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WNBA strike ‘still on the table’ after Monday’s meeting

WNBA strike ‘still on the table’ after Monday’s meeting

For the first time in months, the WNBA’s leadership met with players in person on Monday afternoon. Front Office Sports reported that the meeting — which lasted over 3 hours — was held so the sides could communicate without having to go through middlemen. Communication and negotiations have been solely through lawyers and paperwork over the past few months. With the season set to tip off on May 8, time is very tight when it comes to getting a new contract in place and being able to prepare to start the season on time.

As reported last week by ESPN, the WNBA hadn’t responded to the players’ latest proposal for over a month. Annie Costabile of FOS reports that the league came into today’s meeting still not having a response to that proposal, but told players today that they will “begin working” on one.

Clearly, this meeting isn’t going to result in a new CBA being signed faster. Not that anyone really expected them to come out today and magically come to terms on a new contract, but hearing that the WNBA hasn’t even started working on a response yet? When training camp is supposed to start in a little over two months? It feels like the TikTok sound — “Do you know you have thirty minutes?? Thirty minutes???

WNBPA President, Nneka Ogwumike, who was present at the meeting along with other members of the PA’s executive committee, was hoping for a different outcome. She told FOS that she was hoping to hear that the league had a response to that proposal. Fair, given they submitted it six weeks ago.

This was after last week, when she told Breakaway’s own Noa Dalzell that players are not feeling any time crunch on their end that would circumvent their efforts to get the deal they feel they deserve.

“Ideally, this would have gotten done a little bit earlier, but we want a good deal, rather than one that’s done in a fashion that suits a schedule,” Ogwumike told Breakaway then. “And so we’re looking forward to being able to come out of this proud of what we’ve negotiated, proud of the process, while also looking forward to having a season. Our players want to play, we want to play, but we also want to be valued on the court — and that’s something that we’re negotiating for today.”

The two sides still appear to be far apart on most negotiation points. The latest WNBA proposal, for example, included a max salary of $1.3 million and revenue sharing on net income. The players’ response to that was to have the team salary cap raised to $10.5 million, and to base the revenue-sharing program on gross income, not net. Per FOS, the points of salary, revenue sharing, housing, retirement benefits and what they call “professional standards” are the players’ top priorities. Those professional standards include things like team facility standards and staffing requirements.

With several WNBA executives and team owners in attendance, as well as over 40 WNBA players joining via zoom, it didn’t seem like much was actually accomplished in the meeting. It was the first time an in-person meeting had been held since the WNBA Finals were wrapping up in October.

Ogwumike and Alysha Clark (Vice President of the players’ union) told FOS they felt a lack of urgency from the league today. With it now being February, and the WNBA going full speed ahead with announcing the season schedule and preparing to start the season on May 8, urgency is starting to feel necessary.

The looming question is now the idea of the players striking. Clark told FOS that doing so is “still on the table” after today’s meeting, but there are still several things that would need to happen before they even get to that. It seems like the players will wait for the league’s latest response — whenever that comes — to start discussing strike possibilities.

And if the league has any intention of starting the season when it said it was going to, its lawyers and commissioner should probably get on that.

