“I love the course,” he said of the Country Club of Jackson, Missouri, where he has a scoring average of 67.91 in 11 rounds. He equalled the best score of the day in the third round on Saturday, a seven-under par 65 that placed him in a tie for sixth, five shots behind leader Ben Griffin.

Champ, 28, a three-time PGA Tour winner, had missed 17 cuts in his previous 24 starts and has fallen to 288th in the World Ranking.

“I think everything today kind of came together,” he said. “It was nice and smooth. I just felt like I had control of my ball, and then on the greens I’ve been confident. Obviously if I can drive it well here, it definitely sets me up, and I’ve been able to do that so far.

“Today I think I finally took advantage of that. The first day, I felt like I didn’t make as many putts. Even yesterday was kind of iron play and chipping around the greens. I hit some decent shots in front of par-5s and just into-the-grain chips I kind of struggled with those yesterday, but today I was fine. If I can just do that, kind of go about my day like I did today, we’ll just see where I stand after.”

Another measure of his lethargic play is that he is 145th in the FedEx Cup Fall Standings. He intends to play virtually every week from here on out to the end of the year in an effort to improve his position.

“I think I’m in a good space right now,” he said. “The game has been good. It’s just a matter of allowing myself to be able to play and kind of just get out of my way. This week it’s been a nice fresh kind of start, and like I said, just try to play my game, and I know if I do that, I’ll be perfectly fine. This game is already hard enough, so we definitely don’t need to make it harder on ourselves.

“I’m just going to go out there the same as I have this week and just stay within myself, play my game, and hopefully we get some good results.”

Main image: Jonathan Bachman

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Young, Champ, Lucas Herbert and three Korn Ferry Tour players are reportedly seeking to compete in the tournament. The event is sanctioned by the Asian Tour and notably sponsored by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which is the primary backer of LIV Golf.

Young was rumoured as a potential LIV Golf signee at the end of last summer, and the Rookie of the Year acknowledged his interest in the circuit. However, Young relayed to the media at the Tour Championship that he intended to stay with the PGA Tour.

RELATED: World No. 1 Ko confirmed for Saudi Ladies
Varner ready for Saudi International title defence

“Obviously it’s the elephant in the room for everyone. Frankly, throughout the whole process with them I was very interested,” Young said. “I think [LIV Golf] have a bunch of good ideas. I think they’re doing some cool stuff.” Young said he wanted to stay with the tour in order to compete in the Ryder and Presidents Cup and didn’t want to jeopardise the prospect of winning a major championship. Nevertheless, it was clear he remained torn on the decision. “So, I don’t know, it’s a really difficult situation, because it’s not really anything anyone wanted to happen,” Young said. “I think it wasn’t meant to be this hostile between the two.”

A provision in the PGA Tour Player Handbook and Tournament Regulations generally prohibits tour players from playing in events when there is a PGA Tour-approved or sponsored event taking place at the same time. Per the handbook, players who reach the 15-event minimum (which a member must meet as a condition of their membership voting rights) are eligible for three conflicting-event releases per season, which is why so many tour players were allowed to play in last year’s Saudi Invitational.

Cameron Champ

However, the regulations also state such requests can be denied. Last year’s Saudi International field proved to be an indicator of future LIV Golf members: Phil Mickelson, Cameron Smith, Dustin Johnson, Matt Wolff, Ian Poutler, Lee Westwood, Joaquin Niemann, Arabham Ancer, Bubba Watson, Paul Casey, Sergio Garcia, Kevin Na, Patrick Reed, Jason Kokrak and Henrik Stenson all competed at the event. The International’s winner, Harold Varner III, also moved to the circuit. Given the symmetry between the event and LIV Golf, it would have been understandable had the tour turned down the requests.

Conversely, at the heart of the antitrust lawsuit between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf is the tour’s ability to deny event releases. “The purpose of this action is to strike down the PGA Tour’s anticompetitive rules and practices that prevent these independent-contractor golfers from playing when and where they choose,” the original complaint from 11 LIV Golfers alleged. To turn the release down could have hampered the tour’s argument in the suit.

There were a number of players who competed at the Saudi International who did not join LIV in its inaugural season, including Tony Finau, Shane Lowry, Tommy Fleetwood and Herbert.

The Saudi International on begins February 2, opposite the PGA Tour’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, and is expected to include a number of LIV Golf members, highlighted by Smith, the reigning Open and Players champ.

The post Report: Cameron Young, Champ among names seeking Saudi International release appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

And yet, you could make a serious case that no tournament was worse on golf fans’ fingernails than the 3M Open, which Cameron Champ hung on for dear life to win on Sunday. Champ, whose day got off to a perfect start with a birdie at the first, had played clean, solid golf for all of the front nine and the early portion of the back nine. A spell of dehydration appeared to slow him down, but a late birdie at the 16th and a par at 17 still saw him take a two shot lead to the 18th tee.

That’s where things took a seriously chaotic turn, as Champ pulled out driver when 6-iron, 6-iron, wedge would have all but sealed the deal. He proceeded to snap hook one so badly that even his layup option was blocked out by trees, not to mention the water lurking on the other side of the fairway. Suddenly, his two-shot lead felt like it could disappear before everyone’s eyes.

Champ chipped out, narrowly avoiding a tree and coming up just short of the fairway. Another layup left him with 127 yards to the pin on his fourth shot, which he ended up sticking to tap-in range, winning with an all-world par save.

“I didn’t make it boring,” Champ said afterward. That’s putting it lightly. 

When asked if he knew where he stood on the leader board when he pulled driver on the 18th tee, Champ said he was aware, but that driver at 18 was the plan the whole week, no matter the situation. All part of his new process-over-results mindset. No one can tell him he didn’t stick to his game plan after that decision. 

“On 18, I’m going to hit driver there every time,” he said. “It’s a very difficult driving hole for me, but it’s one of those where if i hit it left I’m going to have a chance to punch out, and the times I do hit the fairway it will be an easy par 5 to get in two, but obviously I made it a little interesting there at the end.”

That he did. Fortunaltey for him, no one will remember how he got it done, just that he got it done. That’s three victories now on tour for the 26-year-old, the most recent of which will see him make a massive leap in the FedEx Cup standings. He began the week at 142nd but is now 49th, essentially locking himself in to the first two legs of the postseason and giving himself a prime opportunity to get to East Lake, where he did not appear to be headed after a string of four missed cuts between late May and early July. That escalated quickly, kind of like his final-hole heroics.

Louis Oosthuizen plays his shot from the second tee during the final round of the 3M Open. David Berding

Louis Oosthuizen finished in second again (not a joke)

Given the fact the 3M Open is a) not a major and b) played in America, the narrative was that Louis Oosthuizen would have a quiet week in Minnesota, if he showed up, that is. Well, Oosthuizen definitely showed up, riding the scorching hot hand and posting rounds of 68, 68, 69 and a Sunday 66 that was inches from being a Sunday 65. What did he get for his efforts? Another T-2 (and another monster six-figure check, which is nothing to scoff at). The man just really, really loves finishing in second place, save for that one time at St. Andrews, which was kind of a big deal. He also should get more credit for his nine European Tour victories, which we all definitely overlook in any Louie discussions. He’s clearly still one of the more talented players in the sport and obviously knows what it takes to win. It’s going to happen soon. It has to … right?

RELATED: Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau out of Olympics

Jhonattan Vegas plays the 11th hole during the final round of the 3M Open. David Berding

Jhonnattan Vegas might be staring at the ceiling quite a bit tonight

As we hinted at with Louie, finishing second ain’t a bad life on the PGA Tour. But there’s only so many serious cracks you get at a win when you’re not one of the elite, elite players in the world, and Jhonattan Vegas had one of his more serious cracks at a win in a while on Sunday at TPC Twin Cities. 

Following a front-nine three-under 32, the 36-year-old Venezuelan was in control of the golf tournament, but his putter abandoned him at a number of crucial moments on the back nine, none more crucial than the par-3 13th and the par-3 17th. At each of those holes, Vegas found the putting surface with his tee shot, leaving himself with a 40-footer for birdie at 13 and a 65-footer for birdie at 16. Each time, he three-putted for bogey, something you simply cannot do if you’re going to close out a tournament. Champ, meanwhile, went bogey-free, a product of some very solid lag putting and him picking up birdies where he needed to. That was enough to finish two shots clear of Vegas, who has a long, restless night ahead.

The big name on the FedEx Cup bubble

You probably have already guessed who we are referring to, so we’ll save the suspense: It’s Rickie Fowler, who began the week ranked 124th in the FedEx Cup standings and his projected to be ranked 125th following the 3M Open. Wait … what?

That’s right, Fowler actually lost ground in Minnesota, a stunning turn of events when you remember he was leading the golf tournament on Thursday and remained in contention until late Saturday afternoon. A disastrous triple bogey at the par-5 18th in his third round spoiled the week, though, and he was unable to make a big recovery on Sunday, shooting an even-par 71. As a result, he now still has work to do to make the postseason, which he hasn’t missed in a decade. With just two events left after the Olympics, time’s ticking on Rick.

The post Cameron Champ’s chaotic finish, Louis Oosthuizen comes up just short again and a big name on the FedEx Cup bubble appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Joel Beall
Scott Brown was born in Augusta, Ga., but the 10-year vet has never played the Masters. He’s damn close to making that dream a reality.

Brown made nine birdies on Saturday for an eight-under 63, a performance that moved him from middle of the pack to near the top of the board in the John Deere Classic.

“Drove it really well to start off with and then was able to hit the ball close with my irons and capitalize on the putting,” said Brown who sits at 14 under for the week. “Kind of a momentum carrying over from last week a little bit on Sunday’s round. Started to see some putts go in, and just carried it over to this week a little bit.”

While the Masters is the pot of gold at the end of this rainbow, Brown’s been more focused on getting out of the rain. It’s been a rough season for the 38-year-old, missing the cut in 15 of 25 starts and entering the week 180th in the FedEx Cup, placing Brown in massive danger of losing his card. It’s a standing that Brown is trying to use to his advantage. “At this point my FedExCup position, I kind of need to win, so it kind of frees me up in a way,” Brown said Saturday afternoon. “I have one goal, and it’s to come in here and win.”

This tournament has been palliative to Brown in the past, posting six top-25s in eight career starts, and Saturday proved to be an analgesic. Despite losing strokes to the field off the tee, Brown gained over four shots on his competition on the greens and another three in approach, a combo that allowed Brown to paint the course red. Impressive as those nine birdies were, it was an up-and-down out of a greenside bunker on the 18th for par that was the exclamation point on his day.

That par has him on the precipice of a life-changing walk. It won’t be easy, not with a crowded board of viable opponents. Brown’s lone win on the PGA Tour came at the alternate-event Puerto Rico Classic in 2013, and with over 260 career starts under his belt no one has to tell him how rare such opportunities are. There’s a heck of a lot on the line for Scott Brown Sunday. He’s waited 38 years for this moment. What’s another 18 holes?

“It’s been a tough year, but I’ve been trying to stay positive. I’ve got a good team around me saying just keep doing what you’re doing,” Brown said. “You just never know when it’s your time.”

Three other takeaways from Saturday at the John Deere Classic.

Packed at the top

Since TPC Deere Run took over as this event’s venue in 2000, no course on tour has surrendered more birdies. Should that trend continue Sunday … strap in, folks.

Sebastian Munoz sits in the lead at 16 under thanks to a four-under 67. There are a whopping 11 guys three shots or closer to Munoz. That pack includes Brandon Nagy at 15 under; Brown, Adam Long, Ryan Moore and Cam Champ at 14; Maverick McNealy, Chez Reavie, Luke List and Jhonattan Vegas at 13. Even major winners in Jason Dufner and Lucas Glover at 12 under are close enough to make a run.

Sunday’s forecast calls for rain, which should leave the course extremely vulnerable. Expect a shootout, and perhaps sudden death. There have been back-to-back playoffs heading into the John Deere Classic, and Saturday’s board has the trappings for a third.

Andy Lyons
Cameron Champ plays his shot from the second tee during the third round of the John Deere Classic.

Champ back from the wilderness

Fans and media tend to embellish or hyperbolize when a player is in a slump. That’s not the case for Cam Champ, whose struggles—especially against his immense talent—have gone somewhat under the radar.

The two-time tour winner has not posted a top-25 finish in 2021 and entered the week 149th in the FedEx Cup. Worse, the woes were not just one facet of the game but systemic; Champ ranks 163rd in approach, 199th in SG/around-the-green and 206th in SG/putting. His driving remains prodigious (seventh in SG/off-the-tee), but even in today’s modern game, that will only take you so far.

However, Champ has emerged from the wilderness, making five birdies in his first six holes on Saturday and is in the mix heading into the final round.

“I got off to a great start, obviously I would want to keep that momentum going, but I hit a few squirrely shots and I made some great pars and great putts,” Champ said after a 65. “So for a Saturday in kind of getting me up there close within a few shots, obviously there’s guys finishing, it could be, I could have, I could be done one, two, three, who knows, but at least I’m within reach.”

