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USA Today
6 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
PGA Tour gives pace-of-play updates, data to be posted publicly for first time
The PGA Tour has crunched the numbers from its testing of distance measuring devices earlier this year and other policy changes and the results are in: Play sped up! The findings also match up with the returns of a survey of 153 players and another 144 caddies. According to the study, 82 percent of all players and caddies reported using DMDs. 'The majority of players believe that the overall speed of play improved, and we see that the majority of players feel that their individual speed of play improved,' the Tour reported during a Zoom call with members of the media on Wednesday. 'Three-quarters of the players on both tours support the use of DMDs being permitted on a permanent basis on our tours.' While it is hard to nail down how much of a savings of time the use of DMD's will result in – every player is different, courses are different, and weather and other factors all contribute to pace of play – it is safe to say that the use of DMD's won't make play any slower than it already is. 'The noteworthy trends from the analysis of the ShotLink data has shown that approach shots and all par-5s have been trending faster and the period of time in which DMDs were permitted when we also know or have seen in the data that the shot times for those shots within 40 to 60 yards of the green were faster as well,' the Tour said. 'That's actually 4.9 seconds faster for those shots from the fairway and 5.1 seconds faster for those shots from the rough.' The Tour's Video Review Center also is proving to be a timesaver. The study found they've shaved about a minute off the response time of every ruling and helping to slice about five minutes off the average round time. 'You take that 20 times during a tournament, that's five minutes per round, so that's been a big advantage for us,' said Mark Dusbabek, the Tour's lead TV rules and video analyst. None of this should come as a big surprise. But the Tour felt a need to conduct empirical evidence it will bring to the Player Advisory Council for their review. 'Those of us who sit out there each day and watch these players in the field of play, we saw a mixture of the DMD usage, whether it be the player using the DMD himself or a caddie working the numbers as well as working the numbers in the book. But the bottom line is it seemed like the process was going quicker,' said PGA Tour senior vice president of rules and competitions Gary Young, who noted that the number of players using the devices also was largely expected. 'I think it's a recognition of a generational change in the sport where we have younger players now coming up who have just been using these devices day in and day out as they play the game, and it doesn't surprise me that 70 percent plus are saying that they'd really like to see DMDs.' Young also revealed the change to the rules for docking penalty strokes for pace of play, which was implemented on the Korn Ferry Tour and PGA Tour Americas but not on the PGA Tour, had its desired effect, too. Under the revised Pace of Play Policy, which is in place for the remainder of the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour season, the first offense of a 'bad time' will now result in a one-stroke penalty. Under the previous policy, a one-stroke penalty was not applied until a player received a second 'bad time.' 'They went from having 10 bad times during that time period on the Korn Ferry Tour to simply one bad time with this change in policy,' he reported. 'There's a sense of urgency that's developed on the player behavior side. They do not want to get on the clock, and if they are on the clock, they want to get off the clock as quick as possible.' The PAC for both the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour will make recommendations to the Board, who ultimately will determine whether any such rule changes go into effect. Young said he would expect approved changes to be implemented for next season, but it's possible they could go into effect sooner. One immediate change that will be a boon to fans is the Tour will begin posting pace of play course and group data in real time on PGA for the first time. 'For the course data itself, this will include average time for the field to play each hole and will include front nine and back nine times and overall times, and this will be located in the course and hole stats page at the round you look at group data itself, this will have turn and finish times,' said Billy Schroder, the Tour's senior vice president of competitions and special projects. 'This will be included on PGA from this point forward, and really what we're looking at here is we know within the ShotLink system there is a lot of data and the trick and the skill is to find a strategic plan to bring this to light for the fans so it enhances their enjoyment of the competition, how do we tell a better story of what's happening on the golf course for the fans' enjoyment.' This is the first visible evidence of the Tour's commitment to be more transparent about pace of play and share with the public what players are guilty of being slow pokes. Andy Weitz, the Tour's chief marketing and communications officer, said the Tour's pace-of-play problem is one of the first areas it is tackling as part its fan-forward initiative. 'It's an area we're committed to addressing on behalf of those fans as well as our players and our partners, and we know there are a lot of things that go into the speed of play equation, but we're committed to finding the right solutions and tackling it from every angle,' he said.
