Rogers Media
Mackenzie Hughes has never shied away from sharing her opinion on the news of the day, whether it’s golf or other activities. He has made statements about gun control, racism, what’s going on in Ukraine, etc.
But at the end of the day, he’s a professional golfer and, moreover, a very smart one.
So when he talks (and talks and talks) about it, other people listen.
Hughes, of Dundas, Ont. , earned his spot at The Sentry, the first match of the 2024 PGA Tour season that begins Thursday, only because Jon Rahm defected to LIV. Last year, Hughes finished 51st in the FedExCup standings, just 28 numbers in 50th, which would have guaranteed him a spot in each of the 8 main events of 2024, adding The Sentry. Unfortunately, with Rahm’s move to LIV in a flashy ad in December (“The Letterman jacket, he put on a great display,” Hughes said with a smile), that means Hughes earned a spot in the FedExCup. A great Christmas gift from Spanish to Canadian.
By his own admission, Hughes took credit for his late-season form. He didn’t play well in the summer of 2023, and despite winning the Sanderson Farms Championship last year (the PGA Tour’s final year with a wraparound schedule), he sat out of the big leagues until Rahm, who was ranked 18th in the FedExCup, he was suspended from the PGA Tour for his time on the Saudi-backed tour.
Hughes originally intended to have a large family vacation in the Dominican Republic (like her family of five, her mother, two sisters, her husband and other children) until New Year’s, but sent everyone to Maui at the last minute. .
“It’s a little pricey,” Hughes admitted, “but I felt better now that I had all those outlets online. “
Hughes is on the court this week at Sentry along with four other Canadians, the most he has played in the last Tournament of Champions. This year, the occasion has expanded its criteria to include not only all of last season’s winners, but also all of those who finished in the maximum 50 of the FedExCup. All five are looking to build on the most productive year in Canadian PGA Tour history as Adam Hadwin, Adam Svensson, Nick Taylor, Hughes and top-ranked Corey Conners. Triumph together on its summits.
The Canadiens have to compete in 2024, with the Olympics on the horizon and a chance to play for Mike Weir, the captain of the Presidents Cup international team, at Royal Montreal later this fall.
The PGA Tour schedule for 2024 is set, with a lot of money at stake and continued opportunities to compete on some of the courses globally against, well, most players globally. Hughes knows all this. How to continue long-term is a series of questions with very few answers, even for Hughes, who is a member of the PGA Tour’s Player Advisory Council (PAC).
“It’s been a very weird year to be on the PAC,” Hughes admitted. “I think there were a lot of times that we sat in those meetings thinking that we were having good, meaningful discussions, and then a month later something would happen, and you would be like, ‘wait, we didn’t even really decide on this yet,’ and the Tour is just going ahead […] even though we had no real unanimous sort of buy-in to an idea.
“I know I expressed my frustration at the time and talked about it at the Tour. I thought, “Well, why am I a member of the PAC if I don’t need to worry about any of those decisions in the first place?place? I’m not going to just spend two hours of my time. [. . . ] in an assembly if not for nothing. If they don’t listen to me, I won’t speak.
Hughes, however, had a lot to say Tuesday in Hawaii. He posted on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter, which expired last year, a thread about men’s professional golf that went viral. Of course, I was hopeful and couldn’t wait. so enthusiasts can come back to see anything that interests them.
Hughes felt like 2019 was the “peak” of professional golf. He knows the Tour did well through the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and was one of the first professional sports to return to action. The economic model that year and into 2020 was sustainable. Then LIV came along and all of a sudden the Tour doubled its purses and sponsors were being asked to double their investments. There’s one problem, though.
“I just think about the product, I mean, even though I think it’s great, it’s the same product. I just think enthusiasts are scratching their heads thinking about what’s going on,” Hughes said. “Enthusiasts also think are wondering: Do the guys still like to play golf or are they just worried about money?All those guys who went to LIV made it clear that it’s all about money. , but also money. So for me it’s disappointing.
“The fans just need to watch the game. I think you take a look at the game to escape other nonsense, but I think golf has brought a lot of nonsense to your plate, and now you don’t just have golf, you have a lot of other things to do. It’s a bit like a circus.
Hughes has no visibility into ongoing negotiations between the PGA Tour, the DP World Tour, the Saudi Public Investment Fund and other financiers interested in the PGA Tour’s new for-profit ventures. He also doesn’t know what PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan will do. about the guys who took the money for LIV and didn’t (“The guys who were presented with large sums of cash and didn’t leave, and then the guys who left and maybe can” I played two years on LIV and then I’m back on tour and it’s like everything is fine again? I think those are the guys you have to worry about and who annoy you the most. “)
What he does know for sure, however, is that he no longer has distractions. Hughes may not be attending meetings anytime soon. He’ll accept that the guys on the board have the most productive interests on the PGA Tour. in the heart.
“Thinking about it day after day is just not going to help me or get me anywhere,” Hughes said. “It’s definitely been nicer the last few months to just get back into golf.”
The circus heads to Hawaii this week. Then to the biggest events and the majors and hopefully for Hughes, Paris and Montreal. Hughes had a few things to get off his chest. He did, and now it’s time to get back to work.