Seamus Power sets 36-hole record at AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am to lead by five

PGATOUR.COM: This year marks the sixth year of the Morgan Stanley Eagles for Impact Challenge – can you tell us a little more about this initiative and First Tee, your new charitable partner? Alice Milligan: Morgan Stanley has a longstanding commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and providing the next generation of diverse youth with the tools they need to succeed. When we became a Proud Partner of THE PLAYERS, we developed the Eagles for Impact Challenge which has allowed us to celebrate great golf shots while giving back. Inspired by Morgan Stanley’s Institute for Inclusion – which was launched in June of 2020 to accelerate an integrated diversity, equity and inclusion strategy driving change within our firm and beyond – we have focused our Eagles for Impact initiative on increasing representation through access and education. The Eagles for Impact initiative now lives within our broader campaign platform, Everyone Deserves a Shot. The campaign strategy is centered on the idea that a more inclusive and representative society starts with increasing education opportunities and opening doors for the next generation. This year, we have teamed up with First Tee, a youth development organization that shares our goal of growing access to the game. PGATOUR.COM: Given the new focus of Eagles for Impact, can you share details about the program and how your donations will support First Tee’s mission? Alice Milligan: For every eagle made throughout the tournament, Morgan Stanley will donate to First Tee to help support the recruitment, development and retention of diverse coaches. These dollars will directly support First Tee in providing continued training for diverse coaches so all participants can see and learn from representative role models. Coaches are the backbone of First Tee programming – they help create character-building experiences to prepare kids for any challenges they may face, and First Tee continues to make it a priority for their coaches to represent all current and future participants. To date, Morgan Stanley has donated over $1.2 million through the Eagles for Impact program. We’re looking forward to counting eagles again this year to further our impact. PGATOUR.COM: Are there any on-site events this year that you’re particularly excited about? Alice Milligan: Yes, Morgan Stanley will host a special event at THE PLAYERS on Tuesday, March 8th with First Tee. During the event, we will host 20 young women from First Tee-North Florida, where they’ll have the opportunity to hear from a variety of industry experts on their career journeys, walk the TPC Sawgrass course and view the practice rounds. Their final stop will be at the Morgan Stanley Eagles for Impact venue, where they’ll be the first to play three special putting greens they helped us design for fans to enjoy during the tournament and pick up exclusive Morgan Stanley swag. PGATOUR.COM: Can you tell us a little more about the firm’s broader efforts in the diversity and inclusion space? Alice Milligan: Commit to diversity and inclusion is the firm’s fifth core value – it is a key area of focus for our employees and our clients. Most recently, Morgan Stanley announced the Institute for Inclusion’s Equity in Education and Career Consortium. In collaboration with partner organizations, this initiative will support high school and college students to achieve stronger career and financial outcomes. Funded by an initial commitment of $20 million, EECC helps address systemic inequities in education and career outcomes for young adults from low-to-moderate income backgrounds with a focus on ethnically diverse students. Other key initiatives include the HBCU Scholars Program, which provides 60 four-year full ride scholarships at Howard Harvard, Morehouse College and Spelman College, over a 5-year period. In 2021, the Firm announced the first cohort of 12 students selected for the scholarship at each school and we’ll be announcing our second cohort this summer. Finally, The JumpStart Initiative, which was created in partnership with LEAD (Lead, Education and Development), a non-profit that works with high-potential youth from diverse backgrounds, develop their professional knowledge, find mentors and gain access to educational resources that might otherwise be out of reach.