He hasn’t been flawless through three days in Silvis; his second shots leave much to be desired, as does his wedge work around the green. Yet his putter has been lights-out and he’s managed to keep the big numbers at bay, highlighted by a bogey-free round on Saturday.

Champ is not in danger of losing his card thanks to his win at the 2019 Safeway Open. In that same breath, he seemed to be on the verge of big things after contending at the 2020 PGA Championship last August, and the returns since TPC Harding Park have not lived up to the billing. He also alluded to off-the-course matters that have made him focus on his mental health.

“One of our purposes is to win, to win golf tournaments, to be the best as we possibly can, but for me, coming to the realization of a lot of things; I have many other purposes I want to achieve,” Champ said. “For me it’s not all about golf. Obviously as a kid and coming out here trying to get on tour it had to be because that was my situation and I had no other choice.

“But now that I’m out here and I got married, I’m maturing in levels, I’m starting to kind of figure out myself and what works for me. So obviously I’m going to put a hundred percent effort into this game, I love it, it’s given me so much. But also I have my family, I have other things that mean more to me than this game. So for me it’s just kind of balancing that and figuring that out and how I can manage both of those to have my ultimate success. … I talked to my wife, I talked with my coach, and just try to have a more open-minded process and enjoy the game more, not be so hard on myself and as long as I put the work in, then results will come.”

No matter what happens Sunday, this week has underlined that those results are near, and that Champ can return to that big-time trajectory.

Kevin Na remains a human highlight machine

We suppose there might be fans who are tired of Kevin Na’s walk-in celebrations, similar to how there are people who think a hot dog is a sandwich. But just because these heathens exist does not mean we have to acknowledge their foolish opinions.

Which is a long way of saying: Kevin Na was dropping premature celebrations again on Saturday, and it was a delight:

Fist-pumping before it drops. ?

Kevin Na is 1 back after back-to-back birdies. pic.twitter.com/GgvucXeXFI

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 10, 2021

Our only qualm is it’s time for Na—whose Saturday 66 has him in contention—to take his act to the next level. Whip his hat to the ground like Tiger Woods at Bay Hill. Turn to the crowd and twirl his hand to his ear, letting the roar that ensues be his signal. Go full Incredible Hulk and tear his shirt into two.

Should these suggestions come to pass … please, Steve Stricker, give the man a captain’s pick on the Ryder Cup.

The post Augusta native has shot at first Masters berth, Cam Champ stays hot and Kevin Na continues to be human highlight machine appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Brian Wacker
Cameron Champ was walking across the driving range at the BMW Championship at Olympia Fields outside Chicago last August, a black shoe on his right foot, a white one on his left and the names of Breonna Taylor and Jacob Blake scrawled in magic marker on the sides of the latter.

“I got asked by three different people, who are they?” he said on Tuesday outside the Augusta National clubhouse. “To me, again, that proves the point of why I’m doing it.”

The question was not surprising, but it was revealing.

Golf’s struggle with matters of race has been well-documented and traces back to the sport’s earliest days—a Caucasian-only clause was part of the PGA of America’s bylaws and prevented non-whites from membership and competing on the PGA Tour from 1934 until 1961, and that was just one of many exclusionary practices common in the game for decades. Though there aren’t the same roadblocks today, many still do exist. That three people would cross paths with Champ—a vocal agent of change in a still almost entirely white sport—at a tournament last summer and be unfamiliar with who Taylor and Blake are also speaks to how far the game still has to go.

Taylor, a Black woman, was fatally shot in March 2020 when plainclothes officers in Louisville forced their way into her apartment while investigating drug dealing operations. After the shooting, Taylor’s apartment was not searched for drugs or money. Blake is a Black man who in August 2020 survived seven gunshot wounds to his back, fired by a police officer in Kenosha, Wis. Blake was never charged with a crime.

At Augusta National, things change over time but do so at a pace reminiscent of how its tournament spectators move about the property—there’s no running allowed.

It wasn’t until 1975, more than 40 years after the first edition of what was then the Augusta National Invitational Tournament, that Lee Elder became the first Black man to play in the event by earning his way in with a victory in the 1974 Monsanto Open. In 1990, the club admitted its first Black member, TV executive Ron Townsend. In 2012, it invited its first women members, Condoleezza Rice and Darla Moore. This year, Elder joins Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player as an honorary starter.

