The Zurich Classic of New Orleans is the latest PGA Tour event to announce its dates for a 2027 season that is looking to be similar to this year, minus Hawaii.
The American Express in La Quinta, California, is set for the third full week in January again. The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am (Feb. 4-7) and WM Phoenix Open (Feb. 11-14, the week of the Super Bowl) already have announced dates on their websites.
The Masters, around which the early season revolves,
is April 8-11, and again will be followed by the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town and the Zurich Classic.
The mystery remains Florida, except for The Players Championship set for March 11-14. Adding to the intrigue was the return of Doral to the schedule, which looked nothing like the Doral of old except for all the water on the course and airliners descending on nearby Miami International Airport.
Five of the top 15 players in the world were missing from the Cadillac Championship, as were the fans that used to pack the Blue Monster even when Tiger Woods wasn't winning. The PGA Tour was last at Doral in 2016. LIV Golf was there the last four years and had better crowds.
It didn't help the Cadillac Championship that Formula 1 was in Miami last weekend and attracted some 275,000 spectators over three days. The weather was dodgy on Sunday, and Cameron Young eliminated any suspense with his six-shot win.
It's looking more likely that big changes to the PGA Tour won't be ready until 2028. Still to be determined is how soon the PGA Tour will act to move the Cadillac Championship back to the Florida swing that leads to the Masters.
Florida currently has four tournaments — the Cognizant Classic at PGA National, the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill, The Players and the Valspar Championship, which gets a good field despite a bad date because Innisbrook is such a proper test.
Is there room for Doral? That's more moving parts for the PGA Tour to figure out.
CEO Brian Rolapp didn't have answers last August when he announced a schedule of two majors and three signature events in a six-week span. He said of Doral, “I think we’re looking forward to bringing that back as a PGA Tour tradition.”
It clearly doesn't have much tradition the first weekend in May.
Fresh off back-to-back wins and a return to No. 1 in the world, Nelly Korda raised her profile even more with a playful appearance Monday on “The Pat McAfee Show.” That's when she revealed how Coca-Cola helped her develop that sweet golf swing.
McAfee asked how often she made changes, and Korda gave credit to longtime coach David Whelan for building her swing. She also said her father, Grand Slam tennis champion Petr Korda, played an important role.
“My parents spent so many hours with me, just working on tempo. That is the one thing they ingrained in my brain,” Korda said. “And my dad always referred to Coca-Cola.”
She moved her arms back for “Coca” and forward for “Cola.”
“It was super simple, but it was the key to have a very fluid swing,” Korda said.
She also allowed one more secret on the turnaround this year when she said, “I have higher shoes.”
“I’m trying to actually get closer to the ground with my chest,” Korda said. “I actually get a little bit steeper in my swing and I can hinge a little faster. So it’s just literally the smallest of things. But yeah, golfers are crazy. I’m crazy, just to let you know.”
Justin Rose made a big switch and then set himself up for an easy punch line. He became the first global ambassador for McLaren Golf, the company best known for its Formula 1 race cars. He used McLaren irons at the Cadillac Championship and then got off to quite the slow start.
He was 21 shots behind after three rounds, closed with a 68 and beat two players in the 72-man field. One tournament is no measure, of course. But it's a bold move for Rose and McLaren, which has promised to “push the boundaries of equipment design and manufacturing.”
Rose says the clubs were performing well on the range, though he expects a refinement period.
He has been down this road before. Rose was No. 1 in the world when he left for Honma, winning within weeks at Torrey Pines but then falling out of the top 10 just over a year later. He left Honma 16 months into the deal.
Rose isn't the only player switching to McLaren. Ian Poulter, himself a lover of fast cars, had the McLaren irons in his bag at LIV Golf Virginia.
LIV Golf’s first tournament on U.S. soil this week also comes with a spot available in the U.S. Open.
Joaquin Niemann already secured one spot from LIV by finishing among the top three in last year’s points race. Another spot is available for the leading player from the top three in points on May 18, and LIV Golf Virginia is the last event before that cutoff.
Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau are set as U.S. Open champions in the last 10 years. The final spot is a close race with Thomas Detry holding down third place by 0.86 points over Elvis Smylie. Lurking and very much in range is Anthony Kim at No. 5, who is just over 14 points behind. Finishing 10th is worth 21 points, as an example.
The British Open offers one spot to the leading player not already in the field from the standings through LIV Golf Andalucia on June 7. The cutoff originally was Louisiana at the end of June, but that event has been postponed for now.
Brooks Koepka is back to being a free agent in the equipment market.
Koepka didn't have an equipment deal when Nike got out of the business of clubs and golf balls until he signed with Dunlop-owned Srixon in late 2021. He joined LIV Golf the next year, but then won the PGA Championship in 2023 at Oak Hill.
Dunlop Sports announced last week they had mutually agreed to end their contract.
“Over the course of their relationship, Brooks served as an exceptional ambassador for the Srixon and Cleveland Golf brands,” said a statement on the company’s website. “His commitment to competing at the highest level of the game, including a major championship victory with Srixon and Cleveland Golf equipment in play, exemplifies the performance standard both brands stand for."
The first sign of the deal ending came in late February when Koepka began using the Titleist Pro V1x golf ball. Koepka is playing the Myrtle Beach Classic this week.
Three-time major champion Minjee Lee is among six women who have joined the indoor WTGL that starts later this year. The tech-infused league playing in SoFi Center also revealed Tuesday a logo — a red “W” in front of the TGL to illustrate the connection between the separate leagues run by TMRW Sports.
The logo was unveiled Monday for WTGL players in the field for the Mizuho Americas Open in New Jersey. The other players to join are Celine Boutier, Andrea Lee, Megan Khang, Danielle Kang and Albane Valenzuela.
WTGL now has 14 commitments from players, which includes five of the top 10 in the world, along with Michelle Wie West. Still not included for the inaugural season is top-ranked Nelly Korda.
Scottie Scheffler has earned $6.75 million in his last three tournaments without winning. He was runner-up in the Masters, the RBC Heritage and the Cadillac Championship.
“Yes, I am living my best life, for sure. But golf also humbles you, so I know that I need to enjoy these moments.” — Nelly Korda after winning her second straight tournament at the Riviera Maya Open at Mayakoba.
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
