CARLSBAD, Calif. – TaylorMade has introduced Kalea, it’s first women’s-exclusive offering from TaylorMade in over a decade.

Kalea features optimized lofts, low/back centre of gravity locations, slot technology in the soles and Kalea SlimTech shafts with smaller tip diameters that help increase launch angle at impact.

Kalea’s unique blend of features work in unison to maximize performance for slower swing speeds, generate more consistent yardage gaps throughout the set and produce noticeably higher ball flights. The set is also designed to create a smoother transition between the different club types by managing lofts, lengths and head shapes to ensure every club in the bag is as easy to hit as the next. All in, Kalea’s premium, attractive design blends with product technology geared specifically for the launch conditions of women golfers.

In total, Kalea is available in thirteen clubs: driver, 3, 5 and 7 fairway woods, 4 & 5 Rescues, 6 & 7 transition irons, 8 & 9 irons, pitching wedge, sand wedge and putter. A Kalea cart bag is also available separately.

Kalea will be sold in an 8-piece combo set (4-5 Rescues, 6-7 Transition irons, 8i – SW Cavity irons). A Kalea driver, fairway metalwoods (3, 3HL, 5, 7) will also be available for purchase individually, as well as a putter and bag. Complementing the release of Kalea golf clubs, TaylorMade has also announced the release of Kalea golf balls, a two-piece ball with a soft cover and low compression, engineered to perform best when played in conjunction Kalea golf clubs.

“We’ve learned a great deal about product performance in the last decade, much of which was geared toward faster swing speeds,” said Tomo Bystedt, Senior Director of Product Creation. “For us, Kalea was a great opportunity to take our learnings on slower swing speeds and bring them to market with products that provide meaningful performance for female players, and we couldn’t be more pleased with the results.”

The Kalea lineup will be available December 6, 2015. The driver and metalwoods will be available for $399.99 and $249.99 respecively, while the 8-piece combo iron set will retail for $1,149.99.  Putter and bag are $179.99 and $229.99. The Kalea golf balls,will retail for $24.99 a dozen.

For more information, visit TaylorMadeGolf.ca.

St. Catharines, Ont. – Rockway Vineyards announced a partnership with PGA TOUR star David Hearn that will see the two pair up to develop a special edition wine collection under the David Hearn Foundation label – with a portion of proceeds going back to the Foundation.

The new relationship will also see Rockway’s golf course become host to the David Hearn Junior Open – a new initiative launched in conjunction with the Canadian Junior Golf Association (CJGA). The annual two-day tournament will create an interactive environment, where junior golfers can spend time with Hearn, receive mentorship, and learn more about his development from an amateur to a collegiate player, and now as a professional golfer who has had success on the PGA TOUR. Programming for the event is currently being created between Hearn and the CJGA, and will be released shortly. The 2016 event will be held from Saturday, October 1 to Sunday, October 2.

“I am looking forward to working with the team at Rockway to put into action some of my long-term visions, including supporting two areas I feel strongly about,” said Hearn. “First, developing a custom wine label that will support my Foundation and benefit a cause I care deeply about; second being part of an event at an established course that will provide opportunities and support for junior golf development in the region.”

Hearn enjoyed his best season in 2014-2015 with 4-Top 10’s results, finishing 49th on the PGA TOUR Money List, and 55th in FedExCup Points. He also gave Canadians a lot to talk about and be proud of during Canada’s national tournament this year at the RBC Canadian Open – holding a two round lead to finish 3rd. Two weeks prior, Hearn finished 2nd after a playoff at the Greenbrier Classic.

In addition to his successful year on-course, the season also marked the official launch of the David Hearn Foundation – the charitable arm of Hearn’s philanthropic initiatives, benefiting the Alzheimer Society of Canada.

“It is with great excitement that Rockway Vineyards is announcing our partnership with David Hearn and the David Hearn Foundation,” said Reid Strongman, President of Rockway Vineyards. “We are so pleased that through this partnership with one of Canada’s finest golfer’s that we will not only be able to support junior golf in Canada but also the Alzheimer Society through the David Hearn Foundation. We look forward to a long and exciting partnership.”

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Kevin Kisner ended a year marked by second-place finishes with his first PGA Tour victory Sunday at Sea Island.

