Schauffele and Rahm share lead in a star-heavy chase for Olympic gold in golf

Schauffele and Rahm share lead in a star-heavy chase for Olympic gold in golf
Jon Rahm of Spain in action during the third round of the Paris 2024 Olympics golf tournament at the Le Golf National, Guyancourt, France, on Aug. 3, 2024. (Reuters)
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Updated 04 August 2024
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Schauffele and Rahm share lead in a star-heavy chase for Olympic gold in golf

Schauffele and Rahm share lead in a star-heavy chase for Olympic gold in golf
  • Xander Schauffele and Jon Rahm were tied for the lead Saturday, one shot clear of Tommy Fleetwood
  • Seven of the leading 10 qualifiers for the Paris Games were within five shots of the lead
  • The swings in momentum were plenty, and so were the possibilities going into Sunday

SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France: Golf finally has some Olympic buzz from a big and boisterous gallery, and it has the star power to match going into the final round of the men’s competition with medals finally at stake.

Xander Schauffele and Jon Rahm were tied for the lead Saturday, one shot clear of Tommy Fleetwood. Hideki Matsuyama salvaged a wild day. Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy were close enough that gold is not out of reach.

Seven of the leading 10 qualifiers for the Paris Games were within five shots of the lead.

“I’m very, very excited to play,” Fleetwood said. “The leaderboard is amazing. It’s like a leaderboard that you would expect at the Olympics and probably what the sport deserves.”

Schauffele felt as if he was running in place and losing ground until he turned a two-shot deficit into a one-shot lead in a matter of minutes. He hit 4-iron to 25 feet for eagle on the par-5 14th, just before Rahm three-putted for bogey on the hole ahead of him.

Rahm answered with a 35-foot birdie putt across the 17th green. The swings in momentum were plenty, and so were the possibilities going into Sunday.

Rahm, playing on a big stage for the last time this year before he returns to LIV Golf, finished with a 5-under 66. Schauffele, who won the PGA Championship and British Open this year, got off to a slow start before posting a 32 on the back nine for a 68.

They were at 14-under 199, tying the 54-hole Olympic record Schauffele set when he won gold at the Tokyo Games.

“I’m slow out of the gates here,” Schauffele said. “Fumbled my first hurdle and had to try and steady the ship coming in.”

He paused with a smirk before adding, “Like the little Olympics reference there?”

Schauffele is going after another gold that would cap a most amazing month of two majors.

The crowd was just as loud and just as noisy in slightly more pleasant weather. Fans have been allowed to see Olympic golf only twice since its return to the program — Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and Paris, which has a history of hosting golf. The French Open dates to 1906.

“It might have been new in golf but it is the Olympics,” Rahm said. “I think the crowd knows it is, and we are all aware of what’s at stake.”

Rahm also is well aware this is not a two-man race.

Fleetwood, who started the third round tied at the top with Schauffele and Matsuyama, made only three birdies but holed a 6-foot par on the 18th that was equally meaningful. He had a 69 and was one shot behind.

Matsuyama recovered from a bad start for a 71 and was three behind along with Nicolai Hojgaard of Denmark, who roared into contention with a 62. That tied the 18-hole record at Le Golf National also matched by his twin brother, Rasmus, in the French Open. Identical twins, identical score.

That got Schauffele’s attention as he looked ahead to the medal round.

“Sixty-two, that was something up there on the leaderboard,” Schauffele said. “Didn’t really see that. Just going to try and keep touch. You need to be in position to win on that back nine and try and fall on some previous experience and get it done.”

Scheffler and McIlroy are in medal position, maybe even gold. Scheffler, the world’s No. 1 player and most dominant golfer over the last two years, surged into contention with three birdies in a six-hole stretch on the back nine.

He fell back with a chip that didn’t reach the green on the 17th and led to bogey. And he was poised to lose another shot when a drive into a deep bunker right of the 18th fairway forced him to lay up short of the water. But he hit wedge to tap-in range to save par for a 67.

He was four behind with Irish golfer Rory McIlroy (66), Tom Kim of South Korea (69) and Thomas Detry of Belgium (69).

“I feel like I haven’t had my best stuff the last few days, but I’ve done enough to hang in there and stay in the tournament,” Scheffler said. “Around this course, you can get hot. You saw Nicolai had a really nice round today, and I’m going to need something like that tomorrow if I’m going to be holding a medal.”