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Deadspin | Open Championship tee times: Scheffler paired with LIV Golf’s DeChambeau, Hatton  Sep 27, 2025; Bethpage, New York, USA; Team USA golfer Scottie Scheffler and golfer Bryson DeChambeau on the 11th hole on the penultimate day of competition for the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images   World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler is paired with LIV Golf’s Bryson DeChambeau and Tyrrell Hatton for the opening round of the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale on Thursday.   Scheffler, playing the Open Championship for the sixth time, arrived after missing the cut at the Scottish Open. It was the first time he failed to reach the weekend since the 2022 St. Jude Championship.   Scheffler has 11 sub-70 rounds in 20 total rounds in his Open Championship career.   He won the Open last year at Royal Portrush at 17-under par to run away with the Claret Jug. He has two other top-10 finishes among his previous five starts (T7 at Royal Troon in 2024 and T8 in his debut at the 2021 Open at Royal St. George’s).  Scheffler and DeChambeau have been partners for the United States in the Ryder Cup.  This is the ninth Open Championship for DeChambeau. He overcame a first-round 78 at Portrush last year to finish tied for 10th, his best showing since St. Andrews in 2022, when he tied for eighth. DeChambeau’s first-round score of 69 in 2022 is the only time he shot better than 70 on his opening 18 in the event.  Their group, which remains together for another 18 holes Friday, goes off for the first 18 ahead of a threesome of Jordan Spieth, Jon Rahm and Tommy Fleetwood.  Matt Fitzpatrick and Rory McIlroy are playing with two-time major winner Xander Schauffele.  –Open Championship tee times   First round, Thursday   First tee (local time/ET)  6:35 a.m./1:35 a.m.: Matthew Baldwin, Thomas Detry, James Nicholas  6:46 a.m./1:46 a.m.: Michael Kim, Daniel Hillier, Andy Sullivan  6:57 a.m./1:57 a.m.: Ryan Fox, Andrew Novak, Matthew Jordan  7:08 a.m./2:08 a.m.: Henrik Stenson, Max Homa, Joe Dean  7:19 a.m./2:19 a.m.: Robert MacIntyre, Rickie Fowler, Alex Fitzpatrick  7:30 a.m./2:30 a.m.: David Duval, Martin Couvra, Matthew Southgate  7:41 a.m./2:41 a.m.: Sungjae Im, Daniel Brown, Fifa Laopakdee (a)  7:52 a.m./2:52 a.m.: Gary Woodland, Jake Knapp, Jordan Smith  8:03 a.m./3:03 a.m.: Francesco Molinari, Tom McKibbin, Lev Grinberg (a)  8:14 a.m./3:14 a.m.: Hennie du Plessis, Jose Luis Ballester, Dan Bradbury  8:25 a.m./3:25 a.m.: Angel Ayora, Victor Perez, Mateo Pulcini (a)  8:36 a.m./3:36 a.m.: Stewart Cink, Scott Vincent, Joakim Lagergren  8:47 a.m./3:47 a.m.: Michael Thorbjornsen, Kota Kaneko, Travis Smyth  9:03 a.m./4:03 a.m.: Alex Smalley, Sam Stevens, Ryo Hisatsune  9:14 a.m./4:14 a.m.: Akshay Bhatia, Harris English, Rasmus Hojgaard  9:25 a.m./4:25 a.m.: Ben Griffin, Hideki Matsuyama, Min Woo Lee  9:36 a.m./4:36 a.m.: Russell Henley, Justin Rose, Viktor Hovland  9:47 a.m./4:47 a.m.: Justin Thomas, Alex Noren, Jason Day  9:58 a.m./4:58 a.m.: Scottie Scheffler, Tyrrell Hatton, Bryson DeChambeau  10:09 a.m./5:09 a.m.: Jordan Spieth, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm  10:20 a.m./5:20 a.m.: Brian Harman, Si Woo Kim, Nick Taylor  10:31 a.m./5:31 a.m.: Ryan Gerard, Maverick McNealy, David Puig  10:42 a.m./5:42 a.m.: Kazuma Kobori, Tom Sloman, David Howard (a)  10:53 a.m./5:53 a.m.: Antoine Rozner, Ren Yonezawa, Caleb Surratt  11:04 a.m./6:04 a.m.: MJ Daffue, Frederic Lacroix, Jack McDonald  11:15 a.m./6:15 a.m.: Jeongwoo Ham, Ryutaro Nagano, Alejandro De Castro Piera (a)  11:41 a.m./6:41 a.m.: John Parry, Eric Cole, Tiger Christensen  11:52 a.m./6:52 a.m.: Eugenio Chacarra, Matt Wallace, Max Greyserman  12:03 p.m./7:03 a.m.: Michael Brennan, Sahith Theegala, Laurie Canter  12:14 p.m./7:14 a.m.: Cameron Smith, Keith Mitchell, Stuart Grehan (a)  12:25 p.m./7:25 a.m.: Sepp Straka, Joaquin Niemann, Kurt Kitayama  12:36 p.m./7:36 a.m.: Sami Valimaki, Shaun Norris, Jackson Suber  12:47 p.m./7:47 a.m.: Darren Clarke, Adrien Saddier, Bernd Wiesberger  12:58 p.m./7:58 a.m.: Keegan Bradley, Corey Conners, Casey Jarvis  1:09 p.m./8:09 a.m.: Matt McCarty, Harry Hall, Haotong Li  1:20 p.m./8:20 a.m.: Padraig Harrington, Marco Penge, Michael Hollick  1:31 p.m./8:31 a.m.: Tom Kim, Billy Horschel, Mason Howell (a)  1:42 p.m./8:42 a.m.: Johnny Kiefer, Pierceson Coody, Keita Nakajima  1:53 p.m./8:53 a.m.: Louis Oosthuizen, Jesper Svansson, Jack Buchanan (a)  2:09 p.m./9:09 a.m.: Bud Cauley, Jayden Schaper, Lucas Herbert  2:20 p.m./9:20 a.m.: Kristoffer Reitan, Patrick Reed, J.T. Poston  2:31 p.m./9:31 a.m.: Chris Gotterup, Sam Burns, Adam Scott  2:42 p.m./9:42 a.m.: Collin Morikawa, J.J. Spaun, Nicolai Hojgaard  2:53 p.m./9:53 a.m.: Shane Lowry, Aaron Rai, Brooks Koepka  3:04 p.m./10:04 a.m.: Cameron Young, Wyndham Clark, Luvig Aberg  3:15 p.m./10:15 a.m.: Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Matt Fitzpatrick  3:26 p.m./10:26 a.m.: Jacob Bridgeman, Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Tim Wiedemeyer (a)  3:37 p.m./10:37 a.m.: Patrick Cantlay, Daniel Berger, Nico Echavarria   3:48 p.m./10:48 a.m.: Peter Uihlein, Alistair Docherty, Francesco Laporta  3:59 p.m./10:59 a.m.: Cameron John, Austen Truslow, Sam Bairstow  4:10 p.m./11:10 a.m.: Naoyuki Kataoka, Marcus Plunkett, Baard Bjoernevik Skogen  4:21 p.m./11:21 a.m.: Kazuki Higa, Jiho Yang, Nevill Ruiter (a)  Second round, Friday  First Tee (local time/ET)  6:35 a.m./1:35 a.m.: John Parry, Eric Cole, Tiger Christensen  6:46 a.m./1:46 a.m.: Eugenio Chacarra, Matt Wallace, Max Greyserman  6:57 a.m./1:57 a.m.: Michael Brennan, Sahith Theegala, Laurie Canter  7:08 a.m./2:08 a.m.: Cameron Smith, Keith Mitchell, Stuart Grehan (a)  7:19 a.m./2:19 a.m.: Sepp Straka, Joaquin Niemann, Kurt Kitayama  7:30 a.m./2:30 a.m.: Sami Valimaki, Shaun Norris, Jackson Suber  7:41 a.m./2:41 a.m.: Darren Clarke, Adrien Saddier, Bernd Wiesberger  7:52 a.m./2:52 a.m.: Keegan Bradley, Corey Conners, Casey Jarvis  8:03 a.m./3:03 a.m.: Matt McCarty, Harry Hall, Haotong Li  8:14 a.m./3:14 a.m.: Padraig Harrington, Marco Penge, Michael Hollick  8:25 a.m./3:25 a.m.: Tom Kim, Billy Horschel, Mason Howell (a)  8:26 a.m./3:36 a.m.: Johnny Kiefer, Pierceson Coody, Keita Nakajima  8:47 a.m./3:47 a.m.: Louis Oosthuizen, Jesper Svansson, Jack Buchanan (a)  9:03 a.m./4:03 a.m.: Bud Cauley, Jayden Schaper, Lucas Herbert  9:14 a.m./4:14 a.m.: Kristoffer Reitan, Patrick Reed, J.T. Poston  9:25 a.m./4:25 a.m.: Chris Gotterup, Sam Burns, Adam Scott  9:36 a.m./4:36 a.m.: Collin Morikawa, J.J. Spaun, Nicolai Hojgaard  9:47 a.m./4:47 a.m.: Shane Lowry, Aaron Rai, Brooks Koepka  9:58 a.m./4:58 a.m.: Cameron Young, Wyndham Clark, Luvig Aberg  10:09 a.m./5:09 a.m.: Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Matt Fitzpatrick  10:20 a.m./5:20 a.m.: Jacob Bridgeman, Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Tim Wiedemeyer (a)  10:31 a.m./5:31 a.m.: Patrick Cantlay, Daniel Berger, Nico Echavarria  10:42 a.m./5:42 a.m.: Peter Uihlein, Alistair Docherty, Francesco Laporta  10:53 a.m./5:53 a.m.: Cameron John, Austen Truslow, Sam Bairstow  11:04 a.m./6:04 a.m.: Naoyuki Kataoka, Marcus Plunkett, Baard Bjoernevik Skogen  11:15 a.m./6:15 a.m.: Kazuki Higa, Jiho Yang, Nevill Ruiter (a)  11:41 a.m./6:41 a.m.: Matthew Baldwin, Thomas Detry, James Nicholas  11:52 a.m./6:52 a.m.: Michael Kim, Daniel Hillier, Andy Sullivan  12:03 p.m./7:03 a.m.: Ryan Fox, Andrew Novak, Matthew Jordan  12:14 p.m./7:14 a.m.: Henrik Stenson, Max Homa, Joe Dean  12:25 p.m./7:25 a.m.: Robert MacIntyre, Rickie Fowler, Alex Fitzpatrick  12:36 p.m./7:36 a.m.: David Duval, Martin Couvra, Matthew Southgate  12:47 p.m./7:47 a.m.: Sungjae Im, Daniel Brown, Fifa Laopakdee (a)  12:58 p.m./7:58 a.m.: Gary Woodland, Jake Knapp, Jordan Smith  1:09 p.m./8:09 a.m.: Francesco Molinari, Tom McKibbin, Lev Grinberg (a)  1:20 p.m./8:20 a.m.: Hennie Du Plessis, Jose Luis Ballester, Dan Bradbury  1:31 p.m./8:31 a.m.: Angel Ayora, Victor Perez, Mateo Pulcini (a)  1:42 p.m./8:42 a.m.: Stewart Cink, Scott Vincent, Joakim Lagergren  1:53 p.m./8:53 a.m.: Michael Thorbjornsen, Kota Kaneko, Travis Smyth  2:09 p.m./9:09 a.m.: Alex Smalley, Sam Stevens, Ryo Hisatsune  2:20 p.m./9:20 a.m.: Akshay Bhatia, Harris English, Rasmus Hojgaard  2:31 p.m./9:31 a.m.: Ben Griffin, Hideki Matsuyama, Min Woo Lee  2:42 p.m./9:42 a.m.: Russell Henley, Justin Rose, Viktor Hovland  2:53 p.m./9:53 a.m.: Justin Thomas, Alex Noren, Jason Day  3:04 p.m./10:04 a.m.: Scottie Scheffler, Tyrrell Hatton, Bryson DeChambeau  3:15 p.m./10:15 a.m.: Jordan Spieth, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm  3:26 p.m./10:26 a.m.: Brian Harman, Si Woo Kim, Nick Taylor  3:37 p.m./10:37 a.m.: Ryan Gerard, Maverick McNealy, David Puig  3:48 p.m./10:48 a.m.: Kazuma Kobori, Tom Sloman, David Howard (a)  3:59 p.m./10:59 a.m.: Antoine Rozner, Ren Yonezawa, Caleb Surratt  4:10 p.m./11:10 a.m.: MJ Daffue, Frederic Lacroix, Jack McDonald  4:21 p.m./11:21 a.m.: Jeongwoo Ham, Ryutaro Nagano, Alejandro De Castro Piera (a)   #Deadspin #Open #Championship #tee #times #Scheffler #paired #LIV #Golfs #DeChambeau #HattonSep 27, 2025; Bethpage, New York, USA; Team USA golfer Scottie Scheffler and golfer Bryson DeChambeau on the 11th hole on the penultimate day of competition for the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler is paired with LIV Golf’s Bryson DeChambeau and Tyrrell Hatton for the opening round of the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale on Thursday.