Progress.

Better yet is the meaningful impact the club will have on future generations by funding the creation of a women’s golf program at historically Black Paine College in Augusta. It will also award two scholarships at the school in the name of Elder.

Then there’s Champ.

Ben Walton
Cameron Champ hits his tee shot on the first hole during his Wednesday practice round at Augusta National.

His swing both elegant and powerful, the 25-year-old in the early stages of a promising career continues to prove that his words and actions are, too. Last November, his foundation announced it would donate $40,000 to fund a pair of scholarships at HBCU Prairie View A&M University in Prairie View, Texas, with the scholarships named after Champ’s late grandfather, Mack, who taught him the game and grew up in the Jim Crow South. Tuesday, he used the occasion of the Masters and the lawn behind its clubhouse to continue to speak out against continued racial inequalities that still exist within the game and beyond.

“I think there’s still a lot of work, a lot of work to do,” Champ said. “I just think more people need to come together and realize where we are, where the game is, and where it’s going. Obviously, COVID has brought a new light to the game, but in order for it to grow and in order to see more minorities and more people of color out here, something has to change.”

Champ is willing to be that provocateur.

“When I played AJGA, there was no people of colour,” he continued. “I was really the only minority, to be honest. It’s not just in pro golf. It’s in junior golf, amateur golf, women’s golf—it’s the whole aspect of golf.

“I don’t think it will happen in my lifetime, but hopefully in the next. Things have to go in the proper directions in order for it to happen.”

Having someone to look up to helps. Much the way Champ has embraced Elder as a role model, he is hoping to continue to have his own impact, this week and throughout his career.

At last year’s Masters, Champ again wore one white shoe and one black shoe. His hat also had the word “Equality” stitched into the side, something that he has continued to wear since and will do this week as well. And earlier this year, he removed the sponsor logos that usually adorn his bag in favor of those from different Black-owned businesses, raising money for each based on his play.

This year, Champ hopes to improve on his tie for 19th in last year’s tournament. He says he feels comfortable on the course and that it suits his game well, particularly his prodigious tee shots. But he also recognizes his impact is more than just his performance, though playing well on the game’s biggest stage surely helps.

Which is why he was also outspoken about the controversial new voting law in Georgia that is viewed by most as discriminatory.

“It really targets certain black communities and makes it harder to vote, which to me, it’s everyone’s right to vote,” he said. “For me to see that, it’s very shocking. With MLB and what they did and moving the [2021] All-Star Game [out of Atlanta] was a big statement. I know there’s a bunch of other organizations and companies that have moved things.

“This is a prestigious event, and I know there’s a lot going on with it and the people involved with it. But, again, yeah, it was definitely a little bit frustrating to see that. This week I’ll definitely be supporting, doing some things throughout the week.”

What will those things be? Stay tuned.

But nearly 50 years since Elder broke the colour barrier at the Masters, golf won’t be the only thing on the mind of the only Black player in the field this week at Augusta National.

“You know, it’s my job, it’s what I love to do, but there’s a lot more to all of us out here on tour,” Champ said. “We have personal lives. We have a lot of other things going on.”

Some more than others.

MORE MASTERS 2021 STORIES FROM GOLF DIGEST:
A comprehensive history of every change made to Augusta National Golf Club
Bryson DeChambeau still intends to take down Augusta. But here’s how he’s changing his plan of attack
Everything you need to know about the three amateurs competing at Augusta National
Augusta National’s most under-the-radar champions
A newly discovered letter from Bobby Jones reveals he might’ve had a different architect in mind for Augusta National
Augusta National as a ‘shotmaker’s course?’ Maybe not
Collin Morikawa’s yardage book reveals the work pros put in to prep for Augusta National

The post Cameron Champ has more than golf statement to make this week in Georgia appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By John Feinstein
On Wednesday afternoon, shortly before they were scheduled to face the Orlando Magic in an NBA playoff game, the Milwaukee Bucks decided not to play. They wanted to protest the most recent police shooting of a Black man, Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis., on Sunday. Blake was shot seven times in the back by police while getting into his car—with his three children in the back seat.

Blake is in critical condition and paralysed. His shooting set off protests and national outrage. Since George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis in May when a police officer kept his foot on his neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds, more and more athletes have been speaking out against police brutality.

