Clarke wins by 2 for 2nd straight Champions title

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland – Rory McIlroy beamed as he grabbed the hand of Tiger Woods and excitedly pointed up to a window high in the Rusacks Hotel that flanks the 18th fairway at St. Andrews. The pair then waved animatedly in the direction of 22-month-old Poppy McIlroy, daughter of the 21-time PGA TOUR winner and four-time major champion as they finished up play in The Open Championship’s Celebration of Champions on Monday. Just moments earlier they had posed for photos together on the Swilken Bridge, with 18-time major champion Jack Nicklaus no less, but this moment was arguably just as incredible. It was raw. It was pure. And in an age where renumeration can dominate headlines, it showed what this is really all about. Being part of, or bearing witness to, history. This is indeed a very special week – one that will ultimately crown the champion golfer of the year – but one that is so much bigger than any leaderboard. For this is the 150th Open Championship. At the home of golf. It is a celebration of the game born in the Scottish sheep paddocks around this area that has now blossomed into a game that will see hundreds of thousands of fans swarm through the gates this week. It is a game that is still inherently open to all and enjoyed by multiple generations. And while Poppy likely won’t ever remember the special time where Woods, an 82-time TOUR winner with 15 majors – two of which came at St. Andrews – made her the center of attention despite being in the middle of a spiritual setting on golfs grandest stage… Rory will. “If you had of told 10-year-old me that I would play in something like this I’d have hardly believed it. Playing with my idol, ahead of such a special week, it’s just really really cool,” McIlroy said. Woods and McIlroy were part of the last four-person team that included two-time Open champion Lee Trevino and 2018 Women’s Open champion Georgia Hall to take on the first, second, 17th and 18th holes at the Old Course in a better ball format competition that, as the name suggests, celebrates the former champions of The Open. Fans were treated to a cavalcade of legends including gems of the past like Tom Watson and Gary Player to current stars Jordan Spieth and Collin Morikawa among many more. Nicklaus is also here to become just the third American, behind Benjamin Franklin and Bobby Jones, to be given honorary citizenship of the town having won The Open here in 1970 and 1978. This was pinch yourself stuff. Tell your grandkids stuff. One golf analyst was going to leave early to buy a desk fan for his non-air-conditioned accommodation before the light bulb went off… when will you see something like this ever again? The fans cheered for them all. But they saved the loudest roars for Woods who will tee it up Thursday in likely his last real chance of making it three wins at the iconic venue. Despite the numerous complications he faces with his body following a car accident last year, Woods showed glimpses of the smarts that helped him dominate in 2000 and plot his way to another win in 2005 as he birdied two of the four holes. If there was a way to count it, it’s possible a world record number of phone photos would’ve been taken in the four-hole stretch. A chef at The Old Course Hotel on the 17th fairway snuck away from his burners and grabbed his pictures through the glass while down below him, sitting out on a grass lawn, was former Masters champion Adam Scott and his father Phil, also realizing the significance of the occasion enough to come out and soak it all up. “For a lot of guys who haven’t been here like myself, to come here, look out the hotel, walk down 17, 18 on Sunday when you have the public just walking, that’s the coolest experience as a fan, as a golfer, anyone could ask for because it’s a game for everyone,” defending champion Morikawa said. “The stretch of just teeing off on No. 1, just seeing 17, just seeing 18, you feel the history, and you feel the importance of everything that has come before us at this golf course and golf in general. It’s really cool to be here.” For the record, the team of Sir Nick Faldo, Louis Oosthuizen, Zach Johnson and John Daly – all winners at St. Andrews – posted the low score Monday to claim bragging rights over the fellow former champs. They won be three shots and perhaps foreshadowed what might be a birdie fest later in the week. Some are fearful the modern golfer might have usurped The Old Course … Nicklaus isn’t one of them. “They might shoot low. So what? That’s sort of the way I look at it. They’re shooting low now compared to what they shot 100 years ago. But times change and golfers get better, equipment gets better, conditions get better,” Nicklaus said. “I don’t think it really makes a whole lot of difference, frankly. It’s St. Andrews and it is what it is, and it will produce a good champion. It always has. That’s the way I look at it. Bobby Jones always said a golfer’s resume isn’t complete unless he’s won at St. Andrews.” And so we await which golfer will complete his resume – but ultimately – just being part of this iconic week – is enough.

