The Hope & the Inconvenient Ruse of the Independent Contractor
by Ryan Ballengee on Jan 23, 2010 9:38 PM EST
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PrintThere is not a single player inside of the top 35 of the Official World Golf Rankings at the Bob Hope Classic this week. If anywhere, they're in Abu Dhabi for the first leg of the European Tour's lucrative Desert Swing. Stars are lured to the Middle East with promises of sizable appearance fees, inching into the seven figures for golf superstars.
Since the PGA Tour does not do that, they can lose out to the Euro Tour when a rich sponsor is willing to do whatever it takes to get the best to their event. For the oil barons of the Middle East, money is little object.
The money lured Anthony Kim to the United Arab Emirates for the event and he was chastised for it by long-time PGA Tour veteran Scott McCarron.
McCarron told Golf Digest, "I think it sends a bad message when you're out chasing money over in Abu Dhabi. Are you helping the PGA Tour when you do that? Absolutely not."
Named to the 16 member PGA Tour Players Advisory Council - that really wields little power since player reps on the board can always be outvoted 5-4 - McCarron has not won on the PGA Tour since 2001. In other words, he is not one of the guys being wooed to play in Abu Dhabi for a hefty, up front sum.
McCarron's contention is that Commissioner Finchem granted Kim a conflicting event exemption - effectively a doctor's note to skip out on playing the PGA Tour during any one week to play on another tour. A player can be granted up to three each year and the Commish rarely declines a request.
Finchem responded to press conference questions about a possible moratorium on those exemptions. He was not convinced about the volume of requests or their impact on the Tour as a whole.
The tournament director of the Bob Hope Classic disagrees, though. Speaking with Golf World magazine, Michael Milthorpe says his event needs defection protection from the Tour.
"I’d personally like to see the tour do a moratorium on them, until things pick up," Milthorpe said. "Support our events here."
Milthorpe, McCarron, and people of their ilk are not only wrong, but turn their back on the notion (read: ruse) that PGA Tour players are "independent contractors."
The PGA Tour and its players like to claim that the golfers are "independent contractors" - as though they can just came and go as they please from the Tour. That notion is laughable. A PGA Tour member is not independent.
They have to play in fifteen events per year. They are subject to random drug testing. Players must compete in pro-ams or participate in other sponsor events. Loyalty to the Tour is required for all but three tournaments per year. In other words, the "independent contractor" is more like an employee than a contractor.
Commissioner Finchem is a smart man. He realizes that the players truly are not independent contractors. The rubber stamp of the conflicting event exemption is a concept that is used to keep top players happy. Three times per year, the best players on Tour can cash in on their international fame in the form of a six or seven figure appearance fee overseas.
More often than not, the exemptions are used to appear in European Tour events with host nations and sponsors that are willing to shell out serious money to woo superstars. The practice is in no way relegated to the Desert Swing. It happens in China and Singapore and other places, too.
Likewise, there are European Tour events that refuse to engage in the practice. Those tournaments almost universally offer fewer points than the PGA Tour event held the same week. Only five FedExCup events offered fewer world ranking points than the Euro Tour event opposite it. Five out of thirty-three. Considering the global nature of the sport, the fact that the PGA Tour holds serve on World Ranking Points more than 80% of the time is very telling.
The only European Tour events that eclipse well-established PGA Tour events are during the Desert Swing. Oil money talks. Hell, as a member of the media, I would prefer to cover the Desert Swing than the Hope. For a three week stretch during each of the last several seasons, the European Tour has taken the spotlight. So what? For the remainder of the season, only one other Euro Tour event will dominate headlines during the FedExCup. That is the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, which is the Euro Tour's version of the Players Championship and offers bonus World Ranking Points to the field. It is the homecoming of the European Tour year.
That homecoming is necessary because the European Tour's membership qualifications are very lax. A mere 11 events are required to be a Tour member and participate in the Race to Dubai. For elite players, that means the four majors and three WGCs co-sponsored by the Euro Tour, plus three other events and the Dubai World Championship.
