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Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
LIV Golf signs controversial Masters star who urinated in Rae's Creek
Josele Ballester was one of the most highly-rated amateur golfers in the world before he caused controversy at The Masters by urinating in Rae's Creek Josele Ballester, who turned heads at The Masters, has been revealed as the newest recruit for LIV Golf, joining forces with Sergio Garcia's Fireballs squad. The Spanish prodigy, currently ranked 6th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, is set to make his professional bow at this weekend's event in Virginia. The competition kicks off this Friday at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club. Ballester, 21, replaces Luis Masaveu on the Fireballs' roster - although the 22-year-old remains in play as a reserve and will be in action this weekend with David Puig sidelined due to injury. Ballester shares a deep connection with Garcia, with both hailing from Spain's Castellón province, More pertinently, Garcia's father, Victor, has been coaching Ballester since his early days. "We are very excited about Josele joining the team," an enthusiastic Garcia said. "Personally, I have known him since he could pick up a golf club and he has worked with my father as his coach throughout his golf career. Josele is going to be a great addition not only to the Fireballs but also to the LIV League and I can't wait to be with him by his side as he makes his professional debut." An Arizona State alum, during his final college year, Ballester was a standout, securing fourth place in the NCAA Championship. His stellar play earned him third spot in the PGA Tour University rankings, granting him a Korn Ferry Tour card. And he now joins LIV, despite other invites. He said: "First and Foremost, I want to thank my family, coaches, friends, and Arizona State University for supporting me and believing in me to make it to this step of my career. I am very excited about the opportunity to join Fireballs GC and continue to learn from Sergio and other greats." Ballester boasts an impressive track record, capturing the US Amateur title last year and triumphing at the European Amateur in 2023. His US Amateur victory at Hazeltine snagged him an invitation to The Masters at Augusta National, where he played alongside top golfer Scottie Scheffler and two-time major winner Justin Thomas - although he didn't make the cut. At Augusta National, Ballester not only brushed shoulders with golfing legends but also learnt valuable lessons about the club's revered traditions. During his debut round, spectators caught him relieving himself in Rae's Creek, a move that surprisingly earned him a hearty applause upon his return. However, others were less impressed by his actions, especially when he reiterated in a press conference that he would repeat his actions. After his second round, though, he backtracked and apologised. "I already apologised to the club, and I think we just move on from this moment. It will not happen again," Ballester told reporters. "I know there has been a lot said about what happened on social media, but I try to stay away from all that. "A couple of friends reached out just to say 'Hey, you'll be fine. I'm still your friend.' So it's good to have those friends that have your back when the news is not that good about you."
USA Today
2 days ago
- Business
- USA Today
Golfweek Pacific Northwest Amateur returns to Wine Valley GC, where owner Jim Pliska will tee it up
Golfweek Pacific Northwest Amateur returns to Wine Valley GC, where owner Jim Pliska will tee it up It's important to Jim Pliska that there are opportunities for the top seniors in the Pacific Northwest to showcase their talent locally, get World Amateur Golf Ranking points and play with the best talent in the world. Luckily Pliska, the owner of two top courses in Washington and Oregon, is in a position to do something about that. Pliska runs Space Age Fuel, one of the largest independent fuel marketers in Oregon, and is also the owner of Wine Valley Golf Club in Walla Walla, Washington, and Emerald Valley Golf Club in Creswell, Oregon. The courses, roughly 350 miles apart, frequently host championships – and that was one of Pliska's motivations for getting involved in the golf industry as a course owner. Tournaments range from Oregon Golf Association events to Pacific Northwest Golf Association events to college events, considering Emerald Valley is home to the University of Oregon Golf teams. Perhaps most notably, Wine Valley served as a U.S. Open Final Qualifying site on June 2. Next month, Wine Valley will host the Golfweek Pacific Northwest Senior Amateur for the fourth time. The 54-hole event draws top amateurs from around the country. Last year, former U.S. Senior Amateur champion Doug Hanzel took home the trophy. 