How About Relegation for Bad PGA Tour Events?

by Ryan Ballengee on Oct 9, 2008 10:47 AM EDT Comment 10 comments

I was reading a piece on the appeal and success of the Turning Stone Resort Championship. Basically, the folks at Turning Stone want a summer date for their tournament. Unfortunately, the FedEx Cup season is full at this point. They only have two real chances to improve their date:

1). If every event now on the Tour schedule stays put, it would be difficult for Turning Stone - the new kid on the block - to move from its Fall Series spot to a summer week. For the next four years, it's supposed to return to a September time slot - at least a week earlier than this year's Oct. 2-5 schedule.

2). If the economy continues to stumble, there's a good chance the fallout will strike some of the major sponsors of existing tournaments. If one of those backers pulls its support, that could open a spot for Turning Stone earlier in the year.

But maybe we could create a third option...relegation.

They do this in soccer/football. If your team is in the A league and you're the worst, you get moved to the B league. The top B league team gets moved to A. That's oversimplifying it, but why not do this in golf? Why not make the lousiest FedEx Cup event become a Fall Series event until it gets its act together?

(Yes, I realize this is ridiculous given the nature of contracts, etc. But what about it?)

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The stature of an event...

…is directly related to the strength of the field, and in many cases that has to do with where it falls on the schedule.

Has any fall series event gotten it’s act together and moved into a prime time spot (as opposed to moving just to fill an empty slot). It’s hard for a fall event to grow when a lot of the big names have started to taper off for the year.

Even mid-season events fall into that. It’s tricky being situated around a major, for one, especially The Open Championship.

by Double Eagle on Oct 9, 2008 10:54 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I think the Texas Open

was going to get promoted no matter what happened in Atlanta. I like the Turning Stone event and it has a purse bigger than several FedEx Cup events.

by Ryan Ballengee on Oct 9, 2008 10:59 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

That's what they did to begin with

When they paired down the schedule a few years back to make the Fed Ex Cup, they took the most traditional and best paying tournaments for the regular season – the leftovers were put in the fall schedule. Before that happened, what is now called the Turning Stone Championship was the BC Open. They didn’t want to pony up the big bucks for a regular season event and got relegated to the fall. (Turning Stone had been a sponsor for a Nationwide event and moved up the ladder)

Now they have $6 millon in the purse – and crappy weather this time of year. Since money has become the biggest qualifier for a regular season spot, you can bet that Turning Stone will be moved to the top of the list for the next available regular season spot.

The Texas Open WAS next on the list – if Atlanta had gotten sponsorship, they would’ve kept their spots. Personally, I wouldn’t mind having a fall event here in Atlanta. I’m not stuck on this “prestige” thing for the regular season. Where we were, the big names weren’t going to show up anyway.

How do you “relegate” from year to year ? The biggest names already have their schedules set around the majors, WGC’s, and The Players. They all have their own way of preparing for those tournaments – some like to play a lot (Vijay), some like to play the week before (Mickel-nuts), and some play 2 weeks before, but not the week before (Tiger), and some like to play the week after to either relax or figure out why they didn’t play so well in the bigger tournament. (DLIII).

BTW – all the Fed Ex Cup events are $7 million events

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Oct 9, 2008 11:38 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

A few things

I meant events leading up to the Playoffs – those in the “FedEx Cup season.”

I do realize that Turning Stone used to be the BC Open and that’s why they are where they are now. But you have a sponsor that appears on decent footing and is putting money into an event that is well-received. Why not let them take a crack at the big boy part of the schedule?

I don’t think there would be more than 3 or 4 events that could be relegated every year. Most of the schedule is very solid.

BTW, I think Atlanta will get a Champ Tour event at Sugarloaf. And I think the LPGA has given up on expanding to Atlanta for now because of the other sponsor issues on the table.

by Ryan Ballengee on Oct 9, 2008 11:51 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

yes

We do have a Champions Tour event taking the place of the former AT&T – and you can bet that Sugarloaf will not be the course more than once – if that many times. Sugarloaf has some nice holes, but it is an 8 mile walk up and down some horrible terrain. Greg Norman got screwed in this deal. The subdivision took the good land for houses (that are all built way too close together) and gave Norman the leftovers.

We used to have both – the PGA Tour played Atlanta Country Club, then Sugarloaf, and the Seniors played at Hawks Ridge or The Golf Club of Georgia.

I’m not disagreeing with you on Turning Stone – but the PGA Tour isn’t likely to uproot a traditional tournament that is already ponying up the bucks in the regular season. The only tournament on thin ice financially in the northeast part of the schedule is the Canadian Open. The question will come down to whether or not the Turning Stone people want a date opposite a WGC or the British Open. They can’t play before late April at the earliest, and need to finish before October – kind of a small window.

That leaves the John Deere week – possible since it’s in New York and a shorter flight to the UK for the British. Everything else in the summer is either already paying $6 to $7 million, a major, a WGC, or a field opposite a WGC or British.

What will they be willing to take ?

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Oct 9, 2008 12:03 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I loved the BC Open

It was my favorite tournament to attend. Went to see it 3 or 4 times in the 1980’s, more than any other event and I didn’t live in that part of the US either.

En Joie was an easy course to walk, small town atmosphere, you could walk from your car to the tournament entrance if you got there before 9 am and not get bused in from Batavia. The prices were reasonable for concessions, or at least I think they were. The last time I attended was 1988.

by Bill Jempty on Oct 9, 2008 12:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

BC

rememeber the special BC comic series every year around the BC Open ? always loved those.

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Oct 9, 2008 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

no do remember the comic

But remember Johnny Hart’s association with the tournament.

I was stationed at Bethesda Naval from 1983-85, and then went to a school at Great lakes before being stationed at Balboa from 85-87. I went to the BC Open 83-85, and then in 88 when home on leave. By then I was stationed at Subic Bay in the Philippines. Favorite players to follow were Peter Jacobsen, DA Weibring, Bruce Lietzke and Craig Stadler. My father went with me to the tournaments, we usually came on pro-am day for for round one.

I saw Peter play at the BC Open, Kingsmill, The International, Kemper Open, Bay Hill, Doral and San Diego at one time or another. Mike Cowan would remember us in those days, usually because we’d wear a BC Open cap at San Diego, or Doral up at at the BC. “you guys get around he say.” or something like that.

Mike could hit the ball too. At BC once, Peter let him tee it up on the last hole of the pro-am one year. They were playing a scramble. Mike put it in there closer than anyone, that hole. Like 10-15 feet. The BC used to have the caddy tournament.

After I married in 1989, my PGA Tour viewing days ended. I like the Ladies now anyway.

by Bill Jempty on Oct 9, 2008 5:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Verona weather

It was great last year and mostly terrible this year. It’s pretty random, but seems to be on the whole staying warmer longer than when I was a kid growing up around there.

by The Constructivist on Oct 9, 2008 12:22 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

wouldn't you rah-thuh...

…have a nice, sunny, warm, Summer day to watch the Turning Stone tournament (before going in to lose a bundle at the blackjack table) instead of a better than average chance of playing in long sleeves and watching in coats (before going inside to losing a bundle at the blackjack table) ?

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Oct 9, 2008 12:35 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs