Morning 9: ANWA field | Bryson’s surgery

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Good Tuesday morning, golf fans. as we gear up for an additional big week at Pebble Beach.

1. Ko, Thompson, Kang headline Saudi Ladies International

Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols…“The Aramco Saudi Ladies International has announced that 13 major winners will likely be included on this 12 months’s field, highlighted by World No. 1 Lydia Ko, Lexi Thompson, In Gee Chun, Danielle Kang and defending champ Georgia Hall.”

• “The event, which is the presented by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, takes place Feb. 16-19 at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club and features an upgraded purse of $5 million. More LPGA stars are expected to be announced in the approaching weeks.”

• “The 120-player field will feature 60 Ladies European Tour players, 50 from the highest 300 within the Rolex Rankings and a maximum of 10 sponsor invites. The winner will receive $750,000.”

2. Full LIV schedule finalized

The official press release…”The primary official season of the groundbreaking LIV Golf League will feature 14 events in seven different countries showcasing a few of the top championship courses on the planet, including a return to 5 venues that hosted tournaments as a part of the 2022 LIV Golf Invitational Series. Centurion Club outside London, England (July 7-9), Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in Bedminster, Recent Jersey (August 11-13), Wealthy Harvest Farms outside Chicago, Illinois (September 22-24), Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami, Florida (October 20-22) and Royal Greens Golf & Country Club near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (November 3-5) will welcome back lots of the sport’s biggest stars for the landmark season within the league’s official launch. As well as, fans within the U.S. will see LIV Golf’s progressive league at Orange County National in Orlando, Florida (March 31-April 2) and at Trump National Golf Club, Washington D.C. (May 26-28).”

• “These seven venues, alongside the seven previously announced dates and locations complete the 2023 LIV Golf League schedule: Mayakoba’s El Camaleón Golf Course on Mexico’s Riviera Maya (February 24-26), The Gallery Golf Club in Tucson, Arizona (March 17-19), The Grange Golf Club in Adelaide, Australia (April 21-23), The Serapong at Sentosa Golf Club in Singapore (April 28-30), Cedar Ridge Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma (May 12-14), Real Club Valderrama in Andalucía, Spain (June 30-July 2) and The Greenbrier within the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia (August 4-6).”

• “We received tremendous feedback globally from fans throughout our beta-test 12 months, with one resounding theme: LIV Golf’s team format, innovations, and festival-like events are delivering a one-of-a-kind golf experience,” said LIV Golf CEO and Commissioner Greg Norman. “Last 12 months helped lay the inspiration for the long run of golf at extraordinary courses which have hosted a few of the world’s top competitions. LIV Golf’s schedule features incredible venues and championship sites for our official league launch that may carry the game right into a latest era.”

3. Prepare for Marcus Byrd

Adam Woodard for Golfweek…”Get aware of the name Marcus Byrd, golf fans. You’ll see plenty of him over the following month.”

• “Last week Byrd was announced because the 2023 Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption for the PGA Tour’s upcoming Genesis Invitational, Feb. 16-19 at Riviera Country Club, and he celebrated by winning the APGA Farmers Insurance Invitational on Sunday at Torrey Pines.”

• “Byrd was the first-round leader after he opened with a 1-over 73 after which cruised to a five-shot win after a 3-over 75 in the ultimate round. A former star for Middle Tennessee State and 2019 Conference USA Golfer of the 12 months, Byrd finished atop the standings for the APGA’s Farmers Insurance Fall Series back in November and now has three APGA Tour wins.”

4. Mize on the Masters

Doug Stutsman, Special to The Augusta Chronicle…”The 1987 Masters Champion has confirmed that the 2023 Masters — his fortieth consecutive — will likely be his last.”

• “Mize, an Augusta native who lives in Columbus, Ga., hinted last April that 2023 could possibly be his final competitive appearance, but after missing the cut with a Friday 78, he remained noncommittal about his future.”

5. Tour pro’s “legendary” eBay purchase

Our Jason Daniels…”Last week we were live from the PGA Show, reporting on all of the goings-on on the annual gearhead junkie extravaganza.”

• “For those on tour, though, it’s not all the time concerning the shiny latest sticks, with some preferring to persist with what works even when which means searching high-and-low for replacements.”

• “Last week 2011 US Amateur champion Kelly Kraft, who beat Patrick Cantlay at Erin Hills, turned up on the Farmers Insurance Open with a bag stuffed with 2013 Callaway Legacy Black irons, something he bought on the second-hand market.”

• “Throughout the Farmers Insurance Open, Johnny Wunder, the Tour Content Manager for Callaway Golf, posted a photograph of said clubs on his Instagram account, commenting: “@kellykraftgolf went and purchased these on eBay…and I respect the hell out of him.”

6. Trump throws weight behind LIV

Alan Blinder for the Recent York Times…“Former President Donald J. Trump’s golf courses will host three tournaments this 12 months for the breakaway league that Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund is underwriting, deepening the financial ties between a candidate for the White House and top officials in Riyadh.”

• “LIV Golf, which previously 12 months has forged men’s skilled golf into turmoil because it lured players away from the PGA Tour, said on Monday that it could travel to Trump courses in Florida, Recent Jersey and Virginia during this 12 months’s 14-stop season. Neither the league nor the Trump Organization announced the terms of their arrangement, however the schedule shows the Saudi-backed start-up will remain allied with, and useful to, one in all its foremost defenders and political patrons as he seeks a return to power.”

7. Lowry splits with caddie

Brian Keogh for the Irish Independent…”Shane Lowry is urgently looking for a latest caddie in Ryder Cup 12 months after an amicable split with Brian “Bo” Martin last weekend.”

• The Offaly man teamed up with Martin on the Portugal Masters in 2018 and after ending a three-and-a-half-year drought on the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship in 2019, the bearded duo formed a good bond with the highlights their six-stroke win in The Open Championship at Royal Portrush in 2019 and last September’s bogey-free BWM PGA Championship win at Wentworth.

• The split with Martin was confirmed by Lowry’s management company Horizon Sports Management last night and the Irish Independent understands the pair had been considering the move for several weeks, believing their near four-and-a-half-year relationship had lost its “spark” or “chemistry”.

8. Rory defends Reed

Michael Schmitt for Planet Sport…”Reed, who has been at the middle of several rules controversies throughout his profession, found himself embroiled in yet one more one ultimately week’s Dubai Desert Classic.

• “Throughout the third round, Reed’s drive on the seventeenth hole at Emirates Golf Club got stuck in a tree and required binoculars to be identified. The ball was eventually found after a protracted search, allowing Reed to avoid playing a 3rd shot from the tee, but several onlookers questioned whether the ball really might have been identified via binoculars, considering there have been several other balls stuck in the identical tree.”

• “I felt it was superb,” McIlroy said. “If it had been anyone else in the sphere it could have been a nonissue, but due to certain things previously, people bring stuff up, which is perhaps unfair in some ways. But again, it’s what it’s. I’ve stood and defended Patrick in a few of the controversies. I don’t feel like he was attempting to get any advantage.”

9. JT weighs in on jogger-gate