The Loop

'The PGA Tour is for now an egalitarian affair'

March 21, 2015

Stories of interest you might have missed…

The PGA Tour has gone egalitarian, John Paul Newport writes in the Wall Street Journal: "Arnold Palmer, the host of this week's PGA Tour event at Bay Hill in Orlando, had a straightforward public image. Famous for his Popeye forearms, trouser-hitching swagger and go-for-broke playing style, he wowed his army of fans with dominating golf and a virile personality The PGA Tour this season, by contrast, is for now an egalitarian affair."

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J.B. Holmes and Dustin Johnson (Getty Images)

"Irish golfing veteran Des Smyth has described Rory McIlroy as the greatest player he has ever seen," Steven Beacom of the Belfast Telegraph writes. "It's quite a statement from the popular Drogheda man, especially when you consider McIlroy is still only 25, and even more so given that Smyth, since turning professional in 1974, has watched, marvelled at and played with the sport's iconic figures ranging from Jack Nicklaus to Tom Watson and Seve Ballesteros to Tiger Woods."


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The Kohler Co.'s plans to build a fifth golf course in Wisconsin have been altered in an effort "to appease critics of the project," Gary D'Amato writes in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "Kohler Co. announced that it has made modifications to the proposed 18-hole course so that the routing reduces impact to wetlands, decreases the amount of property needed for an easement on state land and does not impact state property west of the Black River."


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Kevin Na is the top-ranked Korean player, but he still has only one PGA Tour victory. "I think I've had a pretty successful career and I'm grateful for it, but honestly having just one win bothers me," he tells Brian Han of The Korea Times. "The way I look at it is I'm only 31-years-old and most players start peaking in their 30s. I feel like this is my time and I'm working hard to improve so that I can win a lot more tournaments."