Breakfast Ball #2: Lovin on Tommy

While week two of 2024 was a relatively quiet week on tour, the Ryder Cup is always in the news. One of the biggest weeks in the DP World Tour Schedule is coming up next.

Fleetwood wins in Dubai ahead of McIlroy, Pavon the best of the Europeans in Hawaii

Tommy Fleetwood birdied the final hole to win the Dubai Invitational, one shot ahead of his Ryder Cup teammate Rory McIlroy. The pair approached the 72nd hole with McIlroy one stroke in front, but Rory’s drive found the water, giving Fleetwood the chance to hit a 16ft birdie putt to take home the victory. This is his first win since November 2022, and hopefully a sign of things to come this year. Fleetwood had six top fives on the PGA Tour last year, so hopefully this win over a player like McIlroy can push him on to great things.

Matthieu Pavon was the top European as Grayson Murray took the Sony Open in Hawaii on the PGA Tour. Murray won a three-way playoff with a birdie on the 18th hole as Pavon finished T7, three shots off the winning score. This was an encouraging start to the Frenchman’s PGA Tour career, after he gained dual status through the DP World Tour last year. Stephan Jaeger was the only other European in the top 25, finishing six strokes off the lead.

Rory wants golf to consider global majors to Grow The Game™

Rory McIlroy believes that the future of golf is global. Before he tee’d off in the Dubai Invitational last week, McIlroy spoke to Golf Digest about the ongoing PGA Tour negotiations. It was clear that to him that location needs to be a big consideration: “Going forward, if everything is on the table, venues have to be a big part of the consideration.”

Historically, the biggest events in golf have been limited to the UK and the USA. While some Ryder Cup and Presidents’ Cup events have brought golf outside of these countries, the majors have remained the same since the late 1800s. While this may have been representative of golf at that time, the game has expanded worldwide since then.

“The Australian Open, for example, should almost be the fifth major” according to McIlroy. While both LIV Golf and the DP World Tour may have their flaws, they have showcased the potential for golf across the world. If we really want to grow the game, this needs to happen. Hopefully these negotiations can be the start of it.

Phil Mickelson is “too divisive” to be considered for Ryder Cup Captaincy

Phil Mickelson has been at the centre of controversy regularly in the past couple of years. Ever since his move to LIV, Mickelson has not been afraid to speak his mind on any topic that he chooses. This week on the Pat McAfee show, Mickelson admitted that he may have alienated too many people on the PGA Tour to captain the US Ryder Cup team.

“I don’t feel I’m the right guy to be involved with the team because I’m a very divisive character right now, if you will. And I understand that [for] the players on the PGA Tour, there’s a lot of hostilities towards me, and I don’t feel I’d be the best leader for them going forward.”

The most likely target for the US captaincy is Tiger Woods, who has been a member of eight Ryder Cup teams. Surprisingly, Tiger has only been on the winning side once in those eight appearances, and has earned 14.5 points out of a possible 37. However, given his influence and reputation among the best American players, he would be a safe option for the captaincy in 2025.

Coming up this week on tour:

• The DP World Tour moves onto the Dubai Desert Classic, which is the first of five signature Rolex Series events on tour

• The PGA Tour goes back to the mainland for the Amex at La Quinta Country Club

  • Europeans in attendance include Shane Lowry and Bob McIntyre