The Race to Dubai was concocted by the European Tour as a way of keeping some its homegrown talent in Europe longer, and bring back some of the defectors that went to play the PGA Tour full-time. Just a mere few PGA Tour players took up associate Euro Tour memberships to play in the Race to Dubai. Effectively, that signaled that the PGA Tour has a very loyal base as it is. The money, the ease of travel, and the competition on the PGA Tour is superior to the European Tour.
Knowing this, pockets of the European Tour - the Desert Swing, Race to Dubai, et al - cater to the top players. Meanwhile, PGA Tour players like McCarron appear happy to swipe up the European-born talent. McCarron was not complaining that Rory McIlroy has decided to join the PGA Tour in 2010. He didn't balk at the scores of other players that cultivated their game in Europe and then brought it to America.
Why not? They're taking up spots in PGA Tour events that prevent rank-and-file guys like McCarron from having higher priority. Many players that hold dual memberships are in Abu Dhabi, including 8 of the world's top 14. Why did McCarron focus his rage on Anthony Kim, one of three Americans in the field, instead of former major champion Todd Hamilton?
In all honesty, guys like McCarron really only want superstars to appear to help promote events in the short-term. For every guy ranked highly like Kim that appears in the Hope, McCarron's odds of being in the field get worse. The rank-and-file want loyalty only to the end that it helps them maintain opportunities to play. To McCarron, "supporting the PGA Tour" means "ensuring that second and third tier players have intramural tournaments."
Unlike the European Tour, the PGA Tour is very much influenced by the rank-and-file, the guys that have made millions of dollars but never actually won a tournament. Happy with their lifestyle, they seek to preserve it when they feel threatened by the reality that a global tour is taking shape above them, operating outside of their reach and influence.
As Doug Barron said to me earlier this week, "Golf is a selfish game. You've got to look out for yourself."
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If Finchem, or anyone else, tries to enforce a rule saying top 20 players can’t compete overseas the week of the Hope, look for all of them to take the week off. None need the money and missing one crappy event they were going to skip anyway isn’t going to cost them enough points to matter.
Truth has a well-known liberal bias.
It does put a little dent in the pure definition of an independent contractor, but players who earn Tour cards do accept the rules and regulations that go with that card.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Yes, they do “contract” with the Tour, but they’re not independent to contract elsewhere (at the same time).
Find me! Email: ryan@thegolfnewsnet.com, Twitter: http://twitter.com/waggleroomryan, or Facebook: http://facebook.com/waggleroom.
by Ryan Ballengee on Jan 23, 2010 10:14 PM EST up reply actions
It is easier now than in Beamons day...
he would have been quite happy to see golf played just in the US, except the British open. Golf has moved on from those days.McCarron could never mix it with the elete, but enjoys big paydays nevertheless. Lets say, the worlds top 40 showed up at the Hope. He would have been way down the field, if he made the cut at all, then complain there are too many “foreign players on our tour”. He should shut up and be happy he could play for a living at all.
A crappy tournament
What has earned the Hope the adjective “crappy”? Is it because top ranked golfers routinely skip this event? That hasn’t always been the case. Is it the five round format? That seems to have endured. Is it the lack of A-list celebrities? I’m not sure many of us would watch even if A-listers were playing (if A listers were golfers). Or is it, as many have suggested, a golf relic that should be buried? I maintain that golf is no longer being marketed to us, the over 55 crowd. And it doesn’t seem to be being embraced as much as we embraced it by young men. Here are two things that support my view. The Golf Channel is what it is and without it we’d have MUCH LESS golf available on TV, I look at their programing as representitative of where golf is and where it’s going. First, I see VERY FEW favorable comments made about Michael Breed. While I see him as loud, hyperactive and the “Billy Mays” of golf, I don’t think young people see him that way. They might use the term “energetic”. Sort of the antithesis of Eddie Marins…. Then there’s those incessant Cialis ads! It doesn’t take a genius to see why the manufacturer has chosen golf broadcasts to advertise their product, Flomax and Avodart too. I’ve said all along, players go where the money is. Their “allegiance” is to their bank balance, and it’s always been that way. My guess is Palmer would have gone to Abu Dhabi too. I hasn’t got to where he is making sentiment his #1 priority. Morning EASY!
