Davis Love III still working to plan his playing future

Davis Love III is a legendary figure on the PGA TOUR, but as we all know, time catches up to us all. However, he’s far from done, and as he prepares to play – and host – at the RSM Classic, he’s working to make some decisions on what his future looks like.

With 21 PGA Tour victories behind him, Davis Love III is a lifetime member of the PGA Tour. They can’t stop him from playing even if he’s 93, although they would probably frown on it.

“You can play until they run you off,” Love quipped at his press conference at the RSM Classic, where he is the host.

However, after a few seasons of battling injuries and after having a hip replacement last fall, he’s trying to decide where his game fits best: PGA Tour or PGA Tour Champions. This week, he’s playing and hosting. It’s his third start for the 2019 season.

“I like the first one in Malaysia where there wasn’t a cut,” he joked. Then he added that he played well enough to make a cut if there had been one, so he still has a lot of pride in his profession.

"“I’ve been working on my game a lot the last month,” he noted. “I worked hard to get ready for Vegas. I didn’t putt well there, but I hit it really well.”"

It is ever so with golfers.

These days Love is working on distance, which is amazing for someone who was widely recognized as the longest or one of the longest on the PGA Tour for most of his playing career.

“I didn’t ever really stop pursuing length,” Love explained. “I‘m pursing it more now probably than ever because I need it.”

He’s had Trackman sessions to try to find the best combination of driver equipment for added length.

“I played a power game when not a lot of guys were doing it. Now everybody’s doing it,” he noted.

With newcomers like Cameron Champ blasting drives longer than imaginable, Love knows he has his work cut out for him. During the pro-am at RSM, Love noticed a difference in his ability to hit it long when the temperature dropped and he had to add more clothes. He said he did not have that problem when he was younger.

“All my teachers, experts are trying to get me higher and wider and longer and strong,” he said. “But it doesn’t matter what tour I play. I have to putt better, frankly.”

The other issue he has is that he’s been injured or, in the case of the last 12 months, recovering from surgery.

"“I would like a shot at playing a full season without being hurt,” he said. “I played 15-6 tournaments last year and 15 the year before combined on both tours, so I haven’t played my normal 23 or 24 or 25 events.”"

He recalls seeing Tom Watson and Greg Norman almost winning the Open Championship when they were in their 50s and would like to think he has the ability to succeed where they failed.

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“That’s the reason I keep working,” he added. “Obviously, like a few years ago at Greensboro, everything would have to go right.”

Meanwhile, he’s pleased that the RSM Classic has reached its ninth season. In addition, the sponsor, RSM, had added some programs. The Birdies Fore Love program has raised $2.8 million for local charities where the 700 RSM offices are located. That is on top of he $10 million that the RSM Classic has raised for local charities in Southeast Georgia.

This year, RSM added a new fund-raiser based on birdies in the fall season. The player who makes the most birdies in the fall season wins $300,000 for his favorite charity. Second and third place also win charity money.

“They have really bought into the whole PGA Tour motto of giving back,” Love said. “I know that’s not why they got into it in the beginning, but they’ve really jumped in.”

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After Love finishes his responsibilities this week, he will be faced with trying to decide which tour is best. To figure it out, he will play the PGA Tour in January and February, and then in March, he will play some PGA Tour Champions events.

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