Once the Bucks made their decision, all three NBA games scheduled for Wednesday were postponed. The WNBA followed soon after, postponing three scheduled games. Three Major League Baseball games were also called off, and past U.S. Open champion Naomi Osaka said she wouldn’t play her semifinal match in the tennis warm-up event for this year’s Open before that match was halted by a day. Nine NFL teams called off practices to protest and speak out. On Thursday, the National Hockey League announced a two-day postponement of playoff games in protest of the Kenosha shooting, and seven more MLB games were called off.

Golf?

Cameron Champ, who is biracial, spoke up after showing up to play the first round of the BMW Championship wearing one black shoe and one white shoe. And the tour released a statement saying it supported the actions of the athletes in other sports “and many of our own members [who are] standing up for issues they believe in.” The statement then went on to talk about the work the tour has been doing this summer “to make a deeper and more specific commitment to racial equity.”

The next sentence was the most baffling: “We understand that now is not the appropriate time to highlight our programs and policies but rather to express our outrage at the injustice that remains prevalent in our country.”

Actually, now is exactly the time that the tour should be talking in specifics about what it is doing. Calling off the first round and scheduling 36 holes for Sunday certainly would have sent a message.

Tiger Woods, who along with Champ, Harold Varner III and Joseph Bramlett is one of the four players of colour across all three tours (PGA Tour, PGA Tour Champions, Korn Ferry Tour), said he had talked to commissioner Jay Monahan after the other sports announced their shutdowns and that he was comfortable with the tour’s statement being enough. “We’re all on board,” he said.

Tony Finau, who is of Tongan and Samoan descent, said, “We’re in full support of what the NBA is doing,” adding, “If we can learn from each other, listen to each other, I think it’s a big deal.”

Along with the statement issued Thursday morning, the PGA Tour also posted to its website a one-minute video of Champ describing the symbolism of his shoes.

“It was something I knew I wanted to do as soon as I saw the Kenosha video,” Champ said Thursday night after playing his first round. “I mean, my jaw dropped when I saw it. I thought, Not again, but there it was. I mean all I could say was, ‘Wow.’ ”

Champ has worn one black shoe and one white shoe in the past—to celebrate Black History Month. This, however, was different.

“My grandfather grew up in the south when Jim Crow [legal segregation] still existed and the KKK was still feared,” he said. “I know those stories, and I know how difficult it can be to be Black in this country—even now. I think we [in golf] need to use this as a starting point to become more diverse on and off the golf course. It’s amazing that we have only four players of color on tour right now. We need to improve that.”

Champ received a good deal of blowback Thursday on social media for his shoes and for his video, which concluded with him saying, “This needs to end.”

“I’m not naïve,” he said. “I knew that was coming.”

Paul Goydos, who has played on the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour Champions dating to 1993 and once taught school in the inner city of Long Beach, Calif., said he didn’t expect to see many tour players speak out on the current state of affairs.

“That’s not the way we are politically,” he said. “Everyone knows that. The tours are mostly white and lean right. But it’s more than that. Team sports are owner-driven financially. We’re sponsor-driven. I think there’s a reluctance to say or do anything that might upset sponsors.”

Sean M. Haffey
After his round Thursday at the BMW Championship, Tony Finau spoke of the need to continue to have “uncomfortable conversations about systemic racism.”

Goydos said he admires the Black Lives Matter sticker that fellow PGA Tour Champions player Kirk Triplett put on his bag two weeks ago. “Let’s face it, there are neighbourhoods in this country where it’s borderline illegal to be Black,” Goydos said. “If I walk down a street, no one will notice. If a Black man walks down that same street, it’s entirely possible people will call the police. I think the most important thing I can do right now—that we can all do—is listen and try to learn.”

Triplett has four children, two of them adopted. One is Hispanic and one is Black/Japanese—his 18-year-old son Kobe. When Triplett put the sticker on his bag he talked about “the talk” he felt compelled to give Kobe—the same talk most fathers feel the need to give their Black children when they become teenagers.

“Think about this,” Triplett said. “When you have a segment of the population that is frightened of those that are there to help with public safety, you have an issue.”

Perhaps the most surprising—and encouraging—occurrence of the past few days was the decision to shut down by the NHL, where 97 percent of the players are white, according to USA Today. The fact that players in a predominantly white league decided to take a stance is a new development. Most of the raised voices of athletes—dating to Colin Kaepernick’s decision to kneel for the national anthem in 2016—have come from Blacks.

