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Luke Clanton: PGA Tour Card Earned!

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Luke Clanton let himself briefly celebrate the momentous moment on Friday night, but it was hardly a party befitting the accomplishment.

He locked up his PGA TOUR card in emotional fashion, pouring in a birdie at the 18th hole in front of dozens of family and friends, but there was still work to do. He was in contention at the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches and he planned to “win the damn event.” His card was great, but he wanted more.

Clanton’s family was on hand all week, following his every shot at PGA National Resort. They had a fitting celebration after the second round, but it didn’t include Clanton. He and his caddie grabbed Chipotle and retired for the night. Clanton didn’t even look much at his TOUR card. He gave it to his caddie to hold onto.

The exhale came after the final round Sunday. Clanton gave a run at his first PGA TOUR title, briefly jumping into a tie for second before faltering on the back nine. There was some disappointment in the finish, but mostly there was relief. For the first time in months, Clanton wasn’t worried about when his next start might come and what he would need to do to secure his TOUR card.

The job was done.

“I still haven't really realized it yet, I guess,” Clanton said of earning his card, which he secured with a made cut at PGA National. “Probably when I'm done here, get to spend some time with the family and hang out with them, it'll probably hit me a little bit harder. But it's just done, thankfully.”

Clanton admitted the chase for his card had begun to weigh on him, even if it appeared it was just a matter of time. He was growing weary of all the questions from media, friends, family and fans about when it would happen. He wanted to enjoy what will likely be his last semester in college before turning pro, spend time with teammates and hopefully win an NCAA Championship, not chase sponsor exemptions and made cuts.

Clanton’s rise to a card has been uniquely his. He is the second player to earn his card through PGA TOUR University Accelerated, joining Vanderbilt’s Gordon Sargent. But Sargent earned his card largely through collegiate accolades. None of Clanton’s 20 points came directly from his collegiate performance. He earned 14 of his 20 points via PGA TOUR results. The other six points were earned through the World Amateur Golf Ranking.

Clanton has another exemption into the Valspar Championship in a few weeks. He’s not sure if he’s going to play yet.

“I’m so glad that we can stop talking about the point,” Clanton’s mom Rhonda told PGATOUR.COM, referencing the 20-point threshold required to earn a card through PGA TOUR University Accelerated. “We can play golf now and enjoy it.”

There’s a lot Clanton is excited to do before turning pro. He is playing the famed Seminole Pro-Member on Monday (though Clanton is technically still an amateur), which Tiger Woods will also play in. He’s ready for a proper celebration with his family. Then he’s headed back to Tallahassee to greet his teammates, who spent the weekend in Mexico at a tournament, and prep for his next goal. “I want to win a national championship, plain and simple,” he said. He has hundreds of texts to respond to, including one from Florida Gators legend Tim Tebow.

Oh, and Clanton needs to get his TOUR card back from his caddie.

“Mom will definitely put it in a frame,” he said.

[source: pgatour.com]

Cam Davis Records Crazy Birdie!

When it comes to memorable moments on Pebble Beach’s par-4 fourth hole, arguably none is more remarkable than Viktor Hovland’s up-and-down birdie from the side of the cliff en route to winning the 2018 U.S. Amateur.

Hovland was playing Devon Bling in the morning portion of the scheduled 36-hole final when he pushed his drive right. Opting to climb down the embankment, Hovland located his ball sitting up on an ice plant, and after having his caddie, Oklahoma State head coach Alan Bratton, toss him his 60-degree wedge, the Norwegian planted his spikes into the cliffside and took a mighty whack, his ball sailing up and onto the green before settling inside of 3 feet. Hovland, who tallied six birdies in seven rounds on the hole that week, took a 1-up lead over Bling and never looked back, ultimately winning, 6 and 5.

Seven years later, Cam Davis did his best to challenge Hovland.

While Davis didn’t go traversing the steep terrain on Sunday during the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, he did pull off a birdie that likely won’t be recreated for a long time, maybe ever. After finding the left rough at the 337-yard hole, Davis had 60 yards left to the hole and wedged his ball just left of the front hole location.

However, Justin Rose’s ball was already occupying those couple inches of real estate.

The balls of Davis and Rose, upon contact, shot in opposite directions. Rose was obviously able to replace his ball to its original spot, but Davis now had to chip from the left rough, about 20 feet away and with the green running away from him. No problem.

Davis holed the chip for his first birdie of the day.

[source: yahoo.com]

Golf Night at Sugar Maple

 

GOLF NIGHT AT SUGAR MAPLE

JANUARY 30, 2025 | 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm

You're invited to join us for an informational evening with John & Mike
to discuss the course and this season’s activities.

Your LPGA Player of the Year: Nelly Korda

SHIGA, Japan — Nelly Korda clinched her first award for LPGA player of the year on Sunday when it became mathematically impossible for anyone to catch her in the points-based competition.

Korda skipped tournaments during the Asia swing because of a minor neck injury that limited her practice. Ayaka Furue of Japan would have had to win the rest of the LPGA events to catch Korda. Furue tied for 10th in the Toto Japan Classic.

Korda has won six times this year, including a major championship. She won five straight tournaments earlier in the season to tie the LPGA record.

This marks the second straight year an American player has won the biggest LPGA award. Lilia Vu won the award in 2023 on the strength of two majors. The last time Americans won LPGA player of the year in successive years was Betsy King in 1993 and Beth Daniel in 1994.

Korda, the No. 1 player in the women’s world ranking, still has two tournaments left as she tries to win the Race to CME Globe, which is decided in the season finale Nov. 21-24.

[source: nbcsports.com]

Big Earners That Never Won!

Looking at the PGA Tour’s career money list to determine the relative success of a player’s career is mostly a futile endeavor. Sure, Tiger Woods at No. 1 with $120-plus million makes sense, but Jack Nicklaus with $5,734,031—which ranks him a mere 373rd all time—does not.

The clearest evidence at how skewed prize money has become in the modern era is this simple statistic: There are 20 golfers who have earned $10 million of more in their PGA Tour careers without ever winning a tour event. To put that in perspective, Ben Crenshaw (19 wins, two majors) earned a little more than $3 million in his career. Lee Trevino (29 wins, six majors) about $6.5 million. Johnny Miller (25 wins, two majors) around $7 million.

Still, banking $10 million without winning means you’ve had some longevity and some skill. You’re not getting to that level by missing cuts and finishing T-48 every week. Here’s a tip of the cap to these 19 men who’ve made a killing by being slightly above crushingly mediocre.

Check out the full list and article here: [Source: golfdigest.com]

 
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