McIlroy lost in a seven-man playoff for the bronze in the Tokyo Games and famously said later that he “never tried so hard to finish third.” Without a major for 10 years, he’s in position for a medal, and the color depends on him and the five players in front of him.

“I’m going to have to probably shoot my lowest round of the week to have a chance at a medal. That’s the goal,” McIlroy said.

The sport that moves slower than a marathon now turns into a sprint. Schauffele can appreciate that.
 


LIV golfer Jon Rahm appeals European tour fines and is clear to play in the Spanish Open

LIV golfer Jon Rahm appeals European tour fines and is clear to play in the Spanish Open
Updated 13 September 2024
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LIV golfer Jon Rahm appeals European tour fines and is clear to play in the Spanish Open

LIV golfer Jon Rahm appeals European tour fines and is clear to play in the Spanish Open
  • Rahm’s formal appeal was a pivotal move because it allows him a chance to reach the minimum four European tour starts required to be considered for the Ryder Cup next year
  • European tour: Jon Rahm has a pending appeal against sanctions imposed on him and in accordance with the DP World Tour’s Regulations, he is eligible to participate in the (Spanish Open) later this month

NEW YORK: Jon Rahm on Thursday appealed the European tour sanctions against him for playing the LIV Golf circuit, allowing him to play the Spanish Open and other European tour events until an independent panel decides if he must pay fines.

Rahm’s formal appeal was a pivotal move because it allows him a chance to reach the minimum four European tour starts required to be considered for the Ryder Cup next year.

Rahm, a former Masters champion and world No. 1, joined the Saudi-funded league late last year for a signing bonus reported to be in the $300 million to $400 million range.

Other players who defected to LIV, Tyrrell Hatton and Adrian Meronk, are going through the same appeal and are allowed into tournaments as the process plays out.

Hatton played the British Masters two weeks ago. Both are entered in the Spanish Open.

The European tour said in a statement, “Jon Rahm has a pending appeal against sanctions imposed on him and in accordance with the DP World Tour’s Regulations, he is eligible to participate in the (Spanish Open) later this month.”

The DP World Tour is the commercial name of the European tour.

“I don’t intend to pay the fines, and we keep trying to have a discussion with them about how we can make this happen,” Rahm said on Wednesday from LIV Golf Chicago, where he is battling Joaquin Niemann for the individual title worth $18 million to the winner.

Rahm said he has entered the Dunhill Links Championship and the Andalucia Masters. That would give him four starts because the Olympics counts toward the minimum.

The appeals process is the same as it was when several Europeans first joined LIV Golf in the summer of 2022. An independent panel, Sport Resolutions, ruled in April 2023 the players committed serious breaches and the European tour was within its rights to penalize them.

“I’m glad Jon decided to appeal and he can play his events in which he wants to play and be eligible,” European captain Luke Donald said Thursday from the Irish Open. “I know the Ryder Cup means so much to him, and I’m sure that was a massive factor in his decision.”

Rahm is primarily opposed to being fined for playing LIV events opposite tournaments he had never played or did not intend to play. Among European tour events opposite LIV this year were stops in Bahrain, South Africa, Japan, China and the Czech Republic.

“He has his thoughts and he doesn’t agree with the fines and paying fines, especially for events that he would never have played on the DP World Tour. But those rules are the rules, and they were certainly in place when he signed with LIV,” Donald said.

Donald said he hoped golf’s landscape would be different before the September 2025 matches at Bethpage Black. Executives with the PGA Tour and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia met this week in New York to continue negotiations about PIF becoming a minority investor in PGA Tour Enterprises and what that would mean for players on both sides.

The tour and PIF first had a framework agreement announced in June 2023.

“I’ll take today as a nice little victory for me personally to know that Jon is eligible and can play his three events now,” Donald said. “What happens in the future, I can’t tell. What happens in 15 months, I think all of us thought something more would happen.”


