Rory’s schedule shift could cost him a chance to be Ryder Cup captain

Today, the PGA TOUR announced that the Western Golf Association (WGA) Caddie Academy is the recipient of a $125,000 award. The nonprofit organization, headquartered in Chicago, was selected by the NV5 Invitational presented by Old National Bank – a Korn Ferry Tour event contested at The Glen Club in Glenview, Illinois – as the charitable beneficiary of the inaugural PGA TOUR Charity Challenge. Founded in 2012, the WGA Caddie Academy is a unique summer work program that provides caddie opportunities to promising high school students from around the country who show academic excellence and leadership potential. This past summer, more than 140 participants attended one of five Caddie Academy chapters nationwide to caddie daily for seven weeks while living together. After successfully completing three summers, these students become eligible to apply for the Evans Scholarship – a full tuition and housing scholarship to college. “For young people who don’t have access to caddie programs where they live, the WGA Caddie Academy offers a supportive community and an opportunity to experience the benefits that caddying provides,” said John Kaczkowski, President and CEO of the WGA and Evans Scholars Foundation. “As we expand this life-changing initiative, these funds will help us reach more students nationwide and instill in them the core values that will guide them on the golf course and throughout their lives.” The Caddie Academy began in the Chicago area with an initial group of 12 participants. Today, it has grown to five chapters nationwide, with a sixth location to open in Ohio next summer. Current chapters include: • Caddie Academy for Young Women (Lake Forest, Illinois) • Caddie Academy for Young Men (Evanston, Illinois) • Eastern Caddie Academy (State College, Pennsylvania) • Minnesota Caddie Academy (Minneapolis, Minnesota) • Seattle Caddie Academy (Seattle, Washington) Participants are chosen during their freshman year of high school based on showing outstanding academics, leadership and character. The average household income of participants in the Caddie Academy is $30,000, and more than 90% of the program’s participants are students of color. The Caddie Academy’s structured summer program is centered on four major components: caddying, academic development, community involvement and personal growth. Students get the opportunity to earn money, meet role models, learn invaluable life lessons and eventually earn a college scholarship. To date, 118 Caddie Academy graduates have been awarded the Evans Scholarship. During the 2021-22 PGA TOUR season, as part of the PGA TOUR Charity Challenge, host organizations across the PGA TOUR, Korn Ferry Tour and PGA TOUR Champions had the opportunity to select a local charitable beneficiary with specific programs and services that address diversity, equity and inclusion in underserved or underrepresented communities. Every week, the amount of FedExCup points each tournament’s eight-player fantasy-style roster earned was totaled, and the team with the highest total each week won a $5,000 contribution to its charitable beneficiary. Each team’s FedExCup points were counted throughout the 2021-22 PGA TOUR season, and the team with the highest accumulation after the BMW Championship was crowned the season-long winner, earning the top prize of $100,000 for its charitable partner. The NV5 Invitational earned $25,000 throughout the season and the Charity Challenge grand prize of $100,000. Get to know two of this year’s participants in the WGA Caddie Academy: Melanie Tapia was born and raised in Chicago – and always knew the expectations that came with being a first-generation child. Her parents came from Ecuador, seeking more opportunity while continuously emphasizing education and hard work. Melanie received a high school scholarship to attend a boarding school, “leaving behind home, family and friends, just like my parents had, to receive the education they dreamed of for me,” she said. Through school, Melanie was connected to the Caddie Academy, where she spent her next few summers learning the game of golf. By excelling in school and on the course as a caddie, Melanie earned a full tuition and housing Evans Scholarship to Northwestern University, where she is now a freshman. “Going to college has provided me with new learning experiences – and the life-changing opportunity to fulfill my dreams of a better future for myself and my family,” she said. As a young girl, Star Brooks always wondered what college was like – but didn’t know if it was something she’d be able to experience herself. “Life in my family has not been easy, but working hard has always been my priority,” she said. Spending her summers with the Caddie Academy pushed her entirely out of her comfort zone, but her desire to be a “role model of integrity” led her to stick out the challenges – and find a new family of support along the way. Now a senior at the University of Illinois – and the first in her family to go to college – Star is pursuing two college degrees and hopes to go into sports marketing. “I can clearly see how my caddie experiences have contributed to my character and helped me become the person I am today,” she said. “I have learned so many leadership skills, all of which will help me make my future dreams become a reality.”

