Billy Horschel† never shy to voice his opinion, Tuesday lashed out at PGA Tour players who have jumped to the LIV Golf League, calling on them for statements declaring they claim Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan and his executives were deaf to their concerns about scheduling and revenue.
“There are a lot of men who are hypocrites, who don’t tell the truth, who lie about some things,” said the Ponte Vedra Beach resident and former University of Florida All-American at The Renaissance Club in Scotland’s North Berwick, the site of this week’s Genesis Scottish Open. “I can’t stand sitting here and being diplomatic about it like I’ve done in the past.”
Opine: Billy Horschel said he won’t apologize for his desire to win, causing emotions to boil over
Business decisions: APGA Billy Horschel Invitational Provides Record Wallet, Valuable Business Opportunity
Horschel’s point of contention is that Monahan and the Tour listened and perhaps the players who shot themselves for the LIV League got reactions they didn’t want to hear.
“They say Jay doesn’t listen, the Tour doesn’t listen to us,” Horschel said. “Jay Monahan and everyone at HQ is the PGA Tour. They work tirelessly for us to reap the financial rewards we have and get every opportunity we have. At the same time, I am one of more than 200 members. I am the PGA Tour. If you shoot on the PGA Tour and shoot with Jay Monahan, you shoot us. And to say they don’t listen is a complete farce, really. If they listened to everything 200+ players on the PGA Tour said, it would be a complete mess. We couldn’t have a Tour.”
Gene Frenette: PGA, LIV Golf must make peace
Horschel also said that LIV Golf players who said they jumped so they could play less golf came across as unfair as the Tour requires members to play only 15 events a year to be eligible to vote and the LIV Golf schedule calls for 14 events next season.
“It’s ridiculous to hear some of these comments, ‘I can play fewer tournaments,'” Horschel said. “No one forced you to play so many events. Play 15. That’s fine. We have the ability to make our own schedule.”
Horschel pointed out that after next week’s Open Championship, he will be away from his wife and three children for five weeks.
“We decided that when we made the schedule … it just worked that way,” he said of the decision between him and his wife Brittany made before the season started. “I made the decision not to see my wife and children for five weeks. Do I have to cry about it?”
Horschel also had a request for the Tour players who have moved up to the LIV League but are still making pot shots in the Tour.
“Go play your LIV Tour and forget about PGA Tour,” he said.
A chance for The Players
Now that resident of Jacksonville David Duval plays on the PGA Tour Championshe has an opportunity to return to the First Coast in addition to his scheduled appearance at the Furyk & Friends October 7-9 at Timuquana Country Club, the course where he learned to play golf.
He plays in his first Bridgestone Senior Players Championship this week at the Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio, with the same chance as the other 79 players in the field: If Duval wins, he’ll get a spot in the 2023 Players Championship, the site of one of the biggest of his 13 PGA Tour titles when he won on the TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course in 1999.
Since 2007, the PGA Tour has given the winner of the Senior Players a spot in The Players. Duval is one of eight former Players champions in this week’s field, along with Stephen Ames, KJ Choi, Fred Couples, Fred Funk, Lee Janzen, Justin Leonard and Davis Love III.
Duval has a history at Firestone. He won the World Series of Golf in 1998, one of four titles that year en route to Tour money and title scoring. He played in three of the World Golf Championships held at Firestone, in 1999, 2001 and 2002, with two finishes in 27th and one 28th.
Suri gets a spot
Bartram Trail High graduated Julian Suric gets his first PGA Tour start since the 2019 PGA when he plays in the Barbasol Championship at Keene Trace in Nicholasville, Ky.
A member of the DP World Tour, Suri spread his status in Europe and when he climbed as high as 60th on the World Golf Rankings to land 13 starts on the PGA Tour between 2017-2019, including two appearances in the PGA and two in the Open Championship. Suri’s best finish was a tie for eighth in the 2018 Houston Open, a year in which he made nine out of ten cuts in Tour events.