Morning Ping..
I think a lot to do with that, ping, is the courses. The top 50 are the best because they do it on the toughest courses. When they go on to a drive and a pitch course, it becomes a non event. Remember whenever you played a high handicapper on the winter tees ? He too could reach the green with an iron an the 20 shots you gave him gave you no chance. The fact that 62’s are common at the Hope suggests the courses are far too easy.
times change
There was a time when it was a good tournament. Now it’s not. The NFL is certainly a component. Back in the day we might have seen the last two rounds on ABC. The celebs back then were not overexposed like they are now, so watching them play golf would have been interesting. Not so much anymore.
Truth has a well-known liberal bias.
Everything you said is true....
but the Hope thrived with these easy courses and multiple course format. Why then and not now? As I’ve said too often, golf is sports entertainment. Is one “easy” tournament per year too much? But as you’ve said, there’s so much more money in tn the game now. It occurred to me at this moment that one factor that hasn’t been mentioned is the NFL. “Back in the day”, football season was over by now. Golf wasn’t competing for an audience or attention with the NFL. While the golf season is just getting under way and the pros are “shaking the rust off their game” , football is in the critical play-offs. I would take exception with the statement: " For the oil barons of the Middle East, money is little object"…… Didn’t we see a financial collapse in Dubai?
Interesting..
I’ve never heard of a “conflicting events exemption”. I always assumed that because players were independent contractors they could indeed come and go as they please as long as they hit the minimum 15 events. It would be interesting to see what would happen if Finchem stopped granting them.
Roll Tide !!
I don’t know what Scott McCarron’s problem is. AK in all probability wouldn’t have played this week anyway and as they only get three free passes, it’s not like they are going to miss something that matters. If I were he, I would be more interested in why Mickelson and Tiger (aside from obvious reasons) consistently miss Kapalua. That should be a flagship event, but it’s almost become a silly season stop.
Almost silly season stop...
This year it was the usual all winners event, which should in itself give the tournament some traction. It was further enhanced with the presents of all four major winners from the previous year. This demostrates the reality that for a tournament to succeed mightily, it needs NAMES! Not names only WE know, but names the average viewer knows. To become a “name” you must win, and win often. Is that so hard to understand? Beyond that, the Tour needs to do a much better job at promoting more of its players. However, for some reason, men’s golf seems to rely more on performance than say….women’s golf, although John Daly comes to mind…but he has won TWO majors…
Top players don't play 30 events a year
that leaves at least 10 events they won’t be in. Both main tours have about 48 tournaments in the year, so unless they trim down, this will always happen. When a proper world tour happens, trimming down will be a nessessity.
JD is a silly season all on his own...
Maybe now that Tiger has done a bunk, then the Tour will start to look outside of it’s very narrow box and begin to, as you say, promote more of the undeniable talent out there. Scott McCarron not with standing. They need too. It’s become apparent that hanging your hat on one member (excuse the pun) is not a wise move.
As far as Kapalua is concerned – it’s a ranking event. Good start to the year for a very select few, but without any seeming – to my eyes anyway, passion. Nice to be able to knock back whatever last place was worth.
I think
it’s more the media that “hung it’s hat on one player” than the PGA Tour itself. Perhaps the tour could do more, but it’s a large block of the public and consequently the media that’s primarily only interested in one player. When you have only one player who’s done what Tiger has, (nothing short of complete domination) this is what you’re likely to get. What the tour needs most is more players that step up and start winning regularly and become stars; then the tour will have something to promote besides Tiger and Phil. As far as I can tell, they’ve tried to promote several young players but so far none of them have “popped”. Bottom line is you can promote and market a product (in this case player) to the max but at the end of the day that product has to deliver the promise or you’ll quickly be dead in the water.
