As one of PGA’s only black players, co-leader Harold Varner III is playing for more than the Charles Schwab title

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Justin Thomas acknowledged “it was a little shocking� to see the USGA’s tweet that he’s cancelled every meeting regarding discussions about golf’s new rules, but he said he hopes to meet soon and still maintains positive relationships with several USGA officials. Thomas and the USGA went back-and-forth during a Twitter exchange Saturday that Thomas described as “unfortunate.� “It really hurt me,� Thomas said Sunday after shooting a final-round 71 at The Honda Classic to finish at even par in his title defense. “It was upsetting to me because … the information they put out there was inaccurate in terms of me cancelling meetings, and that doesn’t make me look good, and that’s just when I got a little upset. … “I’ve talked to them, and I’ve talked to them about the rules this year. We’ve all tried to communicate and tried to get better relationships with them. It is what it is, and all we’re looking is to better the sport and better the game.� Thomas was disappointed to see the two-stroke penalty assessed to Adam Schenk prior to Saturday’s third round due to the revised rule regarding caddie alignment. In a follow-up tweet, Thomas wrote, “I more so say things in hopes that the USGA starts communicating with the current players to better the game and the sport. The rules are rules, no getting past that. Just hoping going forward, communication is had and ALL GOLFERS benefit from any changes.� The USGA responded with a tweet that started, “Justin, we need to talk. You’ve cancelled every meeting we’ve planned with you, but we are reaching out again.� A follow-up tweet from the USGA noted that Thomas had connected offline with the organization, but Thomas said on Sunday that no meeting has yet been scheduled. “We’ve tried to get on a couple calls, and I was in the middle of this three-week stretch, so I was like, look, I’m sorry, this time isn’t very good,� Thomas explained. “But we’re definitely going to talk at some point, but we’ve had conversations this year multiple times with a couple different people. “It’s not like it hasn’t happened. It’s just, it hasn’t the last three weeks because I’ve been at a tournament, and that’s my main focus.� Regarding the specific penalty assessed to Schenk, Thomas said, “I just think it needs to be changed … Obviously he could back off, but he couldn’t back off. He was up against the lip [of a greenside bunker] and he couldn’t really go left, either. “All of us at some point in our career have been in that position where the caddie is behind you and you’re … talking through it and the caddie is kind of standing there and he’s like, ‘Yeah, I think you go over there,’ and it’s like, ‘OK.’ It’s very, very obvious when a caddie is lining a player up. Anything that can be changed rule-wise that can better the game, all of us are all for it.�

