For comments: ben.alberstadt@golfwrx.com

Good Wednesday morning, golf fans.

1. Small Masters field ahead?

AP report…”With no significant tournaments the rest of the year, it looks as though 11 players who finish in the top 50 will be added to the field, which would bring the field to 77 players among those expected to compete.”

• “That includes three players who will be making their Masters debuts without ever having won on the PGA Tour or European tour: Adam Schenk, Eric Cole and Denny McCarthy. Schenk qualified by reaching the Tour Championship for the first time.”

• “The 11 expected to get in through top 50 in the world ranking are Ryan Fox, Min Woo Lee, McCarthy, Will Zalatoris, Justin Rose, Harris English, Cole, J.T. Poston, Adrian Meronk, Adam Hadwin and Nicolai Hojgaard.”

• “Four players — Luke List, Erik van Rooyen, Camilo Villegas and Ludvig Åberg — earned invitations by winning PGA Tour events in the fall.”

2. New sponsor for former Honda Classic

From a press release…”Information technology company Cognizant has become the new title sponsor of the PGA TOUR’s long-running South Florida event formerly known as the Honda Classic, which will now become the Cognizant Classic.”

• “The Cognizant Classic will return to PGA National Resort’s Champion Course the week of February 26–March 3, as part of the FedExCup regular season. The sponsorship deal runs from 2024-30.”

• “On behalf of the PGA TOUR, our thanks to Cognizant for their commitment to the PGA TOUR’s South Florida event through 2030,” said PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan. “Through this partnership, the Cognizant Classic will continue to be one of the premier sports and entertainment events in the Palm Beaches while maintaining its role as a charitable leader within the community.”

3. Cabrera reinstated

Golf Digest’s Joel Beall…”Angel Cabrera has been reinstated to the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions following a two-year prison sentence for gender violence.”

• “In a letter obtained by Golf Digest, Cabrera was notified by Andy Levinson, senior vice president of the tour, on Dec. 18 that his suspension had been lifted effective immediately.”

• “Failure to comply with the terms of your release from prison or any additional information regarding your legal situation in Argentina may result in the immediate reinstatement of your suspension,” Levinson wrote.

4. Things we won’t be talking about in 10 years…

Golf Digest assembled a list, which includes…

• “Teegate…It started when Patrick Reed threw a tee at Rory McIlroy in an attempt to “say hello” as the new year kicked off at the Dubai Desert Classic. McIlroy then threw a dagger at Reed in a press conference—upset over getting a subpoena from Reed’s lawyer on Christmas Eve—and the spat was on. It was the silly kind of fluff that went down smooth in January when we were all easing into the golf year but in hindsight seems not just figuratively but literally crazy. The one saving grace was that it actually spilled on to the course, McIlroy pulling out a one-shot win over Reed.”

Larry Bohannan, Palm Springs Desert Sun…

• “I just don’t watch golf as much as I used to.”

• “I watch the majors, but that’s about it.”

• “The PGA Tour tells me the best players play here when some of the best players don’t play there.”

• …”The PGA Tour and the PIF may feel they are battling for the heart and soul of professional men’s golf in the world. But the message from readers seems clear: The constant fighting and insulting and preening of some figures on both sides might just kill the goose that laid the golden egg. In what is a niche sport to begin with compared to the goliaths of the NFL, the NBA, major league baseball and even soccer, golf might be turning off its fans with the bickering and with the top players in the game getting together only four times a year at the major championships.”

6. The caddie who launched a whisky empire

Jim Dobson for Forbes…”Kingsbarns Distillery is the brainchild of Scottish golf caddie Douglas Clement. As a long-time caddie at Kingsbarns Links in the East Neuk of Fife in Scotland, Clement was constantly entertaining wealthy golfers who visited from all over the world to play Golf at St Andrews. His clients always wanted to go to a distillery for whisky tasting during their visit but there was nothing nearby, so he began to form a plan.”

• “Turning his dream into reality was a labor of love for the young caddie, born in St Andrews and brought up on a farm near Anstruther. During the 80s, Clement had often visited a derelict 18th century farm on the Cambo Estate which he had always considered the perfect location for a distillery just a few miles from St. Andrews. From its conception in 2009, it took five years for the idea to be formed into a full operational whisky distillery.”

7. Ben Baller’s 24K putter and WITB

Our Andrew Tursky…“Ben Yang, a.k.a. Ben Baller, is a world-famous jeweler, music producer, actor, and podcaster who’s been a tastemaker for celebrities, musicians, and sports stars for decades.”

• “…Over the last two years, Ben Baller has also developed a newfound love of golf, and he’s bringing his eye for “cool stuff” to the golf world.”

• “Despite his short period of involvement in the sport, he’s already broken 80 four times, he was on the winning 2023 Farmers Insurance Pro-Am team, and he’s earned the nickname “BBACK9.”

• “And, as one could only expect from the longtime jewelry titan, Ben Baller also has one of the coolest WITBs in all of golf. His setup includes a Bubba Watson pink proto Ping G430 driver (gifted to him by Bubba Watson personally), blacked-out TaylorMade P790 irons, custom-stamped TaylorMade MG4 wedges, and a jaw-dropping 24K gold Scotty Cameron 1-of-1 Circle-T putter, custom-made by Scotty Cameron putter fitting director Paul Vizanko.”

8. Maryland to host 5 big championships

Todd Kelly for Golfweek..”The U.S. Golf Association is making a splash in the Old Line State.”

• “There are five championships coming to Maryland, the USGA announced Tuesday morning, three for Woodmont Country Club and two more for Columbia Country Club.”

• “The Adaptive Open, which debuted in 2022, is headed to Woodmont, located in Rockville, about 20 miles north of Washington, D.C., in 2025 and 2026. The private club was established in 1913 and moved to its current location in 1950. It will also host the 2028 U.S. Junior Amateur.”

• “Columbia CC, in Chevy Chase, is about seven miles north of D.C. and will host two senior events, the 2027 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur and the 2035 U.S. Senior Amateur.”

9. Rory skips BBC Sports Personality of the Year ceremony

Mike Hall for Golf Monthly…”Team Europe Ryder Cup star Rory McIlroy was nominated for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award after another outstanding year. However, the 34-year-old didn’t made an appearance at the prestigious ceremony, with his Ryder Cup teammate Tommy Fleetwood attending on his behalf”