Muhammad Ashfaq of Airmen Golf Club won the title and prize money of Rs 80,000 in the SGA-backed 1st Professional Promotional Golf Tournament at the Airmen Golf Club, Karachi. On offer was a prize money stake of Rs 500,000 for the golf professionals of Karachi and the eligible to compete were the skillful and proficient golf professionals associated with golf courses of Karachi. After two contesting rounds, Ashfaq achieved triumph and held sway over his playing mates with two rounds scores of 70 and 71 with a winning aggregate score of 141, three under par.

All through the two combative rounds of golfing, Ashfaq displayed qualitative golfing capabilities and once again demonstrated command and control over his game flow. Other golf professionals, who were equally adept during this encounter, were Atiqur Rehman and M Zubair of Karachi Golf Club with an aggregate score of 141. Atiq and M Zubair were the runners-up and earned the cash prize of Rs 44,500 each.

Placed behind them were two more golf professionals, M Sajjad of Airmen Golf Club and Muhammad Amir of Karachi Golf Club at a score of 146. They shared a cash prize of Rs 36,250 each. Competition was frightfully intense and four participating competitors were bracketed at an aggregate score of 147 and resultantly were awarded cash prize of Rs 30,875 each. Out of 50 golf professionals, 20 succeeded in securing cash prizes – a good initiative by the SGA to support Karachi golf professionals

If it feels like it’s been a while since you last saw Tiger Woods hit a golf shot, that’s because it has been a while. It’s been nearly four months since his teary-eyed walk up the 18th fairway at St. Andrews. That absence is coming to an end, and Tiger fans need wait just a couple more weeks.

Woods is joining the limited field in his own event, the Hero World Challenge, later this month at Albany in the Bahamas, just one week prior to playing in another edition of The Match with teammate Rory McIlroy against Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas.

That officially makes the month of December “Tiger Woods Season.” Thank you for waiting so patiently. Woods announced the news Wednesday on Twitter, as well as the additions of Kevin Kisner and Tommy Fleetwood to the 20-man lineup.

This is not the first time Woods has reappeared from a long absence at the Hero World Challenge. He has actually used the event as a comeback kickstarter from various surgeries and injuries throughout the last decade. In fact, it was at this event last year where Woods first really started to show where he was health-wise. He didn’t compete in 2021, but he did go through multiple practice sessions on the Hero World Challenge driving range, showing off full swings with 3-wood and driver. It certainly got Woods fans riled up just in time to watch him and his son Charlie compete in the PNC Championship.

The last time we saw Woods he was missing the cut at The Open at St. Andrews, a disappointing effort but more emotional than anything. Woods walked up the 18th on Friday to an incredible ovation from the faithful crowd and was choked up by the scene. Afterward, he talked about how he wasn’t sure if and when he’d be able to compete on the Old Course in a future Open. If anyone knows how much life can change in the span of five years, it’s Woods.

That St. Andrews exit both was and was not a good example of Woods’ season. He grinded to make the cut in both the Masters in April and the PGA Championship in May, proving that even though it’s a hampered walk to the finish line, Woods still has the ability to get a passable score in the house. His opening 71 at Augusta National and second-round 69 at Southern Hills were two of the most viewed rounds all year long.

All of this brings us to wonder where exactly Woods’ game is at now. We’ve seen his stamina wane over the course of major championship weeks. But there was also no one demanding that he play a 12-hole 2-on-2 match against Spieth and Thomas. If he’s good enough for six days of golf in the Bahamas, followed by more competition the weekend prior, likely followed by playing with Charlie in the PNC Championship, it would seem like a positive sign for his continued comeback to normalcy.

Woods has said and repeatedly reminded the public that this new phase of his post-car crash golfing life will not include a full PGA Tour schedule. Even a majors-focused schedule took a back seat when Woods did not compete in the U.S. Open at Brookline. But the simple proof of life in the Bahamas hasn’t stopped fans from resetting impossibly high expectations in the past. During his 2017 comeback, Woods famously raced to the top of the leaderboard at the Hero, stirring up conversations about whether or not he could return to his peak.