Suri qualified for the European Challenge Tour, won one event, then promoted to the DP World Tour and once won, in Denmark. He has struggled with injuries in recent years and has made one cut on the DP Tour this season, finishing in a tie for 54th place in the Scandanavian Mixed. His current World Golf Ranking is No. 1,295.
WGC in China cancelled
The 2022 World Golf Championship HSBC Champions, scheduled for October 27-30 in Shanghai, has been canceled due to COVID-19 restrictions in China.
That tournament was last played in 2019.
“We have been working with all Tours and with the China Golf Association on the feasibility of hosting the WGC-HSBC Champions this fall, but unfortunately logistical implications forced the difficult decision to cancel the event,” said PGA Tour senior vice president. president, international, Christian Hardy, in a statement. “We are grateful for HSBC’s partnership during these difficult times as we continue to navigate the changing COVID-19 climate.”
The Butterfield Bermuda Championship, which was scheduled to be an alternate field event that week, will be played with full FedExCup points and an increased purse of $6.5 million. The tournament returns to Port Royal Golf Course in Southampton, Bermuda.
How to watch pro golf this week
PGA TOUR
Event: Genesis Scottish Open, Thursday-Sunday, The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Scotland.
At stake: An $8 million grant ($1,440,000 and 500 FedEx Cup points to the winner.
Defending champion: Min Woo Lee.
TV: Golf Channel (Thurs-Friday, 8:30 AM – 1:30 PM; Sat-Sun, 10 AM – noon); CBS (Saturday-Sunday, 12-3pm).
Incoming players from the area: Harris English, Brian Harman, Billy Horschel, Russell Knox, Keith Mitchell, Cameron Smith.
remarkable: The tournament is co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour. … Lee birdied the first playoff hole to beat Matthew Fitzpatrick and Thomas Detry. … Leading the way are Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm, Will Zalatoris, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Collin Morikawa, Sam Burns and Xander Schauffele. … Rory McIlroy is the only player in the top-14 of the World Golf Rankings to skip the tournament. … The Open Championship is next week in St. Andrews.
Event: Barbasol Championship, Thursday-Sunday, Keene Trace Golf Club, Nicholasville, Ky.
At stake: A $3.7 million ($667,000) purse and 300 FedEx Cup points to the winner.
Defending champion: Seamus Power.
TV: Golf Channel (Thurs-Saturday, 4-7pm; Sunday, 3-6pm).
Incoming players from the area: Jonas Blixt, Jonathan Byrd, Matt Every, Patton Kizzire, David Lingmerth, Trey Mullinax, Doc Redman, Sam Ryder, Greyson Sigg, Julian Suri, Jared Wolfe.
remarkable: Power won by par on the sixth playoff hole to beat JT Poston. Power shot 67 on the last round to catch Poston. … The winner gets a place in The Players Championship but he gets no invitation to the Masters opposite the Scottish Open. … Leading the field are past FedEx Cup champions Brandt Snedeker and Bill Haas and past winners at Keene Trace Aaron Baddeley, Grayson Murray and Jim Herman.
PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
Event: Bridgestone Senior Players Championship, Thursday-Sunday, Firestone Country Club, Akron, Ohio.
At stake: $3 million purse ($450,000 for the winner).
Defending champion: Steve Stricker.
TV: Golf Channel (Thurs-Friday, 1:30-4pm; Saturday, 12-4pm; Sunday, 12-3pm
Incoming players from the area: David Duval, Fred Funk, Jim Furyk, Frank Lickliter II, Davis Love III, Vijay Singh.
remarkable: Stricker dominated the tournament, opening with a 63 and beating Jerry Kelly by six shots. … The winner will receive a berth in the 2023 Players Championship. … World Golf Hall of Fame members Fred Couples, Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Bernard Langer and Colin Montgomerie also play.
Contact Garry Smits at [email protected]
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Billy Horschel: ‘Hypocrites’ Who Jumped To LIV Golf From PGA Tour