Scheffler, playing the Open Championship for the sixth time, arrived after missing the cut at the Scottish Open. It was the first time he failed to reach the weekend since the 2022 St. Jude Championship.

Scheffler has 11 sub-70 rounds in 20 total rounds in his Open Championship career.

He won the Open last year at Royal Portrush at 17-under par to run away with the Claret Jug. He has two other top-10 finishes among his previous five starts (T7 at Royal Troon in 2024 and T8 in his debut at the 2021 Open at Royal St. George’s).

Scheffler and DeChambeau have been partners for the United States in the Ryder Cup.

This is the ninth Open Championship for DeChambeau. He overcame a first-round 78 at Portrush last year to finish tied for 10th, his best showing since St. Andrews in 2022, when he tied for eighth. DeChambeau’s first-round score of 69 in 2022 is the only time he shot better than 70 on his opening 18 in the event.

Their group, which remains together for another 18 holes Friday, goes off for the first 18 ahead of a threesome of Jordan Spieth, Jon Rahm and Tommy Fleetwood.

Matt Fitzpatrick and Rory McIlroy are playing with two-time major winner Xander Schauffele.

–Open Championship tee times

First round, Thursday

First tee (local time/ET)

6:35 a.m./1:35 a.m.: Matthew Baldwin, Thomas Detry, James Nicholas

6:46 a.m./1:46 a.m.: Michael Kim, Daniel Hillier, Andy Sullivan

6:57 a.m./1:57 a.m.: Ryan Fox, Andrew Novak, Matthew Jordan

7:08 a.m./2:08 a.m.: Henrik Stenson, Max Homa, Joe Dean

7:19 a.m./2:19 a.m.: Robert MacIntyre, Rickie Fowler, Alex Fitzpatrick

7:30 a.m./2:30 a.m.: David Duval, Martin Couvra, Matthew Southgate

7:41 a.m./2:41 a.m.: Sungjae Im, Daniel Brown, Fifa Laopakdee (a)

7:52 a.m./2:52 a.m.: Gary Woodland, Jake Knapp, Jordan Smith

8:03 a.m./3:03 a.m.: Francesco Molinari, Tom McKibbin, Lev Grinberg (a)

8:14 a.m./3:14 a.m.: Hennie du Plessis, Jose Luis Ballester, Dan Bradbury

8:25 a.m./3:25 a.m.: Angel Ayora, Victor Perez, Mateo Pulcini (a)

8:36 a.m./3:36 a.m.: Stewart Cink, Scott Vincent, Joakim Lagergren

8:47 a.m./3:47 a.m.: Michael Thorbjornsen, Kota Kaneko, Travis Smyth

9:03 a.m./4:03 a.m.: Alex Smalley, Sam Stevens, Ryo Hisatsune

9:14 a.m./4:14 a.m.: Akshay Bhatia, Harris English, Rasmus Hojgaard

9:25 a.m./4:25 a.m.: Ben Griffin, Hideki Matsuyama, Min Woo Lee

9:36 a.m./4:36 a.m.: Russell Henley, Justin Rose, Viktor Hovland

9:47 a.m./4:47 a.m.: Justin Thomas, Alex Noren, Jason Day

9:58 a.m./4:58 a.m.: Scottie Scheffler, Tyrrell Hatton, Bryson DeChambeau

10:09 a.m./5:09 a.m.: Jordan Spieth, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm

10:20 a.m./5:20 a.m.: Brian Harman, Si Woo Kim, Nick Taylor

10:31 a.m./5:31 a.m.: Ryan Gerard, Maverick McNealy, David Puig

10:42 a.m./5:42 a.m.: Kazuma Kobori, Tom Sloman, David Howard (a)

10:53 a.m./5:53 a.m.: Antoine Rozner, Ren Yonezawa, Caleb Surratt

11:04 a.m./6:04 a.m.: MJ Daffue, Frederic Lacroix, Jack McDonald

11:15 a.m./6:15 a.m.: Jeongwoo Ham, Ryutaro Nagano, Alejandro De Castro Piera (a)

11:41 a.m./6:41 a.m.: John Parry, Eric Cole, Tiger Christensen

11:52 a.m./6:52 a.m.: Eugenio Chacarra, Matt Wallace, Max Greyserman

12:03 p.m./7:03 a.m.: Michael Brennan, Sahith Theegala, Laurie Canter

12:14 p.m./7:14 a.m.: Cameron Smith, Keith Mitchell, Stuart Grehan (a)

12:25 p.m./7:25 a.m.: Sepp Straka, Joaquin Niemann, Kurt Kitayama

12:36 p.m./7:36 a.m.: Sami Valimaki, Shaun Norris, Jackson Suber

12:47 p.m./7:47 a.m.: Darren Clarke, Adrien Saddier, Bernd Wiesberger

12:58 p.m./7:58 a.m.: Keegan Bradley, Corey Conners, Casey Jarvis

1:09 p.m./8:09 a.m.: Matt McCarty, Harry Hall, Haotong Li

1:20 p.m./8:20 a.m.: Padraig Harrington, Marco Penge, Michael Hollick

1:31 p.m./8:31 a.m.: Tom Kim, Billy Horschel, Mason Howell (a)

1:42 p.m./8:42 a.m.: Johnny Kiefer, Pierceson Coody, Keita Nakajima

1:53 p.m./8:53 a.m.: Louis Oosthuizen, Jesper Svansson, Jack Buchanan (a)