Staked to a three-shot lead going into the final round of the final tournament of the year, Kisner ran with it. He doubled the size of his lead at the turn by going out in 30, and he breezed home with a 6-under 64 to win by six shots over Kevin Chappell.

Kisner became the sixth first-time winner in the fall start to the new season, though this was hardly a surprise.

The 31-year-old from South Carolina played so well this year that he rose to No. 25 in the world. He just didn’t win. He lost in playoffs at Hilton Head, Sawgrass and the Greenbrier, and he was a runner-up for the fourth time in a World Golf Championship two weeks ago in Shanghai.

This one wasn’t even close.

Kisner rolled in a 6-foot birdie putt on the second hole, and no one got closer than four shots the rest of the way. He tapped in for par on the 18th hole to shatter the tournament record with a 22-under 60. Better yet was seeing year-old daughter Kate running toward him.

Kisner scooped her up and said, “We did it!”

Did he ever.

“I’ve just been playing so well all year,” Kisner said. “I knew one day it was going to happen when I was going to make all the putts. I did it on the front nine.”

If there was a turning point, it would have been on the par-5 seventh hole when Kisner’s second shot landed in a native bush in the dunes short of the green. He chose to hammer it out of there and moved it about 5 feet, then chipped 8 feet by the hole. Graeme McDowell missed his 10-foot birdie putt and Kisner holed his for par. His lead stayed at four shots, and Kisner followed with a wedge to 8 feet for birdie on the next hole, and a 30-foot birdie putt on No. 9 to go six clear.

The final three hours, if not the entire day, was a battle for second place.

McDowell, coming off a victory in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba last Monday in Mexico, lost out when his approach to the 16th buried so badly he had to clear away sand just to identify it. He swung as hard as he could, only for the ball to roll back into his foot print. He did well to make bogey, though Chappell made birdie on the hole for a two-shot swing that carried him to a 67 and the runner-up finish.

McDowell closed with a 67 and finished seven shots behind.

The other big winner was Freddie Jacobson, who missed the last four months of last season when his 7-year-old son was diagnosed with a heart defect and had to go through open-heart surgery. Jacobson was given a major medical extension and had to earn $326,111 to secure his card. He holed a long birdie putt on the 18th for a 67 and earned $228,000 this week, pushing his season total to nearly $356,000.

Kisner goes into the six-week break atop the FedEx Cup standings and eager for his next chance. The victory allows him to start 2016 one week earlier in the Hyundai Tournament of Champions at Kapalua.

“I hope the floodgates are open,” Kisner said. “You’ve got to believe you can win on Thursday. I hope that catapults me into believing that every week.”

David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., posted a score of 69 to end tied for 9th at 10 under.

NAPLES, Fla. – Cristie Kerr was the player of the week. Lydia Ko was the player of the year and pocketed another $1 million bonus. Inbee Park will be among the players of all-time.

One tournament, three women celebrating.

And just as the LPGA Tour intended, the season finale was dramatic until the end.

Kerr won the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship on Sunday, taking the lead for good with a 12-foot eagle putt on the par-5 17th and soon wrapping up her 18th career victory. Her $500,000 first prize, which pushed her career earnings past $17 million, almost seemed ancillary given the stakes that Ko and Park were playing for this week.

“Good golf is just good golf,” Kerr said. “It doesn’t really matter what age it is. I think I proved that.”

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., was 13th at 9-under par, while Hamilton’s Alena Sharp tied for 46th at even par.

Kerr is 38, and says she doesn’t plan on slowing down anytime soon. Ko is still just 18, and became the fourth player to go from rookie of the year one year to player of the year the next. The others on that list: Nancy Lopez, Beth Daniel and Annika Sorenstam.

Greats all, and Ko is well on her way to that same status.

“I said if I could choose one of the awards, I would choose player of the year,” Ko said. “To know that I am the player of the year, it’s an awesome feeling.”

Ko won the $1 million bonus for winning the Race to the CME Globe, just as she did last year. And Park wrapped up a trip to the LPGA Hall of Fame by winning the scoring title, meaning the only step that now remains between her and induction is completing her 10th season on tour next year, a prerequisite for eligibility.