Revered by teammates, captain and US fans, Lexi Thompson hopes for a win in her final Solheim Cup

Revered by teammates, captain and US fans, Lexi Thompson hopes for a win in her final Solheim Cup
Updated 13 September 2024
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Revered by teammates, captain and US fans, Lexi Thompson hopes for a win in her final Solheim Cup

Revered by teammates, captain and US fans, Lexi Thompson hopes for a win in her final Solheim Cup
  • Thompson and Alison Lee are the only players on the American squad who’ve won a Solheim Cup, which the US last captured in 2017 in Iowa
  • The US is favored statistically, with the top two players in the world in Nelly Korda and Lilia Vu and an average world ranking of 26.75 to Europe’s 40.5

GAINESVILLE, Virginia: Lexi Thompson worked her way down the rope line between the second and third holes at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club on Thursday, signing dozens of hats, flags and golf balls. The fans on the other side, worried they would miss their chance with the US Solheim Cup team’s most popular player, began chanting, “Lexi! Lexi!”

Thompson obliged, finally informing her still-waiting supporters, “Sorry, guys, I’ve got to go hit, OK?” There was a practice round to play, after all. But then she stopped again to sign the hats of two school-age girls and the vest of a service dog.

“We’re excited for you, and we’re excited for your retirement,” one fan told Thompson. “Enjoy life.”

The Solheim Cup begins Friday at this battle-tested venue about 40 miles west of Washington, D.C., that has hosted four Presidents Cups. And if it’s truly Thompson’s last as a player, she’s going out on top — at least in the eyes of American fans, teammates and captain Stacy Lewis.

There was never a doubt that Lewis would select Thompson to play in her seventh consecutive Solheim Cup. Although the 29-year-old hasn’t won on the LPGA Tour in five years, she brings power, proficiency in the tricky alternate-shot format and — rare on this US team — memories of hoisting the trophy in the biennial team competition against Europe.

Thompson and Alison Lee are the only players on the American squad who’ve won a Solheim Cup, which the US last captured in 2017 in Iowa. Europe won in 2019 in Scotland and 2021 in Ohio and retained the cup last year with a 14-14 draw in Spain. The event returns a year later — with Lewis and European captain Suzann Pettersen reprising their roles — to move back to even-numbered years and avoid the Ryder Cup.

The Solheim Cup dates to 1990, and no team has captured it four straight times. Also, neither side has won twice in a row on foreign soil.

The US is favored statistically, with the top two players in the world in Nelly Korda and Lilia Vu and an average world ranking of 26.75 to Europe’s 40.5. While Europe’s biggest margin of victory in the past three events was two points, it has gotten strong contributions from the likes of Carlota Ciganda (4-0 last year) and Leona Maguire (7-2-1 in the last two).

“The US team, they’ve been playing better than us on paper,” Ciganda said. “But I think this week is different.”

Lewis made “Unfinished Business” her team’s motto this year, and Pettersen, too, has tweaked her approach after neither side was fully satisfied with its performance in Spain. The US got off to a strong start in alternate shot, typically a strength for Europe, but was unable to maintain that advantage.

“We put a lot of emphasis last year on alternate shot, which you guys saw in the result,” Lewis said. “Looking back, was it maybe too much? Probably.”

Lewis shook things up with her foursomes pairings for Friday morning’s opening session. She announced Thursday she would send out rookies Lauren Coughlin (with Rose Zhang) and Sarah Schmelzel (with Vu) and bench Thompson, who is 9-7-7 overall in six Solheim Cups and 5-2-1 in alternate shot. Korda was tapped for the leadoff match alongside Allizen Corpuz, with Charley Hull and rookie Esther Henseleit as Europe’s opening team.

Four better-ball matches will be played Friday afternoon, with more alternate-shot and better-ball matches on Saturday and 12 singles matches on Sunday. Europe needs 14 points to retain the cup, while the US needs 14 1/2 to win it.

Lewis said finding alternate-shot duos who use the same or similar golf balls was important — even though the brand of ball doesn’t seam to matter to Thompson.

“She’s one of those you could literally pair with anybody, and she’s like, ‘I’ll figure it out,’” Lewis said. “She was testing a golf ball the other day that was going like 7 or 8 yards shorter with the wedge. She’s like, ‘It’s OK, I’m just going to get my numbers, it’s good.’ Where anybody else would just be freaking out.”

Thompson’s career could be remembered just as much for near-misses in major championships as for her 11 LPGA victories and one major. As generous as she can be with fans and sponsors, she is in some ways a reluctant star. Guarded with the media, she declined again this week to detail her plans for the semi-retirement she announced earlier this year.

“I’m just going to take it day by day, take some time for myself, and see how I feel after that,” Thompson said.

The team format, where success isn’t measured by individual strokes and she can contribute to others’ success, brings out the best in Thompson.