2:09 p.m./9:09 a.m.: Bud Cauley, Jayden Schaper, Lucas Herbert

2:20 p.m./9:20 a.m.: Kristoffer Reitan, Patrick Reed, J.T. Poston

2:31 p.m./9:31 a.m.: Chris Gotterup, Sam Burns, Adam Scott

2:42 p.m./9:42 a.m.: Collin Morikawa, J.J. Spaun, Nicolai Hojgaard

2:53 p.m./9:53 a.m.: Shane Lowry, Aaron Rai, Brooks Koepka

3:04 p.m./10:04 a.m.: Cameron Young, Wyndham Clark, Luvig Aberg

3:15 p.m./10:15 a.m.: Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Matt Fitzpatrick

3:26 p.m./10:26 a.m.: Jacob Bridgeman, Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Tim Wiedemeyer (a)


3:37 p.m./10:37 a.m.: Patrick Cantlay, Daniel Berger, Nico Echavarria

3:48 p.m./10:48 a.m.: Peter Uihlein, Alistair Docherty, Francesco Laporta

3:59 p.m./10:59 a.m.: Cameron John, Austen Truslow, Sam Bairstow

4:10 p.m./11:10 a.m.: Naoyuki Kataoka, Marcus Plunkett, Baard Bjoernevik Skogen

4:21 p.m./11:21 a.m.: Kazuki Higa, Jiho Yang, Nevill Ruiter (a)

Second round, Friday

First Tee (local time/ET)

6:35 a.m./1:35 a.m.: John Parry, Eric Cole, Tiger Christensen

6:46 a.m./1:46 a.m.: Eugenio Chacarra, Matt Wallace, Max Greyserman

6:57 a.m./1:57 a.m.: Michael Brennan, Sahith Theegala, Laurie Canter

7:08 a.m./2:08 a.m.: Cameron Smith, Keith Mitchell, Stuart Grehan (a)

7:19 a.m./2:19 a.m.: Sepp Straka, Joaquin Niemann, Kurt Kitayama

7:30 a.m./2:30 a.m.: Sami Valimaki, Shaun Norris, Jackson Suber

7:41 a.m./2:41 a.m.: Darren Clarke, Adrien Saddier, Bernd Wiesberger

7:52 a.m./2:52 a.m.: Keegan Bradley, Corey Conners, Casey Jarvis

8:03 a.m./3:03 a.m.: Matt McCarty, Harry Hall, Haotong Li

8:14 a.m./3:14 a.m.: Padraig Harrington, Marco Penge, Michael Hollick

8:25 a.m./3:25 a.m.: Tom Kim, Billy Horschel, Mason Howell (a)

8:26 a.m./3:36 a.m.: Johnny Kiefer, Pierceson Coody, Keita Nakajima

8:47 a.m./3:47 a.m.: Louis Oosthuizen, Jesper Svansson, Jack Buchanan (a)

9:03 a.m./4:03 a.m.: Bud Cauley, Jayden Schaper, Lucas Herbert

9:14 a.m./4:14 a.m.: Kristoffer Reitan, Patrick Reed, J.T. Poston

9:25 a.m./4:25 a.m.: Chris Gotterup, Sam Burns, Adam Scott

9:36 a.m./4:36 a.m.: Collin Morikawa, J.J. Spaun, Nicolai Hojgaard

9:47 a.m./4:47 a.m.: Shane Lowry, Aaron Rai, Brooks Koepka

9:58 a.m./4:58 a.m.: Cameron Young, Wyndham Clark, Luvig Aberg

10:09 a.m./5:09 a.m.: Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Matt Fitzpatrick

10:20 a.m./5:20 a.m.: Jacob Bridgeman, Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Tim Wiedemeyer (a)

10:31 a.m./5:31 a.m.: Patrick Cantlay, Daniel Berger, Nico Echavarria

10:42 a.m./5:42 a.m.: Peter Uihlein, Alistair Docherty, Francesco Laporta

10:53 a.m./5:53 a.m.: Cameron John, Austen Truslow, Sam Bairstow

11:04 a.m./6:04 a.m.: Naoyuki Kataoka, Marcus Plunkett, Baard Bjoernevik Skogen

11:15 a.m./6:15 a.m.: Kazuki Higa, Jiho Yang, Nevill Ruiter (a)

11:41 a.m./6:41 a.m.: Matthew Baldwin, Thomas Detry, James Nicholas

11:52 a.m./6:52 a.m.: Michael Kim, Daniel Hillier, Andy Sullivan

12:03 p.m./7:03 a.m.: Ryan Fox, Andrew Novak, Matthew Jordan

12:14 p.m./7:14 a.m.: Henrik Stenson, Max Homa, Joe Dean

12:25 p.m./7:25 a.m.: Robert MacIntyre, Rickie Fowler, Alex Fitzpatrick

12:36 p.m./7:36 a.m.: David Duval, Martin Couvra, Matthew Southgate

12:47 p.m./7:47 a.m.: Sungjae Im, Daniel Brown, Fifa Laopakdee (a)

12:58 p.m./7:58 a.m.: Gary Woodland, Jake Knapp, Jordan Smith

1:09 p.m./8:09 a.m.: Francesco Molinari, Tom McKibbin, Lev Grinberg (a)

1:20 p.m./8:20 a.m.: Hennie Du Plessis, Jose Luis Ballester, Dan Bradbury

1:31 p.m./8:31 a.m.: Angel Ayora, Victor Perez, Mateo Pulcini (a)

1:42 p.m./8:42 a.m.: Stewart Cink, Scott Vincent, Joakim Lagergren

1:53 p.m./8:53 a.m.: Michael Thorbjornsen, Kota Kaneko, Travis Smyth

2:09 p.m./9:09 a.m.: Alex Smalley, Sam Stevens, Ryo Hisatsune

2:20 p.m./9:20 a.m.: Akshay Bhatia, Harris English, Rasmus Hojgaard

2:31 p.m./9:31 a.m.: Ben Griffin, Hideki Matsuyama, Min Woo Lee

2:42 p.m./9:42 a.m.: Russell Henley, Justin Rose, Viktor Hovland

2:53 p.m./9:53 a.m.: Justin Thomas, Alex Noren, Jason Day

3:04 p.m./10:04 a.m.: Scottie Scheffler, Tyrrell Hatton, Bryson DeChambeau

3:15 p.m./10:15 a.m.: Jordan Spieth, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm

3:26 p.m./10:26 a.m.: Brian Harman, Si Woo Kim, Nick Taylor

3:37 p.m./10:37 a.m.: Ryan Gerard, Maverick McNealy, David Puig

3:48 p.m./10:48 a.m.: Kazuma Kobori, Tom Sloman, David Howard (a)

3:59 p.m./10:59 a.m.: Antoine Rozner, Ren Yonezawa, Caleb Surratt

4:10 p.m./11:10 a.m.: MJ Daffue, Frederic Lacroix, Jack McDonald

4:21 p.m./11:21 a.m.: Jeongwoo Ham, Ryutaro Nagano, Alejandro De Castro Piera (a)