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
PGA Tour Moving Forward With Measuring Devices
PGA Tour Moving Forward With Measuring Devices originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Measuring devices seem destined for a permanent place on the PGA Tour in the near future. The initial results of using DMD devices were provided on a conference call Wednesday with PGA Tour officials and select media. Advertisement After a four-week pilot period of testing distance measuring devices (DMDs) on the PGA Tour, which started at the RBC Heritage in April, the data has supported a full program implementation moving forward. This will likely begin next season once the Players Advisory Council and the PGA Tour Policy Board review the testing results and vote to add DMDs to competition. Some players in this week's RBC Heritage are using Vortex measuring Alex Miceli 'We would take it through the normal governance process,' Tyler Dennis, PGA Tour Chief Competition Officer, said. 'If they view this favorably, like it seems from the surveys and things we've seen, we'd get that in place as soon as possible. We tend to do things on the cadence of seasons, but that doesn't mean we have to.' The Tour reviewed ShotLink data relevant to the use of DMDs with feedback from 297 players and caddies. Advertisement The survey's trends showed that approach shots and all par-5s trended faster during the period in which DMDs were permitted. Data also showed that shot times for 40-to-60-yard shots from the green were faster, with 4.9 seconds saved from the fairway and 5.1 seconds saved from the rough. While a limited amount of time savings was discussed on par-5s and shots close to the green, the Tour explained that it was difficult to know the total amount of time saved in rounds using DMDs. The explanation for not having an overall number of time savings is that there are so many different facets, with every player, every round, and every golf course being different. Advertisement 'I'd say it's probably hard to put a specific number down to it,' Billy Schroeder, Sr. V.P. for the PGA Tour. 'But I think what you've started to see in this conversation here is the breadth of approach. Trying to leave no stone unturned, trying to find everything that we can through our competition, our administration of it, the way that we present it, all facets of it to maximize the fan enjoyment and remove any of those impediments as best we can.' Toward that goal of pace of play transprancy, starting this week at the Rocket Classic, the time required for both the front and back nines will be part of the players' scorecard page on PGA Yet, the knowledge of how much time will be saved is unknown. Advertisement 'There are just many, many things to it,' Dennis said of providing a specific time savings with the Tour's initiatives. 'I think it's important to say that we don't have a target number or something. That's not the focus. We're trying to hit every aspect of this. This was one of the very most important things to fans. So, it's worth the effort.' This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 25, 2025, where it first appeared.
Daily Mirror
21-06-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Scott Scheffler Sr. replied to fan who demanded he 'move out the way' perfectly
Scottie Scheffler is aiming to defend his Travelers Championship title this weekend and his father, Scott, will be in attendance to offer his support in Connecticut As the Travelers Championship draws to a close this weekend, all eyes are on Scottie Scheffler as he aims to be the first in more than two decades to retain his title. And he's likely to have dad Scott by his side in Cromwell, Connecticut, as he chases yet another historic victory. Scheffler Sr. was right there cheering when his son triumphed over Tom Kim in last year's dramatic play-off at TPC River Highlands. The pair were locked at 22 under par before Scheffler Jr. clinched the crown with a par on the first play-off hole. However, amid the celebrations, a commotion involving Scheffler Sr. caught the attention of golf fans. But his dignified reaction to a confrontation with a disgruntled spectator revealed a possible source of his son's grace under pressure. Positioned between a grandstand and a ShotLink tower to catch a glimpse of the final green, Scheffler Sr. unsurprisingly found himself in a spot coveted by fellow spectators. But a PGA Tour report (via The Mirror US) depicted the class of the man Scottie takes his cues from. That's when the ex-carpenter realised he was blocking the view for some. And it culminated in one fan frustratingly calling out Scott: "Hey, move out of the way!" In regards to what happened next, Scott's response defied expectations. Where many a sportsperson's parent might stand their ground, Scheffler Sr's modesty shone through and reflected the the kind poise his son usually displays around the greens. "Scott waved his hand to apologise and kneeled down, blocking his view in the process," read the account. "He laughed and shrugged, realising then that he didn't need to see what would happen. "He has watched a similar scene play out more than a few times in recent months. Those fans hadn't. They deserved to see it. The sound would tell the story anyway." Indeed, the crowd's roar did indeed tell him all he needed to know as Scheffler, who finished T7 at the US Open on Sunday, clinched the victory. Kim was a close second but fell short against a player in the prime of his career. Scheffler's win earned him the top prize of £2.7million and marked his sixth victory of 2024 at the time. Consequently, he became the first player on the PGA Tour to win six events before July since Arnold Palmer achieved the same feat back in 1962. The Texan is accustomed to exuding class in every aspect of his game. He carries himself with sophistication, as was recently demonstrated at the PGA Championship. It was there he had to play with a back-up driver after his was declared unfit for play. Nonetheless, he still managed to secure another major title and didn't make a bit of fuss over the entire ordeal. Scheffler Sr. displayed the same sense of style and confidence in a moment where he could have reacted very differently. No fuss, and not a hint of petulance, the same stoic mentality that is quickly earning his son a place among the golfing greats.
