THIS WEEK'S EDITIONS OF THE FIRST CALL

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QUESTION OF THE WEEK

What is your opinion about players being compensated to play in the Ryder Cup?

Send replies on this question or other topics and questions you would like to have asked to shall@buffalogroupe.com. For a response to be published, you must include your first and last name, along with the city and state of residence.

> Responses to last week's question.

LPGA Tour, CME Group: Announce an extension of the CME Group Tour Championship and the season-long Race to the CME Globe through 2027. CME Group assumed title sponsorship of the LPGA Tour’s season-ending tournament in 2011. This year, the tournament will feature an enhanced total purse of $11 million, including a historic $4 million first-place prize, the largest single prize in the history of women’s golf.

Greyson Clothiers: To expand its retail footprint with a new Den store opening later this month in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The new 4,100 square-foot Greyson Clothiers Grand Rapids Den will be the company's third in Michigan, joining shops in Detroit and Harbor Springs. Other locations include: New Orleans, New York, West Palm Beach, Atlanta, Denver, and Republic of Korea. Unique to Greyson Clothiers Grand Rapids Den will be the addition of a Custom Shop — a glass enclosure to offer guests the opportunity to customize hats and other wears while watching the process in action.

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Dye Designs Group: Selected to begin renovations at Flatirons Golf Course, an 18-hole, par-70 course that is owned and operated by the city of Boulder, Colorado. DDG’s work will be led by Matt McGarey, the firm’s senior design associate, and will initially encompass a remodel of hole No. 13, a 441-yard, par 4. Construction is scheduled to begin in January 2025 and be completed in March.

Windsor: The 472-acre private sporting and residential community on the barrier island of Vero Beach, Florida, receives Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary certification for its 18-hole golf course designed by architect Robert Trent Jones Jr. The designation follows a comprehensive evaluation of Windsor’s course environmental standards and reflects the club’s dedication to enhancing the area’s natural surroundings and strengthening the local wildlife habitat.

Piza Golf: Founder Agustin Piza has been selected to design a series of golf holes for TGL, the indoor golf league that was created by Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and Mike McCarley of TMRW Sports. Each match, the course will be comprised of 15 of TGL’s custom-designed holes by renowned golf course designers. The holes are inspired by authentic golf landscapes such as links, canyons, coastal, deserts and tropical settings.

Toledo Classic Inc.: Toledo Classic collaborates with the LPGA to bring the Epson Tour and the Legends of the LPGA together for a dual 54-hole stroke-play event, July 21-27 at Highland Meadows Golf Club in Toledo, Ohio. Toledo native and 13-time LPGA winner Stacy Lewis has agreed to host the event. The field will feature 102 Epson Tour players and 42 LPGA Legends players who will play with their respective tours for the first two rounds. Following the 36-hole cut, for the final round, the tours will be integrated. An official name for the tournament and purses will be announced at a later date.

LPGA Tour: Announces the winners of the 2024 Gold Driver Awards, which are open to all LPGA tournaments from the previous season. This year’s Tournament of the Year honor was awarded to the JM Eagle LA Championship, the event’s first time receiving the honor. Other winners include the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship (Green Driver Award for sustainability); AIG Women’s Open (Best Player Experience); The Chevron Championship (Best Community Engagement); Mizuho Americas Open (Best Advertising/Social Media Campaign); Meijer LPGA Classic (Best Sponsor Activation); CPKC Women’s Open (Best Volunteer Appreciation).

LPGA Tour: Announces that its 75th anniversary season will award record prize money across 35 events. The Tour will award more than $131 million, which represents a significant increase of over $62 million in four years, up approximately 90% from 2021. The global schedule will begin two weeks later than in 2024 and take the LPGA Tour to 14 states in the United States and 11 other countries, including two multi-event Asian swings. New on the calendar in 2025 is the Black Desert Championship, which will be held at the Utah resort’s signature course in May. Also, the LPGA returns to Mexico for the first time since 2017 for the Riviera Maya Open in Cancun.

MyrtleBeachGolfTrips.com: Announces its exclusive Black Friday promotion, a limited-time sale that combines 50% off afternoon tee times at six of Myrtle Beach’s South Strand courses with up to 45% off accommodations at Litchfield Golf and Beach Resort between March 1 and June 30. The promotion runs through Dec. 4.

Nippon Shaft: Max McGreevy won the Japan Golf Tour's Dunlop Phoenix Tournament playing N.S.Pro Modus3 Prototype steel shafts in his irons. McGreevy posted a tournament record score of 22-under par and played a stretch of 55 bogey-free holes.

Evnroll: Launches a Holiday Package in which each Neo Classic ER2 Triple Black putter purchased between Dec. 1-31 will include a Birdie Town tote, towel and ball marker for free — an $80 value. The Neo Classic ER2 putter was named Best Overall in the MyGolfSpy Best Blade Putters 2024 Buyer’s Guide and received a Gold Medal ranking in the 2024 Golf Digest Hot List.

L.A.B. Golf: Launches its OZ.1 putter collection, which will be available in two models — OZ.1i that features the company’s first putter-face insert and OZ.1, which uses an all-aluminum construction. The collection was developed in collaboration with 32-time tour winner Adam Scott. The OZ.1i and OZ.1 custom models introduce a new 0-degree vertical shaft lean option and are also available with a 2-degree shaft lean option. The OZ.1 special edition is now available at LABGolf.com; the OZ.1i custom and stock models are expected to launch in December; and the OZ.1 custom and stock versions will debut in January.

Streetrod Golf Cars: Introduces its 2025 fleet of battery-powered golf cars that, for the first time, feature the option of lithium-ion battery power. Previously, Streetrods were only available in gasoline or lead-acid battery configurations. The new batteries have a longer lifespan, allowing Streetrod to offer an 8-year warranty versus the previous battery’s one-year option. 

SuperSpeed Golf: Launches its SuperSpeed App that is now available for download on both iOS and Android devices — and offers both a free and premium versions. From multiple levels of warm-up protocols to long-form data analysis training regimens, the application touches on all aspects of speed training to provide a customized training experience for each user.

SkyGolf: Announces that until December 31 its SX400 handheld rangefinder is available at a $50 discount and the LX2 smart watch with cradle is $20 off. Also, the company is offering a $50 trade-in credit on the purchase a new SkyCaddie Pro 5X, LX5 and LX5C, and an additional $50 credit on the SX400.