Champ, Finau and Goydos are right about what should come next in golf. Everyone needs to listen and understand why there is so much anger and frustration about these issues. And, as Champ says, the tour needs to move beyond words and address the sport’s lack of diversity.

From tragedy, can come progress.

The post Now is the time for golf to have ‘the talk’ about racial inequality appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Daniel Rapaport
OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. — The latest flashpoint in this summer of civil unrest lies just 90 miles north of Olympia Fields.

Kenosha, Wis., is a city of nearly 100,000 people, on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, a manageable drive up I-94 from the host course for this week’s BMW Championship. It’s where Jacob Blake was shot multiple times in the back by police on Sunday. The altercation was caught on cellphone video, and people have taken to the streets to demand change.

Some of the loudest, boldest calls have come from professional athletes. On Wednesday, the Milwaukee Bucks decided against taking the floor for their playoff basketball game, and shortly thereafter the entire NBA had called off a full day of postseason action. The WNBA, NHL and some MLB teams followed suit.

The PGA Tour went ahead with the first round at Olympia Fields on Thursday, shortly after issuing a statement supporting the efforts of the other sports leagues, and any of its tour members “standing up for issues they believe in.”

As the 69-man field played on, there was a notable gesture of solidarity from Cameron Champ. One of four players on the PGA Tour with Black heritage, Champ wore one black shoe and one white, and wrote “Jacob Blake”, “Breonna Taylor” and “Black Lives Matter” on them.

Tracy Wilcox
Cameron Champ wrote “Jacob Blake”, “Breonna Taylor” and “Black Lives Matter” on his shoes as part of his statement on Thursday.

After the round, other players shared their thoughts on what is happening in Kenosha, and in America.

“Anyone that’s willing to have the uncomfortable conversation about systemic racism, and just that in general in our country, I think it’s a healthy thing for all of us,” said Tony Finau, whose cousin, Jabari Parker, plays in the NBA. “We continue to learn from each other in a positive way, [and] I think is the most important thing. We all have different perspectives as we go through our life.”

But was there any thought of following the lead of the other leagues and not playing at Olympia Fields? Champ said he considered it.

“I definitely thought about it for sure, but obviously I feel like I can do a lot more playing, and again, showing my support and expressing myself,” he said after shooting 77.

“I think that’s great for the NBA,” Champ said. “I mean, all the guys sticking together, which again, the NBA is—I don’t know the exact numbers, but it’s probably around 90 percent are African-Americans, so that’s their whole organization. So just to see them come together and talk about it and obviously they ended up … they’re going to continue the season, but just to boycott their last few games, again, I think that’s a huge step in all of sports.”

Finau, who is of Tongan descent, said he did not consider sitting out on Thursday, but did reinforce his previous calls on the need for change.

“No, it didn’t really cross my mind,” Finau said of a potential withdrawal. “But I understood the magnitude of what the NBA was doing and what they were boycotting for, and I know the PGA Tour is in full support of that. And again, it’s a conversation that’s uncomfortable, sensitive for our country, but if we’re not willing to have those, I don’t think we can move forward as a country. I’m open to having a conversation with anybody on the issue, and again, I think we’re in full support of what the NBA has done.”

Andy Lyons After his round, Tony Finau spoke of the need to continue to have “uncomfortable conversations about systemic racism.”

Tiger Woods, who opened with 73, said he spoke to PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan after seeing what was happening across other sports leagues.

“I talked to the commissioner and they were on board [supporting the other leagues],” Woods said. “Obviously, he released his statement, and all the guys were on board. Obviously, there was talk about it because of what happened, but we’re all on board, on the same page.”

Mackenzie Hughes, who is white and from Canada, was asked his thoughts.

“That’s tough. It’s a very difficult topic, one that’s been talked about a lot,” Hughes said. “I think there’s no question that there’s a problem, and I hear both sides. I do a good job of trying to listen to both sides and hear both sides. We need to come to a solution for sure. There’s no reason for that much force to be used in that kind of situation. I think we can all agree on that. Yeah, it’s just unfortunate that we’re dealing with this in this day and age.”

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By Joel Beall
Cameron Champ issued a statement against racial injustice on Wednesday.

A video message from Champ, a two-time PGA Tour winner and one of just four players on tour with Black heritage, was posted on Twitter by the PGA Tour.

“It’s just spreading awareness and sticking by what I believe in and what I believe needs to be changed,” Champ said on the eve of the BMW Championship. “And so, I’m going to do as much as I can.