“I think it is her legacy, is her and the Solheim Cup. Just the way she is with the crowd and the fans, this event is Lexi to a T. ... She plays better golf here,” Lewis said. “She’s going to do whatever it takes to win, and I wish I had 12 of them.”


Yang wins first PGA Tour Champions title in a playoff over Langer. Wallace wins in Switzerland

Yang wins first PGA Tour Champions title in a playoff over Langer. Wallace wins in Switzerland
Updated 09 September 2024
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Yang wins first PGA Tour Champions title in a playoff over Langer. Wallace wins in Switzerland

Yang wins first PGA Tour Champions title in a playoff over Langer. Wallace wins in Switzerland
  • Matt Wallace of England won his first European tour title in six years when he closed with an even-par 70

ST. LOUIS: Y.E. Yang forced a playoff with a 6-foot par putt for a 5-under 66 and made a 10-foot birdie putt on the first extra hole against Bernhard Langer to win the Ascension Charity Classic on Sunday for his first PGA Tour Champions title.
The 67-year-old Langer was trying to win for the 18th consecutive season on the 50-and-older circuit and nearly did. He hit a shot out of the rough to 15 feet on the 18th hole at Norwood Hills and made birdie for a 64.
They finished at 13-under 200.
Yang’s par putt sent them to a playoff at 13-under 200.
Missing from the playoff was Stewart Cink, going for his second straight win on the PGA Tour Champions. He had a one-shot lead until a bogey on the 17th hole, where Yang made birdie for a two-shot swing. Cink shot 67 and finished third.
European Tour
Matt Wallace of England won his first European tour title in six years when he closed with an even-par 70 and made an 8-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole to beat Alfredo Garcia-Heredia in the Omega European Masters.
Garcia-Heredia birdied the 18th hole for a 66 to make up a four-shot deficit against Wallace.
They finished on 11-under 269.
Wallace, who won in the Dominican Republic on the PGA Tour last year to end a five-year drought, picked up his fifth career European tour title.
Andrew “Beef” Johnston had two straight birdies and pulled within one shot until he had to settle for three pars at the end for a 66 to finish alone in third, his best finish in four years.
Other tours
Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen of Denmark earned an instant promotion to the European tour when he won his third Challenge Tour event of the year, closing with an 8-under 64 to rally for a one-shot victory over John Axelsen in the Big Green Egg German Challenge. ... Kensei Hirata won for the second straight week on the Japan Golf Tour, this one over 72 holes, as he closed with a 6-under 66 for a one-shot victory over Travis Smith in the Shinhan Donghae Open. The tournament was tri-sanctioned with the Asian Tour and Korea PGA. Hirata won last week in Japan in a tournament shortened to 36 holes by bad weather. ... Fatima Fernandez Cano of Spain closed with a 5-under 67 for a one-shot victory Ingrid Lindblad of Sweden in the Guardian Championship on the Epson Tour. ... Will Cannon birdied the par-5 18th for a 1-under 69 and a one-shot victory in the Fortinet Cup Championship on the PGA Tour Americas in Canada. ... Rio Takeda held off a late charge from Miyu Yamashita and closed with a 3-under 69 for a one-shot victory in the Sony JLPGA Championship on the Japan LPGA. Yamashita birdied three of her last five holes for a 66. ... Hyunjo Yoo closed with a 3-under 69 for a two-shot victory in the KB Financial Group Star Championship on the Korea LPGA. ... Greig Hutcheon of France rallied with a 64 for a two-shot victory in the Legends Open de France, is first title on the European Legends Tour.


Scheffler and DeChambeau part of PGA Tour-LIV Golf match in Las Vegas, report says

Scheffler and DeChambeau part of PGA Tour-LIV Golf match in Las Vegas, report says
Updated 05 September 2024
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Scheffler and DeChambeau part of PGA Tour-LIV Golf match in Las Vegas, report says

Scheffler and DeChambeau part of PGA Tour-LIV Golf match in Las Vegas, report says
  • Blake Smith of Hambric Sports, who manages Scheffler and Koepka for Hambric Sports, confirmed their appearance and said both were “excited to be part of this unique event”
  • Golfweek said the match would be televised by TNT, which previously broadcast nine editions of “The Match”

NEW YORK: Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy will take on LIV Golf stars Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka in a made-for-TV match in Las Vegas, Golfweek reported Wednesday, the first time outside the majors top players from each circuit will compete against each other.