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Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on November 19, 2020. Tournament host Greg Norman announced today the 12 two-man teams for the 2020 QBE Shootout. This year's tournament will be held December 9 – 13 and will celebrate its 20th year at Tiburon Golf Club at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples. The QBE Shootout will welcome 16 of the top 50 ranked players in the world to Naples including world #13 Daniel Berger, #14 and U.S. Open runner-up Matthew Wolff, #19 Tony Finau and #20 Louis Oosthuizen. Seven QBE Shootout participants finished inside the top 25 at last week's Masters Tournament including world #27 Cameron Smith, who finished T2. Smith also set a Masters' record by becoming the first player to shoot all four rounds in the 60s. World #22 Abraham Ancer, #26 Marc Leishman and #38 Kevin Na all finished tied for 13th place while Cameron Champ and Sebastian Muñoz had strong showings with a four-way tie for 19th. The 32nd edition of the Shootout will feature eight new teams competing for the $3.6 million purse. The four returning teams include defending champions Rory Sabbatini and Kevin Tway; Harris English and Matt Kuchar, a team that has claimed victory at the Shootout in 2013 and 2016; Ryan Palmer and Harold Varner III as well as Billy Horschel and Brendon Todd; both teams finished T3 last year. "I couldn't be more pleased with the collection of players heading to Tiburon Golf Club this year. We have one of the strongest fields in the event's history and that has led to 12 incredible pairings," Tournament Host Greg Norman said. "The competition will be fierce this year, so I'm looking forward to an exciting three days of golf for our global television audience to enjoy." Sungjae Im has withdrawn from the tournament and has been replaced by Na. Golf Channel will broadcast Friday's first round competition and the final two rounds will be featured live on both Golf Channel and NBC. The QBE Shootout will once again showcase a scramble format during the first round, a modified alternate shot format on Saturday and a final round better ball on Sunday. CureSearch for Children's Cancer will continue to be the tournament's primary charitable beneficiary. Since 1989, the Shootout has raised more than $14 million for charitable causes. For the latest QBE Shootout news and information, visit the official tournament website at www.qbeshootout.com, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @QBEshootout. Below is a snapshot of the 12 teams: Rory Sabbatini – Kevin Tway (Combined seven PGA TOUR wins and 2019 QBE Shootout) Sabbatini will be playing in his eleventh Shootout and Tway his second. In addition to his win, Sabbatini finished runner-up in both 2011 and 2012 with two different partners. They will attempt to become the first team since 2004 to successfully defend its QBE Shootout title. Louis Oosthuizen – Bubba Watson (26 worldwide wins including three major Championships) The South African will be playing in his first Shootout while Watson will be making his sixth appearance. Watson defeated Oosthuizen in a playoff to win the first of his two Masters in 2012. The only time these two faced each other in a Presidents Cup was 2015 when Oosthuizen and Branden Grace defeated Watson and J.B. Holmes in four ball. Harris English – Matt Kuchar (11 PGA TOUR wins and two QBE Shootout wins as a team) Playing together for the first time since 2017, Kuchar and English will partner for the sixth time. One of the most successful pairings in Shootout history, this team has won twice (2013, 2016) and also has two runner-up finishes (2014, 2015). The duo holds the tournament record for largest margin of victory, which was seven strokes when they won in 2013. Daniel Berger – Steve Stricker (15 PGA TOUR wins and two QBE Shootout wins) Paired together for the first time. Stricker won the 2011 Shootout with Jerry Kelly and the 2017 title with Sean O'Hair. Stricker, the current U.S. Ryder Cup Captain, snapped a streak of eleven consecutive appearances from 2008 through 2018 last year when he served as Assistant Captain of the U.S. Presidents Cup team. Berger is making his third start and first since 2017 when he and Gary Woodland finished T4. Sebastian Muñoz – Joaquin Niemann (Both secured first PGA TOUR title in 2019) This pairing marks the first Latin American team in Shootout history; Muñoz representing Colombia and Niemann representing Chile. One of the young gun teams this year, both are in their 20s. The last time a rookie team won the Shootout was Keegan Bradley and Brendan Steele in 2011. Abraham Ancer – Matthew Wolff (Two worldwide wins) Ancer, age 27 and Wolff, 21, is the youngest team in the Shootout and they also boast the highest combined world ranking in the field. This will be Ancer's first appearance while Wolff returns after finishing 6th last year with Viktor Hovland. Ancer, currently ranked #22 in the world, was the first Mexican player to crack the top 50 in the world in 2019 and the first Mexican player to participate in the Presidents Cup. Billy Horschel – Brendon Todd (Eight PGA TOUR wins) This team finished T3 last year. Horschel will be making his eighth consecutive start and Todd his second. Both players qualified for the TOUR Championship in September. During the 2019-2020 season, they combined for ten top-10 finishes. Ryan Palmer – Harold Varner III (Five worldwide wins) Playing together for the second straight year, having finished T3 last year. Both are making their third start in the QBE Shootout. Palmer has skyrocketed up the world golf rankings in 2020 from 91 to start the year to currently 31. Marc Leishman – Cameron Smith (16 worldwide wins) This Australian duo is another rookie team in the Shootout. It is also the first all-Australian team since 2005 when Steve Elkington and Greg Norman played together. Ten years separate these two with Leishman, age 37 and Smith, 27. Cameron Champ – Tony Finau (Three PGA TOUR wins) Regarded as two of the longest hitters on TOUR, Champ and Finau are back at the QBE Shootout after missing the 2019 event and will be paired together for the first time. Both finished in the top 10 at the PGA Championship and by season's end were qualified for the TOUR Championship. Lanto Griffin – Mackenzie Hughes (Two PGA TOUR wins) Another rookie team to the Shootout. Hughes was the first rookie in 20 years to win wire-to-wire when he won the 2016 RSM Classic, in only his fifth PGA TOUR start. Griffin earned his first TOUR victory at the 2019 Houston Open in his 33rd start. Kevin Na – Sean O'Hair (Eight PGA TOUR wins and two QBE Shootout wins) O'Hair, a two-time champion, returns for his 10th consecutive appearance. O'Hair has won at Tiburon with two different partners so it could be a good sign for Na, who is making his second appearance. Na finished T3 in 2018 with Bryson DeChambeau.

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Spaun leads after 65; play suspended in Vegas

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