Latest news with #TomMcKibbin
Daily Mail
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Jordan Smith insists rules must CHANGE after rival's £4m LIV Golf payday robbed him of his lifelong dream and a place on the PGA Tour
They say an ability to handle disappointment is the dividing line between good and great golfers. By that theory, Jordan Smith warrants a higher ranking than 107th in the world. Of the many routes to frustration in his sport, few can match the scenario involving this son of Bath at the turn of the year. That he can laugh about it says much for his nature, form and direction of travel – having qualified for the US Open next week, the 32-year-old is in a good place. But could he be in a different one? Or to frame that another way, should Smith be rubbing shoulders with the elite on the PGA Tour by now? Therein lies an unfortunate situation that he describes as 'annoying'. And it's one he believes should provoke a rule change, because last November, at the conclusion of the DP World Tour season, Smith was the 11th in line for one of the 10 golden tickets they hand out each year to the PGA Tour. The big league. The 10th was Tom McKibbin and the issue there was known to just about everyone at the time – the Northern Irishman was considering an offer to join LIV. It's a proposal he went on to accept. The irritation? Had McKibbin crossed over before December 31, Smith would have filled his spot. But McKibbin took his time, as was sensible, and those deliberations extended beyond the PGA Tour deadline before he finally settled on leaving just a couple of weeks later. If you're Smith in that picture, you can laugh or cry, or at the very least nurture a minor regret that a rival's decision wasn't reached a fraction quicker. 'That's exactly what I was thinking when it when the news came out (about McKibbin's departure),' he tells Mail Sport. 'At the time (of the deadline) he might have not known that he was definitely going to be on LIV. But for me it was a hard blow to miss out. Getting on the PGA Tour is a big goal of mine. 'At that time, I was like, 'Look, I didn't have a card, I didn't get in the top 10, and I still don't have a card, so there's nothing I can do about it'. But obviously it was annoying. 'There are no hard feelings towards Tom. I was playing on the same side as him in the Team Cup (in Abu Dhabi) in January just before he announced the decision but we had already heard which way it might be going. We didn't really talk about it but we got on great. 'Thing is, something similar happened to Rasmus Hojgaard the previous year when Adrian Meronk got a card and then went to LIV. It's something they (the PGA Tour) probably need to change and it would be nice if they did change it. 'With Tom, when he announced it, he hadn't played any PGA Tour events to that point. You would think they (the PGA Tour) would be like, 'Yeah, we'll let Jordan in, seeing as Tom hasn't actually played any events'. If he had played a handful it would have been more difficult. 'But it's just one of those things you have to take on the chin and use it as fuel to get one of those cards the next time.' On that front, the situation is looking promising – with five months to run in the season, Smith is again in serious contention for one of the 10 spots. In a more immediate sense, he has travelled to the US Open on the back of two top-four finishes in his past four DP World Tour starts. Alongside that run, he won a qualification tournament at Walton Heath three weeks ago to secure his ticket to Oakmont, arguably the hardest test on the major circuit. 'I've not played it but heard it's brutal,' Smith says. 'I'm excited. My game feels very close to being where I want it to be to win events. 'In the past couple of months, I've been close. At the China Open (in April) I was probably one good tee shot away. Same in Belgium a few weeks ago.' The itch owes something to the three-year gap since his second of two victories on the DP World Tour, with the first coming on his debut season in 2017. Back then, he also secured his first and only top-10 from his 10 major appearances – the 2017 PGA Championship – and he was narrowly beaten to the rookie of the year award by a man who has proceeded to win two majors. Jon Rahm. 'I suppose he's gone on to do okay!' says Smith, whose career earnings of £7.5million from 226 tournaments mean has done just fine in his own right. Indeed, for the past two Ryder Cup cycles, he has been namechecked regularly by European captain Luke Donald as one of those contenders on his radar. 'The Cup was definitely my biggest goal this year,' Smith says. 'Being realistic at this point, I need a couple of wins before the end of the season to get into the next one (in September) and a big performance at the US Open. 'I might need to pull a rabbit out of the hat, especially as Luke will favour players with Cup experience as they will be playing in front of New York crowds. Those crowds will be brutal.' Mention of the crowds brings to the surface a different recollection from that Team Cup in week in January, which Donald used to trial some unusual methods around the handling of hostile crowds. One was a loud speaker booming during the tee-shots; another was the deployment of an American heckler. 'He was targeting Tyrrell Hatton a bit,' Smith says. 'Tyrrell had a bit of a beard going and the guy kept shouting out stuff about him being Amish and whatever. It was good fun.' As it transpired, Smith and McKibbin were on the winning side that week. One man has since moved on to LIV and the other remains on the cusp of a big step to the PGA Tour. The next week at Oakmont could have a significant bearing on whether he gets there.
