Connect with us

Entertainment

Diabolical’ – Golf stars vent frustrations as major issue overshadows first round at the Open Championship

Published

on

Golf stars expressed their frustrations at the slow pace of play during the opening round of The Open.

Get Sports Updates on WhatsApp

Join our WhatsApp channel to receive breaking sports news and insider stories.

Join us on WhatsApp

Slow rounds often spark annoyance whatever the level being played and it was very much the case at Royal Portrush on Thursday.

Some players were seen putting out on the 18th green around six hours after teeing off on the first hole.

The slow speed of play could be attributed to a multitude of factors.

Despite there being a whopping 156 golfers taking part at the open, no players start simultaneously on the first and 10th tee which is widely the case at majors played in the United States.

Weather conditions were not favourable on Thursday with spells of gusty wind and rain wreaking havoc on play.

Tee-shots regularly went off target and landed in the rough, leading to players spending extensive time looking for their balls.

Those involved were far from impressed with how the day’s play unfolded with Masters champion Rory McIlroy not completing his round until 9.04pm having teed off at 3.10pm.

“It felt like we were on the golf course for about 12 hours,” said Australia’s Marc Leishman, who plays on the LIV Golf tour.

“We’ve been on the course for three hours through eight holes.

“That was tough to deal with, especially coming from somewhere where we play in under four and a half hours every week.”

Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre added: “We couldn’t have gone any faster. I guess golf courses are too long.”

Meanwhile, England’s Aaron Rai said: “It was a little on the slow side. But naturally with the challenging course, pace of play is going to be a little bit slower than normal.”

Golf podcast host Michael McEwan was particularly critical of how the day unfolded.

He wrote on X: “The pace of play today has been diabolical. I get that it’s a major, that there’s a lot at stake and blah blah blah. But let’s not kid ourselves on: six-hour rounds are just s****.

Pace of play is not solely a problem at The Open with problems reported at last month’s US Open at Oakmont.

A field of over 150 players were grouped in threes white facing the prospect of a challenging course with millions at stake.

And the same can be said of this week’s opening round at The Open with backlogs forming at the 5th hole due to players waiting on the tee for the green to clear.

And at one stage, five groups aligned on the 7th hole according to American golfer Keegan Bradley.

The field will hope the pace of play during the second round of the Open picks up, which you can keep up to date with via talkSPORT.

To tune in to talkSPORT through the website, click HERE for the live stream.

Listen via the talkSPORT app here, or on DAB digital radio, through your smart speaker and on 1089 or 1053 AM.

Entertainment

Paige Spiranac’s surprising NFL fandom confession triggers heated debate over loyalty, authenticity, and fan culture

Published

on

The 2026 NFL Draft starts Thursday night in Pittsburgh, and the spotlight isn’t only on prospects and front offices. Golf influencer Paige Spiranac has again found herself pulled into NFL conversation, this time for her open support of multiple teams.

Get Sports Updates on WhatsApp

Join our WhatsApp channel to receive breaking sports news and insider stories.

Join us on WhatsApp

With the Steelers hosting the first round, her long-standing connection to Pittsburgh has resurfaced. But it’s not just about hometown ties. Her broader fandom, which stretches beyond one franchise, continues to draw mixed reactions at a time when fan loyalty is often treated as non-negotiable.

Paige Spiranac roots for 2 NFL teams: Who are they?

Paige Spiranac has never hidden where her loyalties lie, even if they don’t fit the usual mold. She has consistently pointed to her roots while leaving space for other allegiances.

“Both my parents are from Pittsburgh so I’ve been a Steelers ..fan since the day I was born. I also love the Bills. It’s a complicated relationship…Who’s your team?” she previously asked her followers. It’s a candid admission, one that reflects personal history more than calculated fandom.

Still, the reaction has been sharp. NFL culture tends to rew ..

 

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Quiet moments on the course can say a lot about what’s coming next.

Published

on

Sometimes the most important work happens when nobody is really watching.
Lexi Thompson was out on the 18th green, working through her putting during a practice round ahead of the Chevron Championship in Houston.

Get Sports Updates on WhatsApp

Join our WhatsApp channel to receive breaking sports news and insider stories.

Join us on WhatsApp

It’s a simple scene, but it shows the kind of quiet preparation that goes into these big tournaments—getting the feel of the greens, adjusting to conditions, and building trust in every stroke.

These are the small details that can shape how a player starts when the pressure kicks in.

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Predicting what will happen to Bryson DeChambeau and Phil Mickelson if LIV Golf collapses

Published

on

It looks like LIV Golf is over.

Get Sports Updates on WhatsApp

Join our WhatsApp channel to receive breaking sports news and insider stories.

Join us on WhatsApp

The Saudi Public Investment Fund has reportedly decided that this league simply isn’t worth the hole it’s burning in their pocket, and they’re pulling funds at the end of 2026.

That gives them less than a year to seek new investment. While CEO Scott O’Neil seems confident, it’s going to be extremely difficult to secure funding for a league that is operating at such eye-watering losses.

So this probably pulls the curtain closed on one of the most turbulent, frustrating, confusing, and ridiculous eras in golfing history. Hopefully, we can all return to some reality after the year is over.

But there is still so much uncertainty surrounding golf’s future thanks to this. Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed saw the signs early and jumped ship, but they did that with some leverage. So what on earth is going to happen to the rest of these players who didn’t take the olive branch when it was offered to them?

Feelings will be hurt, and careers will be ended. Let’s take a look.

Jon Rahm rejoins the PGA Tour

Koepka returned to the PGA Tour under the returning member program, which saw him pay $5 million to charity, accept that he’ll receive no FedEx Cup bonus money, and agree he cannot be a sponsor exemption for the 2026 signature events.

 

That same deal was offered to Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau. They didn’t accept it, but a similar offer will likely be handed out to them again.

 

If LIV Golf folds, Rahm will not hold the same leverage as Koepka did, but he is a bigger star at this stage of his career. Make no mistake, the PGA Tour will want him back immediately.

But Rahm does risk leaving himself without any options at all. Reed didn’t come straight back to the PGA Tour, so he’s spending a year on the DP World Tour first. You’d imagine Rahm would consider doing the same, but it might not be so easy for him.

Rahm is in a feud with the DP World Tour, as the only one of eight players to reject a deal which would have seen him retain his full-time membership. If Rahm agreed to play in six DP World Tour events this year, then he could have played on both LIV Golf and the tour. He did not agree.

For now, his membership is at risk. So, will it be possible for him to spend a season on the DP World Tour like Reed? Maybe not. That makes it all the more likely that Rahm will be back on the PGA Tour the moment LIV folds.

Bryson DeChambeau does YouTube full-time

With DeChambeau, I don’t think it’s as much of a done deal that he returns to the PGA Tour. Not immediately anyway.

He’s been negotiating his contract with LIV, which expires at the end of this season. During these negotiations, he’s made it very clear that he is completely willing to step away from full-time competition and be a full-time YouTuber.

DeChambeau’s channel has over two million subscribers, so he could feasibly do that with all of the money he’s making there.

He was annoyed to see LIV move to a four-day format, so he could commit himself fully to being the content king. It would be a wild thing to do, but it’s also exactly the kind of move you could see the two-time major winner making.

He could qualify for The Open Championship and the US Open, and earn enough points there to play The Masters and the PGA Championship. It’s possible.

He does seem to live for competition, so maybe YouTube won’t quite scratch the itch, but it is on the table for DeChambeau. At least for a year until his suspension expires. Out of Rahm and DeChambeau, the American is absolutely the least likely to take a deal.

Continue Reading

Trending

error: Content is protected !!