“It’s been a long season,” Ko said. “Up and down. Mostly ups.”

Kerr shot a 4-under 68 and finished at 17-under 271, one shot better than Gerina Piller and Ha Na Jang. Lexi Thompson was fourth at 14 under. She and Paula Creamer were among a group of U.S. Solheim Cup teammates who doused Kerr with champagne on the 18th green moments after she tapped home a 2-footer to end the season.

France’s Karine Icher was fifth at 13 under. Park was alone in sixth, good enough to beat Ko by three shots over the course of the entire season for the Vare Trophy and the 27th point she needed for her trip to the LPGA Hall.

“I said the Hall of Fame will be my last goal, but it really came early and I achieved pretty much everything I set so far in my career,” Park said. “There is plenty other goals to set.”

The pressure was obvious, all over the final back nine of the year.

Thompson had an 8-foot birdie putt on the par-5 14th, and never got it near the hole. Park missed a 2-footer for par on the 12th, then rallied with consecutive birdies. Stacy Lewis, one of three women who entered the week controlling their destiny in the $1 million race, gave her wedge a smack after needing two shots to escape a bunker at the 16th. Ko had a birdie try at 16 not long afterward, leaving it uncharacteristically short.

But in the end, Kerr, Park and Ko did enough to all come away with big prizes.

“Pretty cool,” Kerr said. “A lot of different honours.”

Kerr shot four rounds in the 60s, made a 35-foot birdie putt at No. 15 to tie for the lead, then the eagle at the 17th put her on top for good.

Park was second in the Globe chase, pocketing a $150,000 bonus. Thompson was third, taking home $100,000 in bonus money _ though she spent much of the afternoon in position to sweep both the $500,000 first prize and the $1 million bonus.

“It’s been a special year for the tour,” Ko said.

MONTREAL – Olympic medallist and lawyer Tricia Smith was voted president of the Canadian Olympic Committee on Sunday morning.

A four-time Olympic rower from Vancouver, Smith won silver at Los Angeles 1984 in coxless pairs with teammate Elizabeth Craig. Smith – a recipient of the Order of Canada – had been vice-president of the Canadian Olympic Committee since 2009.

“I feel enormously privileged and grateful that our sport community has entrusted me today with the leadership of the COC,” said Smith in a statement. “It’s an honour I accept with pride and gratitude at a time when the eyes of the country are upon us. Based on my platform, this endorsement sends a clear message that our members embrace the values of sport and expect integrity.”

COC board members chose between Smith and award-winning high performance coach and lawyer Peter Lawless, who will continue to serve the organization as vice-president.

Smith recently became interim president of the organization following Marcel Aubut’s resignation in early October after women accused him of sexual comments and unwanted touching.

“I will be a champion for creating a safe and inclusive environment for our employees and all those involved in the Olympic Movement in this country,” said Smith. “I will be a tireless advocate for unity, inclusiveness and collaboration with our many partners.

“We now enter an Olympic year with great excitement and anticipation. We must be at our best. We will do everything in our power to ensure we create an optimal environment for Rio 2016, so our athletes and coaches can be the very best they can be.”

Smith has served the COC in various capacities for over 30 years. Since joining the COC’s athletes’ council in 1980 as rowing’s representative, Smith has been a member of the executive, team selection, games, governance and compensation committees. She was Canada’s Chef de Mission for the 2007 Pan American Games.

She is also the vice-president of the International Rowing Federation and has been a leader in creating opportunities for women in FISA, in all aspects of the sport, increasing the number of opportunities for women to compete, coach, administrate and officiate in international rowing. She has also played a strong role in FISA’s anti-doping policies as a member of the executive committee.

Smith participated in the 1976 Montreal Olympics, the 1984 Los Angeles Games and the 1988 Seoul Olympics. She qualified for the 1980 Moscow Games, but like all Canadians did not participate because of a boycott of those Olympics led by the United States after the Soviet war in Afghanistan in 1979.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Rory McIlroy survived a late scare and finished his frustrating season on a high, winning both the DP World Tour Championship and the Race to Dubai crown on Sunday.

McIlroy got the better of overnight leader Andy Sullivan over the back nine to clinch the European Tour’s season-ending tournament.

