Planet Golf News for Friday, January 3, 2025

Lexi Thompson announces New Year's Day engagement | Hot start sends Tom Hoge to lead in PGA Tour opener | Legendary caddie Billy Foster to scale back in 2025

Friday, January 3, 2025

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Today’s Top Golf News in Three Minutes

Good Morning,

Lexi Thompson kicked off 2025 with a personal ace, announcing her engagement to Max Provost while vacationing in Whistler, Canada. She shared the happy news—and the requisite Instagram bling shot—with her followers on New Year’s Day. While the 29-year-old star is keeping mum about her 2025 golfing plans, fans can rest easy knowing she’ll at least tee it up at the year’s first major thanks to her past championship pedigree. As for Max, he’s already proven his supportive chops, appearing alongside Lexi at high-profile events like the Solheim Cup gala. If 2024 was her swan song for full-time LPGA life, Lexi’s starting her new chapter with a bang—one rock and one alpine proposal at a time.

Meanwhile, Tom Hoge came out swinging at the PGA Tour opener, carding a 9-under 64 to grab the first-round lead at The Sentry. Hoge birdied four of his first five holes, a start so hot it might’ve melted his clubs in Hawaii’s tropical sun. Will Zalatoris and Hideki Matsuyama are breathing down his neck at 8-under, while poor defending champ Chris Kirk struggled to a 74, presumably rethinking his entire life during the back nine. Kirk, however, did take time to marvel at the young talent flooding the PGA Tour these days. At 39, he says the game’s gotten tougher—and no, it’s not just his sore knees talking. Kirk praised the new crop of golfers, proving that even grizzled vets can appreciate their successors (just maybe not when they’re stealing the spotlight).

In other news, the much-hyped TGL indoor golf league is set to launch on January 7, and reactions range from “This is the future!” to “Are we seriously watching simulator golf now?” With tech-heavy setups and a quick-fire format, the league promises to inject some adrenaline into a sport traditionally associated with polite claps and nap-worthy TV coverage. But with profitability and fan engagement up in the air, only time will tell if TGL is destined to revolutionize golf—or go the way of neon golf balls and putter covers with pom-poms.

Elsewhere on the PGA Tour, Collin Morikawa once again showed why he’s a Kapalua favorite, firing a bogey-free 7-under 66 in the first round. Sure, he’s come close to winning at The Sentry in the past, but if he doesn’t finish the job this time, we might have to start calling him the bridesmaid of Maui. Also making headlines was Will Zalatoris, who bulked up by 20 pounds in the offseason to silence critics and (hopefully) stop being mistaken for a gust of wind in a Titleist hat.

On the equipment front, Callaway’s new Elyte lineup of drivers, irons, and hybrids is rolling out in early 2025 with hefty price tags and promises of game-changing performance. Whether they’ll actually shave strokes off your game or just make your bag look fancy is up to you and your wallet to decide. But hey, they’ve got AI-designed faces and urethane microspheres—so at least you’ll sound smart talking about them.

Finally, let’s give a slow clap to John Daly, who rang in the New Year by smashing a golf ball over a building. Traffic-waiting logistics aside, it’s nice to see Daly’s antics as gloriously over-the-top as ever. If 2025 starts with daring drives like this, we’re in for one heck of a year in golf.

Today’s Top Golf News 

Today’s Feature Golf Reads

Major Golf Tournaments happening this week

Will Zalatoris "tired" of naysayers, added 20 pounds of muscle ahead of The Sentry

The Sentry - PGA Tour - Kapalua Resort - Kapalua, HI

After the first round of The Sentry 2025 at the Plantation Course at Kapalua in Maui, Hawaii, Tom Hoge has taken the lead with an impressive 9-under 64. Hoge’s round included 10 birdies against just one bogey, showcasing a strong performance on the greens where he gained approximately 3.50 strokes putting.

Following closely behind Hoge are Will Zalatoris and Hideki Matsuyama, both at 8-under par, just one stroke off the lead. Collin Morikawa is positioned in fourth place at 7-under par, continuing his strong track record at this event where he has previously notched five top-10 finishes in five attempts.

The leaderboard after the first round stands as follows:

1. Tom Hoge (-9) 2. Will Zalatoris (-8) 3. Hideki Matsuyama (-8) 4. Collin Morikawa (-7) Several other players are also in contention, with Adam Hadwin and Thomas Detry tied for seventh at 6-under par.

The soft course conditions and steady winds provided a unique challenge for the players, leading to some unexpected performances on the leaderboard. As the tournament progresses, all eyes will be on these early leaders to see if they can maintain their form over the next three rounds of this prestigious PGA Tour event.

The Sentry Stories

The Sentry Videos

Today’s Best Golf Videos

What’s in the Bag (WITB)

Overheard in the Club House

UPCOMING TOURS

Marie Birdie is a female-founded and owned golf and active wear brand for tween and teen girls. Our mission is to inspire, delight, and empower girls to enjoy an active lifestyle while playing golf. Now available at select PGA Tour Superstores.

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