What we know now is he’ll be competing on a course he knows well against a field filled with elite competitors. Kisner, ranked 31st in the world, is the lowest-ranked of Woods’ 19 competitors. If Woods can hang with that bunch, cue the countdown to the Masters.

Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy will team up against Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas in The Match.

Fifteen-time major champion Woods, who helped launch the exhibition event in 2018, returns for the seventh edition at Florida’s Pelican Golf Club.

McIlroy, Spieth and Thomas will all make their debuts at The Match, which will take place on 10 December.

The 12-hole contest will raise money to support relief efforts in Florida after Hurricane Ian hit last month.

Woods, 46, is still recovering from the injuries he suffered in a car accident in February 2021.

This will be his third appearance at The Match, having lost to Phil Mickelson at the inaugural event in 2018.

Woods and former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning then beat Mickelson and current NFL player Tom Brady in 2020.

In the most recent edition in June, Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers defeated Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes in a contest between American football quarterbacks at Wynn Golf Club in Las Vegas.

Rory McIlroy wants the PGA Tour and LIV Golf to bury the hatchet and find a way to coexist.

The PGA Tour has been at the forefront of much of the hostility directed towards the fledgling golf tour, which has attracted a growing list of golf’s superstars.

McIlroy – who himself was particularly critical of LIV Golf at the outset – has shifted his viewpoint, realising that the sport itself could suffer greatly if the rift continues between the two organisations.

“I believe there is no more time to waste… PGA Tour and LIV will have to find a compromise and speak for the sake of our sport,” the world number one told Italian publication Golf & Turismo this week.

“I don’t know when this can happen, certainly not tomorrow, but of course we will have to find an agreement.

“Golf is a small reality, it is not football where inside it large worlds such as Serie A, the Champions League, FIFA or UEFA coexist with each other. So, even more so, we need to stick together and find a way to ensure that in the future there are no splits like the one we are witnessing today.”

McIlroy’s comments come just days after LIV Golf GEO Greg Norman claimed that the PGA don’t want to sit at the negotiating table.

“There was always room – always, always, always room – and there still is room for them [the PGA Tour] to sit down and understand what we have and what this is all about,” the two-time major winner said after the end of LIV Golf’s inaugural season.

“I quite honestly think the ball is in their court. It’s not in ours. We’ve tried. We’ve tried on numerous occasions, not just me personally but before I even came on board.”

The Northern Irishman claimed a one-shot win at Congaree Golf Club, shooting a four-under-par 67 to finish the tournament on 17 under.

American Kurt Kitayama also hit 67 on Sunday, and briefly drew level with McIlroy thanks to a birdie at the 12th.

However McIlroy made three straight birdies of his own to pull clear.

“It means a lot,” said an emotional McIlroy after claiming his 23rd PGA Tour win.

“I’ve worked so hard over the past 12 months to get myself back to this place. I feel like I’m enjoying this game as much as I ever have.

“I absolutely love the game of golf and when I go out there and play with that joy, it has definitely showed over these past 12 months. It feels awesome.”

Holding a one shot lead coming into the final day, McIlroy knew a win would take him above Scottie Scheffler and to the top of the world rankings for a ninth time.

A second place finish would also have seen him leapfrog Scheffler, because the American finished in a tie for 45th on one under.

For McIlroy, birdies at the 14th, 15th and 16th holes gave him a three-shot cushion over his closest rival Kitayama.

The lead allowed the four-time major winner to come home in relative comfort despite bogeying the last two holes.

“It’s a big achievement, I’m really proud of myself right now,” he continued.

“The journey of trying to get the best out of myself, that’s the satisfying thing. Now it’s all about going forward and trying to just keep this going.

“I never feel like I’ve figured this game out, I don’t think I ever will figure it out, but every day I wake up trying to get closer.”

