As a year, 2015 is almost nearing its end. This week’s Philippine Open on the Asian Tour is the last professional tournament before the action winds up.
– #360business: Keeping Ladies European Tour on course
– #360view: It was right to invite Paige Spiranac
– Joy of Golf: Slow play fast becoming a big issue
Jordan Spieth and Lydia Ko, with a combined age of 40 years, will end the year as the world No1s in the men’s and women’s rankings respectively.
Obviously, they will remember 2015 for a long, long time and for all the right reasons. But there were several other newsmakers in the sport this year, and here is a look at some of them…
Tiger Woods
It’s a measure of his status in the sport that Woods continued to dominate the headlines, even though he played just a handful of events. However, unlike Spieth, Woods will want to forget 2015 in a hurry as the only news he made was of the negative kind.
The former world No. 1 is in the midst of another break from the game after two further operations on his back this year to follow up the microdiscectomy procedure he underwent in April 2014.
Tiger Woods turns 40 in 2 weeks. Today marks 7 1/2 years since he last won a major (2008 US Open)
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) December 16, 2015
On the course, he missed cuts at three of the four majors and posted his worst round as a professional. And he has fallen to a lowly 413 in the world.
Off the course, he broke up with his girlfriend Lindsey Vonn and there were rumours of an alleged affair with Amanda Dufner, which reportedly led to her divorce with Jason Dufner. However, Woods and Jason were later seen playing several practice rounds together.
Suzan Pettersen
The Norwegian golfer has stiff competition from Donald Trump as the villain of the year.
By standing her ground and not conceding a putt from gimme range to US rookie Allison Lee in her four-ball match on Saturday of the Solheim Cup, Pettersen created what was easily the biggest controversy of the year.
Pettersen was well within the rules in claiming the hole, but most fans felt she went against the spirit of the game.
Rory McIlroy
Four wins in a season would be a dream for most golfers, but McIlroy will come out feeling gutted with his 2015.
It was good for him off the golf course – settling his legal battle with Horizon and getting engaged to girlfriend Erica Stoll – but a freak accident while playing football just before the Open Championship ruined what was the most successful stretch of his season the previous year.
Because of the ankle injury, McIlroy missed the defence of his Open and WGC-Bridgestone titles.
Jordan Spieth
The 22-year-old American hogged the limelight for all the right reasons. Five wins in 2015, and seven in the last 12 months if you include December 2014, is phenomenal by any standard. But when that list includes the Masters, the US Open and the Tour Championship, it just highlights the quality of golf he has played.
Spieth has been rewarded for his consistency with the world No. 1 crown, and I am sure this star is going to shine brightly for many years to come. Why? Because his game is so uncomplicated, and he seems to be completely unfazed by success.
Jason Day
No player had more drama surrounding him this year than Jason Day. Coming off a thumb injury that took the wind out of his 2014, Day had more physical issues this year, namely persistent back trouble and a scary spell of positional vertigo that actually saw him collapse on the 18th green of Chambers Bay during the US Open.
But the Aussie fought through it all, and after the near miss at the Open Championship, he embarked on a sensational stretch of form that saw him win four times in six starts, including his first major win at the PGA Championship. He then ended the year on a personal high, becoming a father for the second time.
Lydia Ko
Living up to all the promise she showed as an amateur, the Kiwi had a fantastic season. Her dominance makes us forget that she is just 18.
Among her achievements in 2015, she became the No. 1 ranked player in the world, bagged a $1 million bonus for winning the CME Globe year-long race, was the LPGA Player of the Year and racked up six wins across the globe.
Chambers Bay
Never before did a golf course hosting a major face so much criticism than Chambers Bay. The US Open venue, especially the greens, were called ‘disgraceful’ by Ian Poulter and ‘like putting on broccoli’ by Henrik Stenson, while Billy Horschel said he ‘lost respect for the USGA’ for their choice of golf course.
Donald Trump
Less said the better. Trump kept himself in the news in the golfing circles as well as shooting his mouth off in his bid to become the president of the United States.
Missed this earlier. R&A blacklists Trump Turnberry from future Opens over ‘toxic’ rep, according to @Independent https://t.co/2W7kCJbhw2
— Iain Strachan (@IainStrachan) December 13, 2015
His comments against immigrant Mexicans and Muslims have so far led to cancellation of the PGA Grand Slam on his golf course and Trump Trunberry being reportedly removed from the Open rota.
Robert Allenby
The Aussie provided the most intriguing start to the 2015 golfing season with his misadventure in Hawaii, where he said he was mugged, possibly drugged, and robbed.
Later, he was in the news once again when his caddie gave up mid-way through the round at the Canadian Open, apparently sick of Allenby’s abusive behavior.