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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The Action Network and the PGA TOUR today announced the launch of GolfBet, a first-of-its-kind, golf-focused betting content platform. GolfBet will be powered by The Action Network and hosted at www.actionnetwork.com/golf, and also will be available within The Action Network app. Through the strategic partnership, the PGA TOUR will provide GolfBet content distribution via TOUR digital platforms, footage rights to support GolfBet video content, and official TOUR data to ensure that GolfBet and The Action Network offer golf fans and golf bettors the most accurate data and compelling content available. “We believe that golf fans and sports bettors alike are in search of a deeper level of information that has not existed until the launch of GolfBet,� said Norb Gambuzza, PGA TOUR’s SVP Media & Gaming. “The Action Network is the perfect partner to create this type of content platform to educate and entertain fans about responsible betting on golf while bolstering the overall gaming ecosystem. We are bullish that GolfBet content and the growth of sports betting will drive fan engagement and expand our overall audience.� “The PGA TOUR is one of the most forward-thinking leagues and rightsholders around the massive growing legal sports betting business,� said Patrick Keane, CEO of The Action Network. “Our consumers are passionate golf fans, and we are excited about the opportunity to enhance our coverage via the launch of the GolfBet platform.� The PGA TOUR has been very active recently in the betting space, including a 2018 announcement of an integrity program, partnering with Genius Sports to protect its competitions from potential outside influences related to gambling. Later that year, the TOUR announced a global partnership with IMG ARENA to license its official, live scoring data to betting operators all over the world, which will revolutionize in-play betting on golf and will be available to the market later this year. In August, the TOUR partnered with DraftKings to relaunch “PGA TOUR DraftKings Fantasy Golf,� with exclusive intellectual property to differentiate DraftKings in the daily fantasy space. Now, with the launch of GolfBet, the PGA TOUR is developing a robust betting content ecosystem that supports both sports betting and daily fantasy. “In a typical PGA TOUR season, there are approximately 1.2 million golf shots taken across our schedule,� Gambuzza said. “This represents a massive opportunity for in-play betting, new types of markets for operators who have access to official PGA TOUR data, and tremendous opportunities for content generation. We think that The Action Network has the unique expertise to develop a diverse array of tools, analysis, and other content which will help fans and bettors understand, access, and enjoy these new betting opportunities as the market evolves.�  In 2019, The Action Network produced more than 800 individual pieces of golf-related content and offered robust bet tracking and analysis tools focused on golf. “Action Network users tracked over 50 million picks on our platform last year, and golf was our fastest-growing segment at nearly 300 percent year over year,� Keane said.   In addition to The Action Network producing the majority of the weekly content for GolfBet with well-known experts like Jason Sobel, Josh Perry and Peter Jennings, GolfBet will also strike partnerships with other media companies to power the platform. “We envision GolfBet as a one-stop platform where fans can get all of the most relevant and up-to-date betting information,� Keane added. Max Wright, Senior Vice President of IMG ARENA, said, “Golf was one of the few major sports that had not yet offered consistent in-play betting markets. We see a massive opportunity for growth through ‘in-play’ betting once our official PGA TOUR betting data hits the market later this year. This partnership between PGA TOUR and The Action Network is hugely complementary. We believe that an information hub like GolfBet which delivers high quality content to help to inform and educate users about golf and golf betting will be a net positive for the growing golf betting market.� GolfBet content is planned to be largely subscription free for the foreseeable future. The PGA TOUR and Action Network plan to work with TOUR’s domestic media partners, as well as Discovery on ex-U.S. collaboration opportunities, as GolfBet continues to grow on a global basis.

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This is about the time that Dustin Johnson hit his stride last summer. If he still were among us, Yogi Berra might tell Johnson that he should hope this is déjà vu, all over again. Last summer, Johnson withdrew from the 3M Open after one round, citing a bad back. His game was nowhere. He’d won at Travelers, but he showed little consistency. Johnson was coming off an 80-80 showing at The Memorial and opened at TPC Twin Cities with a 78 before withdrawing and heading home to Florida. What happened from there, though, was something magical. Johnson would tie for 12th at the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational, then set off on an incredible tear that would lead him to his first FedExCup title as well as a green jacket at The Masters. For seven starts, he never left the heat of contending. There were three victories in that run (NORTHERN TRUST, TOUR Championship, Masters), and three runners-up showings (PGA Championship, BMW Invitational, Vivant Houston Open). Johnson will be first to admit he hasn’t played up to his normal standard in 2020-21. Does he see any similarities in the rhythm of the last two seasons? “I’ve been driving it pretty well,” said Johnson, who surrendered his No. 1 ranking to Jon Rahm at The Open Championship. “Not as well as I was obviously when I was playing really good last season for that really long stretch, but starting to drive it better, seeing consistency with the shots and misses. You know, I feel like the iron and wedge play is what I just haven’t been as sharp with. That’s starting to come around. “Last week (T8 at The Open), I felt like I hit a lot of really good shots, controlled the ball really well. So yeah, I’m starting to see a lot of similarities, and obviously that’s the form I’m trying to get back to, where I felt like I had a chance to win every single week I teed it up. I feel like that’s starting to get back into that form.” Johnson had very little going in his game Thursday in the opening round of the 3M Open. He was 1 over par through 16 holes before at least closing well, canning birdies from 9 feet at the par-3 eighth (his 17th hole) and 17 feet at the difficult par-4 ninth. The late run moved him to 1-under 70, and he knows he’ll need to do something big on Friday to get back into the tournament. “I’m hitting it very well, just need to tighten up the putter a little bit,” Johnson said. Johnson has an old friend, longtime TaylorMade tour rep Keith Sbarbaro, on his bag this week. Johnson’s regular caddie, his younger brother, Austin, tested positive for COVID-19 and drove home at the start of the week. A.J. is expected to be back on the bag next week when his older brother plays in Memphis.

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