#Deadspin #Open #Championship #tee #times #Scheffler #paired #LIV #Golfs #DeChambeau #Hatton">Deadspin | Open Championship tee times: Scheffler paired with LIV Golf’s DeChambeau, Hatton  Sep 27, 2025; Bethpage, New York, USA; Team USA golfer Scottie Scheffler and golfer Bryson DeChambeau on the 11th hole on the penultimate day of competition for the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images   World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler is paired with LIV Golf’s Bryson DeChambeau and Tyrrell Hatton for the opening round of the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale on Thursday.   Scheffler, playing the Open Championship for the sixth time, arrived after missing the cut at the Scottish Open. It was the first time he failed to reach the weekend since the 2022 St. Jude Championship.   Scheffler has 11 sub-70 rounds in 20 total rounds in his Open Championship career.   He won the Open last year at Royal Portrush at 17-under par to run away with the Claret Jug. He has two other top-10 finishes among his previous five starts (T7 at Royal Troon in 2024 and T8 in his debut at the 2021 Open at Royal St. George’s).  Scheffler and DeChambeau have been partners for the United States in the Ryder Cup.  This is the ninth Open Championship for DeChambeau. He overcame a first-round 78 at Portrush last year to finish tied for 10th, his best showing since St. Andrews in 2022, when he tied for eighth. DeChambeau’s first-round score of 69 in 2022 is the only time he shot better than 70 on his opening 18 in the event.  Their group, which remains together for another 18 holes Friday, goes off for the first 18 ahead of a threesome of Jordan Spieth, Jon Rahm and Tommy Fleetwood.  Matt Fitzpatrick and Rory McIlroy are playing with two-time major winner Xander Schauffele.  –Open Championship tee times   First round, Thursday   First tee (local time/ET)  6:35 a.m./1:35 a.m.: Matthew Baldwin, Thomas Detry, James Nicholas  6:46 a.m./1:46 a.m.: Michael Kim, Daniel Hillier, Andy Sullivan  6:57 a.m./1:57 a.m.: Ryan Fox, Andrew Novak, Matthew Jordan  7:08 a.m./2:08 a.m.: Henrik Stenson, Max Homa, Joe Dean  7:19 a.m./2:19 a.m.: Robert MacIntyre, Rickie Fowler, Alex Fitzpatrick  7:30 a.m./2:30 a.m.: David Duval, Martin Couvra, Matthew Southgate  7:41 a.m./2:41 a.m.: Sungjae Im, Daniel Brown, Fifa Laopakdee (a)  7:52 a.m./2:52 a.m.: Gary Woodland, Jake Knapp, Jordan Smith  8:03 a.m./3:03 a.m.: Francesco Molinari, Tom McKibbin, Lev Grinberg (a)  8:14 a.m./3:14 a.m.: Hennie du Plessis, Jose Luis Ballester, Dan Bradbury  8:25 a.m./3:25 a.m.: Angel Ayora, Victor Perez, Mateo Pulcini (a)  8:36 a.m./3:36 a.m.: Stewart Cink, Scott Vincent, Joakim Lagergren  8:47 a.m./3:47 a.m.: Michael Thorbjornsen, Kota Kaneko, Travis Smyth  9:03 a.m./4:03 a.m.: Alex Smalley, Sam Stevens, Ryo Hisatsune  9:14 a.m./4:14 a.m.: Akshay Bhatia, Harris English, Rasmus Hojgaard  9:25 a.m./4:25 a.m.: Ben Griffin, Hideki Matsuyama, Min Woo Lee  9:36 a.m./4:36 a.m.: Russell Henley, Justin Rose, Viktor Hovland  9:47 a.m./4:47 a.m.: Justin Thomas, Alex Noren, Jason Day  9:58 a.m./4:58 a.m.: Scottie Scheffler, Tyrrell Hatton, Bryson DeChambeau  10:09 a.m./5:09 a.m.: Jordan Spieth, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm  10:20 a.m./5:20 a.m.: Brian Harman, Si Woo Kim, Nick Taylor  10:31 a.m./5:31 a.m.: Ryan Gerard, Maverick McNealy, David Puig  10:42 a.m./5:42 a.m.: Kazuma Kobori, Tom Sloman, David Howard (a)  10:53 a.m./5:53 a.m.: Antoine Rozner, Ren Yonezawa, Caleb Surratt  11:04 a.m./6:04 a.m.: MJ Daffue, Frederic Lacroix, Jack McDonald  11:15 a.m./6:15 a.m.: Jeongwoo Ham, Ryutaro Nagano, Alejandro De Castro Piera (a)  11:41 a.m./6:41 a.m.: John Parry, Eric Cole, Tiger Christensen  11:52 a.m./6:52 a.m.: Eugenio Chacarra, Matt Wallace, Max Greyserman  12:03 p.m./7:03 a.m.: Michael Brennan, Sahith Theegala, Laurie Canter  12:14 p.m./7:14 a.m.: Cameron Smith, Keith Mitchell, Stuart Grehan (a)  12:25 p.m./7:25 a.m.: Sepp Straka, Joaquin Niemann, Kurt Kitayama  12:36 p.m./7:36 a.m.: Sami Valimaki, Shaun Norris, Jackson Suber  12:47 p.m./7:47 a.m.: Darren Clarke, Adrien Saddier, Bernd Wiesberger  12:58 p.m./7:58 a.m.: Keegan Bradley, Corey Conners, Casey Jarvis  1:09 p.m./8:09 a.m.: Matt McCarty, Harry Hall, Haotong Li  1:20 p.m./8:20 a.m.: Padraig Harrington, Marco Penge, Michael Hollick  1:31 p.m./8:31 a.m.: Tom Kim, Billy Horschel, Mason Howell (a)  1:42 p.m./8:42 a.m.: Johnny Kiefer, Pierceson Coody, Keita Nakajima  1:53 p.m./8:53 a.m.: Louis Oosthuizen, Jesper Svansson, Jack Buchanan (a)  2:09 p.m./9:09 a.m.: Bud Cauley, Jayden Schaper, Lucas Herbert  2:20 p.m./9:20 a.m.: Kristoffer Reitan, Patrick Reed, J.T. Poston  2:31 p.m./9:31 a.m.: Chris Gotterup, Sam Burns, Adam Scott  2:42 p.m./9:42 a.m.: Collin Morikawa, J.J. Spaun, Nicolai Hojgaard  2:53 p.m./9:53 a.m.: Shane Lowry, Aaron Rai, Brooks Koepka  3:04 p.m./10:04 a.m.: Cameron Young, Wyndham Clark, Luvig Aberg  3:15 p.m./10:15 a.m.: Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Matt Fitzpatrick  3:26 p.m./10:26 a.m.: Jacob Bridgeman, Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Tim Wiedemeyer (a)  3:37 p.m./10:37 a.m.: Patrick Cantlay, Daniel Berger, Nico Echavarria   3:48 p.m./10:48 a.m.: Peter Uihlein, Alistair Docherty, Francesco Laporta  3:59 p.m./10:59 a.m.: Cameron John, Austen Truslow, Sam Bairstow  4:10 p.m./11:10 a.m.: Naoyuki Kataoka, Marcus Plunkett, Baard Bjoernevik Skogen  4:21 p.m./11:21 a.m.: Kazuki Higa, Jiho Yang, Nevill Ruiter (a)  Second round, Friday  First Tee (local time/ET)  6:35 a.m./1:35 a.m.: John Parry, Eric Cole, Tiger Christensen  6:46 a.m./1:46 a.m.: Eugenio Chacarra, Matt Wallace, Max Greyserman  6:57 a.m./1:57 a.m.: Michael Brennan, Sahith Theegala, Laurie Canter  7:08 a.m./2:08 a.m.: Cameron Smith, Keith Mitchell, Stuart Grehan (a)  7:19 a.m./2:19 a.m.: Sepp Straka, Joaquin Niemann, Kurt Kitayama  7:30 a.m./2:30 a.m.: Sami Valimaki, Shaun Norris, Jackson Suber  7:41 a.m./2:41 a.m.: Darren Clarke, Adrien Saddier, Bernd Wiesberger  7:52 a.m./2:52 a.m.: Keegan Bradley, Corey Conners, Casey Jarvis  8:03 a.m./3:03 a.m.: Matt McCarty, Harry Hall, Haotong Li  8:14 a.m./3:14 a.m.: Padraig Harrington, Marco Penge, Michael Hollick  8:25 a.m./3:25 a.m.: Tom Kim, Billy Horschel, Mason Howell (a)  8:26 a.m./3:36 a.m.: Johnny Kiefer, Pierceson Coody, Keita Nakajima  8:47 a.m./3:47 a.m.: Louis Oosthuizen, Jesper Svansson, Jack Buchanan (a)  9:03 a.m./4:03 a.m.: Bud Cauley, Jayden Schaper, Lucas Herbert  9:14 a.m./4:14 a.m.: Kristoffer Reitan, Patrick Reed, J.T. Poston  9:25 a.m./4:25 a.m.: Chris Gotterup, Sam Burns, Adam Scott  9:36 a.m./4:36 a.m.: Collin Morikawa, J.J. Spaun, Nicolai Hojgaard  9:47 a.m./4:47 a.m.: Shane Lowry, Aaron Rai, Brooks Koepka  9:58 a.m./4:58 a.m.: Cameron Young, Wyndham Clark, Luvig Aberg  10:09 a.m./5:09 a.m.: Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Matt Fitzpatrick  10:20 a.m./5:20 a.m.: Jacob Bridgeman, Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Tim Wiedemeyer (a)  10:31 a.m./5:31 a.m.: Patrick Cantlay, Daniel Berger, Nico Echavarria  10:42 a.m./5:42 a.m.: Peter Uihlein, Alistair Docherty, Francesco Laporta  10:53 a.m./5:53 a.m.: Cameron John, Austen Truslow, Sam Bairstow  11:04 a.m./6:04 a.m.: Naoyuki Kataoka, Marcus Plunkett, Baard Bjoernevik Skogen  11:15 a.m./6:15 a.m.: Kazuki Higa, Jiho Yang, Nevill Ruiter (a)  11:41 a.m./6:41 a.m.: Matthew Baldwin, Thomas Detry, James Nicholas  11:52 a.m./6:52 a.m.: Michael Kim, Daniel Hillier, Andy Sullivan  12:03 p.m./7:03 a.m.: Ryan Fox, Andrew Novak, Matthew Jordan  12:14 p.m./7:14 a.m.: Henrik Stenson, Max Homa, Joe Dean  12:25 p.m./7:25 a.m.: Robert MacIntyre, Rickie Fowler, Alex Fitzpatrick  12:36 p.m./7:36 a.m.: David Duval, Martin Couvra, Matthew Southgate  12:47 p.m./7:47 a.m.: Sungjae Im, Daniel Brown, Fifa Laopakdee (a)  12:58 p.m./7:58 a.m.: Gary Woodland, Jake Knapp, Jordan Smith  1:09 p.m./8:09 a.m.: Francesco Molinari, Tom McKibbin, Lev Grinberg (a)  1:20 p.m./8:20 a.m.: Hennie Du Plessis, Jose Luis Ballester, Dan Bradbury  1:31 p.m./8:31 a.m.: Angel Ayora, Victor Perez, Mateo Pulcini (a)  1:42 p.m./8:42 a.m.: Stewart Cink, Scott Vincent, Joakim Lagergren  1:53 p.m./8:53 a.m.: Michael Thorbjornsen, Kota Kaneko, Travis Smyth  2:09 p.m./9:09 a.m.: Alex Smalley, Sam Stevens, Ryo Hisatsune  2:20 p.m./9:20 a.m.: Akshay Bhatia, Harris English, Rasmus Hojgaard  2:31 p.m./9:31 a.m.: Ben Griffin, Hideki Matsuyama, Min Woo Lee  2:42 p.m./9:42 a.m.: Russell Henley, Justin Rose, Viktor Hovland  2:53 p.m./9:53 a.m.: Justin Thomas, Alex Noren, Jason Day  3:04 p.m./10:04 a.m.: Scottie Scheffler, Tyrrell Hatton, Bryson DeChambeau  3:15 p.m./10:15 a.m.: Jordan Spieth, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm  3:26 p.m./10:26 a.m.: Brian Harman, Si Woo Kim, Nick Taylor  3:37 p.m./10:37 a.m.: Ryan Gerard, Maverick McNealy, David Puig  3:48 p.m./10:48 a.m.: Kazuma Kobori, Tom Sloman, David Howard (a)  3:59 p.m./10:59 a.m.: Antoine Rozner, Ren Yonezawa, Caleb Surratt  4:10 p.m./11:10 a.m.: MJ Daffue, Frederic Lacroix, Jack McDonald  4:21 p.m./11:21 a.m.: Jeongwoo Ham, Ryutaro Nagano, Alejandro De Castro Piera (a)   #Deadspin #Open #Championship #tee #times #Scheffler #paired #LIV #Golfs #DeChambeau #Hatton

