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Rick Shiels partnering with LIV Golf as ambassador

Rick Shiels partnering with LIV Golf as ambassador

USA Today27-01-2025

Rick Shiels partnering with LIV Golf as ambassador With nearly 3 million subscribers, Shiels can bring LIV Golf a massive audience and exposure for its players.
YouTube star Rick Shiels, who has nearly three million subscribers on his main channel, announced on Friday that he has signed a partnership with LIV Golf, the Saudi-backed golf league, and will now serve as an ambassador for the league.
To be clear, Shiels, who was a teaching pro in England before his golf instruction and equipment review videos exploded on YouTube, will not be competing in LIV Golf events. Instead, he will be filming content at every LIV Golf venue ahead of the league's tournaments that will promote and show off the courses, players and atmosphere.
"I'm going to be making some unbelievable content at every single LIV Golf event," Sheils said. Included in that content will be his popular "Break 75" challenges and videos that feature players like Jon Rahm, Sergio Garcia, Dustin Johnson and others off the course and away from golf. There are also plans for 5-man scrambles that feature Sheils and a LIV team trying to go as low as possible, along with two-vs-two matches with Shiels acting as the host.
On December 6, the PGA Tour announced the creation of a Creator Council comprised of social media stars like Bob Does Sports, Bryan Bros Golf, Erik Anders Lang, Fore Play/Barstool Sports, No Laying Up, Paige Spiranac, Roger Steele and Tisha Alyn who would help the Tour, "develop shared strategies for content development and fan engagement." The announcement of Shiels, who was not named to that panel, becoming a LIV ambassador appears to be the upstart league's answer to growing engagement and fans on the biggest social media platform.
Several PGA Tour stars have appeared with content creators on YouTube, and a growing number of equipment manufacturers are turning to content creators who boast a large online audience to promote their services and gear. Rahm and Xander Schauffele have appeared recently on Bob Does Sports, Erik Anders Lang recently signed a deal with Ping Golf, and Fore Play/Barstool Sports created a video with Tiger Woods at a TaylorMade commercial shot in late 2023 that has now generated over 3.2 million views.
With Sheils' large subscriber base and LIV Golf's ability to get star players involved at exotic locations, it will be fascinating to see what the content creator produces and if the videos boost interest in LIV Golf events, which will soon be broadcast on Fox Sports.

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New Jersey duo hoping to make impact at U.S. Open in neighboring Pennsylvania
New Jersey duo hoping to make impact at U.S. Open in neighboring Pennsylvania

USA Today

time10 minutes ago

  • USA Today

New Jersey duo hoping to make impact at U.S. Open in neighboring Pennsylvania

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Check out what Jordan Spieth, others will be wearing in the 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont
Check out what Jordan Spieth, others will be wearing in the 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont

USA Today

time10 minutes ago

  • USA Today

Check out what Jordan Spieth, others will be wearing in the 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont

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Fact Check: Eddie Murphy didn't testify at Sean 'Diddy' Combs trial, honestly
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Yahoo

time12 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Fact Check: Eddie Murphy didn't testify at Sean 'Diddy' Combs trial, honestly

Claim: Actor Eddie Murphy testified at rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex-trafficking trial in May or early June 2025. Rating: A rumor that circulated online beginning in late May 2025 claimed actor and comedian Eddie Murphy testified at rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex-trafficking trial. Users primarily spread this matter through the sharing of videos. Those videos claimed Murphy told the court at Combs' New York trial that Combs forced Murphy into engaging in sexual activity with him, and that Murphy said, "I left Hollywood because of 'Diddy.'" However, Murphy didn't testify at Combs' trial. Searches of Bing, DuckDuckGo, Google and Yahoo found no news media outlets credibly reporting that Murphy testified at the trial or made any such statements regarding sexual activity or leaving Hollywood. The rumor amounted to nothing more than attempts by online creators to earn advertising revenue. Those creators executed their plans by asking artificial-intelligence (AI) tools to create videos and inauthentic thumbnail images promoting the false rumor. Snopes contacted by email representatives for Murphy to request comment regarding the fabricated rumor, included about Murphy's alleged statements, and will update this story if we receive more information. For example, on June 8, 2025, a manager of the Undisclosed Realms YouTube channel posted a video (archived) displaying the title, "Eddie Murphy SHOCKS Court 'I Left Hollywood Because of Diddy!'" The creator of the clip labeled its content in the description as "comedic satire." As of this writing, the video received over 236,000 views. The video's thumbnail image featured an AI-generated, split-screen view, showing Combs in an orange jumpsuit alongside Murphy, both seated in front of microphones. The chyron read, "Diddy ruined my career." The video showed authentic visuals. 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That video, also generated with AI, received over 4 million views, and featured the description, "In a stunning courtroom revelation, comedy legend Eddie Murphy has reportedly taken the stand and confessed the real reason he vanished from Hollywood for years — and it all leads back to Sean 'Diddy' Combs. With the world watching, Eddie declared, 'I left Hollywood because of Diddy,' sending shockwaves through the courtroom and beyond." The video's AI-generated thumbnail image showed a split-screen view of a tearful Murphy crying in court next to Combs, again wearing an orange jumpsuit. A fake photo displayed between the pair showed Murphy and Combs shirtless in a bed. The chyron referenced "breaking news" and a purported Murphy quote saying that Combs forced him into engaging in oral sex. The text read, "He made me suck it." Snopes also added the red line in this thumbnail image. (Red Carpet Rumors/Facebook) Other users shared this same false rumor far and wide on Facebook (archived), Threads (archived), TikTok (archived) and X (archived), as well as on many different YouTube channels. A Google search result also displayed a popular TikTok video with at least 162,000 views from user @ displaying the title, "P2. 1 MINUTE AGO: Eddie Murphy Testifies, 'I Left Hollywood Because of Diddy.'" As of this writing, an attempt to access the video showed the message, "Video currently unavailable." Additionally, at least one X post (archived) from May 31 linked to a removed YouTube video displaying the title, "1 MINUTE AGO: Eddie Murphy Testifies, 'I Left Hollywood Because of Diddy.'" Upon attempting to access the video (archived), YouTube showed the message, "This video has been removed for violating YouTube's Terms of Service." In other words, this false rumor about Murphy and Combs originated in May, most likely with a label about fictional content, as opposed to satire. While Murphy did not testify at Combs' trial, his name did receive a brief, albeit minor, mention. Referencing Combs' ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, NewsNation reported of Murphy and actor Bruce Willis: While reviewing text messages Ventura sent Combs in court, the defense team noted she asked the hip-hop mogul if they could have more than a sexual relationship, pointing to both Willis and Murphy as examples where they successfully co-parented with the mothers of their children. Ventura had expressed a desire to be in Combs' children's lives after he split with Kim Porter, and Combs' defense team was attempting to show that Ventura was jealous of the time Combs spent with the mother of three of his kids. For further reading, previous fact checks examined similar rumors about other celebrities allegedly testifying against Combs, including musician Usher and actor Jim Carrey. Another claim said the prosecution in Combs' case presented as evidence a secret recording of Prince exposing the music mogul. "AI Image Detector. Detect AI-Generated Media at Scale." Sightengine, "DuckDuckGo - Protection. Privacy. Peace of Mind." DuckDuckGo, Falzone, Diana. "Here Are the A-Listers Mentioned in the Diddy Trial so Far." NewsNation, 7 May 2025, "Free Text To Speech Online with Lifelike AI Voices." ElevenLabs, Google. Google Lens - Search What You See. Microsoft Bing. Yahoo | Mail, Weather, Search, Politics, News, Finance, Sports & Videos.

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