The third-ranked Northern Irishman shot 6-under 66 with eight birdies to finish on 21-under 267, one stroke ahead of Sullivan (68).

England’s Danny Willett, who started the tournament 1,613 points behind McIlroy in the Race to Dubai and needed to beat him to become the European No. 1 for the first time in his career, finished tied for fourth on 13-under 275 after shooting 70.

South Africa’s Branden Grace shot 5-under 67 in the final round to finish third on 273.

McIlroy had an anxious moment late in the day when his tee shot on the par-3 17th found the water and threatened to nullify his advantage at that stage.

But the 26-year-old McIlroy made a brilliant 40-feet putt to limit the damage to a bogey, which gave him a one-shot lead going to the 18th where he and Sullivan made par.

“In hindsight, I probably should have gone with a different club and a different shot,” McIlroy said of his problems at the 17th. “It’s definitely probably the longest putt I’ve ever made for a bogey. I don’t think there’s been one that’s come at a better time. So, yeah, definitely the best bogey of my career.”

McIlroy also won the Race to Dubai title as the European Tour’s No. 1 player for the year, the third time he has secured the honor after winning in 2012 and 2014.

“To be European No. 1 for the third time in four years, that was a goal of mine at the start of the year. It was a goal of mine in the middle of the year and it was definitely a goal coming into these last few weeks,” he said.

McIlroy’s closest rival for the Race to Dubai was Willett, who made early birdies to climb to third place on the leaderboard, but both McIlroy and Sullivan had enough birdies of their own to stay comfortably clear. Willett needed to finish ahead of McIlroy in the tournament.

Sullivan had two birdies in the first two holes, and four in the first six. McIlroy bogeyed the fourth and trailed Sullivan by three shots at one stage, despite birdies on Nos. 5, 6 and 7.

But the birdies stopped for Sullivan as he started spraying his tee shots, and McIlroy edged ahead with two crucial birdies on the 14th and 15th holes.

Rio de Janeiro’s Olympic golf course – slowed by environmental lawsuits, land ownership disputes and doubts it even needed to be built – was handed over Sunday to organizers of next year’s games.

Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes spent 15 minutes defending the course, built in the wealthy neighbourhood of Barra da Tijuca, where most Olympic venues will be located.

“If you are in politics, you always have to spend some time defending your point of view,” Paes said.

Paes spoke to several hundred guests and repeatedly thanked billionaire developer Pasquale Mauro, who stood alongside him. The developer is spending about 60 million Brazilian reals ($16.2 million) to build the course. He is also constructing luxury marble and glass high-rise apartments around the layout, which was created from a nature reserve.

The course is to remain public for at least 20 years, joining two private clubs in Rio.

The course took three years to build, and the stops and starts removed some of the glamor from golf’s return to the Olympics after a 112-year absence.

Construction started six months late. American golf architect Gil Hanse, who won the Olympic bid ahead of bigger names like Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player, complained early in the project he wasn’t getting paid by the developer and hinted at pulling out.

Lawsuits by environmentalists also slowed development, and there were several legal disputes about who owns the property, some of the most expensive land in the western Rio suburb.

Paes, who is mentioned as a possible candidate for Brazilian president, denied Sunday several reports that Mauro had donated to his political campaigns.

“No, not at all,” Paes said when asked by The Associated Press. “But it was not a problem if he had.”

Paes insisted Sunday that, although some of the nature reserve was bulldozed to shape the course’s grass mounds, the lion’s share was degraded land that had been a sand quarry.

“I think during the Olympic games there’s always going to be lots of controversy,” Paes said. “But people finally understood that this is a great environmental legacy, that this is a great golf course.”

The legacy for the sport is unclear.

Few people play golf in Brazil, and Paes has acknowledged the game probably has little future in the South American country. Some have compared building a golf course in Brazil to setting up a bullring in Finland.

“In Brazil I don’t think there’s much legacy for a golf course,” Paes said. “I’ve always said that. I don’t think this is something Brazil is very famous for, delivering courses. It’s not a popular sport in Brazil. But there are some things you need to do when you deliver the Olympics.”

Carlos Nuzman, the head of the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, contradicted the mayor just minutes later.