Expanding technology and resale options were supposed to make obtaining tickets to sporting events easier than ever, but instead it’s become a hellscape. Scalpers dominate online platforms, ensuring that desirable events sell out immediately, causing local sports fans to miss out unless they’re willing to pay exorbitant prices for fear of missing out.

It’s now been revealed that one of the biggest stakeholders in online ticket sales is helping fund the very people ruining ticket sales for sports fans. An investigative report by the CBC uncovered information inside StubHub’s IPO filing from last November, which revealed that CEO Eric Baker also runs a hedge fund which scalps tickets, and provides funding to scalpers.

When asked for comment, StubHub reiterated its public-facing comment that the company doesn’t own or hold any tickets itself.

“StubHub does not own, possess, or sell tickets. We are a technology platform that connects independent buyers and sellers. (Think: eBay).”

This comment conveniently ignores that some of these “independent buyers” are being directly aided by the CEO of the company. Of course, the devil is in the details. Nobody is accusing StubHub of owning the tickets for their own sale, but it’s now clear that the top of the company is heavily invested in inflating its own marketplace. We discussed this fundamental issue late in the NBA and NHL playoffs, with how reselling sites like StubHub have a vested interest in scalpers, because their percentage-based resale fees are better for the company when event tickets soar — while also giving them multiple bites of the apple if the tickets are sold multiple times on the platform.

Baker, the StubHub CEO, reportedly is a large stakeholder in “Andro Capital,” a hedge fund based out of Los Angeles, which offers loan funding to large scale ticket purchasing operates which have the express purpose of buying tickets and reselling them for profit on platforms like StubHub.