In a feature story this week in the New Yorker about the Saudi-backed circuit, Majed Al Sorour, CEO of the Golf Saudi, discussed how his league would respond should LIV golfers not be able to compete in the majors. Without LIV events getting Official World Golf Ranking accreditation, players could fall in the rankings and lose an avenue to qualify. Potentially, too, the groups that run the majors could outright prohibit LIV players from competing, as has the PGA Tour. From the piece:

There was speculation that the Masters might ban LIV players. “For now, the majors are siding with the Tour, and I don’t know why,” Sorour said. “If the majors decide not to have our players play? I will celebrate. I will create my own majors for my players.” He went on, “Honestly, I think all the tours are being run by guys who don’t understand business.”

The comments were panned; despite LIV’s opulent payouts and purses, what constitutes a major is not distilled to a dollar sign. However, in a statement Thursday, Sorour said the story “misrepresented” his views while acknowledging his frustration at the “blackballing” of LIV Golf.

“I had a casual conversation with a New Yorker reporter at LIV’s Boston event a few weeks ago, during which I expressed my frustration at the unfortunate blackballing of LIV Golf players by the PGA Tour,” Sorour said in a statement. “When it comes to the majors, tournaments that stand alone and are independent of LIV, I have the utmost respect for the majors. The majors are about history, heritage, true competition and honor.

“The story wrongfully expressed and misrepresented my views. The majors are indeed the best platform where LIV golfers and other tour golfers can compete, despite the PGA Tour’s suspension of our players. As a LIV Golf board member and managing director, I am here to accomplish our LIV Golf investment chairman and the board’s strategic direction by building a team, growing the game and defending player rights. That is my only interest.’’

LIV Golf wraps up its inaugural season with a $50 million team championship at Trump Doral next week.

Rory McIlroy has rejected Phil Mickelson’s suggestion that he picked the “winning side” in the dispute between the LIV series and PGA Tour.

American Mickelson believes the LIV series is trending higher, and the PGA is on a downward trajectory.

McIlroy said: “I don’t agree with what Phil said – I certainly don’t see the PGA Tour trending downward at all.

“I don’t think anyone that takes a logical view of the game of golf can agree with what he said.”

Next year’s Phoenix Open, Heritage tournament, Wells Fargo Championship and Travelers Championship will have purses boosted to $20m (£17.8m) and guaranteed appearances by top golfers, the US PGA Tour announced on Wednesday.

The moves complete a PGA revamp to combat the Saudi-backed LIV Golf series that was announced by tour commissioner Jay Monahan in August at the Tour Championship.

Star PGA players such as Northern Ireland’s four-time major winner McIlroy, Jon Rahm and top-ranked Scottie Scheffler, the reigning Masters champion, have committed to playing 17 events with elevated purses next year as a way to combat more players departing for the LIV Series.

The rival circuit’s record $25m purses and guaranteed contracts for 54-hole events have lured away top talent from the PGA, including British Open winner and world number three Cameron Smith of Australia, two-time major winner Dustin Johnson and Masters winners Mickelson, Bubba Watson, Sergio Garcia and Patrick Reed.

“The guys that went over to LIV, they’re the ones that have made the disruption, they’re the ones that have sort of put the golf world in flux right now,” added world number two McIlroy.

“I guess for them to be talking the way they are, it’s bold and I think there’s a tonne of propaganda being used and all sorts of stuff.”

In addition to the four new events, others with increased purses and player commitments include the four major championships, the Players Championship, the three FedEx Cup play-off events, the Tournament of Champions, WGC Match Play, Memorial tournament, Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Genesis Invitational hosted by Tiger Woods.

First, Greg Norman said Tiger Woods was offered nearly a billion dollars to join LIV Golf. Then, the LIV Golf CEO walked back that claim, saying the offer was a summation of potential value based on part ownership of a LIV franchise.

Now, in a report from The New Yorker, Saudi Golf Federation CEO Majed Al Sorour further clarified the alleged offer.

“It’s not straight-out money. I never offered him that money, not even close to that,” Sorour told reporter Zach Helfand. Included in that compensation would have been equity in the league and a cut of sponsorship deals.

That’s more in line with Norman’s comments from late August, when he denied his own claim Woods was offered between $700 and $800 million to join the breakaway league.

“That’s how it is,” Norman told Fox Sports Australia. “It’s not the cash value. We never offered that cash value to Tiger Woods. That’s the reality of it.”

