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Newsweek
3 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Newsweek
LeBron James Calls Bubba Watson 'Ridiculous' But Not For Reason You Think
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. LeBron James is one of the latest to join the long list of stars from other sports who are passionate about golf. The Los Angeles Lakers superstar has recently been showing off his swing, receiving no shortage of favorable reviews. Everything seems to indicate that James is not only hitting the links from time to time, but is also following professional golf. Apparently, last weekend he was watching LIV Golf UK, taking into account his reaction to his friend Bubba Watson's performance. The two-time Masters champion finished second at JCB Golf and Country Club, the best result of his LIV Golf career. Enough for "King James" to dedicate a post to the event on his Instagram stories. "You're ridiculous my friend!!" James posted. Bubba Watson's two eagles after two driver off the deck both times left LeBron James impressed. "You're ridiculous my friend," James wrote. — Kit Espina (@KeithEspino22) July 28, 2025 However, it seems that what really motivated James' congratulations were the two spectacular eagles made by Watson on the par-5 10th and 13th holes of the final round. In both cases, the Range Goats GC captain hit driver off the deck on his second shot and ended up holing the putt for a three. "It's not something I practice," Watson said about driving off the deck, according to the transcript of his post-third round press conference. "You don't practice it, right? I just do it. We had 300 plus to the hole on 10, 280 something to the front I think. So wasn't even -- I was just trying to get it over there where I could chip down to the bowl, right?" "I was like, man, that might have hit the downslope, and about that time, 30, 40 seconds later everybody starts cheering and I was like, must have hit the downslope." "Then to get it in the bowl is just I guess luck I'll say it. Then driver off the deck on 13 was a different shot. Like I was trying to fit that in there, but I don't go to the range and practice them. I never practice those until we're playing practice rounds and I need that shot or if I'm playing in a tournament." US golfer Bubba Watson plays a shot from the 4th fairway on the final day of the LIV Golf League event at the JCB Golf and Country Club in Rocester, central England, on July 27,... US golfer Bubba Watson plays a shot from the 4th fairway on the final day of the LIV Golf League event at the JCB Golf and Country Club in Rocester, central England, on July 27, 2025. | LeBron James speaks onstage during Fanatics Fest NYC 2025 at Javits Center on June 21, 2025 in New York City. More Getty Images/JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP | John Nacion These two eagles were crucial in helping Watson break away from Caleb Surratt and finish solo second, three strokes behind the winner, Joaquin Niemann. Watson added six birdies and four bogeys to his final-round card for a 65. He had carded 66 and 68 in the previous two rounds. The 46-year-old has seen a resurgence in his LIV Golf career this season, with three top-10 finishes. In his previous three seasons, he had only achieved one top-10 finish, at the 2023 Tulsa event (10th). More Golf: LIV Golf Doubles Down, Reportedly To Award Record-Breaking Purses In 2026
Hindustan Times
a day ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
Max Homa and Sahith Theegala played in the Presidents Cup. Now both might miss PGA Tour postseason
The Wyndham Championship is the last chance for players to qualify for the PGA Tour's postseason. It's also a reminder that so much in golf still must be earned. Max Homa and Sahith Theegala played in the Presidents Cup. Now both might miss PGA Tour postseason Sahith Theegala and Max Homa are two examples, both of them part of the winning American team at the Presidents Cup last year in Montreal. Theegala, who finished at No. 3 in the FedEx Cup last year and picked up a $7.5 million bonus, had not finished in the top 10 until running into neck trouble in May. He withdrew from three tournaments, including the PGA Championship, to rest it. He returned at the British Open and missed two straight cuts. Now he is No. 144 and needs nothing short of a victory at the Wyndham Championship to qualifying for the postseason. Homa has been in a slump for 15 months, and he started this year with a new coach and new equipment. He feels progress in his swing, but not his results. Now he's at No. 106, and likely needs a runner-up finish to have any hope of extending his season. Adding to the stress for Homa is his wife is due with their second child next week. He was not eligible for the U.S. Open or British Open. He is still grinding. 