Filing documents for Andro Capital show the hedge fund was formed in March of 2024, 18 months before StubHub announced it was going public in an IPO filing. In that filing to the SEC StubHub revealed its deep relationship with Andro, including this key detail from 2024:

On April 15, 2024, as part of our ongoing relationship with Andro, we entered into an agreement with the Andro Fund under which we agreed to cover certain costs incurred by Andro in connection with ticket management services.

StubHub was not required to divulge the totality of this agreement with Andro Fund, but having the company “cover certain costs incurred” raises mammoth red flags. That theoretically means that the hedge fund could have waived reselling feels on the seller side of the transaction, thereby incentivizing the fund to scalping operations. In short, the business flow could look like this:

  1. A scalping group has capital to buy massive amounts of tickets
  2. Rather than invest themselves, it’s better to invest their money in Andro to do the buying, because they have an agreement with StubHub to cover some of their expenses
  3. Andro profits off the inflated ticket sales
  4. StubHub benefits through massively inflated prices, which they profit off through buyer fees

That’s not all. The filing also lists “Colloquy LLC,” a subsidiary of Andro Capital, which serves as a loan servicing arm for tickets sellers — offering financing to mass buy tickets, which they resell on StubHub directly.

Under the terms of the Program Agreement, we refer certain of our sellers to Colloquy for the opportunity to enter into separate financing arrangements with Colloquy. Under such arrangements, it is anticipated that Colloquy may provide short-term financing to sellers based on those sellers’ existing and/or future expected proceeds generated through ticket sales on our platform.

Not only is Andro Capital its own ticket buyer, but it also runs an arm of the company that gives funding to sellers, based on referrals from StubHub itself. Essentially, the entire scalping business is fully intertwined with StubHub, from the CEO being involved in a large-scale seller AND offering funding to sellers.

The only person who loses out in this whole transaction are sports fans. The consumers who use the platform are being held hostage by ticket prices, which fundamentally wouldn’t be inflated to the same level without the input of StubHub. This is all legal from the SEC’s perspective due to a lack of oversight when it comes to hedge funds. There are few other industries in which a publicly traded company could be legally allowed to price fix to the level that is happening on StubHub, while trying to pretend with its public face that it’s just a platform for fans to sell to other fans.

There should be an immediate investigation into ticket pricing, as well as outlawing the kinds of predatory practices designed to inflate the wealth of StubHub and Andro Capital at the expense of consumers.

#StubHubs #CEO #helping #fund #biggest #ticket #scalpers">StubHub’s CEO is helping fund the biggest ticket scalpers  Expanding technology and resale options were supposed to make obtaining tickets to sporting events easier than ever, but instead it’s become a hellscape. Scalpers dominate online platforms, ensuring that desirable events sell out immediately, causing local sports fans to miss out unless they’re willing to pay exorbitant prices for fear of missing out.It’s now been revealed that one of the biggest stakeholders in online ticket sales is helping fund the very people ruining ticket sales for sports fans. An investigative report by the CBC uncovered information inside StubHub’s IPO filing from last November, which revealed that CEO Eric Baker also runs a hedge fund which scalps tickets, and provides funding to scalpers.When asked for comment, StubHub reiterated its public-facing comment that the company doesn’t own or hold any tickets itself.“StubHub does not own, possess, or sell tickets. We are a technology platform that connects independent buyers and sellers. (Think: eBay).”This comment conveniently ignores that some of these “independent buyers” are being directly aided by the CEO of the company. Of course, the devil is in the details. Nobody is accusing StubHub of owning the tickets for their own sale, but it’s now clear that the top of the company is heavily invested in inflating its own marketplace. We discussed this fundamental issue late in the NBA and NHL playoffs, with how reselling sites like StubHub have a vested interest in scalpers, because their percentage-based resale fees are better for the company when event tickets soar — while also giving them multiple bites of the apple if the tickets are sold multiple times on the platform.Baker, the StubHub CEO, reportedly is a large stakeholder in “Andro Capital,” a hedge fund based out of Los Angeles, which offers loan funding to large scale ticket purchasing operates which have the express purpose of buying tickets and reselling them for profit on platforms like StubHub.Filing documents for Andro Capital show the hedge fund was formed in March of 2024, 18 months before StubHub announced it was going public in an IPO filing. In that filing to the SEC StubHub revealed its deep relationship with Andro, including this key detail from 2024:On April 15, 2024, as part of our ongoing relationship with Andro, we entered into an agreement with the Andro Fund under which we agreed to cover certain costs incurred by Andro in connection with ticket management services.StubHub was not required to divulge the totality of this agreement with Andro Fund, but having the company “cover certain costs incurred” raises mammoth red flags. That theoretically means that the hedge fund could have waived reselling feels on the seller side of the transaction, thereby incentivizing the fund to scalping operations. In short, the business flow could look like this:A scalping group has capital to buy massive amounts of ticketsRather than invest themselves, it’s better to invest their money in Andro to do the buying, because they have an agreement with StubHub to cover some of their expensesAndro profits off the inflated ticket salesStubHub benefits through massively inflated prices, which they profit off through buyer feesThat’s not all. The filing also lists “Colloquy LLC,” a subsidiary of Andro Capital, which serves as a loan servicing arm for tickets sellers — offering financing to mass buy tickets, which they resell on StubHub directly.Under the terms of the Program Agreement, we refer certain of our sellers to Colloquy for the opportunity to enter into separate financing arrangements with Colloquy. Under such arrangements, it is anticipated that Colloquy may provide short-term financing to sellers based on those sellers’ existing and/or future expected proceeds generated through ticket sales on our platform.Not only is Andro Capital its own ticket buyer, but it also runs an arm of the company that gives funding to sellers, based on referrals from StubHub itself. Essentially, the entire scalping business is fully intertwined with StubHub, from the CEO being involved in a large-scale seller AND offering funding to sellers.The only person who loses out in this whole transaction are sports fans. The consumers who use the platform are being held hostage by ticket prices, which fundamentally wouldn’t be inflated to the same level without the input of StubHub. This is all legal from the SEC’s perspective due to a lack of oversight when it comes to hedge funds. There are few other industries in which a publicly traded company could be legally allowed to price fix to the level that is happening on StubHub, while trying to pretend with its public face that it’s just a platform for fans to sell to other fans.There should be an immediate investigation into ticket pricing, as well as outlawing the kinds of predatory practices designed to inflate the wealth of StubHub and Andro Capital at the expense of consumers.  #StubHubs #CEO #helping #fund #biggest #ticket #scalpers

instead it’s become a hellscape. Scalpers dominate online platforms, ensuring that desirable events sell out immediately, causing local sports fans to miss out unless they’re willing to pay exorbitant prices for fear of missing out.

It’s now been revealed that one of the biggest stakeholders in online ticket sales is helping fund the very people ruining ticket sales for sports fans. An investigative report by the CBC uncovered information inside StubHub’s IPO filing from last November, which revealed that CEO Eric Baker also runs a hedge fund which scalps tickets, and provides funding to scalpers.

When asked for comment, StubHub reiterated its public-facing comment that the company doesn’t own or hold any tickets itself.

“StubHub does not own, possess, or sell tickets. We are a technology platform that connects independent buyers and sellers. (Think: eBay).”