“I’ve seen a bunch of other athletes speak out about it. It’s a situation where people don’t want to talk about it, which I get, but at the same time it’s reality. It’s what we live in.”

Champ’s words come on the same day as NBA players boycotted playoff games in the wake of the police shooting of Jacob Blake on Sunday. Blake, a Black man, was shot seven times in Kenosha, Wis., as he attempted to enter a vehicle with his children in the car. Two MLB games were also boycotted Wednesday, with athletes from the MLS, WNBA and professional tennis also sitting out their respective contests in protest.

In Champ’s video, he is seen wearing a shoe that is black and a shoe that is white, the latter featuring “Jacob Blake” and “BLM” in marker.

“It has to end.”
@Cameron__Champ is making a statement against racial injustice this week at the BMW Championship. pic.twitter.com/D53U1fQWcN

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 27, 2020

“People ignore it for so long. And then it gets to a point where it just blows up,” Champ continued. “This is just the tipping of the iceberg. Change needs to happen. I feel like it’s going in the right direction, but again, with all the stuff that’s going on, it has to end.”

Champ is scheduled to tee off at 12:58 p.m. CDT on Thursday at Olympia Fields.

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By Ryan Herrington
Nervous. Scared. Confused. These were just some of the emotions Cameron Champ was feeling after being told last week that his arrival test for COVID-19 at the Travelers Championship had turned up a positive result.

“I really felt fine,” Champ said. “I was extremely cautious because my fiancee’s father has a heart condition so we’ve been extremely cautious, so for me that was a shocker.”

A little more than a week later, the 25-year-old two-time PGA Tour winner had different feelings after shooting an opening-round 69 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic: relief and excitement.

It was 4:30 p.m. Wednesday when Champ learned he’d gotten the go-ahead to compete this week. Having taken three follow-up COVID-19 tests on three consecutive days, each coming back negative, the tour decided to amend its rules on the timetable for asymptomatic players who receive a positive test to return to action.

Champ scrambled to get to Detroit, leaving from his home in Houston at 6:30 a.m. Thursday to make his 2:10 p.m. tee time. Upon arrival, he was tested once more for COVID-19 (getting another negative result) and then allowed to practice and play at Detroit Golf Club.

RELATED: Charlie Rymer’s fight with COVID-19: ‘I was absolutely scared’

Champ understood what had to happen in Connecticut—according to the tour’s health and safety protocols, he had to withdraw from the tournament and self-isolate. But since he appeared asymptomatic and couldn’t figure out where he might have contracted the virus, he wonder whether he really had it. Those thoughts lingered after the three subsequent negative follow-ups.

“I mean through the specialist that we worked with, at this point it’s clear that I never had it,” Champ said on Thursday in Detroit. “As far as their medical opinion, it’s pretty clear that I never had it, so that’s why I’m going about the way I am now.”

After assessing Champ’s situation and consulting with the Centres for Disease Control, tour officials agreed it was medically sound to amend how it treats players and caddies who test positive for COVID but are asymptomatic. The tour explained the change in a statement on Wednesday:

“Since the inception of the PGA Tour Health and Safety Plan, the tour’s policy for all positive test results for players and caddies requires a minimum 10-day self-isolation period, based on the Centers for Disease Control’s time-based protocols. Now that the tour is in week four of its return to golf and following several asymptomatic positive tests followed by negative tests—and after direct consultation with the CDC—we are transitioning to the CDC’s test-based model, with their support. Going forward, in accordance with CDC guidelines, a player or caddie who tests positive for COVID-19 but has not had any symptoms may return to competition if he returns two negative tests results, a minimum of 24 hours apart.”

“I think everyone was supportive,” Champ said of his reception when he arrive in Detroit. “I think just about everyone knows about my situation and with the tour players on the board, they’re the one that voted it in or were one of the ones that helped vote it in, so I know they all had my back and supported me and knew my situation. … So it was just nice, like I said, not to have people look at me, ‘Oh, he has corona, we have to be careful’ type deal. The support, it definitely makes it easier to come back. Again, not having people looking at me thinking that I’m contagious or anything.”

There was one other emotion Champ was feeling on Thursday: appreciation.

“As far as being back, it feels amazing,” Champ said. “Like I said, this last week has been a lot of ups and downs, a lot of talking on the phone. Probably the most I’ve talked on the phone this last week in the last three months combined. It just feels again nice to be back playing, seeing all the guys, playing golf.”

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