'My wife is very, very pregnant right now so really like to win one of the next two so I could skip an event coming up just so I could keep the stress level low in our household,' he said at the Barracuda Championship, held opposite the British Open. He tied for 45th at the Barracuda, and he tied for 39th in Minnesota. Three players from the International team in the Presidents Cup are outside the top 70 going into the final regular-season event — Adam Scott, Christiaan Bezuidenhout and Tom Kim. The FedEx Cup standings going into the Wyndham Championship show some 20 players who were in the playoffs a year ago now outside the top 70. That includes Billy Horschel and Will Zalatoris, both out with injuries. Among the players in the top 70 who missed the postseason last year are U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun, two-time winner Brian Campbell and Chris Gotterup. They are among nine players who have won on the PGA Tour this year and are inside the top 70. Winning always helps. Scottie Scheffler, meanwhile, will pick up $18 million without playing this week. The PGA Tour has redistributed the FedEx Cup bonus money so the leader of the FedEx Cup after the regular season gets $10 million, along with $8 million from the Comcast Business Top 10. He is assured of both. The Saudi-backed LIV Golf League is making it increasingly clear it is going to markets around the world. Its biggest draw is in Adelaide, Australia. Now it is adding South Africa. LIV has announced LIV Golf South Africa has part of its 2026 schedule in a multi-year commitment. It will be the first time the fledgling league goes to South Africa, the fifth continent on which it has been played since LIV launched in 2022. Steyn City in Johannesburg will host the new event on March 20-22, one week after The Players Championship. Steyn City most recently held the Jonsson Workwear Open in 2023, which was co-sanctioned by the European Tour and Sunshine Tour. Meanwhile, Sports Business Journal reported this week the total prize fund for LIV events will be increasing by $5 million to $30 million, with $10 million devoted to team competition. There would still be a $20 million purse for the individuals. St. Andrews will be hosting the British Open for the 31st time in 2027, a week that will include another World Golf Hall of Fame induction. The shrine is now located at Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina, where the USGA has a second headquarters. Padraig Harrington led the induction class at Pinehurst in 2024. The next induction will be at St. Andrews, which previously held a Hall of Fame ceremony in 2015 when Mark O'Meara, Laura Davies and David Graham were among those inducted. Davies missed out when her flight from the U.S. Women's Open was delayed. She at least arrived in time for the reception. 'There is no better connection to golf's rich history and the origins of the game than at St. Andrews,' said Mike Trostel, director of the World Golf Hall of Fame. 'We are thrilled to celebrate the next class of golf's greatest figures at the home of golf and are grateful for the collaboration with our partners at The R&A.' The Hall of Fame induction is now every two years. It will return to Pinehurst in 2029, when the USGA has the U.S. Open and U.S. Women's Open in consecutive weeks. Golf's magic number is starting to lose some of its magic. Brett White became the latest player with to shoot 59, doing so in dramatic fashion by making a 50-foot eagle putt on the last hole. That got him into a three-way playoff that he won in the Commissionaires Ottawa Open on the PGA Tour Americas. This was one day after Philip Barbaree Jr. shot 59 in Ottawa. It was the second time two players shot 59 or lower in the same tournament. Cristobal Del Solar and Aldrich Potgieter did it at the Astara Golf Championship in Colombia on the Korn Ferry Tour last year. Yes, it's still a big deal to have any sub-60 score in tournament golf. But it's happening with greater frequency. White had the fifth sub-60 round this year on tours around the world. There were nine such scores a year ago. The last time no score of 59 or lower was recorded on any tour was 2012. The Constellation Furyk & Friends tournament on the PGA Tour Champions was quickly established as a popular spot being held at Timuquana in Jacksonville, Florida, a Donald Ross design along the St. Johns River. That ends this year, and the tournament is moving in 2026 some 60 miles south to Ocean Course at Hammock Beach in Palm Coast, a Jack Nicklaus signature design where Michelle Wie in 2003 won the Women's Amateur Public Links at age 13. It also hosted PGA Tour Champions events in 2007 and 2008. 'We are incredibly grateful to Timuquana Country Club and the entire Jacksonville community for an unforgettable five years,' said Jim Furyk, host of a tournament that has raised more than $5 million for charity since 2021. 'We're proud of what we've built and excited for the opportunity to continue growing at Hammock Beach Golf Resort & Spa.' The Senior British Open will return to Gleneagles next year for the second time. Darren Clarke won in 2022 when it was last held at course that hosted the 2014 Ryder Cup. ... Rio Takeda and Ayaka Furue have played 18 of the 19 tournaments on the LPGA schedule this year. Both missed only the LPGA Match Play at Shadow Creek. ... Three players who won opposite-field events this year are not among the top 70 in the FedEx Cup — Karl Vilips, William Mouw and Garrick Higgo. Joaquin Niemann has five wins in the LIV Golf League this year. He has not finished in the top 10 in his other six LIV events. 'It's the first time I think I've ever cried happy tears on the golf course." — Mia Hammond, the 17-year-old from Ohio after winning the Greater Toledo Classic. She is the second-youngest winner on the Epson Tour. golf: /hub/golf This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Scotsman
