Rahm: Tiger ignoring my texts about LIV move

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Despite a jam-packed leaderboard at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the back nine on Sunday at Pebble Beach Golf Links mostly was about grazed edges, lipped-out putts and missed opportunities. Daniel Berger held his head near the lead throughout most of the day, performing steadily, and remained optimistic that if he stayed patient long enough, the birdies would arrive. RELATED: Final leaderboard | What's in Berger's bag? Stepping to the 18th tee on one of the most photographed holes on the planet, Berger, 27, needed birdie to win, then did one better. Berger has that kind of flair, that boldness, the confidence that makes him relish the big stage, not shy from it. A beautiful drive (Berger had blocked one out-of-bounds at 18 a day earlier) was followed by what he called "the 3-wood of my life" from 253 yards to 30 feet. The putt for eagle-3 was trickier than it looked, downhill and fast, but was struck with perfect weight, and tumbled in for Berger's fourth eagle of the tournament, his second of the round. He stared at the sky. Victory was his. He punched the air with his right fist, his late heroics pushing him to a final-round, 7-under 65 and an 18-under 270 total. All that drama at the end? "It's just as good as it gets for me," Berger said after his fourth PGA TOUR triumph. Stanford grad Maverick McNealy, 25, a son of California seeking his first victory not far from where he was raised, played nicely on Sunday, making five birdies on his second nine in shooting 66, setting the bar high for Berger to clear. McNealy's solo second finish marked his top showing on TOUR, and he said he learned a lot about the way he handled himself down the stretch. Jordan Spieth, who started the round with a two-shot lead over five players, seeking to break a three-plus year winless stretch, struggled with the driver but birdied his final two holes to shoot 70 and share third with Patrick Cantlay (68). Standing out there on that 18th fairway, knowing McNealy had posted 16 under, Berger decided he was all-in. It's his style, something developed from his younger upbringing as a golf teen in South Florida, trying to keep up with the likes of PGA TOUR players such as Steve Marino and Will MacKenzie. "I've been in this situation before, coming down the last hole, having to hit a good shot," Berger said. "Sometimes it goes your way, sometimes it doesn’t, but you really have to be bold, and I feel like did I that today. "I think the biggest thing is playing fearlessly. You can step up there and be concerned with all the different outcomes and all the different places that ball can go, but in the end it’s just golf, it’s just a golf shot and if you can step up there and kind of free your mind and be fearless, then you have such a better opportunity to hit a good shot." The shot actually called for a draw, but with the wind off the right and Stillwater Cove and rocks awaiting everything hit left, Berger was able to rip his comfortable cut and let the breeze bring the ball back. He said the yardage called for a full 3-wood, and that's what Berger gave it, executing precisely. For the longest time, it appeared he and Nate Lashley, the 2019 Rocket Mortgage Classic champion, would be battling over the final holes, as they were the two who held or shared the lead most of the round. Lashley made a rough exit at the par-4 16th though, missing the green from 152 yards, pitching on, and four-putting from 13 feet. He finished with 69 despite the triple-bogey, and tied for fifth. Just as Berger had to be patient all of Sunday - he did start fast, with an eagle at the par-5 second - golf has been patiently waiting for Berger. People sometimes forget the the is part of that loaded 2011 high school class that includes Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas and Xander Schauffele. Berger is playing catch up, to an extent. He first had to get on the other side of a bad wrist injury, and the time away taught him that he missed the game more than he realized. It took him time to put Pebble on his schedule, but after three top-10 finishes in as many starts, you can count on him being as loyal as Bill Murray. One element to his growth, Berger said, has been his work with teacher Cameron McCormick, best known as Spieth's longtime instructor. Berger said McCormick has helped him develop a new outlook on the game, not doing much to his unique swing but helping him with new perspective on his short game. He encourages him to be an artist. When Berger told him he had one type of chip shot, with pretty much the same trajectory, same spin, McCormick asked, "How many of the best chippers in the world hit the same shot all the time?" Point taken. Berger, a winner twice in 10 months (2020 Charles Schwab Challenge) now can start looking at his career trajectory a little differently, too. He has a good jump on making the U.S. Ryder Cup team, and now sits 10th in FedExCup standings. He is not afraid to say he wants to be the very best player in the world one day. As in No. 1. Sunday's victory moved him to 13th. No. 1? Some players get ridiculed for such brash statements. But Berger isn't afraid to be bold. On Sunday at Pebble Beach, that approach paid off quite handsomely.