'I like to give back in that respect because I feel supporting the competition and competitive golf helps overall golf in general,' Pliska said. 'I think it's such a great game I want to keep it in existence.' Pliska, at 66, is an accomplished player himself. He competes six or seven times a year and is constantly working on his game. Lately, that means working out daily and also working through swing issues with instructor Mike Mitchell in La Quinta, California. 'My game, I can feel it's getting better but getting it consistently better,' Pliska said, 'it's still got work to be done.' Pliska, who will tee it up at the Golfweek Pacific Northwest Senior, played on the University of Oregon roster for a year in the late 1970s after transferring in from Mt. Hood Community College. He continued to stay sharp in the game and has won the OGA Tournament of Champions a handful of times. Pliska, a veteran of several USGA championships, is still pursuing a U.S. Senior Amateur berth. As he works to get his game to the level that he can meet that goal, the majority of his time continues to go to Space Age. Meanwhile, the day-to-day of golf course operation largely falls to the general manager at each facility. 'I've got some good people that have worked for us for a long time,' Pliska said of his golf course staffs. And despite being hands-off in most respects, he's still involved in major decisions. Pliska's history with Emerald Valley goes back to his days at Oregon but Wine Valley, site of the Golfweek event, is a relatively new course. Wine Valley opened in 2009 and was designed by Dan Hixson. It is ranked No. 3 in the state of Washington on the Golfweek's Best Public Courses list and also appears on the Golfweek's Best Top 200 Modern Courses list. Pliska thinks golfers love playing Wine Valley because it's a challenging-but-fair layout. He calls it a second-shot golf course. Because many holes have multiple sight lines, a player can be out of position and still have a chance to recover. That there's no standard way to play the course is one thing that Pliska thinks makes it great. 'It gives you a lot of different opportunities out there,' he said. 'There's not a tree on the golf course so it's kind of open, big features, big greens, lot of movement on the greens. It's a fun course to play because you can play different shots, it's not standard shots – it's not a traditional golf course. It's more of the newer links type of golf course. I think the beauty of it, too, is great.' The Golfweek Pacific Northwest Senior Amateur will be played July 1-3 at Wine Valley and registration remains open across all four divisions: Senior (age 55-64), Super Senior (Age 65-69), Legends (age 70-74) and Super Legends (age 75 and over).
USA Today
2 days ago
- General
- USA Today
Former Oakmont caddie turned dentist the feel-good story of U.S. Open Final Qualifying
Former Oakmont caddie turned dentist the feel-good story of U.S. Open Final Qualifying Among the myriad of feel-good stories emerging out of Monday's Final Qualifying for the 125th U.S. Open at Oakmont in Pittsburgh next week, Matt Vogt tops the list. 'I knew I could do it,' he said. Vogt, ranked 1173 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, was born in the Steel City and caddied for six years at Oakmont. He played college golf at Butler University and works as a dentist in Indianapolis. He last earned amateur ranking points with a 17th in February's Gasparilla Invitational, but after advancing through 18-hole Local Qualifying, he won the Indianapolis Open. That proved to be good prep for going to Wine Valley Golf Club in Walla Walla, Washington, where he shot a pair of 68s in 36-hole qualifying. That was good enough to be medalist at the qualifying site and earn one of two available spots in the U.S. Open. 'I feel like I'm going to wake up from a dream here in a little while and it's not going to be real but it is real,' he said on Golf Channel. Vogt was understandably emotional during his interview and he struggled to hold back tears when he was asked about his father, who died two months ago. Vogt said he wore a ribbon on his hat in his father's honor and recalled how his father used to track his rounds online and text him after every birdie and bogey. 'I knew he was tracking me today,' Vogt said on Monday. 'I wish he was here to share it with me but I know he was watching.' Heartwarming stuff. Expect to hear plenty more about Vogt's unique tale en route to earning one of 156 spots in the U.S. Open field from more than 10,000 golfers who signed up and attempted to play their way to Oakmont. The course has undergone a renovation since Vogt was last there for the 2021 U.S. Amateur, but it's doubtful anyone in the field will know it better than the Indianapolis dentist who is coming home to his old stomping grounds. 'I will soak up every single second of that week,' said Vogt of the Open, which gets underway on June 12. 'It's just a dream come true.'