In The New Yorker report, Sorour said the Saudi Public Investment Fund funded LIV through 2025 and the franchise model is how LIV plans on seeing a return on the investment. But many players, including Rory McIlroy, are skeptical of the numbers floated for each team, given LIV has yet to secure any outside sponsors or a U.S. television deal.

“People have to remember, golf is a niche sport,” McIlroy told The New Yorker of LIV’s business plan. “All you’re getting is four golfers. And I get it, some MLS teams are worth $700 million. But it’s all tied to the economics of the league, and right now that league doesn’t have any economics.”

Norman originally told Tucker Carlson in an interview taped at LIV Golf’s event at Trump Bedminster that Woods’ initial offer was “in the neighborhood of $700-800 million” in LIV’s early days.

“That number was out there before I became CEO, and that number’s been out there, yes,” Norman said. “Tiger’s a needle-mover, right? Of course, you’ve got to look at the best of the best.”

The number would have dwarfed other reported values of LIV contracts. Phil Mickelson is rumored to have gotten around $200 million for a signing bonus while Dustin Johnson reportedly received $125 million.

For his part, Woods has not commented publicly on any deal he was offered by LIV Golf and has repeatedly affirmed his commitment to the PGA Tour while condemning the upstart tour.

“As far as … the players who have chosen to go to LIV and to play there, I disagree with it,” Woods said at the Open Championship. “I think that what they’ve done is they’ve turned their back on what has allowed them to get to this position.

“I just don’t see how that move is positive in the long term for a lot of these players, especially if the LIV organization doesn’t get world-ranking points and the major championships change their criteria for entering the events. It would be sad to see some of these young kids never get a chance to experience it and experience what we’ve got a chance to experience and walk these hallowed grounds and play in these championships.”

Woods and McIlroy were the organizers of a players meeting in Delaware the week of the BMW Championship where sweeping changes were discussed to the PGA Tour’s schedule, structure and model. Those changes were announced by PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan the following week.

Phil Mickelson has said that by joining the LIV Golf series he has picked the “winning side” in the dispute that has dominated the sport this year.

The six-time major winner is one of several high-profile players who have left the PGA Tour for the Saudi-backed breakaway circuit.

Speaking before the LIV event in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Mickelson reiterated his belief in the project.

“I think going forward you have to pick a side,” said the 52-year-old.

“You have to pick what side do you think is going to be successful.

“I firmly believe that I’m on the winning side of how things are going to evolve and shape in the coming years for professional golf.”

LIV Golf, which offers a $25m purse at its events and is fronted by two-time major winner and former world number one Greg Norman, has caused deep divisions in the sport since its launch in June.

Major winners Brooks Koepka and Cameron Smith and former world number one Dustin Johnson are among other players who have left the PGA Tour to join LIV.

Last month, the PGA Tour launched a counterclaim against a lawsuit from LIV, saying the series offered players “astronomical sums of money” to breach their contracts so they could help “sportswash the recent history of Saudi atrocities”.

“Until both sides sit down and have a conversation and work something out, both sides are going to continue to change and evolve,” added Mickelson, who reportedly received a $200m (£176.3m) fee for joining LIV.

“And I see LIV Golf trending upwards, I see the PGA Tour trending downwards and I love the side that I’m on. I love the way they involve us and listen to us in decisions.”

Following the final individual competition in Jeddah, a season-ending team championship event will be held in Miami between 28-30 October, which will see 12 teams compete for a $50m (£45.2m) prize.

Two-time major winner Johnson received $18m (£16.2m) for winning the inaugural individual title having established an insurmountable 42-point lead after finishing 16th in Bangkok last weekend.

There are currently no world ranking points on offer for those that have chosen to join the series.

After a roller coaster few months, Cameron Smith can almost see the finish line of a wild 2022. The reigning Open champion and World No. 2 has waded through the expected backlash of leaving the PGA Tour at the height of his game for LIV Golf, where he’s already claimed one tournament title. With two LIV Invitational events remaining, including this week’s stop in Saudi Arabia, an extended break in his native Australia is longingly in sight.