19-07-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
Former winner Henrik Stenson hits out over 'inconsistent' pace-of-play monitoring in The Open
Bryson DeChambeau also unhappy about being put on clock in third round at Royal Portrush Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Henrik Stenson, the 2016 winner, described pace-of-play monitoring as 'inconsistent' in the 153rd Open after showing a glimpse of his old form at Royal Portrush. The Swede spent longer than normal in the recording area after signing for a two-under-par 69 and revealed that it had been down to a slow-play warning he was given along with his compatriot, Sebastian Soderberg. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'It was just I spoke to Mark [Litton], who was one of the head rules officials,' said Stenson, who had got himself on the leaderboard after getting to five under for the day before dropping three shots in his last five holes. 'We got a warning on the tenth green that we were three minutes out, so five minutes over the allotted time frame. Henrik Stenson has been reunited with his old caddie Fanny Sunesson for The 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush Golf Club |'I joked with the other guys for after the first two days, first round took about an hour over the allotted time. Second round was four to five minutes over. I said, we just have to wait until halfway through Saturday or Sunday and someone is going to come up to you and say that you're two minutes over and they're going to start pushing you on. That's exactly what happened. 'On ten today, sure enough, the first rules official came up and said that we were a couple minutes over and we had to try to close that gap. We tried really hard in the group, but then 14 took a bit of extra time. We both made bogey there. 'Then they started putting us on the clock on 15. When you're almost done, it's not really going to make a huge difference. So it was more I wanted to vent that with him. I think if you can play an hour over time scheduled in one day then, all of a sudden, two minutes is of huge importance the next day, it feels a bit inconsistent to me.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Due to the later rounds on Thursday taking six hours to complete, the final few groups, which included Scottish pair Cameron Adam and Daniel Young, finished in near darkness. 'You just don't want to play on the clock,' added Stenson, who plays for Majesticks these days on the LIV Golf League. 'I certainly don't feel like I'm a slow player these days. I's like you can take 30 seconds on one shot, 40 on another one and you might take 52 on another one and you're still kind of averaging it out, but, if you're on the clock, you're going to get noted if you take 52 on one. 'I don't think it matters how quick you are as a player, you don't want to be on the clock because, especially out here, if you miss one in the wrong place, you want to go up and check and this and that, and that clocks starts ticking. I'd prefer not to play on the clock. Yeah, we're having some discussions on that.' Bryson DeChambeau walks away after being given a slow-play warning by rules official Kevin Feeney on the 17th at Royal Portrush |Bryson DeChambeau, who showed his battling qualities by recovering from an opening 78 to make it to the weekend, was also put on the clock in the third round, in his case at the 17th. 'Yeah, he timed me after I striped the drive down there, which was unfortunate' said the two-time US Open champion, who'd just got up and down from a 'difficult spot' at the treacherous par-3 16th. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Understand we were struggling with pace the whole day. I was moving my butt as fast as I could. Greens were really tricky. I was trying to read them right. Yeah, we just kept losing time.' DeChambeau, who has talked in the past about how he likes to get to his ball as quickly as possible but then likes to be as thorough as possible over the shot, was asked if he had a solution to the slow-play issue. 'It's very simple. It's not difficult at all,' he insisted. 'You eventually time everybody for their whole entire round. Nobody wants to do it because people are too scared to get exposed, which I am an advocate for. I'd love to be timed, and I have no problem with that.