Daily Mirror
15 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
LIV Golf star who ignored Rory McIlroy's stern warning earned £100,000 payday
Tom McKibbin had been warned by Rory McIlroy that he could regret his decision to join the LIV Golf breakaway league, but the 22-year-old has already earned a fortune Tom McKibbin has pocketed a cool £100,000 at an LIV Golf event, bolstering his impressive earnings since joining the controversial tour. Despite a cautionary word from five-time major winner Rory McIlroy about giving up his PGA Tour Card, the 22-year-old Northern Irish golfer decided to jump ship to LIV Golf earlier this year, reportedly tempted by a hefty £4million signing offer. "If I were in his position, I wouldn't make that decision," the Masters titleholder said following McKibbin's announcement to sign with the Saudi-backed series. While forfeiting his chances on the PGA circuit, McKibbin's financial gains seem to justify his move, with the Belfast-born golfer estimated to have bagged £3.4m from just eight event appearances this season. His earnings for 2025 got a boost after the recent outing at LIV Golf Virginia in Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, where Joaquin Niemann emerged victorious. Despite only securing a tied-38th position out of 53 players, McKibbin still cashed in £100,000 ($136,250). Considering the wealth he's accrued and his acknowledgement of the high calibre of competitors at LIV, it appears his earlier statement about having no qualms over the switch was well-founded. The up-and-coming golfer shared his gratitude for the experience he's gained this year, telling the Irish Independent:"I've been very, very lucky to play with a lot of very good players so far this year. "I've definitely seen my golf game improve, playing tough courses like [Florida course] Doral, so it's definitely prepared me a little bit better. "Yeah, I'm very happy. I've been very lucky to play with a lot of great players who have done well in these major championships and play against them. "I've obviously been playing with Jon [Rahm] in a lot of practice rounds, and then on tournament days as well, so to see how they play the game and how they take on golf courses, it's been very eye-opening." Looking back at last month's PGA Championship, McKibbin acknowledged his cordial relationship with McIlroy, who missed the cut at the RBC Canadian Open earlier this month, confessing that he had sent him congratulatory texts following his triumph at Augusta.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
The Open at Portrush will be 'special'
Tom McKibbin expects that competing in the 153rd Open at Royal Portrush will be something he will remember for the rest of his life. The 22-year-old from Northern Ireland was in the field last year at Royal Troon, as well as for the US Open in 2024 and US PGA last month, but feels playing a major so close to home will be a different experience. "I've played here however many hundreds of times, it's somewhere I've come up and played since I was 10-years-old," he said of Royal Portrush. "To play a major championship on this golf course is going to be pretty special, the biggest event I'll ever have played in under that pressure and atmosphere." McKibbin was not present when the course last staged the championship and Shane Lowry was the winner of the Claret Jug in 2019. "It's something not many people get to say, that they've played an Open in their home country," he added. "To play it here on one of the best courses in the world, it's going to be pretty special. "To be here and be playing will be something that I'll probably remember forever." McIlroy will have 'unfinished business' at Portrush Open McKibbin secured his place in the field through his 18th place in last year's Race To Dubai but has since joined LIV Golf where he is a team-mate of the likes of Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton. There are still seven events left on that circuit this season, while McKibbin also plans to play on some DP World Tour stops before the end of the year. Next up, however, is a US Open qualifier on Monday, 2 June. Known as 'golf's longest day', hopefuls at 12 courses across 10 venues will play 36 holes in an effort to secure their place in the field at Oakmont in Pennsylvania from 12-15 June. "It's a very hard day, 36 holes, you have to play very good," said McKibbin who will be playing at Duke University in North Carolina. "There's not a lot of spots. Hopefully I can put together two good rounds and make it there. "The game feels nice, just trying to get through each event and play the best I can."
BBC News
28-05-2025
- General
- BBC News
The Open at Portrush will be 'special'
Tom McKibbin expects that competing in the 153rd Open at Royal Portrush will be something he will remember for the rest of his life. The 22-year-old from Northern Ireland was in the field last year at Royal Troon, as well as for the US Open in 2024 and US PGA last month, but feels playing a major so close to home will be a different experience."I've played here however many hundreds of times, it's somewhere I've come up and played since I was 10-years-old," he said of Royal Portrush."To play a major championship on this golf course is going to be pretty special, the biggest event I'll ever have played in under that pressure and atmosphere."McKibbin was not present when the course last staged the championship and Shane Lowry was the winner of the Claret Jug in 2019. "It's something not many people get to say, that they've played an Open in their home country," he added. "To play it here on one of the best courses in the world, it's going to be pretty special. "To be here and be playing will be something that I'll probably remember forever." McKibbin secured his place in the field through his 18th place in last year's Race To Dubai but has since joined LIV Golf where he is a team-mate of the likes of Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton. There are still seven events left on that circuit this season, while McKibbin also plans to play on some DP World Tour stops before the end of the year. Next up, however, is a US Open qualifier on Monday, 2 June. Known as 'golf's longest day', hopefuls at 12 courses across 10 venues will play 36 holes in an effort to secure their place in the field at Oakmont in Pennsylvania from 12-15 June."It's a very hard day, 36 holes, you have to play very good," said McKibbin who will be playing at Duke University in North Carolina. "There's not a lot of spots. Hopefully I can put together two good rounds and make it there."The game feels nice, just trying to get through each event and play the best I can."