Malaysia Sun
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Malaysia Sun
Amateur An cements legacy with Sichuan win
CHENGDU, May 24 (Xinhua) -- Chinese amateur An Zining captured her first title against a pro field on Friday as the Tianjin teenager closed with a scorching seven-under 65 to win the inaugural China Golf Women's Legacy event by two strokes in the Sichuan capital. After starting the day two shots off the lead at the 500,000 yuan CLPG Tour stop, the 16-year-old An, a three-time winner on the China amateur circuit last year, finished with a 54-hole score of 15-under 201 at Poly Chengdu Golf Club. Her round included four birdies on the front nine, followed by five straight birdies to start the back nine. She then carded bogeys at the 15th and the last in only her third appearance in a CLPG Tour event. "My caddie only told me I had a three-shot lead when approaching the final green. I was quite surprised at that moment," said An, 457th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. "I started strong today, felt solid for most of the round. A few slips toward the end but overall it's a performance I can accept." In the tournament that featured 78 professionals and 26 amateurs playing in a dual individual-and-team format, Lin Xin'en (67) claimed the 75,000 winner's purse for finishing equal runner-up with amateurs Sophie Han Zilin (68), Zhou Shiyuan (68) and Wang Xinyu (67). Overnight leader Pan Yanhong was equal ninth at four shots back after faltering down the stretch to a one-under 71. Lin, a second-year pro from Guangzhou, was understandably thrilled to collect the winner's purse. Her round included six birdies and a bogey. "During the last two events, I was still fighting to make the cut and now I've earned my second runner-up. This check also happens to be the biggest payday of my career so far," said the Shenzhen University student. "The turning point came after realizing I'd been playing too cautiously in the previous two tournaments. This time I put in extra work and honestly assessed where I needed to improve. This is absolutely the ideal outcome." Zhou, one of the opening round co-leaders, lamented a missed opportunity to pick up her third CLPG Tour title. Starting the day one shot off the lead, the Chongqing teenager bogeyed the opening hole before settling to make four birdies, three of which came on the back nine. "I was too steady and not aggressive enough. Just couldn't make enough birdies. I'm disappointed with my game, especially that second round which really held me back." Hong Kong native Han was another disappointed with her final-round performance. The 17-year-old's card included six birdies and two bogeys. "On the final hole, for the third straight day, I had 200 yards in and again flew over the green. Really frustrating not to convert those birdie chances," she said. Thai veteran Onkanok Soisuwan (68) carded a hole-in-one at the 150-yard 16th hole when her perfect shot with an eight-iron hit the fringe of the green and rolled into the cup. For her fifth lifetime ace, the Bangkok native received a GolfJoy golf simulator valued at 299,000 yuan. Winnie Ng (67) also got a hole-in-one when the Malaysian aced the 185-yard third hole, her first in a competition. In the team event, where the pros partnered with junior amateurs, Team Zhou Shiyuan topped the leaderboard on day three with a two-stroke win on a score of 22-under 194. Amateur Liu Yujie carded a personal best nine-under 63 to lead the foursome featuring fellow amateur Zhou (68) and Thai veterans Prima Thammaraks (68) and Naphatsawan Pabsimma (71). "This team victory is definitely not my achievement alone. I'm incredibly proud and happy. All four of us played exceptionally well. There's no way we could've reached 22-under otherwise," said Liu, 129th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. "After finishing one stroke short yesterday, I made slight adjustments to my strategy today. It paid off. I matched my personal best score, which also happens to be my lowest round ever on the China LPG Tour."
The Sun
21-05-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Hannah congratulates Mirabel on winning the 2025 ANNIKA Award
KUALA LUMPUR: Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh congratulated Malaysia's top junior golfer Mirabel Ting who was awarded the 2025 ANNIKA Award, which honours the most outstanding female collegiate golfer in the United States. Hannah said the award as a special one as the winner is voted by players, coaches and the golf media, a testament to the recognition of Mirabel's talent from the golfing fraternity. 'Mirabel, who hails from Miri, is also ranked second on the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), a firm indication that she is destined for big things in her career. Well done Mirabel, keep doing Malaysia proud!,' she said on her official Facebook post today. Earlier, Mirabel became the first Asian to receive the prestigious Annika Award, a day after finishing runner-up at the NCAA Division I Women's Golf Championship in California. Named after 72-time LPGA Tour winner Annika Sorenstam, the award was created in partnership with the Haskins Commission to acknowledge the top female collegiate golfer at the end of each season, akin to the Haskins Award presented by Stifel which recognizes the top male Division I collegiate golfer. The previous winners of the ANNIKA Award presented by Stifel are Ingrid Lindblad (Sweden – 2024), Rose Zhang (USA – 2022, 2023), Rachel Heck (USA – 2021), Natalie Srinivasan (USA – 2020), Maria Fassi (Mexico – 2018, 2019), Leona Maguire (Ireland -2015, 2017), Bronte Law (England – 2016) and Alison Lee (USA – 2014).
