For comments: ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com

Good Wednesday morning, golf fans, as the PGA Tour takes a rare week off from action.

1. Annika an ANGC member?

Adam Schupak for Golfweek…”Annika Sorenstam, winner of 10 women’s majors and 72 LPGA Tour titles, was recently fitted for a green jacket.”

• “According to multiple sources who spoke to Golfweek on the condition of anonymity, Sorenstam, 53, officially became a member at Augusta National Golf Club earlier this month when the club opened for the current season. A spokesperson for Augusta National Golf Club declined to comment. Mike McGee, Sorenstam’s husband and manager, also declined to comment.”

• “Augusta National has traditionally cited membership as a private matter and gone to great lengths to keep its membership list, which is believed to be in the neighborhood of 300 and includes a group of some of the wealthiest and most powerful businessmen — and since 2012 women — private.”

2. Final 10 Grant Thornton Invitational teams announced

Via PGATour.com…”Tournament officials today announced the remaining 10 teams that will compete in the Grant Thornton Invitational set to debut Dec. 8-10, 2023, at the Tiburón Golf Club in Naples, Florida.”

• Charley Hull and Justin Rose

• Megan Khang and Denny McCarthy

• Céline Boutier and Harris English

• Andrea Lee and Billy Horschel

• Mel Reid and Russell Henley

• Cheyenne Knight and Tom Hoge

• Madelene Sagström and Ludvig Åberg

• Allisen Corpuz and Cameron Champ

• Ruoning Yin and Nick Taylor

• Leona Maguire and Lucas Glover

3. Jackson Van Paris breaks through at St. Andrews

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”Jackson Van Paris was a can’t miss junior player. Consistently in the mix in the biggest events, even as a 14-year-old at the 2019 U.S. Amateur, where he won a match to nearly break Bobby Jones’ record as the youngest to do so. Winner of two AJGA invitationals and the prestigious Junior Invitational at Sage Valley in 2020. In same breath as, and often ahead of, contemporaries such as Gordon Sargent, Preston Summerhays and David Ford.”

• “College golf, though, hadn’t come nearly as easy for the Pinehurst, North Carolina, native – that is, until recently.”

• “Now a junior at Vanderbilt, Van Paris notched his first college individual win Tuesday at the St. Andrews Links Collegiate. Van Paris carded just three bogeys over two rounds around St. Andrews’ Jubilee Course, a tough layout made more difficult by cold and windy conditions, and his 9-under total left him three shots clear of runner-up and Vanderbilt teammate Cole Sherwood.”

4. More USGA championships for Pinehurst

Golf Digest’s Joel Beall…”Six more USGA championships will be heading to Pinehurst in the near future, underlining the USGA’s commitment to making the North Carolina mecca one of the governing body’s anchor sites.”

• “The USGA announced Tuesday that the 2027 U.S. Women’s Amateur, 2032 U.S. Junior Amateur and U.S. Girls’ Junior, 2038 U.S. Amateur, 2044 U.S. Women’s Amateur and a future U.S. Adaptive Open have been added to Pinehurst’s hosting slate.”

• “Bringing more championships to a venue like Pinehurst is a testament to the USGA’s commitment to our long term partnership with the resort and our promise of expanding the presence of our organization in the area,” said John Bodenhamer, chief championships officer of the USGA. “Pinehurst’s rich golfing heritage and commitment to excellence make it the perfect setting for all of the USGA’s world-class events. Their commitment to our Open championships is incredible, and now we are able to shine a light on the amateur game here as well.”

5. Morikawa’s putter shaft switch

GolfWRX for PGATour.com…”Prior to Summer 2023, however, Morikawa and Sweeney noticed that the differential between the lightweight TP Soto blade putter head, and the heavy graphite shaft, could be affecting his feel. Morikawa didn’t want the stiffness of the shaft to change, though, because he liked the consistency it added to his stroke.”

• “So, Morikawa – and Sweeney – wanted an extra stiff putter shaft, but with an ultra-lightweight construction to better match with his TP Soto blade putter head.”

• “The products that Morikawa tested included a Mitsubishi Diamana P-135 shaft, which uses the same weave and materials that the company uses in its flagship products, and the shaft is designed to reduce torque and increase stability throughout the stroke.”

• “He liked it, but the shaft was still too heavy.”

• “That’s when Mitsubishi got into re-design mode and built Morikawa a 1-of-1 prototype. According to the company, its designers were able to retain the same stiffness as the heavier model, while reducing the weight of the shaft to 105 grams.”

6. Nelly still searching

Kent Paisley for Golf Digest…”Oddly enough, this season, Korda doesn’t have a win of her own, but has posted seven top 10s in 15 starts, has been the No. 1 player in the world twice, and has represented the U.S. in both the International Crown and Solheim Cup. With four events remaining, Korda is staring down the possibility of a winless year during a non-COVID impacted season for the first time since her rookie season in 2017.”

• “I think the season has been up and down,” Korda explained. “There have been really good finishes. At the beginning of the year golf felt really easy. Just was top-10-ing, and then I got injured and the momentum of my season really shifted. So kind of a little bit disappointing obviously, but that’s golf, right? You kind of have to ride the wave of it. You got to put your head down and sometimes work.

• “I’ve been doing that, and I’m hoping for a momentum shift going into this week and then the last two in Florida as well. But, yeah, definitely a bit of an up and down year, which, you know, they’re sports, so I feel like athletes are always kind of in a spotlight, so when we have bad days they’re really magnified too. So unfortunately I’ve definitely had a few of those this year, but hoping to change that momentum.”

7. LIV said no?

Our Matt Vincenzi…”According to DP World Tour player Eddie Pepperell, LIV Golf rejected a potential deal with Jon Rahm prior to the 2023 season due to the Spaniard’s asking price being astronomical.”

• “While speaking on “The Chipping Forecast” podcast, Pepperell said LIV approached about fifteen players asking what their prospective price would be to leave their current tour to join LIV.”

• “I heard that Jon Rahm… I heard that LIV had approached 15 players this year asking them for a rough figure as to what would get them across and I was told that Rahm’s figure was so prohibitively large that LIV rejected it. So, make of that what you want.”

• There has been some speculation that the reigning Masters champion would be open to joining LIV over the past few years. Rahm has defended his fellow Spaniard Sergio Garcia’s decision to join LIV and said he believes the 43-year-old should be included in the Ryder Cup in the future and called Garcia’s ban “stupid”.

8. Bubba on the up?

Eric J. Wallace for the Palm Beach Post…”Bubba Watson may not have been able to catch Bryson DeChambeau and Crushers GC at the LIV Golf team championship on Sunday, but a stellar final-round performance at Trump Doral Miami proved he’s still got the game to be a star in the future of the Saudi-backed league.”

• “Watson shot 67 and his team, the pink-clad Range Goats, finished 9-under and two shots away from the team championship behind DeChambeau’s victorious Crushers GC.”

• “I’m excited. I went bogey-free on the Blue Monster,” Watson said. “The whole goal was to play solid golf and help the team. And I did.

• “What a year. The Range Goats came out of nowhere. We played great and just have to improve a little bit.”

9. Brooks: People are afraid to be honest

• “The 33-year-old made the admission in an interview with Golf Monthly, saying: “I don’t care what other people think. People are afraid to be honest. Nowadays, we try to put it softly so it doesn’t sound too bad, but you can’t tell me that’s not what I did.”