GM. This is Easy Pars. The golf newsletter that never cares what kind of putter you use — especially if it works.

Here’s what we’ve got for you today:

• Lots of sponsor movement early in 2024

• Broomstick rollback next…again?

• The Sentry had some very low scores

Sponsorships too pricey?

Rory is looking somewhat prophetic. In a recent interview, he called out the PGA trying to go toe-to-toe with the Saudi-backed LIV tour.

The arena in which they’re fighting?

Talent? No. Viewership? Nah.

It’s money.

In order to draw more attention, the PGA wanted bigger prize payouts for tournaments. That meant sponsors had to dish out more for the events.

But to make it worthwhile and actually attract viewers, the PGA made it harder for the biggest golf stars to opt out of events. While, in theory, the money-viewer-pros plan should’ve worked — it seemingly hasn’t.

Meanwhile, LIV is passing out millions (and nearly billions) to its players. Those top players are shooting -20+ on the regular (more on that in a bit).

All while drawing paltry viewership and zero fortune 100 (or major golf brand) sponsors.

Time is money, and those who own LIV (the PIF) have enough to buy centuries.

Forgive the pun, but the PIF is playing the long game — longer than the PGA can keep up with (as it seems).

So, what are the rumblings?

Individual player sponsorships are shifting.

• Tiger’s deal with Nike is rumored to be over.

• Jason Day had to dress in pajamas to support his new sponsor (Malbon).

• Rickie showed up without any references to Farmer’s Insurance or Rocket Mortgage at the Sentry.

For the record, they weren’t pajamas, but how are we to tell? Just look at them.

That said, not everyone hates it.

Rickie was honest and said that Farmer’s didn’t renew his contract. He also said a Rocket Mortgage renewal is in the works, but not finalized.

Speaking of big changes, what about equipment?

Bhatia got hot rolling the rock

Imagine if you’re literally 10 back from worst in the field for “strokes gained: putting”.

Make one change, not to your putting, but to your putter. And at your next event you’re literally #1 for the same category.

That’s exactly what happened to Akshay Bhatia.

The switch he made? The good ole broomstick putter.

Turns out these putters are back in style, both among pros and (apparently) the world.

We did a quick search on Google Trends for the last five years, take a look in our latest article covering the topic:

Speaking of low scores, 28 players in the Sentry were at least -20 👀

Look for low scores in the PGA in 2024?

LIV Golf has fewer golf tournaments, in great weather and solid conditions. This leads to very low scores for players.

In fact, Bryson DeChambeau shot a 58 last year!

The PGA tournament courses are known for their challenging nature, from slippery hole positions, to choosing times for their tournaments that lead to more tumultuous conditions.

Arguably, this separates the pros of pros.

But, again arguably, it isn’t what people want to see. If you’re watching a golf YouTube video, you don’t want to see a good golfer get a +6 on a round. Period.

You want to see darts thrown, big putts made, scrambling — for sure.

But that number may matter more than we thought.

The Sentry had amazing conditions, and while the course is not easy, it wasn’t playing too hard last week!

Congrats to Chris Kirk, who took home the W with a -29. Wild.

Jason Day? He got a -24 in his sleep. (Get it, cause he was wearing pajamas?)

Are we in for a low-score 2024? We’ll see.

Meme of the Day

😂😂

All the pros headed out of Golf Galaxy after picking up that new putter.

That’s it for our second issue of 2024, golf fan. We’ll be back Thursday, hopefully spilling more tea on the current sponsorship saga.

Later gator,

E.