Author: Golf Post

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Panorama

Justin Bieber Shows Off Golf Skills with Bold ‘Driver Off the Deck’ Shot

Justin Bieber tries daring golf "Driver off the Deck" shot. (Source: Instagram@golfdigest)

It’s no secret that many celebrities find refuge on the golf course, and Justin Bieber is no exception. Over the years, the now 30-year-old singer has been vocal about his passion for golf, once claiming to have played to a 15-handicap. Bieber recently gave his fans a glimpse of his golf game by posting a video showcasing an ambitious shot: the challenging and rarely-seen “Driver off the Deck.”

Justin Bieber Takes on the “Driver Off the Deck” Challenge

For those unfamiliar, hitting a driver off the fairway is a bold move, even for seasoned golfers. It requires precise technique and control, as the shot eliminates the support of a tee, demanding the utmost accuracy. In the video, Justin Bieber can be seen addressing the golf ball with confidence before attempting this high-risk play. Bieber’s swing and the result of the shot sparked interest across social media. While opinions on his performance varied, the video highlights his enthusiasm for the game.

 
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PGA Tour

PGA Tour: Tour Championship changing to a group format?

A change to the Tour Championship format might be in the works. (Photo: Getty)
A change to the Tour Championship format might be in the works. (Photo: Getty)

Schedule: The PGA Tour is considering a change to the tournament format for the Tour Championship. According to US media reports, a bracket solution is being discussed for the season finale at East Lake Country Club, i.e. dividing the field of participants into two groups, which will then play out the champion in stroke play and match play. The current format is controversial among active players, but a format with direct duels would be well received. ‘I’d like to see something the players are excited about and the fans are excited about,’ said Patrick Cantlay, a member of the PGA Tour Policy Board, which has to approve a change. As only the top 30 players of the season or the play-offs are competing in East Lake anyway, the problem that makes a match play format unattractive for standard tournaments would also be obsolete: because no underdogs could fight their way through to the semi-finals or final and then possibly rather unattractive names with low ratings would duel each other at prime time on Sunday.

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Panorama

Lexi Thompson: Proposal in the snow

Boyfriend Max Provost proposing to Lexi Thompson. (Photo: Instagram.com/@lexi)
Boyfriend Max Provost proposing to Lexi Thompson. (Photo: Instagram.com/@lexi)

Private happiness: At the end of May last year, Lexi Thompson announced her extensive retirement from the tournament circuit in order to escape the constant public spotlight and have more time for her personal life. The 29-year-old explained that she wanted to get married and have a family. The first step in this direction has now been taken: In the Canadian ski resort of Whistler, a good hour and a half’s drive from Vancouver, boyfriend Max Provost got down on one knee in front of the eleven-time Tour winner on New Year’s Day and proposed to her. Naturally, Lexi Thompson said yes and posted the emotional moment on Instagram with appropriate comments. The comment bar reads like a who’s who, by the way:

Lexi Thompson’s future plans

The future husband works as a salesman and expert in the field of medical technology and specifically in surgical robotics and has been on Lexi Thompson’s bag at several Pro-Ams. Speaking of the bag: the professional life is not quite over for the 2014 major winner (then Kraft Nabisco Championship, now Chevron Championship). Thompson has always emphasised that she no longer wants to play a full LPGA Tour schedule, but that leaves one or two back doors open. For example, for the 2025 Chevron Championship: ‘Even though it’s a different venue and a different sponsor now, it’s still a memory that I’ll cherish for the rest of my life because I won my first major at that event,’ she said in a recent interview. And: ‘Yes, it’s probably one of the events I have circled in my calendar.’ It will be interesting to see.

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Panorama

Tiger Woods on the TGL Mega Simulator

Photo: Getty
Photo: Getty

And he’s still playing: … again. Tiger Woods may not have made it onto the course and into the walking game at his Hero World Challenge, but the almost 49-year-old (December 30) is still able to play standing golf despite the sixth back operation he underwent in September. The 15-time major winner recently personally inspected the action area at the SoFi Center in Palm Beach Gardens/Florida, where the Tomorrow’s Golf League (TGL), which he and his business partners Rory McIlroy and Mike McCarley are staging with their joint company TMRW Sports, starts on January 7. Woods himself enters the competition with Jupiter Links on January 14, week two, against Los Angeles.

This week, he will then be able to ride in a cart when he and his son Charlie compete in the family tournament PNC Championship for the fifth time and try to make life difficult for the Daly duo and the defending champions Bernhard and Jason Langer.