South Wales Argus
16-07-2025
- Sport
- South Wales Argus
Former prisoner aiming to write next chapter of redemption at The Open
In March this year, the left-hander qualified for the fourth and final major of the year, at Royal Portrush, with victory at the 104th New Zealand Open presented by Sky Sport. That first ever professional victory, on his Asian Tour debut, took place a little over 10 years after a conviction and five-year jail sentence for assault aged just 21. A promising youth golfer, Peake had lost his way and became a member of a notorious motorcycle gang in Australia. Now 31, Peake warmed up for his big date in Northern Ireland with a T33 finish behind ultimate champion Scott Vincent at International Series Morocco, the fourth of 10 elevated Asian Tour events that offer a pathway onto the LIV Golf League. Things could have been even better too – Peake sat T12 following a five-under third round of 68. It's a remarkable recovery, from the lows of incarceration to the highs of elite competitive golf against some of the world's best. It is one that may not have happened at all had Peake not been contacted by former coach Ritchie Smith while in jail. Smith, who works with fellow Australians such as PGA Tour winner Min Woo Lee and sister Minjee Lee, a three-time major champion among others, wrote to Peake while in prison to offer words of encouragement for a player he had worked with as a 17-year-old. Peake responded with an apologetic letter of his own, and from that point on, his future changed. Peake explained: 'For someone of his calibre to reach out to someone like me and pretty much drag me out of the trenches, you know, it doesn't speak volumes on me, it speaks volumes on him.' 'There was obviously a lot of changes that we had to make, there were vigorous programmes set out. It was up to about a five-year plan, and, yes, he believed we could do it. He pretty much worked out the mapping and the planning of what we were going to do, and I just stuck with it.' Peake admits the mental aspect was the more challenging as he plotted his climb back to the top following his eventual release in 2019. It took a number of years and a lot of sacrifices and graft before he earned full playing privileges on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia for the 2024-2025 season, and that life-changing victory in New Zealand. He said: 'I had already got pretty fit in there, so it was more just mental - basically going from not having any real aspirations in life to then trying to basically tell yourself, while still in prison, that you are going to become a professional golfer. You know there's a bit of mental work to get there.' 'Your team can only push you so far and tell you so much, and the rest of it, you have to start to believe in it yourself. It did take me some time, but I got there in the end!' The left-hander was full of praise for the opportunities being offered by the Asian Tour and The International Series. He said: 'At the moment, I'm fresh out here on the Asian Tour.' 'Events like these (International Series Morocco) attract high profile names. You are on the Asian Tour, which is a great tour, but then when you have major champions playing as well, and the elevated prize purses, it just gives it that added significance. These 10 events are growing the Asian Tour massively.' 'I'm out here trying to play the best golf that I can, and whatever those pathways provide me, the more the merrier. Definitely, I'm chasing every single pathway that there is.' Looking ahead to his chances in Northern Ireland this week, he added: 'A lot of this stuff wasn't on the programme. But, you know, obviously I am excited to play. I don't think I really know how big it is, to be honest, but obviously once I get there and sort of have a bit of a look around, it'll probably hit me a little bit more.' Teeing it up alongside Peake are three players from the LIV Golf League who earned their places via the Open Qualifying Series at International Series Macau presented by Wynn. Macau champion Carlos Ortiz, the Torque GC player, is joined by 2018 Masters champion and 4Aces GC star Patrick Reed plus Jason Kokrak of Smash GC for the tournament which gets underway on Thursday. Building on his victory in Macau, Ortiz has continued to impress with a T4 finish at the U.S. Open and three top-10 performances in Miami, Korea, and Virginia. Reed has also been in red-hot form since then, placing third at this year's Masters and securing a win at LIV Golf Dallas. Kokrak, meanwhile, recently posted a solid T10 finish in Andalucía ahead of the final Major of the year.