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KAWAGOE, Japan (AP) — Lexi Thompson had to bring in a team manager the last three holes when her caddie succumbed to the heat. Players walked down sunbaked fairways using umbrellas, some of them occasionally holding a bag of ice on their heads. Madelene Sagstrom had a hot start of her own Wednesday in women’s golf. With a tough pitch to 4 feet for par on the final hole, the Swede kept bogeys off her card on a day of searing heat for a 5-under 66, giving her a one-shot lead over top-ranked Nelly Korda of the United States and Aditi Ashok of India. Extreme heat is nothing new for most of the top players, with an LPGA Tour schedule that includes stops in Singapore and Thailand. This ranked right up there. The heat index topped 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8 Celsius), and at that point caddies were allowed to remove their bibs. Heat wasn’t the only problem. A tropical storm is approaching, and the current forecast is for a 70% chance of heavy rain on Saturday, a slighter higher chance on Sunday. The competition must finish by Sunday when the Olympics close. Heather Daly-Donofrio, an International Golf Federation technical delegate in charge of the women’s competition, said players have been informed about the possibility of a 54-hole event. That depends on the weather, and a decision likely won’t be made until after the second round at the earliest. The extreme heat ruled out any thought of playing 27 holes apiece over the next two days because of player health. “It’s hot, I’m not going to lie. It’s very hot,” Sagstrom said. “But it’s manageable. Most of us have been in Asia, played a lot of golf over here, so we know what to do. You drink a lot of water, you have cooling towels, umbrella, just maintaining the energy and not go crazy. I think at this point it’s harder for the caddies than it is for the players.” No need to explain that to Thompson. She was walking up the 15th fairway when she said her caddie, Jack Fulghum, turned to her and said, “Do I look white to you?” “I didn’t really notice. But he just didn’t look good,” Thompson said. “I just want him to be healthy, that’s all.” She had him sit down off the green and brought in Donna Wilkins, who works in player services for the LPGA Tour and is on the staff for Team USA at the Olympics. Thompson birdied three straight holes, closed with a bogey and shot 72. Sagstrom managed just fine, opening with a 4-foot birdie, using her power to set up a two-putt birdie on the par-5 fifth and navigating a Kasumigaseki course that was drier and faster than it was for the men last week. Of her five birdies putts, the only one outside 10 feet was a 15-footer on the par-3 10th. Korda, who reached No. 1 in the world by winning her first major six weeks ago at the Women’s PGA Championship, overcame a pair of early bogeys with enough birdies to not fall behind, and she eventually worked her way up the leaderboard with a 67. One of her bogeys was on the par-3 fourth hole, playing 205 yards. She hit 5-iron that never strayed too far from the flag, landed well short of the hole and didn’t stop rolling until she faced a birdie putt from 40 feet. She three-putted. Korda had talked to a few of the American men about Kasumigaseki and heard all about how soft it was. The opening two rounds of the men’s competition was delayed by storms. “The greens have definitely firmed up from the men,” he said. “I remember JT (Justin Thomas) was saying how soft it was. And you can kind of see it on the color of the greens. They’re getting a little browner, and there’s some spots that just like ricochet.” As for the heat? That was more wearisome than worrisome. Korda says she was drinking a bottle of water on each hole, almost to the point of being sick of drinking water. “You have to keep yourself hydrated and you kind of lose it a little out there,” Korda said. “Like when I was teeing up some balls, I definitely felt a little lightheaded. But kept myself in it.” Jin Young Ko, who was at No. 1 in the world for nearly two years until Korda replaced her, was among those at 68. Inbee Park, the Olympic gold medalist from Rio de Janeiro in 2016, couldn’t get a putt to fall on the back nine and had to settle for a 69. Danielle Kang and Sei Young Kim also were at 69. The surprise was Ashok — or maybe not considering this is the Olympics. She was 18 and fresh out of high school when she made her debut in Rio and opened with a pair of 68s before fading on the weekend. Now she’s off to another good start, even after having to hit so many hybrids into the par 4s. She was tied for the lead until missing the 18th green to the left and failing to save par. Ashok remembers the reaction from Rio when she started well, which speaks to how much influence an Olympic golfer can have on a country where cricket is king. “My social media following just blew up,” Ashok said. “I think a lot of people were trying to figure out what golf was so that they could understand how I was playing and if I had a chance to win a medal.” She has won three times on the Ladies European Tour since then and became the first player from India on the LPGA Tour. No matter. “People still remember me as the girl who did well at the Olympics,” she said. “Just knowing that kind of motivates me this week, too.”

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