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Panorama

Friendship instead of“The Feud”: Koepka Calls DeChambeau a “Good Dude”

Will rivalry be followed by friendship? (Photo: Getty)
Will rivalry be followed by friendship? (Photo: Getty)

The Brooks-Bryson battle, the PR stunt implemented in golf history as The Feud, is a thing of the past: “We all get older, we all mature a bit, and then you realize: Hey, Bryson’s a good dude,” admitted the five-time major winner a few days ago, calling the two-time US Open champion and LIV colleague a ‘good dude’, with whom he will compete tomorrow in Las Vegas against PGA Tour stalwarts Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy. Before this duel, which has been stylized as “The Showdown”, the admission is of course no less promotional than the dispute that the two individualists had before switching to the competitive circuit: The emotional element now makes for a few headlines at the appropriate time; they’re letting it get a little human this time. “I think he’s severly misunderstood and I think the world is acutally starting to really see who Bryson DeChambeau really is,” added Koepka, and hit the tear ducts again: ”I’m the first person to admit it, I was wrong with what my original thoughts were.”

From Rivals to Stepbrothers: DeChambeau’s and Koepka’s Journey

The former rival and new buddy naturally returned the favor, which was certainly in the marketing strategists’ script. “I’ve always had respect for Brooks and what he’s done,” DeChambeau commented on Koepka’s statements. “Obviously, early on, we didn’t really understand each other. We had our spats, but when we both went to LIV, we realized we had quite a few things in common. Like stepbrothers, in a sense.” Ah, and so close to the festive season. It’s almost like a Christmas story, isn’t it?

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Live

Australian Pro Hit with Penalty Stroke “Bonanza”

Anthony Quayle’s Victorian PGA: A 7-stroke penalty, a rookie error, and a stunning comeback to claim third—true grit on display. (Photo: Getty)

Seven in one go: At the Victorian PGA Championship on the PGA Australasia Tour, Australian pro Anthony Quayle racked up—or rather was forced to rack up—seven penalty strokes within the span of 15 holes. The 30-year-old from Queensland had misunderstood a special rule specific to the tournament day, assuming that preferred lies were in effect across the entire opening round at Moonah Links.

With that in mind, Quayle cheerfully lifted his ball, cleaned it, and placed it back within scorecard distance multiple times—until one of his playing partners pointed out the oversight. As it turned out, the rule applied only to a specific section of the 13th fairway.

What followed was a frantic series of events involving phone calls to the tournament officials and a reconstruction of Quayle’s round. In the end, the golfer admitted, “An absolute rookie mistake,” and dutifully adjusted his scorecard, adding those seven penalty strokes.

Despite the setback, Quayle carded a 73 for the round, rallied with a stunning 67 on the second day to make the cut, and fired an impressive 66 on Saturday followed by a 69 on Sunday. He even came within striking distance of forcing a playoff, ultimately finishing third in the tournament.

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Panorama

Scottie Scheffler and the Spirit of Christmas: Money in Golf is Just a Bonus

Scottie Scheffler’s Hero World Challenge win brings Christmas cheer with triumph, faith, and heartfelt giving for a greater cause. (Photos: Getty)

Title defense? Check. Ninth victory of the year? Check. Another million dollars earned? Check. The opening story in this section rightfully belongs to Scottie Scheffler, who dominated the Hero World Challenge 2024 for most of the tournament—using a newfound claw grip for short putts, no less.

 
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This sets the perfect stage for what the 28-year-old shared in his media appearance before the event. When journalists pressed him for details on his conversations with the inactive host, Tiger Woods, during the Pro-Am, Scheffler was in a playful mood. “I think most of the time we just talk about money and how the purses need to be bigger,” he joked. “Today we really grinded on the Ryder Cup and how it’s just such BS that we’ve never gotten paid. Tiger was really frustrated, he feels like he hasn’t made enough money in his career. I feel the same way, I feel like last year I didn’t get paid enough for what I did. Mostly that, just a bunch of griping.”

 
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The laughter wasn’t necessary to signal that Scheffler wasn’t being serious. Yet, when it came to the topic of money later, the devout Christian and good-hearted Texan turned reflective—and honest. “As far as I’m concerned, I don’t play golf for money. I’ve been playing golf my whole life for free and the money’s just a bonus. If somebody wants to pay us to come out here and play golf, that’s great, I’m not going to say no to it. I’m going to do the best I can in my community to steward that money well.”

It sounded like a Christmas sermon on the true values of the game and a tribute to its “Spirit of the Game.” Amid the greed often seen in professional golf and the obsession with money, one is inclined to believe the modest and grounded world No. 1. After his latest triumph in the Bahamas, Scheffler surpassed $30 million in prize money for the year.