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The picks are in, and Tiger Woods has picked … well, himself, along with Tony Finau, Patrick Reed and Gary Woodland to round out the U.S. Team that Woods will captain next month at the Presidents Cup in Australia. It’s going to be highly entertaining at Royal Melbourne, especially if Tiger keeps talking about himself in the third person as he did Thursday night when Tiger the captain was citing the merits of Tiger the player. RELATED: Tiger makes his captain’s picks | International Team Captain Els announces picks | Youth movement for Internationals “He’s made, what, nine Cups and he’s played in Australia twice in the Presidents Cup, so this will be his third appearance as a player,â€� Woods said before catching himself and chuckling slightly. “I find it interesting talking in the third person.â€� Fifteen more things of interest: • I asked Tiger how the conversation went with assistant captains Fred Couples, Steve Stricker and Zach Johnson concerning himself as a potential captain’s pick. He relayed a story prior to winning The ZOZO Championship in Japan three weeks ago, his only start since undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left knee two months earlier. “They said, ‘You’re on the team, you’re playing,’â€� Woods replied. “I said, ‘Hold on, slow your roll. I’m coming off of knee surgery. I don’t know how it’s going to be. Let me have Japan to test it and feel it and figure it out.â€� “Freddie was pretty ardent. ‘You’re on the team. Quit being stupid.’ I said, ‘No, hold on. I haven’t swung a club yet. Let me rehab this knee and get it going. Give me Japan and I’ll get back to you.’ “Well, I got back to him after Japan.â€� • Tiger’s success in Japan – winning his 82nd PGA TOUR event to tie Sam Snead in the record book – certainly was a big factor. But perhaps just as big was that his body held up after a long journey to Japan. It’s roughly 7,500 miles from Florida to Tokyo. Tiger realized he could make the trip and find a winning form, and now he hopes to do the same next month on another long trip. The distance from the Bahamas – where he’ll play the Hero World Challenge – to Melbourne is roughly 9,800 miles. “The long haul to Australia is very much like the one to Japan,â€� Woods said, “and seeing how my body felt and how I reacted in Japan and how I was able to play, it certainly gives me a lot of confidence that it will hold up over the long haul down to Australia. • Last year, Woods followed his memorable win at the TOUR Championship by immediately hopping on a plane to Paris to play for the U.S. at the Ryder Cup. He was visibly tired at Le Golf National, and his performance reflected that, as he lost all four of the matches he played, including a 2 and 1 loss to Jon Rahm in Singles. Now Woods once again will play the week before a team event. But he sees few similarities, and thus, fewer concerns. “I think the emotional stress and the emotional release of finally winning an event coming back from my back surgery, that took a toll on me a bit,â€� Woods said about last year. “So this is a different — a totally different animal. I’m playing the Hero World Challenge, not a TOUR event, even though we have World Ranking points. It’s a very easy week. I do have some duties there that the night, but overall, it’s a very easy week. And then our flight down to Oz will be easy — just long.â€� • Tiger said the key to balancing his captain responsibilities with his playing duties will be communication – with his assistants, with his players, asking them questions, putting their minds at ease, making sure everybody knows the schedules for practice, rest, workout, etc. “Having that direct communication with these guys,â€� Woods said. “The texts or phone calls have been free flowing, any time, doesn’t matter, just shoot me a text. I want that open line of communication. “There will be no stone unturned, and if you have an issue or a problem, let’s talk about it. Let’s figure it out.â€� • Tiger could limit himself to the minimum of two matches required for each player. One would be with a partner, and the other would be in Sunday Singles. That could help reduce the strain on his body. Right now, he’s not putting an exact number on it. “If I happen to play more, I have to play more,â€� he said. • Speaking of partners, Tiger did say he’s given specific thought to his own partner, having discussed that possibility with his assistants and some of his players. He wouldn’t reveal a specific name, of course. “It’s one of the other 11 players,â€� he said coyly. Of those 11 other players, he’s partnered with four of them in either a Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup – Patrick Reed, Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Kuchar and Dustin Johnson. • Here’s an incentive that might push Tiger to play more than two matches: He’ll arrive at Royal Melbourne with 24 matches played in his Presidents Cup career. The record is 26 held by longtime rival/U.S. teammate Phil Mickelson. Tiger is guaranteed to tie Mickelson, but maybe he finds a way to add a third match to sit alone atop the record books. • Speaking of Mickelson, his streak of making every U.S. Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup team ended with Thursday’s announcement. Mickelson had made 24 consecutive teams, including every Presidents Cup. He also saw his streak of 25-plus seasons inside the world top 50 also end recently. • One potential U.S. pairing might be Woodland, one of the captain’s picks, with automatic qualifier Matt Kuchar. They were partners in 2011 when the won the World Cup for the U.S. That’s the only team event the reigning U.S. Open champ has appeared in. For now, Woodland’s just happy to be on the team. “I’ll play with anybody,â€� he said. • Whether Mickelson was one of the five players Tiger called to deliver the bad news of not being a captain’s pick is unclear. The only player Woods identified that he called was Rickie Fowler, who was married this fall and has yet to play since the FedExCup Playoffs. Fowler has made six U.S. national team appearances, including the last two Presidents Cups. “That was a tough phone call,â€� Woods said. “Rickie’s a good friend of mine and I’ve known him for a long time. Kept it short and quick. No reason to make it a lengthy conversation. He’s obviously going to be very disappointed by it. I’ve been on that side. I’ve been there when the captain didn’t choose me, and I get it. It’s not easy. “But Rickie is a hell of a player and he’s going to start winning tournaments here. He’s fresh off of his new wedding, his bride and honeymoon, and he’ll be focused and he’ll start winning tournaments.