USA Today
20-06-2025
- Business
- USA Today
KPMG Women's PGA Championship showcases cutting-edge platform KPMG Performance Insights
Over the past quarter century, advanced analytics have transformed much of the sports world. Thanks to technology platforms such as the PGA Tour's ShotLink, Tour players, coaches, media and fans now have more performance data at their fingertips than they could ever possibly consume. Relative to other sports leagues, the LPGA was late to the analytics party, but has made up for lost time, thanks to the 2021 introduction of KPMG Performance Insights, which generates the sort of advanced analytics and performance data that had been missing from the women's game for years. LPGA athletes suddenly had a wealth of information to help them make small adjustments in their practice routines or tournament play that would translate into significant performance gains. Since its inception, KPMG has been relentless in scaling up the platform. In 2022, for example, KPMG Performance Insights added a player dashboard (an example can be found here) with personalized portals that provide access to data and insights. In 2023, in support of KPMG ambassador and U.S. Solheim Cup captain Stacy Lewis, the company provided KPMG Performance Insights tools, such as analyzing 20,000 simulations to identify the optimal pairings for the matches. Those simulations went so far as to identify how players perform under pressure or on certain types of grass. Last year KPMG Performance Insights went next level through the incorporation of AI-empowered predictive analytics that provided leading-edge insights for LPGA tournaments. Additionally, to enhance the KPMG Women's PGA Championship, KPMG partnered with T-Mobile to introduce KPMG CHAMPCAST presented by T-Mobile, which leverages ShotLink Pro 2.0 cutting-edge technology to create an immersive experience for fans watching at home or onsite. (An example of KPMG CHAMPCAST can be found here.) 'The KPMG Women's PGA Championship is the most tech-forward event on the LPGA,' said Shawn Quill, National Sports Industry Leader at KPMG. 'Through KPMG Performance Insights and KPMG CHAMPCAST presented by T-Mobile, we're providing the players with real-time, shot-level data and analytics. With features like win probabilities, winning score projections, a dedicated player portal, 3D imagery, shot trails and individual shot highlights, players, fans and the media are able to get closer to the action than ever before.' As has been the case from the outset, KPMG continues to ramp up its platform by adding more features and benefits for players and fans. For the 2025 KPMG Women's PGA Championship, KPMG is providing new, enhanced features through an AI-generated daily recap. Hole-by-hole AI course analytics that will help players decide how best to attack the difficult Fields Ranch East layout at PGA Frisco. This feature will provide players with information on the best way to play each hole and the trouble spots to avoid on the course. Based on the KPMG Performance Insights Daily Recap (an example can be found here) from Thursday's first round, there is a 92% chance the cutline falls between +2 and +4. Players will be able to use this data to help them decide how aggressively they will need to play in the second round. As an example, KPMG ambassador Leona Maguire currently sits at even par through 18 holes. Based on insights from the report, a round of 75 Friday gives her a 95% chance to make the weekend. Additional insights from the recap show the relative difficulty of each hole from the first round. For example, hole 6 (a 446-yard par 4 with bunkers protecting the green) currently has a birdie or better percentage of 2% and a bogey or worse percentage of nearly 50%. As players head into their second round, they will know that a score of par on the sixth hole is actually helping them gain strokes on the field. These are all great tools for LPGA fans and media, but they're invaluable to the LPGA players. 'As part of our strategy, we are focused on setting the standard for excellence in women's golf,' Quill said. 'We are excited about our new KPMG Performance Insights Daily Recaps that include AI-powered course analysis, which provides players data on how each hole is playing, and AI-generated scoring targets, so the players can see the predicted cut line and winning scores. These powerful insights will equip the players so they can adjust their approach as they prepare for the next round.'
NBC Sports
18-06-2025
- Business
- NBC Sports
KPMG Women's PGA ups purse by $1.6 million, matching largest on LPGA
PGA of America CEO Derek Sprague and KPMG CEO Paul Knopp join Golf Central to explain why it 'was the right time' to increase the KPMG Women's PGA Championship purse to a record-tying $12 million. The KPMG Women's PGA is now on equal terms with the U.S. Women's Open when it comes to prize money. KPMG announced Tuesday its total purse is now $12 million, up from $10.4 million a year ago. KPMG took over as title sponsor in 2015 when the PGA of America became partners with the LPGA in the major championship that dates to 1955. More than money, the company has provided players with data to improve their games called 'KPMG Performance Insights,' which operates on a smaller scale of the ShotLink data on the PGA Tour. Golf Channel Staff, For the Women's PGA, which starts Thursday at the Fields Ranch East at PGA of America headquarters near Dallas, KPMG is adding AI-enhanced features like hole-by-hole analysis delivered to players after each round. Another feature is AI-generated scoring targets, particularly the cut, giving players an idea if they're safe or need to make a move. 'The high purse, top courses, comprehensive broadcast coverage, and technology are all ways we are setting the standard,' said Paul Knopp, the U.S. chairman and CEO of KPMG.