RTÉ News
16-05-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
McKibbin maintains momentum at PGA Championship, Tyrrell Hatton loses cool and ground
Tom McKibbin is set to make the cut in his first US PGA Championship. The 22-year-old from Antrim shot an even-par 71 that left him on under, inside of the predicted cut mark of one over. McKibbin, who joined the LIV Tour in January, bogeyed his final hole, the ninth, cancelling out his sole birdie on 15. Meanwhile, Tyrrell Hatton admitted his latest foul-mouthed outburst was "not my finest moment" after he squandered a promising start to round two. Hatton was within a shot of the lead after covering his first eight holes at Quail Hollow in two under par, only to then run up a damaging triple bogey on the 18th. After pulling his tee shot on the difficult par four into the creek which runs the length of the hole, Hatton could be clearly heard shouting "piece of s***" at the face of his driver, followed by another word – seemingly beginning with the letter C – which was not 100% clear. Following a penalty drop, Hatton hit this third shot into the rough short of the green and failed to find the putting surface with his fourth, before seeing his fifth shot trickle back off the green. The Englishman almost holed his next shot and tapped in for a seven before covering the front nine in 36 to complete a 73 which left him one under par, seven shots off the clubhouse lead held by Jhonattan Vegas (70). "A great birdie on 17 but a poor tee shot really on 18 and then made some bad decisions," Hatton said. "It's a really tough pin if you miss the green anywhere. It's an awkward chip and I had such a bad lie for my fourth shot to be honest. "I was trying to hit it 30 feet right, but I didn't want to hit it that hard and obviously it came out horrendous and you kind of look stupid. But I didn't think I played the next chip shot that badly and it came off the green. "Making seven there was tough and I just unfortunately wasn't able to make other shots coming back on the back nine and it ends up being a frustrating day." Asked to clarify what he had said on the 18th tee, Hatton said: "You tell me, you've seen it." Told the first three words were clear but the fourth was not, Hatton replied: "Okay. Well either way it wasn't my finest moment on the course but I mean yeah, running hot in the moment I'm pretty good at sometimes saying the wrong thing. "So yeah, I'll leave it at that." US PGA Championship round 2 live updates It is far from the first time Hatton's explosive temper has been seen on the course, with the world number 20 labelled a "terrible influence" after snapping a club and complaining about course conditions in round three of the DP World Tour Championship in November. Hatton reacted angrily to missing a short birdie putt on the 11th hole at Jumeirah Golf Estates, exclaiming clearly "F*** you, f****** s*** greens" and banging his putter down on the green. The LIV Golf player then broke one of his wedges after missing the green with his approach to the par-five 14th. Responding to that incident, which was another in a long line of displays of petulance from Hatton, veteran Sky Sports commentator Ewen Murray said: "Oh no, no. It's time for change I'm afraid. "What a terrible influence on the next generation. I'm sorry to say it, I'm his biggest supporter as a golfer. But just have a look at this. Why? Why would you do that? We've all had our moments but he's having too many of them." Vegas, who enjoyed a slice of luck when his tee shot on the 17th hit a rake and kicked onto the green, looked set to enjoy a sizeable lead before taking four to get down from a greenside bunker to make a double bogey on the 18th. The resulting 70 left him two shots clear of France's Matthieu Pavon, with Max Homa another stroke back adding a 64 to his opening 73. "I feel like finishing so late yesterday, not getting a great sleep, and having to come back early kind of put me not in the best mood all day," Vegas, who completed an opening 64 at 8pm on Thursday, said. "Every chance you get to lead a major and play with the lead is never easy, so I feel proud of a solid round today. Even though it's never easy to give two shots away right at the end, [there's] a lot of golf left, so got to keep remembering the good stuff." Former champion Shaun Micheel shrugged off an unwelcome encounter with a snake on day two. Micheel, who lifted the Wanamaker Trophy in 2003, was pacing off the distance of his third shot on the 10th hole when he came across a snake crossing the fairway on the par five. Micheel was happy to give the snake – believed to be a non-venomous eastern kingsnake – a wide berth before a tournament volunteer stepped in and used his foot to help usher the reptile out of the way and into the rough. After hitting his third shot to 12 feet, Micheel converted the birdie putt and also picked up another shot on the 11th as he battled to make the halfway cut in the US PGA for the first time since 2011. The 56-year-old won his sole major title at Oak Hill in 2003, beating Chad Campbell by two shots after a birdie on the 72nd hole. He also finished second in the same event at Medinah in 2006, five shots behind Tiger Woods.
