World No 1 Rory McIlroy will be joined by world No 2 Jon Rahm and No 3 Brooks Koepka in the marquee grouping for the opening two rounds of the Players Championship this week.

England’s Tyrrell Hatton carded a 69 to put himself into contention at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill as overnight leader Matt Every tumbled down the leaderboard.

Last month, the genial host at Waterville Golf Links, Noel Cronin, sat down with Examiner Sport to discuss great links, great folk, and retirement with Kevin Markham. He passed away unexpectedly at 75 over the weekend in Orlando for the PGA Show, doing what he did best - promoting Waterville Golf.

It’s a career that has produced five All-Ireland titles between club and county but Joey Holden would be the first to admit it hasn’t run smoothly.

The brutal ‘reign’ of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of IS, self-proclaimed caliph, and the world’s most wanted man, has ended, write Ahmed Rasheed and Ahmed Aboulenein.

One of over 40 aircraft taking part in the effort to repatriate 150,000 Thomas Cook holidaymakers was forced to divert to Shannon Airport last night after suffering technical issues off the southwest coast.

Next week, to celebrate her 70th birthday, Maura Ward and her son, Johnny, will climb Mount Fuji, in Japan. It’s not their first big trip, says Ailin Quinlan

A report examining the scale of outsourcing of smear tests by laboratories contracted to do the work by the HSE will be brought to the Cabinet today.

Ireland’s latest trip to Copenhagen marked your correspondent’s fifth visit to the engaging Danish capital which, a couple of thunderstorms aside, presented a much sunnier, summery face than I experienced on my first trip there.

The controversial preacher who has previously expressed extreme anti-gay and anti-Semitic views has become the first person ever banned from Ireland by exclusion powers dating from 1999.

Formerly conjoined twins from Cork who hit the headlines over the weekend when Hollywood actor, Tom Hanks, sent them a personalised Toy Story video are set to receive personalised toys from the actor.

On Monday, Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood conducted a clinic at The Players Championship for more than 100 youngsters from local chapters of The First Tee and PGA Junior League.

Tiger Woods has pulled out of the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Florida due to a neck strain.

Lawyers for the widow of the Pulse nightclub gunman said they have only just been told that the attacker's father was an FBI informant for 11 years.

At the Arnold Palmer Invitational, it’s never long before the talk turns to legends. It starts with the tournament’s namesake, Palmer, segues to eight-time API winner Tiger Woods, and Sunday night moved onto another legend, albeit one we hadn’t heard from for a while.

During the Christmas break of the PGA Tour’s wraparound season, Graeme McDowell toiled for seven hours at Lake Nona Golf & Country Club, his home track in Orlando, working on his game. 

Need inspiration for your holidays in 2018? Ciara McDonnell has the best deals for families, couples, cruise seekers, adventurers, walkers, solo travellers - and everything in between.

A Roman Catholic has lost his discrimination action against a local authority that refused to stage a wreath-laying ceremony to mark the deaths of Christians murdered by IS.

A record 10.6m tourists visited Ireland this year, with 2017 hailed as the greatest ever year for the sector.

Kevin Markham chats with Noel Cronin, one of Irish golf’s great gentlemen.

The feelgood factor around Denmark’s recent footballing renaissance has cranked up a notch following their World Cup play-off pairing with the Republic of Ireland, admits Danish Eurosport commentator Peter Piil.

Investigators have met the brother of the Las Vegas gunman while friends and relatives of the 58 killed and other concert-goers returned to the scene to reclaim shoes, phones and bags left behind in the panic as they fled.

Latest: A US coroner has released the names of all 58 victims of the Las Vegas shooting last week.

Merlin Entertainments has approached SeaWorld Entertainment about a potential deal as the UK theme-park operator and owner of Madame Tussauds seeks to expand overseas to offset a slide in tourists visiting London.

Eight patients at a sweltering Florida nursing home have died after Hurricane Irma knocked out the air conditioning.

Latest: Eight patients at a sweltering Florida nursing home have died after Hurricane Irma knocked out the air conditioning.

A weakened but still dangerous Irma - downgraded to a tropical storm over Florida but still packing winds near hurricane force - has pushed inland as winds and floodwaters created hazards for rescuers.

Hurricane Irma is showing signs of weakening and could be downgraded to a tropical storm on Monday.

The Turks and Caicos Islands have been "pummelled" overnight by Hurricane Irma as winds of up to 175mph left death and destruction in the Atlantic.

A second police officer has died the day after he and a colleague were shot during a scuffle with a suspect in Florida.

Melania Trump is planning to lead the US delegation to the Invictus Games in Toronto in September.

It may take several weeks to conduct a necropsy.

Concerns that the US tourism industry might witness a "Trump slump" in travel due to the new administration's policies appear to be premature, new figures suggest.

Caddie Ricky Elliott gave up on his tour dream to become a humble assistant pro but he never lost his love of the game and got the thrill of his life — and a $216,000 (€193,427) bonus — when he helped Brooks Koepka win the US Open at Erin Hills on Sunday.

Iceland calling

Latest:Five people have been killed in a shooting at a workplace in Orlando, Florida.

Selfie sticks, a breathalyser test and a copy of the Eighth Amendment are among the items that would help the people of the future understand today’s society, writes Clodagh Finn.

A new trademark application filed by Nintendo suggests that the company may have started work on its Universal Studios theme parks.

A former Islamist has started a foundation to combat extremism among Muslims - and has made a lot of enemies in the process, writes Thomas Chatterton Williams

Rory McIlroy has indicated he can’t easily forgive Muirfield members despite their belated vote to admit women members for the first time in the 273-year history of the course this week.

Arthur Gaskin won his fifth Irish Senior squash title last weekend. The 32-year-old from Co Carlow has lived and trained in America since 2013, and moved to Orlando, Florida, before Christmas. 

Irish holidaymakers travelling to the US need to declare whether or not they have visited predominantly Muslim countries in the previous six-year period.

The absurdity of the perceived threat posed by refugees and immigrants from ‘banned’ countries is about politics not US security, writes Tania Karas.