Guaranteed money—reportedly around $100 million—factored into the 29-year-old’s decision to sign with LIV, which Smith has acknowledged. But the chance to take an extended stay in his homeland was also something that made the move attractive. It was not practical for Smith to do that while he was on the PGA Tour given its wraparound schedule, but after LIV’s finale in Miami later this month, the upstart Saudi-backed circuit doesn’t resume play for three months.

“After Miami, I’ll probably spend another week in the U.S. and then I’ll come down and play the [Australian PGA Championship in November and Australian Open in December],” Smith said on ABC radio in Australia. “I’ll basically stay through there until probably the start of February.”

Smith said he was enjoying his first handful events in the inaugural LIV series. He debuted in Boston and then won the Chicago event for a $4 million individual prize. He hopes to make amends this week in Saudi Arabia after a surprise 42nd-place finish last week in Thailand. Smith believes he is facing healthy competition from LIV recruits like Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed, Brooks Koepka and Joaquin Niemann, despite former greats Fred Couples and Gary Player questioning whether LIV golfers can maintain their competitive edge given the small fields and no-cut format.

“We’ve had six or seven major winners over the last three or four years sign with LIV; the competition’s still there at the top end,” Smith said. “When you’re playing against guys like Dustin Johnson, who’s won [24 times] on the PGA Tour it still makes you think out there.”

Beyond being suspended from the PGA Tour and fans’ varying reactions to him jumping to LIV, Smith has felt other ancillary effects. Most notably, he had to forfeit his playing and practicing privileges at TPC Sawgrass, no small thing considering it’s not far from where he lives in Palm Valley, Fla., and was a favorite place to work on his game when he was home. It’s also where he won the Players Championship in March, earning the defending champion’s parking spot next to the clubhouse that he had been enjoying during the summer. Not long after moving to LIV, the PGA Tour changed Smith’s reserved spot to “Tour players only.” Smith was diplomatic in saying he expected the eviction.

“It was just one of the things they had to do,” Smith said. “I knew that was going to come with it, and it’s something I’ve had to deal with. [TPC Sawgrass] is one of my favorite places in the world, and I’d love to be out there more often but [that can’t happen] yet.”

A six-time PGA Tour winner, Smith said he did not regret forgoing the opportunity to create a legacy on the U.S.-based circuit because he wanted to play a more global tour. His presence will likely mean at least one LIV tournament goes to Australia in 2023. Smith was asked whether it was unfortunate PGA Tour fans would not be able to see him add tournaments like the Memorial event or the Genesis Invitational to his trophy cabinet, which included the Sentry Tournament of Champions (2022), the Sony Open in Hawaii (2020) and two Zurich Classics (2017, 2021).

“Those events [Memorial and the Genesis] are great and I will miss [them] for sure, but having the opportunity to bring golf to a world stage [with LIV] I think is something that is going to be well-received,” he said. “Hopefully we can make these countries, which have kind of missed out on top-tier professional golf, really get around it [support LIV].”

If there’s any apprehension about the switch to LIV, it’s the potential impact it might have in his and other his fellow LIV players in participation in major championships in 2023. Both the U.S. Open and Open Championship allowed LIV golfers to play this year, but whether the USGA and R&A will do the same next year, or whether Augusta National and the PGA of America might alter their eligibility criteria for the coming year regarding LIV players, is unclear. Having won the 150th Open at St. Andrews in July, Smith presumably has five years’ worth of entry into the four majors (and an Open exemption until age 60). Had he not won the Open, Smith still had locked up a likely Masters invite as the Players champion and for his T-3 finish at Augusta in 2022. It seems unlikely Smith wouldn’t be allowed back to the Masters—where he has four top-10s in six starts including a T-2 in 2020—but he admitted it would be disappointing if he couldn’t.

“I hope [I can play],” Smith said. “Obviously, I can’t speak for them [Augusta]. I’m hopeful that I’ll be able to get back there. It’s a place I love, and I’ve got a pretty good record around there, too. So it would be pretty heartbreaking if I couldn’t get back there.”