A prime example of his humility is his trusty old GMC Yukon XL, which he’s driven since 2012 and is now auctioning off for pediatric cancer care. The arrival of baby Bennett prompted the realization: “I definitely drove it for too long,” Scheffler told Golfweek. Incidentally, the first bid of over $50,000 for the GMC came from CBS broadcasting legend Jim Nantz.

 
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Panorama

Speculation about the future of the ‘Golf Channel’

(Photo: Getty)
(Photo: Getty)

New owner? The US media giant Comcast, owner of the TV channel ‘NBC’ and the ‘Golf Channel’, among others, wants to spin off its cable network-based offering, which includes the ‘Golf Channel’, into a separate, listed company. The background to this is the increasing unprofitability of cable television, which has fallen behind enormously due to streaming services and is actually only kept alive by the live broadcasting of sporting events. All of this has led to considerable speculation in the USA about the future of the ‘Golf Channel’: Will the PGA Tour, which is already tied to NBC by a TV contract worth 400 million dollars a year until the end of the decade, get involved via its new commercial venture PGA Tour Enterprises in order to secure an in-house golf channel for the future? Or will the LIV Golf League get involved with money from the Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund PIF, which is still lacking a high-reach and relevant TV partner?

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Top Tours

Satisfaction for LIV stars: Hatton on Ryder Cup circuit, Reed wins in Hong Kong

(Photo: Getty)
(Photo: Getty)

Tyrrell Hatton has made it: at least to the first intermediate goal on his way to the 2025 Ryder Cup in the USA as a member of Team Europe. The 33-year-old Englishman, who actually plays with the ‘Legion XIII’ in the LIV Golf League, was named to the ‘Britain & Ireland’ squad for the Team Cup from 10 to 12 January 2025 in consultation with captain Luke Donald following his successful stints on the DP World Tour, including winning the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.

This intra-European team competition was introduced in 2023 in preparation for the Ryder Cup in Rome to test the potential candidates under match play conditions, familiarise them with the game and promote team building. ‘We’re excited to see who can earn a spot on my team next year,’ said Donald ahead of the tough walk around the Black Course at Bethpage State Park on Long Island. Playing for the Team Cup are Justin Rose and Francesco Molinari on the continental European side. However, the star matadors are missing on both sides, Rory McIlroy on the one side and Hatton’s LIV team captain Jon Rahm on the other.

Reed and Hatton are on a roll

Meanwhile, another LIV player also gained satisfaction. Patrick Reed (34) won the Hong Kong Open on the Asian Tour yesterday, adding a late bonus point to a rather mixed LIV season with three top ten finishes and a 20th place in the individual standings. On the way to his first tournament win since the Farmers Insurance Open 2021, Reed broke the magic mark of 60 strokes.

However, the 59 of the 2017 Masters champion, who finished tied twelfth at Augusta this year, is not officially scored: At the Hong Kong Golf Club, the game was played with better lies.

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LPGA Tour

LPGA Tour Tee Times. Nelly Korda Highlights CME Group Tour Championship

Tee Times at the CME Group Tour Championship on the LPGA Tour. (Photo: Getty)
Tee Times at the CME Group Tour Championship on the LPGA Tour. (Photo: Getty)

The LPGA Tour Tee Times for the CME Group Tour Championship are set in Naples, Florida. This event, hosted at the Tiburón Golf Club on the Gold Course, features a par of 72 and a prize purse of $11,000,000. Last year’s winner was Amy Yang.

LPGA Tour Tee Times for American Players

Nelly Korda is teaming up with Haeran Ryu from South Korea. The first round tee time is at 12:35 PM. No second round tee time has been set yet.

Lexi Thompson will start her round with Pajaree Anannarukarn from Thailand at 08:35 AM.

Rose Zhang partners with Jin Hee Im of South Korea starting at 10:55 AM.

Megan Khang is scheduled to tee off with fellow American Jennifer Kupcho at 10:45 AM.

Ally Ewing joins forces with Canadian Brooke Mackenzie Henderson. Their group takes the course at 11:35 AM.

All Tee Times for the LPGA’s CME Group Tour Championship
Round Time Player Nationality Co-Player Nationality
1 08:35 Lexi Thompson USA Pajaree Anannarukarn THA
1 10:45 Megan Khang USA Jennifer Kupcho USA
1 10:55 Rose Zhang USA Jin Hee Im KOR
1 11:35 Ally Ewing USA Brooke Mackenzie Henderson CAN
1 12:35 Nelly Korda USA Haeran Ryu KOR