One for one: veteran caddie David Jones got the call to carry the bag for world number one Lydia Ko over the winter, and the new-look Derry-Kiwi combination hit the ground running with Ko’s win in the LET’s Saudi International, her first appearance of the year.
Ko, who claimed the LPGA Tour Championship in her dominant performance on tour last season, surprisingly ditched former bagman Derek Kistler ahead of the new season and reached out to former Irish international and one-time professional Jones, who has previously caddied for Major champions In Gee Chun and Sung Hyun Park.
“He is a new face, but like someone similar that I know that we have good chemistry,” said Ko of Jones, who previously caddied (on a casual basis) for Ko when she won the Lotte Championship in 2021.
“Dave, because he used to play, I feel like he has the mindset of a player and he’s very positive. Even when I don’t hit a good shot, he’s out there thinking, ‘what can we do to recover from here?’”
Ko added: “I try and be more positive when I’m on the golf course, and he definitely helps me with that. I think his knowledge with that playing background helps.”
The New Zealander – who got married over the winter break – moves on from a rare LET outing to the LPGA Tour for this week’s Honda Thailand championship in Chonburi where Leona Maguire is also competing.
Phenomenal Langer ties Irwin’s record with 45th win
Surely it was just a matter of time, and Bernhard Langer’s win in the Chubb Classic – a fifth title in the tournament for the German – brought with it a touch of history in giving him a 45th career win on the Champions Tour which tied the long-time mark of American Hale Irwin.
Langer had two large presences in his rear-view mirror en route to closing the deal, with Pádraig Harrington (who covered the front nine in 29 shots only to be derailed on the homeward journey by a double bogey on the 14th) and Steve Stricker making charges. Both would finish three shots adrift, however.
“I feel relieved and grateful and thankful for everybody that’s been on my team and helping me throughout these years. For a German kid from a village of 800 people starting from a caddie to do what I’ve done, it takes a lot of people to do that, not just one,” said the 65-year-old, who had the distinction of equalling and beating his age in the course of the tournament.
Word of Mouth
“I’m not going to play any more than probably the Majors and maybe a couple more. That’s it, that’s all my body will allow me to do. My back the way it is, all the surgeries I had on my back, my leg the way it is, I just can’t. That’s just going to be my future. So my intent last year was to play in all four Majors, I got three of the four. Hopefully this year I can get all four and maybe sprinkle in a few [tournaments] here and there. But that’s it for the rest of my career. I know that and I understand that. That’s just my reality” – Tiger Woods on playing a very limited schedule of events.
By the Numbers: $9,402,750
Jon Rahm’s pay cheque of $3.6m for lifting the Genesis Invitational – his third win of the year on the PGA Tour – has brought his prize money so far this year to $9.402,750 in just five tournament appearances.
On this day: February 21st, 2010
Ian Poulter’s reputation as a terrier-like combatant in match play wasn’t just confined to the Ryder Cup, as demonstrated by his first of two Accenture WGC Matchplay wins in Tucson.
In the 2010 edition of the championship – which was the last to feature a 36-holes final – the Englishman ultimately defeated his compatriot Paul Casey by 4 and 2 in the final, having navigated a route through the qualifying brackets with wins over Justin Leonard, Adam Scott, Jeev Milkha Singh and Thongchai Jaidee before inflicting a 7 and 6 hammering on Sergio Garcia in the semi-finals.
The win over Casey gave Poulter his first career success on the PGA Tour.
Of his mindset in the final, Poulter said: “You’ve only got to beat one player. That player happened to be a fellow Ryder Cup partner and fellow Englishman and a good friend. So, in some ways, that’s sort of very difficult because you can find yourself getting sidetracked and laughing and joking, which we were, but I think both of us were concentrating enough to put that aside and realise that there’s a big tournament up for stake this week and to go out there and work hard to try to win.”
Twitter Twaddle
I remember when we were all saying when DJ (for example) was going on a tear a few years ago. It’s hard to see at the time how a player who’s hot doesn’t set all kinds of records. But I think Jon Rahm will and I have done for a long time now. The most complete player – Eddie Pepperell
Sometimes you win, and unfortunately sometimes you lose. But I will never accept giving up. And today I’ll say that I’m proud of the fight. We will be back, and we will be ready. Thank u to the city of LA, and everyone else, for the support. I love u guys. LA for life – Max Homa
We started the week playing LACC. Ended it playing Riviera @TommyFleetwood1 – Shane Lowry, who availed of the opportunity to play Los Angeles Country Club (site of the US Open in June) with Tommy Fleetwood when in town for the Genesis. Lowry’s tied-14th place finish arrested a poor run of form following missed cuts in Dubai and Phoenix.
Know the Rules
Q: In stroke play, a player has interference to their stance from an immovable obstruction. They determine their nearest point of complete relief using a 5-iron (as that is the club he would have used had the immovable obstruction not been there) and drop the ball within one club-length of that point, no nearer the hole. The ball settles down in the rough, so the player changes club and plays the ball out on to the fairway with a sand wedge. What is the ruling?
A: There is no penalty. Once the ball is dropped, it is back in play. The player must then decide what type of stroke they will make. This stroke, which includes the choice of club, may be different from the one that would have been made from the ball’s original spot had the condition not been there.
In the Bag: Bernhard Langer (Chubb Classic)
Driver: Ping G400 (9 degrees)
3-wood: TaylorMade M2
Hybrids: Tour Edge (2), Adams (3)
Irons: Tour Edge Exotics cavity back (4-7), Artisan (8-9), Tour Edge Exotics prototype (PW)
Lob Wedges: Cleveland (55 degrees), Titleist Vokey (60 degrees)
Putter: Odyssey Two-Ball
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x