North Wales Live
16-07-2025
- Sport
- North Wales Live
Former prisoner aiming to write next chapter of redemption at The Open
Australian golfer Ryan Peake is preparing to write the next chapter of his remarkable redemption story at The 153rd Open Championship this week. In March this year, the left-hander qualified for the fourth and final major of the year, at Royal Portrush, with victory at the 104th New Zealand Open presented by Sky Sport. That first ever professional victory, on his Asian Tour debut, took place a little over 10 years after a conviction and five-year jail sentence for assault aged just 21. A promising youth golfer, Peake had lost his way and became a member of a notorious motorcycle gang in Australia. Now 31, Peake warmed up for his big date in Northern Ireland with a T33 finish behind ultimate champion Scott Vincent at International Series Morocco, the fourth of 10 elevated Asian Tour events that offer a pathway onto the LIV Golf League. Things could have been even better too – Peake sat T12 following a five-under third round of 68. It's a remarkable recovery, from the lows of incarceration to the highs of elite competitive golf against some of the world's best. It is one that may not have happened at all had Peake not been contacted by former coach Ritchie Smith while in jail. Smith, who works with fellow Australians such as PGA Tour winner Min Woo Lee and sister Minjee Lee, a three-time major champion among others, wrote to Peake while in prison to offer words of encouragement for a player he had worked with as a 17-year-old. Peake responded with an apologetic letter of his own, and from that point on, his future changed. Peake explained: 'For someone of his calibre to reach out to someone like me and pretty much drag me out of the trenches, you know, it doesn't speak volumes on me, it speaks volumes on him.' 'There was obviously a lot of changes that we had to make, there were vigorous programmes set out. It was up to about a five-year plan, and, yes, he believed we could do it. He pretty much worked out the mapping and the planning of what we were going to do, and I just stuck with it.' Peake admits the mental aspect was the more challenging as he plotted his climb back to the top following his eventual release in 2019. It took a number of years and a lot of sacrifices and graft before he earned full playing privileges on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia for the 2024-2025 season, and that life-changing victory in New Zealand. He said: 'I had already got pretty fit in there, so it was more just mental - basically going from not having any real aspirations in life to then trying to basically tell yourself, while still in prison, that you are going to become a professional golfer. You know there's a bit of mental work to get there.' 'Your team can only push you so far and tell you so much, and the rest of it, you have to start to believe in it yourself. It did take me some time, but I got there in the end!' The left-hander was full of praise for the opportunities being offered by the Asian Tour and The International Series. He said: 'At the moment, I'm fresh out here on the Asian Tour.' 'Events like these (International Series Morocco) attract high profile names. You are on the Asian Tour, which is a great tour, but then when you have major champions playing as well, and the elevated prize purses, it just gives it that added significance. These 10 events are growing the Asian Tour massively.' 'I'm out here trying to play the best golf that I can, and whatever those pathways provide me, the more the merrier. Definitely, I'm chasing every single pathway that there is.' Looking ahead to his chances in Northern Ireland this week, he added: 'A lot of this stuff wasn't on the programme. But, you know, obviously I am excited to play. I don't think I really know how big it is, to be honest, but obviously once I get there and sort of have a bit of a look around, it'll probably hit me a little bit more.' Teeing it up alongside Peake are three players from the LIV Golf League who earned their places via the Open Qualifying Series at International Series Macau presented by Wynn. Macau champion Carlos Ortiz, the Torque GC player, is joined by 2018 Masters champion and 4Aces GC star Patrick Reed plus Jason Kokrak of Smash GC for the tournament which gets underway on Thursday. Building on his victory in Macau, Ortiz has continued to impress with a T4 finish at the U.S. Open and three top-10 performances in Miami, Korea, and Virginia. Reed has also been in red-hot form since then, placing third at this year's Masters and securing a win at LIV Golf Dallas. Kokrak, meanwhile, recently posted a solid T10 finish in Andalucía ahead of the final Major of the year.