â€� • Fowler, though, might be on the short list of players Tiger considers should he need a replacement for Brooks Koepka, who aggravated an injury to his left knee during the Asian Swing. Woods said he has until Wednesday morning of Presidents Cup week to make a final determination on whether Koepka is ready to play. “Right now we’re just waiting on Brooks’ rehab and playing back to golf and when he’ll be ready,â€� Woods said. “That’s open-ended and we’ll cross that bridge when we cross it.â€� • Speaking of roster adjustments … Because he’s now a playing captain, Woods will need his assistants to take up some of the slack while he’s on the course. Right now, Woods has three assistants, but he has room to add another if he wants. “It’s nice having that option,â€� Woods said. “… although we can roll with just the four of us that we have right now.â€� Woods’ counterpart, International Team Captain Ernie Els, has four assistants – Geoff Ogilvy, Trevor Immelman, K.J. Choi and Mike Weir. • Tiger becomes just the second player in Presidents Cup history to become a playing captain. Another American, Hale Irwin, was the first at the inaugural Presidents Cup in 1994. Unlike Woods, Irwin qualified without needing a captain’s pick, as he ranked seventh in points to earn an automatic spot. Irwin played three matches that week at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Virginia. He and partner Loren Roberts beat David Frost and Fulton Allem in Friday Foursomes, 3 and 1. In Saturday Foursomes, Irwin and Jay Haas lost to Frost and Peter Senior, 6 and 6. Then in Sunday Singles in the opening match, Irwin beat Australian Robert Allenby, 1 up. • Eleven of the 12 players on the U.S. Team are ranked higher in the Official World Golf Ranking than the highest-ranking International player. The only American ranked below an International is Matt Kuchar at No. 22. Adam Scott (17) and Hideki Matsuyama (20) are currently above him. Understatement of the day from Woods: “We’re going to have a pretty solid team.â€� • Ages of the U.S. players in 1998, the only time the Americans lost the Presidents Cup: Justin Thomas, 5 years old; Patrick Cantlay, Bryson DeChambeau, Xander Schauffele, 6 years old; Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed, 8 years old; Tony Finau, 9 years old; Webb Simpson, 13 years old; Dustin Johnson and Gary Woodland, 14 years old; Matt Kuchar, 20 years old; Tiger Woods, 22 years old.

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PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Thursday morning was supposed to bring an early wake-up call for John Rollins here at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Just not at 5:30. It was also supposed to bring an 18-hole walk inside the ropes, but at Spyglass Hill Golf Club, not Pebble Beach Golf Links. Oh, and he was supposed to be a caddie, not a competitor. The fact that it was all turned upside-down and Rollins was hitting golf balls for the first time in more than a week and competing in a PGA TOUR tournament for the first time since last August was as improbable an occurrence as he has ever been part of. “Crazy. What a roller-coaster day,� said Rollins, who at 43 has played in just 24 PGA TOUR tournaments since losing his full exempt status following the 2014 season. But if you think that accepting the spot in the field at 5:30 a.m. – about three hours before his tee time, by the way – was an easy one, think again. Fact is, “I had to really think about it. I asked myself, ‘What’s the right thing to do?’ Hunter (Mahan) is my friend and I was here to caddie for him, so I called him. Hunter (whose tee time was 10:01)  and his wife, Kandi were more than gracious. Hunter said, ‘There’s a reason you’re here, so go and enjoy.’ � Rollins laughed, because “I had done absolutely no prep work� back home in the Dallas area, but he took Mahan’s advice. He did enjoy himself and was overall pleased with his round of 1-over 73 at Pebble Beach – two bogeys and one lone birdie, at the par-4 11th. “I didn’t play terribly. Actually, I was OK, everything considered.� He played in just nine PGA TOUR tournaments last year and has made just eight cuts in limited appearances the last three seasons. So, there’s no wonder Rollins’ name was well down the list of alternates when he came here to caddie for Mahan. “I looked, just for the heck of it at the beginning of the week,� said Rollins, “but I was outside the top 20.� What he didn’t anticipate was the sequence of events. Most of those names ahead of him, for instance, were already committed to the Web.com Tour tournament in Panama or the PGA TOUR Champions Oasis Championship in Boca Raton, Fla., or confirmed they couldn’t fly to Pebble Beach in time. When Tommy Gainey had connecting flight problems and had to withdraw, Rollins’ name was called. “I looked at my phone and saw PGA TOUR headquarters and I thought, ‘What would the PGA TOUR be calling me at 5:30 for?� To find a caddie, Rollins got in touch with Daniel Chopra who provided the phone number of Kevin Hanssen, lead instructor at the Pebble Beach Golf Academy. Hanssen worked with Rollins last fall here at Pebble Beach, so it provided to be a seamless fit. As for being thrust inside the ropes with little preparation, Rollins thought it proved one thing. “My heart is still in the game. I know that and I know the success I’ve had out here.�

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