This comment conveniently ignores that some of these “independent buyers” are being directly aided by the CEO of the company. Of course, the devil is in the details. Nobody is accusing StubHub of owning the tickets for their own sale, but it’s now clear that the top of the company is heavily invested in inflating its own marketplace. We discussed this fundamental issue late in the NBA and NHL playoffs, with how reselling sites like StubHub have a vested interest in scalpers, because their percentage-based resale fees are better for the company when event tickets soar — while also giving them multiple bites of the apple if the tickets are sold multiple times on the platform.

Baker, the StubHub CEO, reportedly is a large stakeholder in “Andro Capital,” a hedge fund based out of Los Angeles, which offers loan funding to large scale ticket purchasing operates which have the express purpose of buying tickets and reselling them for profit on platforms like StubHub.

Filing documents for Andro Capital show the hedge fund was formed in March of 2024, 18 months before StubHub announced it was going public in an IPO filing. In that filing to the SEC StubHub revealed its deep relationship with Andro, including this key detail from 2024:

On April 15, 2024, as part of our ongoing relationship with Andro, we entered into an agreement with the Andro Fund under which we agreed to cover certain costs incurred by Andro in connection with ticket management services.

StubHub was not required to divulge the totality of this agreement with Andro Fund, but having the company “cover certain costs incurred” raises mammoth red flags. That theoretically means that the hedge fund could have waived reselling feels on the seller side of the transaction, thereby incentivizing the fund to scalping operations. In short, the business flow could look like this:

  1. A scalping group has capital to buy massive amounts of tickets
  2. Rather than invest themselves, it’s better to invest their money in Andro to do the buying, because they have an agreement with StubHub to cover some of their expenses
  3. Andro profits off the inflated ticket sales
  4. StubHub benefits through massively inflated prices, which they profit off through buyer fees

That’s not all. The filing also lists “Colloquy LLC,” a subsidiary of Andro Capital, which serves as a loan servicing arm for tickets sellers — offering financing to mass buy tickets, which they resell on StubHub directly.

Under the terms of the Program Agreement, we refer certain of our sellers to Colloquy for the opportunity to enter into separate financing arrangements with Colloquy. Under such arrangements, it is anticipated that Colloquy may provide short-term financing to sellers based on those sellers’ existing and/or future expected proceeds generated through ticket sales on our platform.

Not only is Andro Capital its own ticket buyer, but it also runs an arm of the company that gives funding to sellers, based on referrals from StubHub itself. Essentially, the entire scalping business is fully intertwined with StubHub, from the CEO being involved in a large-scale seller AND offering funding to sellers.

The only person who loses out in this whole transaction are sports fans. The consumers who use the platform are being held hostage by ticket prices, which fundamentally wouldn’t be inflated to the same level without the input of StubHub. This is all legal from the SEC’s perspective due to a lack of oversight when it comes to hedge funds. There are few other industries in which a publicly traded company could be legally allowed to price fix to the level that is happening on StubHub, while trying to pretend with its public face that it’s just a platform for fans to sell to other fans.

There should be an immediate investigation into ticket pricing, as well as outlawing the kinds of predatory practices designed to inflate the wealth of StubHub and Andro Capital at the expense of consumers.

#StubHubs #CEO #helping #fund #biggest #ticket #scalpers">StubHub’s CEO is helping fund the biggest ticket scalpers

Expanding technology and resale options were supposed to make obtaining tickets to sporting events easier than ever, but instead it’s become a hellscape. Scalpers dominate online platforms, ensuring that desirable events sell out immediately, causing local sports fans to miss out unless they’re willing to pay exorbitant prices for fear of missing out.

It’s now been revealed that one of the biggest stakeholders in online ticket sales is helping fund the very people ruining ticket sales for sports fans. An investigative report by the CBC uncovered information inside StubHub’s IPO filing from last November, which revealed that CEO Eric Baker also runs a hedge fund which scalps tickets, and provides funding to scalpers.

When asked for comment, StubHub reiterated its public-facing comment that the company doesn’t own or hold any tickets itself.

“StubHub does not own, possess, or sell tickets. We are a technology platform that connects independent buyers and sellers. (Think: eBay).”

This comment conveniently ignores that some of these “independent buyers” are being directly aided by the CEO of the company. Of course, the devil is in the details. Nobody is accusing StubHub of owning the tickets for their own sale, but it’s now clear that the top of the company is heavily invested in inflating its own marketplace. We discussed this fundamental issue late in the NBA and NHL playoffs, with how reselling sites like StubHub have a vested interest in scalpers, because their percentage-based resale fees are better for the company when event tickets soar — while also giving them multiple bites of the apple if the tickets are sold multiple times on the platform.

Baker, the StubHub CEO, reportedly is a large stakeholder in “Andro Capital,” a hedge fund based out of Los Angeles, which offers loan funding to large scale ticket purchasing operates which have the express purpose of buying tickets and reselling them for profit on platforms like StubHub.

Filing documents for Andro Capital show the hedge fund was formed in March of 2024, 18 months before StubHub announced it was going public in an IPO filing. In that filing to the SEC StubHub revealed its deep relationship with Andro, including this key detail from 2024:

On April 15, 2024, as part of our ongoing relationship with Andro, we entered into an agreement with the Andro Fund under which we agreed to cover certain costs incurred by Andro in connection with ticket management services.

StubHub was not required to divulge the totality of this agreement with Andro Fund, but having the company “cover certain costs incurred” raises mammoth red flags. That theoretically means that the hedge fund could have waived reselling feels on the seller side of the transaction, thereby incentivizing the fund to scalping operations. In short, the business flow could look like this:

  1. A scalping group has capital to buy massive amounts of tickets
  2. Rather than invest themselves, it’s better to invest their money in Andro to do the buying, because they have an agreement with StubHub to cover some of their expenses
  3. Andro profits off the inflated ticket sales
  4. StubHub benefits through massively inflated prices, which they profit off through buyer fees

That’s not all. The filing also lists “Colloquy LLC,” a subsidiary of Andro Capital, which serves as a loan servicing arm for tickets sellers — offering financing to mass buy tickets, which they resell on StubHub directly.

Under the terms of the Program Agreement, we refer certain of our sellers to Colloquy for the opportunity to enter into separate financing arrangements with Colloquy. Under such arrangements, it is anticipated that Colloquy may provide short-term financing to sellers based on those sellers’ existing and/or future expected proceeds generated through ticket sales on our platform.

Not only is Andro Capital its own ticket buyer, but it also runs an arm of the company that gives funding to sellers, based on referrals from StubHub itself. Essentially, the entire scalping business is fully intertwined with StubHub, from the CEO being involved in a large-scale seller AND offering funding to sellers.

The only person who loses out in this whole transaction are sports fans. The consumers who use the platform are being held hostage by ticket prices, which fundamentally wouldn’t be inflated to the same level without the input of StubHub. This is all legal from the SEC’s perspective due to a lack of oversight when it comes to hedge funds. There are few other industries in which a publicly traded company could be legally allowed to price fix to the level that is happening on StubHub, while trying to pretend with its public face that it’s just a platform for fans to sell to other fans.

There should be an immediate investigation into ticket pricing, as well as outlawing the kinds of predatory practices designed to inflate the wealth of StubHub and Andro Capital at the expense of consumers.

#StubHubs #CEO #helping #fund #biggest #ticket #scalpers

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