-TV exhibition will feature female golfers. Rory McIlroy and Lexi Thompson will challenge Rose Zhang and Max Homa in a 12-hole skins format under the lights on Monday, February 26 at The Park golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida.
The first edition of “The Match” in 2018 featured Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson in a head-to-head event at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas. Subsequent editions have included football’s Peyton Manning and Tom Brady and basketball’s Charles Barkley and Steph Curry, among others. READ MORE
Golf Saudi put the kibosh on a scheduled vote among Ladies European Tour players to merge with the LPGA, according to a letter sent to LPGA players and obtained by Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols.
In the letter, LPGA commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan wrote to players: “As a significant partner of the LET, Golf Saudi wanted to ensure that they fully understood any risks, implications, and opportunities for the Aramco Saudi Ladies International and Aramco Team Series before finalizing their commitment to the events in 2024.”
Saudi sponsorship accounts for nearly one-third of the LET’s total prize fund. READ MORE
Global Golf Post’s John Steinbreder was recognized by the International Network of Golf with three awards for his recent work.
Steinbreder, who oversees business, travel and course architecture coverage for GGP, received one first-place award and two honors for “outstanding achievers” during the ING’s 30th annual awards program Tuesday at the PGA Show in Orlando, Florida.
Steinbreder won the top honor in travel writing for “Tiny Anguilla delivers big thrills with a view” in the April 24 issue of GGP. “Off-course, of course” in the April 14 issue of GGP Biz was one of the “outstanding achievers” in business writing. His commentary “A win-win at Connecticut club” was among the “outstanding achievers” in the opinion/editorial category.
Steinbreder, 67, of Redding, Connecticut, has been with GGP since its founding in 2010. READ MORE
Sparked by mild weather across the U.S., the number of rounds played jumped 23.9 percent in December, pushing the yearly gain to 4.2 percent and setting a record for most rounds played in a year, Golf Datatech disclosed in its monthly National Rounds Played Report of statistics from the National Golf Foundation. The number of rounds played in 2023 topped 500 million for the fourth consecutive year. READ MORE
Circana, a Chicago-based company that provides analysis on consumer behavior, has agreed to acquire market-research firm Golf Datatech, the companies announced. Golf Datatech, located in Kissimmee, Florida, would operate as a wholly owned subsidiary. READ MORE
The R&A and Sky Sports have extended their agreement for the London-based broadcaster to provide live coverage of the Open Championship, AIG Women’s Open and top amateur tournaments through 2028. READ MORE
The USGA’s program to improve golf course management, named in honor of former CEO Mike Davis, has funded 15 new research projects this year, pushing the program’s total investment past $50 million since 1983. READ MORE
Grant Knudson has joined Sun Mountain Sports as president and chief brand officer, the company announced. Knudson had worked at Puma Golf and Adidas. READ MORE
TAP-INS
Joe Lewis, a British billionaire whose Tavistock Group has deep roots in golf course development, pleaded guilty to three counts relating to securities fraud in an insider-trading scheme, federal prosecutors announced Jan. 24. Lewis, 86, built the Lake Nona and Isleworth communities near Orlando, Florida, attracting some of golf’s top touring professionals as residents. Lewis and his Broad Bay Ltd. will pay $50 million in fines and forfeitures, and he faces potential prison time. No sentencing date had been set. READ MORE
Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, will add the 2040 U.S. Open to its schedule, which already included two other upcoming U.S. Opens, the USGA announced. Merion previously had been awarded the 2030 and 2050 Opens. Merion, a 1912 Hugh Wilson design, last hosted the Open in 2013, when Justin Rose won. Merion has hosted 19 USGA championships, and its roster of winners includes Ben Hogan (1950 Open) and Bobby Jones (1924 and 1930 U.S. Amateurs). READ MORE
Tony Pancake, the director of golf at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, Indiana, was recognized as the PGA of America’s golf professional of the year during last week’s PGA Show in Orlando, Florida. Pancake was among 13 national award recipients to be saluted at the industry gathering. They will be formally honored at the PGA’s annual meeting in Grand Rapids, Michigan. READ MORE
Italy’s Edoardo Molinari has been appointed as Europe’s first assistant captain for the 2025 Ryder Cup, captain Luke Donald announced. Molinari served in a similar capacity for Donald during the Europeans’ 16½-11½ victory against the Americans last year in Rome. The 2025 matches are scheduled for September 26-28 at Bethpage Black in New York. READ MORE
Nominations are open for the Ron Balicki Scholarship, which will go to a current high school senior, college undergraduate or graduate student who aspires to become a golf journalist. The award, in honor of the late Golfweek writer Ron Balicki, will be two $2,500 scholarships – one per 2024 semester – the Golf Coaches Association of America announced. READ MORE
Compiled by Steve Harmon