Click here to read the full article…

BROOKLINE, Mass. – Will Zalatoris’ career goal is to win a major championship. The goal was rooted at age 6, when a young Zalatoris noticed Ken Venturi’s 1964 U.S. Open trophy on display at the California Golf Club of San Francisco, one of two courses that cultivated his love for the game as an elementary schooler, alongside par-3 Mariners Point Golf Center. “Probably when I recognized the U.S. Open trophy being at Cal Club,” said Zalatoris of his goal’s origins. “Walked by it every single day when we went to Cal Club. It’s still sitting there.” Zalatoris has done everything in his power to reach this goal, putting himself in position time and time again to chase a major championship title. He entered this week’s U.S. Open at The Country Club with five top-10 finishes in eight career major starts, including a runner-up at the 2021 Masters and a playoff loss to Justin Thomas at last month’s PGA Championship. He’s in position yet again at Brookline, where he competed at the 2013 U.S. Amateur and has long regarded as one the most difficult courses he has played. On a demanding Saturday afternoon outside Boston, Zalatoris carded 3-under 67, the day’s low round. Zalatoris began the third round trailing 36-hole co-leaders Collin Morikawa and Joel Dahmen by four strokes. He ended the day at 4-under, tied for the clubhouse lead with Matt Fitzpatrick – winner of the 2013 U.S. Amateur at Brookline, where Zalatoris fell five strokes shy of qualifying for match play. Zalatoris, 25, is regarded as perhaps the best player yet to notch a PGA TOUR title, and it’s not for lack of opportunities. The Wake Forest alum stands No. 13 on the FedExCup standings, with seven top-10s in 17 starts including two runner-up finishes, the highest-ranked player on the FedExCup without a career TOUR victory. He’s No. 14 on the Official World Golf Ranking, also the highest ranked without a TOUR title. Zalatoris, known as one of the game’s premier ball strikers, clearly thrives on the demanding setups presented by major championships. Saturday afternoon at The Country Club fit the bill with consistent winds, narrow targets and increasingly firm greens. The first-year PGA TOUR member, who won 2021 TOUR Rookie of the Year honors as a non-member, wasn’t fazed. He made birdie on holes 2, 4 and 9, offset by just one bogey at the short par-4 seventh. He made eight pars on the back nine, adding a birdie at the 503-yard, par-4 15th after a short iron to 5 feet. He got up and down from a front greenside bunker at No. 18 to post the day’s low round, one better than Fitzpatrick and Denny McCarthy. Zalatoris previously said that he felt “imposter syndrome” in his PGA Championship playoff against Thomas. As he finds this stage time and again, his confidence grows. Throughout his career, he has maintained a consistent self-belief that he’s working on the right things and capable of performing on the highest level. “Coming off the PGA (Championship), it gave me a lot of belief and confidence that I belong in this situation,” Zalatoris said. “There’s a difference in thinking it and then actually being in the situation and believing it. So I think that’s probably the biggest change. “I’ve put myself in this situation a few times in my career, and obviously have to go out and get it tomorrow.” Zalatoris didn’t see immediate success in professional golf. After falling short at Q-School, he earned enough points as a Korn Ferry Tour non-member (via a combination of Monday qualifiers and sponsor exemptions) to gain Special Temporary Membership. He fell short of earning a TOUR card via the 2019 Korn Ferry Tour Finals, and after accruing the most Korn Ferry Tour points throughout the 2020 calendar year, he earned enough non-member FedExCup points that fall to earn Special Temporary Membership on TOUR. He’s now a first-year TOUR member, but his game indicates a confidence and maturity beyond his years. It has been earned. Now he takes aim at his first TOUR title, his first major title, against a backdrop that appears well suited for his skill set. Somewhere, that 6-year-old kid is nodding with approval. “I’ve had a few long waits so far in my career,” Zalatoris said. “I’ll make sure I try to stay up a little bit tonight and make sure I sleep in just to kill some time. The fact that this place is that brutal and that there are so many major champions around the leaderboard … I don’t feel like I’m trying to protect it by any means. “Stick to the routine and go play some twilight golf.”

Click here to read the full article…

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The PGA TOUR announced today that Jordan Spieth has been elected Chairman of the Player Advisory Council (PAC) by the TOUR’s membership for the 2018 calendar year. Voting ended on Tuesday, February 13. The 16-member PAC advises and consults with the PGA TOUR Policy Board (Board of Directors) and Commissioner Jay Monahan on issues affecting the TOUR. Spieth, who prevailed over Billy Hurley III for PAC Chairman, will succeed Davis Love III (2016-18) on the PGA TOUR Policy Board next year. He will serve a three-year term (2019-2021) as Player Director along with Charley Hoffman (2017-2019), Kevin Streelman (2017-19) and Johnson Wagner (2018-2020). “Having a player with Jordan’s pedigree and perspective will be a tremendous addition to the PAC this year and the Policy Board starting in 2019,� said Monahan. “We certainly looked at this as a win-win for the TOUR, as both Jordan and Billy were excellent candidates and both will make significant contributions to the TOUR in helping to shape policy.� The 24-year-old Spieth is an 11-time winner on the PGA TOUR and captured the 2015 FedExCup title. Last year, the Dallas native won three times and advanced to the season-ending TOUR Championship for the fifth time in as many attempts, finishing the season No. 2 in the FedExCup standings. A member of three U.S. Presidents Cup Teams (2013, 2015, 2017), Spieth played collegiately at the University of Texas. The PGA TOUR announced the 16 players serving on the PAC for 2017 on January 10: 2018 Player Advisory Council Daniel Berger Paul Casey Stewart Cink Chesson Hadley James Hahn Billy Hurley III Zach Johnson Matt Kuchar Anirban Lahiri Geoff Ogilvy Sam Saunders Jordan Spieth Chris Stroud Justin Thomas Kyle Thompson Cameron Tringale 2018 Player Directors Charley Hoffman (2017-19) Davis Love III (2016-2018) Kevin Streelman (2017-19) Johnson Wagner (2018-2020)  

Click here to read the full article…