Rory McIlroy underscored once again last week why he stands out as one of the game’s top thinkers.
McIlroy had a big week on and off the course, tying for third at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship in the United Arab Emirates as he virtually assured himself of the season’s top honors on the DP World Tour. He enters this week’s season finale at Jumeirah Estates in Dubai as a near-lock to win the tour’s season-long Race to Dubai title, which would be his sixth, and the tour’s Harry Vardon Trophy for lowest stroke average. Though the 35-year-old Northern Irishman won only once on the DP World Tour, in January in Dubai, he won twice in America in a year burdened by his duties at the forefront of the tours’ negotiations with the Saudis.
Last week in Abu Dhabi, McIlroy let loose on a few topics, notably that he:
Worked on his swing during a nearly month-long break – no, he didn’t “change” it, as some media outlets reported, but “just wanted to clean it up a little bit” – by spending three weeks in a studio hitting balls into a simulator without seeing the ball flight (for details, flip forward a few pages to read Scott Michaux’s “Range Rat”);
Intends to cut back on his tournament play, with perhaps 20 starts worldwide (down from an expected 26 this year);
Stated his desire to “go down as the most successful European of all time. … I think it is a goal that’s quite attainable over the next 10 years.”
Weighed in on the election in his adopted homeland, saying that President-elect Donald Trump’s victory “clears the way a little bit” to grease the skids for a deal among the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund that could be free of U.S. regulatory scrutiny. “Obviously, Trump has a great relationship with Saudi Arabia,” McIlroy said. “He’s got a great relationship with golf. He’s a lover of golf. So, maybe. Who knows? But I think as the president of the United States again, he’s probably got bigger things to focus on than golf.”
Hector Vivas, Getty Images
How much does a PGA Tour caddie earn? Well, there’s Ted Scott, who has banked an estimated seven-figure salary while looping for superstar Scottie Scheffler this year, and then there’s everybody else.
Bryan Kopsick, who caddies for Ben Silverman, offered a detailed breakdown of his salary and expenses this year on social media after his man finished a career-high 110th on the FedEx Cup points list.
Kopsick earned $149,007.92 – that’s $2,000 per week for 24 tournaments, plus 8 percent of Silverman’s $1,262,599 on-course earnings, or $101,007.92 – exclusive of sponsorship and off-course income. (Yes, caddies also land sponsorship deals.) Of course, that’s before expenses, which Kopsick estimated to be about $50,000 for the year. READ MORE
Golf Channel will be going deep with coverage of Caitlin Clark and the LPGA.
Clark, the rookie sensation with the WNBA’s Indiana Fever, will compete in the pro-am on Wednesday at the Annika driven by Gainbridge. She is scheduled to play the front nine at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida, with world No. 1 Nelly Korda and then the back nine with tournament host Annika Sörenstam. Golf Channel intends to livestream Clark in her warmup on the range before her 7 a.m. tee time and conduct an in-round walk-and-talk interview. LPGA and tournament social-media sites also will provide content. Golf Channel's “Golf Today” show, which typically airs at 12:30 p.m. ET, will start at 11 a.m. on Wednesday and cover Clark’s round.
Clark’s participation in a Women’s Leadership Summit at 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday also will be livestreamed on NBCSports.com and LPGA.com. READ MORE
Nelly Korda clinched the LPGA’s player of the year without even competing in recent weeks.
Korda, a six-time winner this season, was assured the award after the finale of the four-stop Asia Swing, which she missed with a minor neck injury. Despite having made only 14 starts, she leads the LPGA money list with $3,676,930. Korda is expected to return this week for the Annika driven by Gainbridge event in Belleair, Florida. READ MORE
TAP-INS
Adam Scott, who has been a regular on the pro circuit in his native Australia at the end of the year, will skip the big events Down Under to rest and “spend some quality time” with his family, he told Australian Golf Digest. Scott, 44, who has won two Australian PGAs, two Australian Masters and an Australian Open in his quarter-century professional career, has risen to No. 19 in the Official World Golf Ranking. He is assured spots in all four major championships and the PGA Tour’s signature events. READ MORE
England’s Wentworth Club denied a podcast report by touring pro Eddie Pepperell that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund would buy the home of the DP World Tour and host of its top event, the BMW PGA Championship, in Virginia Water, England. “These rumours are unfounded,” the club’s board said in a statement. Since 2014, Wentworth has been owned by Reignwood Investments, a company held by Chinese-Thai billionaire Chanchai Ruayrungruang. READ MORE
Lanny Wadkins, who turns 75 next month, will end his role as a Golf Channel analyst after 13 years on PGA Tour Champions broadcasts at the Mitsubishi Electric Championship in January, he told Golfweek’s Adam Schupak. READ MORE
Compiled by Steve Harmon