The ladies come to Mississaugua, Scottie the Dominator and more LIV lunacy

Each week, we ask our panel of writers, PGA members and golf industry experts to weigh in with their views on the hot topics of the day.

Scottie Scheffler won for the fifth time on Tour at the BMW Championship Sunday when third round leader Robert MacIntyre coughed up a four-stroke lead. Scheffler rarely makes mistakes and seems to wear opponents down though a combination of strong play and patience. Has he reached the level that Nicklaus and Woods enjoyed where their mere presence in the field, especially when chasing, caused opponents to tremble and stumble?

Jim Deeks, Fairways Magazine (@jimdeeks): Excellent question.  His come-from-behind victory this past weekend seemed unlikely when they teed off, but as you say, McIntyre coughed up.  Was that because it was Scheffler coming up like a stealthy shark from behind, or because he was nervous in the lead, or both?  Either way, the pursuer being Scheffler can’t help but make one look over one’s shoulder constantly, and more than any other pursuer these days.

Craig Loughry, Golf Ontario (@craigloughry): I’m not sure Scheff is as intimidating as Woods or Nicklaus just yet. But he sure has a knack for hanging around the top 10. And I think he knows at any time he can rattle off some birdies to make sneak out a win, he has a habit of manufacturing good golf. But I’ll add, if he wins a few more times, I think that message will be received by all the other players, and they will be looking for his name on the leaderboard.

Michael Schurman, Master Professional / Hall of Fame Member, PGA of Canada: If not yet, soon. Tiger pulled off some astounding things on his way to victory, including holing long putts, hole outs, and great iron shots. Jack just plodded along, hitting greens and being the best pressure putter who ever lived. Scottie is a bit of a mix of the two. He isn’t the longest driver like Tiger and Jack, nor the best iron player like Hogan, but he consistently produces the required score. In fact, he is improving in all categories. When he first began winning, people looked at him and thought it was a mirage that his swing could repeat. As it has been studied more closely, we find he is very sound and repeatable. His escalation up the winning board has been gradual, not explosive like Tiger, but he is definitely getting more attention as he adds trophy after trophy. The big question is “for how long”?

Hal Quinn, Freelance Writer, Vancouver: The only refreshing thing coming out of the BMW was young Robbie’s candour when he said he wanted to smash all 14 clubs. The “learned something from it” is too much with us — no thanks to Mr. Mullet — and the “aw shucks, hit some good shots coming in” from Scheffler definitely doesn’t help (almost every week it seems}. Despite the numbers and not admitting an 82-foort chip was lucky, the footie dancer doesn’t intimidate in the Eldrick-Jack stare category. The guys just know he’s there, unemotionally functioning, nothing dramatic, just day-in day-out boring excellence.

Peter Mumford, Fairways Magazine (@FairwaysMag): When he’s leading, he can’t be caught; when he’s trailing, he’s always a threat. Scheffler may not have the body of work that Tiger and Jack wielded as an extra weapon yet, but I’m pretty sure all the players know where he is and what he’s doing. That’s to Scottie’s advantage and a distraction to the contenders.

The CPKC Women’s Open goes this week at Mississaugua G&CC. It’s the first time the historic venue has hosted the LPGA and there’s a very strong field. What’s the best storyline about this event?

Deeks: Brooke Henderson showed some signs of life this past weekend in Portland.  Just one mediocre round prevented her from being in the mix.  Can she dig deep this week and fire up the fans?  That’s the story for me.

Loughry: The story is always the event itself and how well it’s received and respected by the players (echos of it being an unofficial “Major”). I hope that resonates and continues this week, that would and should be the story.

Schurman: There are two stories for me. First, the course. Mississaugua G.C is one of my favourites and I have played it many times. Watching it on TV will be different for me because I know it well. Second, I have always felt that LPGA players are more international, and Canada is one of the most accepting of other nationalities. This isn’t necessarily a storyline, but I hope the Ladies enjoy our country and they feel welcome.

Quinn: The storyline is actually a question. In what universe does any organization/business/start up schedule any event on the same weekend as their chief and dominating rival’s grand finale? The CFL is now a summer league because of the NFL. MLB and the NBA even check the F1 schedule. The freakin’ PGA Tour defers to the NFL and gets out of town before the greatest show on turf arrives. So how is it, question #2, that over the decades the LPGA Tour keeps hiring or employing schedule makers who think their Tour is a prime-time product and that anyone is watching? (By the way, it’s the only tour with massive schedule gaps). The story is that this is a great tournament at a great venue and deserves a competent overseer to schedule it when, other than its own minuscule devoted audience, potential fans around the world could enjoy it.

Mumford: I caught a bit of the Portland Open last Sunday and couldn’t help but be impressed with the play of the Japanese Iwai twins and the rest of the very international field that contended. The LPGA has truly become a world tour populated by great players from all over the globe. Mississauga the city, with its multi-ethnic population, and Mississaugua the golf club, with its rich and storied history, make for an ideal venue to host the best women golfers in the world to compete and celebrate their diversity.

Last Sunday in Indianapolis, Jon Rahm finished second in the season ending LIV Golf event to clinch the overall 2025 Individual Championship. Rahm had no wins on the season, while Joaquin Niemann had five. Does it make sense that a five-time winner loses out on the title to a player that strung together a bunch of top 10’s but never won? (Editor’s note: this is NOT a set-up question for Jim to respond, “There’s nothing about LIV Golf that makes sense.” But he may anyway. 😊)

Deeks: Y’know, I gotta say… there’s nothing about LIV Golf that makes sense.  To me, anyway.  (And in all seriousness, this outcome makes no sense at all.)

Loughry: This makes ZERO sense to me. And it doesn’t matter how you convince me otherwise. Not even if the method was a simple tally, the total number of strokes taken over the season (assuming Rahm had fewer strokes over their events). A win will always mean more in my opinion, it’s ridiculous.

Schurman: Unfortunately for Rahm, he will receive criticism for something he was required to do. He finished in the top 10 in every event, while Niemann had two events with no points.  Currently, the winner earns 40 points, 2nd 30, 3rd 24, etc. This means the winner gets an extra bonus, but it’s clear that someone failed in the actuarial department. Further down the list, players earn the same points but finish higher than others. This doesn’t have to be this difficult. Simply award one point for every position, with a 5-point bonus for winning.

Quinn: As painful and shocking to my system as it may be, have to agree with Mr. Deeks’ succinct assessment of the entire LIV fandango. Niemann should immediately tell his offshore account managers that nothing else is coming, and on bended knee, apply to the PGA Tour for reinstatement accepting all penalties and every extended time frame. Of course, in real life he’ll have to contend with others who can win five (spiced with Majors) but that’s what he wanted from the time he picked up a club. The PGA Tour is far from perfect, but it’s the only real game in town.

Mumford: Truly mind boggling! Surely some numbers nerd could have foreseen this possibility and adjusted the points for a win so that five wins would trump any combination of ranked losses. Good year for Rahm but not even close to Niemann’s performance. To make this scenario even crazier, Rahm picks up $18 million in bonus money for losing 14 times on the season.