Blake Smith of Hambric Sports, who manages Scheffler and Koepka for Hambric Sports, confirmed their appearance and said both were “excited to be part of this unique event.”

Among details still to be announced were when in December the match would be held and on which course.

The foursome combined for 13 majors over the last decade. More compelling is that the match brings together players from the PGA Tour and Saudi-backed LIV Golf, which happens only at the four majors and the Olympics.

The PGA Tour is still negotiating with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia — the financial provider of LIV — as a minority investor. There is no indication a deal is close, and it would remain subject to US Department of Justice review. The PGA Tour confirmed last week that anyone competing with LIV is not eligible for a tour event for one year after his last appearance.

Golfweek said the match would be televised by TNT, which previously broadcast nine editions of “The Match.” That was a series of matches that began with Tiger Woods against Phil Mickelson.

McIlroy said in a text to Golfweek the match was “designed to energize the fans.”

“We’re all here to put on a great show and contribute to a goodwill event that brings the best together again,” McIlroy said.

Once the strongest critic of LIV, McIlroy has been lobbying to bring both sides together. He is on a committee negotiating with PIF.

“I get the argument that these guys left and that was their choice and whatever,” McIlroy said, referring to DeChambeau, Koepka and others defecting to Saudi-backed rival league. “I just think that it’s gone on long enough. I think everyone is trying to find a solution. It’s just a solution is hard to get to.”

Golfweek cited two sources saying players will receive an appearance fee but not prize money.


LIV Golf to tee off 2025 season in Saudi Arabia

LIV Golf to tee off 2025 season in Saudi Arabia
Updated 04 September 2024
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LIV Golf to tee off 2025 season in Saudi Arabia

LIV Golf to tee off 2025 season in Saudi Arabia
  • Riyadh, Adelaide, Hong Kong and Singapore to host first 4 events of the league’s third full season

RIYADH: LIV Golf has announced that the league will launch its third full season in February 2025, teeing off in marquee global markets across Asia, Australia and the Middle East.

Fans can sign up to LIV X for free to receive exclusive access to tickets, including pre-sale information on hospitality and grounds passes for events featuring team and individual competitions, live music and activities for all ages.

“As we set our sights on 2025, LIV Golf is gearing up for our most ambitious season start, to date,” said LIV Golf Commissioner and CEO Greg Norman.

He said that since the tournament’s debut in 2022, LIV Golf has played 34 tournaments in nine different countries across four continents.

“We are a global league with a global footprint, and we’re excited to kick off next season with four truly international events that will deliver our unique blend of elite golf, entertainment and culture to fans around the world.”

The league will begin the 2025 season Feb. 6 to 8 with LIV Golf Riyadh, marking its debut in Saudi Arabia’s capital city.

The Riyadh Golf Club venue will host events including the Aramco Team Series, the Saudi Open presented by the PIF, and the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers in December.

From Feb. 14 to 16, the league will return to The Grange Golf Club for LIV Golf Adelaide, reigning winner of the World’s Best Golf Event at the World Golf Awards.

This past April, the tournament welcomed more than 94,000 fans to the South Australia venue which reset the bar for LIV Golf fandom across the three days.

The event saw the return of the popular Watering Hole on the par-3 No. 12, had a standout performance by individual champion Brendan Steele, and played host to the league’s first team playoff, won by the all-Australian Ripper GC and captain Cam Smith.

Two weeks after Adelaide, the league will have its second consecutive year of competition at Hong Kong Golf Club from March 7 to 9.

Annual host to some of the region’s most prestigious golf events for the last 60 years, Hong Kong Golf Club will be a challenging test for the sport’s biggest stars, including defending individual champion Abraham Ancer as well as team champions Crushers GC and captain Bryson DeChambeau.

The following week, from March 14 to 16, LIV Golf will return to Sentosa Golf Club for the third consecutive year of LIV Golf Singapore. The event will have reigning individual champion Brooks Koepka and team champion Ripper GC attempt to defend their titles on the club’s Serapong course, recently voted the World’s Best Golf Course.

LIV Golf’s 2024 regular season concludes next week in Illinois at LIV Golf Chicago, from Sept. 13 to 15 at Bolingbrook Golf Club.

The following week, the 13 teams travel to Texas for the season-ending LIV Golf Dallas Team Championship, from Sept. 20 to 22 at Maridoe Golf Club.