“It’s a big legacy,” Nuzman said. “It’s a public golf course. There are a lot of young kids – boys and girls – who want to participate to develop golf. It’s a chance for golf in a new region of the world to be developed.”

The sure winner is probably the developer Mauro, who is building the course with private money. It follows the pattern of other Olympic projects in Rio, where large real estate interests have moved in. Another is the nearby Athletes Village – 3,600 high-end apartment units – that will be sold off after the games.

Brazil is spending about $10 billion to organize the games, a mix of public and private money, and is being buffeted by a deep recession with major cuts recently to the games’ organizing budget.

Alberto Murray Neto, a Sao Paulo lawyer and former member of the Brazilian Olympic Committee, said it was unclear why the city would press ahead with construction on legally disputed land. He and others have suggested that the Itanhanga Golf Club in Barra could have been remodeled for the Olympics, and at a lower cost.

“It seems that this is part of real estate speculation that will be favourable to the company that is building the luxury condominium just behind the Olympic course,” Murray said in an email to The Associated Press.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Kevin Kisner had a 6-under 64 in the RSM Classic to build a three-shot lead Saturday as he goes for his first win on the PGA Tour.

Already a runner-up four times this year – three in a playoff – Kisner has never had a chance this good. He birdied his last three holes on the Seaside course to build some separation over Kevin Chappell and Graeme McDowell.

Kisner was at 16-under 196.

Chappell overcame a rough start for a 68. McDowell (65) survived a mental blunder. On the first fairway, he lifted his ball to clean when he realized for the first time this week the conditions no longer were lift, clean and place. The one-shot penalty gave him par instead of a birdie. He was four back.

Canada’s David Hearn is tied for 7th at 9 under after a third-round 67.

NAPLES, Fla. – Cristie Kerr and Ha Na Jang shared the lead going into the final round of the LPGA Tour’s season-ending CME Group Tour Championship, and Lydia Ko remained in control of the biggest year-end awards and a $1 million bonus.

Kerr shot a 4-under 67 on Saturday to match Jang at 13 under at Tiburon Golf Club. Jang had a 69.

Ko and Gerina Piller were tied for third at 11 under. Ko had a 69, and Piller shot 67.

Ko is trying to take the $1 million Race to the CME Globe bonus for the second consecutive year. A win also would lock up the world No. 1 ranking to end the year, along with player of the year honours and the money title.

Canada’s Brooke Henderson sits T29 at 3-under, while fellow Canadian Alena Sharp is at even par in a tie for 43rd.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Rory McIlroy shot the best round of the day to move within one shot of leader Andy Sullivan after the third round of the World Tour Championship on Saturday, which also puts him closer to the Race to Dubai title.

McIlroy shot a 7-under 65 at Jumeirah Golf Estates to make up three shots on Sullivan (68) and go four strokes clear of Danny Willett, his closest challenger for the season-long Race to Dubai crown. Willett looked set to be even further back but made two birdies and an eagle on his last five holes for a 67.

Sullivan made two birdies on his last four to maintain the lead with a 16-under total of 200.

Despite making eight birdies in the swirling wind, McIlroy was left ruing some the chances he missed.

“I guess you can’t really walk off this golf course, especially in these conditions, and shoot 7-under and not feel good about yourself. But at the same time, I feel like it could have been a lot better,” McIlroy said. “The good thing is, there’s still one round of golf left. If it had been the final day, I’d be kicking myself with some of the chances I missed. I am playing lovely, so bodes well for tomorrow.”

American Patrick Reed shot a 68 that gave him sole possession of third place, two shots behind McIlroy, while South Korea’s Byeong-hun An (66) and Emiliano Grillo (71) of Argentina were tied for fourth at 204.

Sullivan was 2 under after seven holes, but a string of pars left him slightly frustrated before the two late birdies. He made a 20-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole, and then saved par from a similar distance on the 18th.

“Felt like the putter really saved me the last few holes,” he said. “The way I played, I was quite happy with the 68, really.”

Justin Rose, who was third in the Race to Dubai at the start of the week and needed to win the tournament to become the European No. 1 for the second time in his career, shot a 78 and slipped out of contention.