Roll Tide !!
Who played the hope every year from the top 10 ?
I remember Duval’s 59 and Mickleson playing it, but it is not one of the big ones the top players look for every year. Tiger will not be here in 10 years and golf will shine as always. the US media goes way overboard about Tiger compared to Europe. Golf fans for the last 40 years marvel at tiger, of course…but he is not golf. New fans might think so, but they are nieve. that is networks just showing tiger time after time, even when he is 20th. He sells. And thats the problem. It’s only about money now.
Good point
Tigerhead. Could be that Ireland has just what we all need. The young man is a breath of fresh air – in all respects. 9th on the OWGR and still only 19. It’s rather nice to see someone come out and play the game the way he does, with a passion and yet with respect.
Exactly!
But as tigerhead accurately pointed out, promise and potential are one thing…becoming that consistent winner is quite another.
True..
But think about his age and where he is now. Not many can lay claim to what he has done in such a short time. 2nd on the Euro Money List in his rookie year. Who was the last young gun to come out with those sort of credentials?
I also think that perhaps
Tiger’s created a monster. Only a precious few, if any, will ever be able to do what Tiger has done in golf. The fans, the media, and the tour are all looking for the “next Tiger”, but that’s probably an unrealistic standard to compare to.
Roll Tide !!
I'm (easily) confused
Most people have been pretty supportive of Rory playing on the PGA Tour (needs to compete against the best, etc) so what’s the problem with Anthony playing in Abu Dhabi
(where the best are this week). Doesn’t seem likely to be that either would have been playing the Hope anyway.
And for Ping – who bailed out Dubai ? (no oil there anyway) Lots of money still left in the ME.
I posted
but it didn’t stick. I’m with you Wendy. The Euro players have the best of both worlds and maybe we will see that come to fruition in the next year or two. Is the US Tour too insular? Perhaps the next decade will see the rest of the world take over the OWGR.
I've wondered
the same thing. Pretty hard act to follow, but the same thing was probably said about Jack.
Indeed chip'nputt
Yea, it used to be who’s gonna be the “next Jack”. I actually do believe another will come along, (maybe better than Jack and Tiger both) but the problem is that person may not have even been born yet. I do agree that Rory is probably our best bet of the current crop; time will tell.
Roll Tide !!
Martin Kaymer
is another who is putting his hand up. Very Langeresque in his demeanor and method, but with a better action and he can putt.
give youth a little credit for that – he’s 25 years younger than Bernhard. given time, he could slow down to that Langer pace.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Actually, I think Langer sped it up a bit
as he got older.
Who was the last young gun to come out with these sort of credentials?
Going back a few years Lee Westwood and Sergio Garcia… Then there was Ryan Moore, the most decorated college golfer since Jack Nicklaus… Even more recently there was Danny Lee, a Korean from New Zealand. He briefly held the title of Youngest U.S. Amateur Winner, won The Johnny Walker….sadly flunked out of Q-School this past year. Tigerhead makes a good point when he says, “Tiger created a monster.” Because of his dominance, winning a couple times a year is passe…. Wendy: I was under the impression that the whole Middle Eastern Economy, Dubai included, was based on oil.
Nope - not all ME countries have oil
but the wealthiest ones do. As Court says – Dubai was putting all its eggs in one basket – tourism – and ran out of money to repay loans. Got bailed out (not totally) by oil-rich neighbour.
Danny Lee
tried to spread himself a little too thin. I think he may have been better served staying on the Euro Tour and learning his trade there. He got a little overwhelmed with a lot of things in a very short space of time. He still has time time though.
Dubai was bailed out by Abu Dhabi and it’s all about oil and real estate in that part of the world. All good if you want to share your backyard with a couple of thirsty camels and some pumped up gun running Bedouins .
Today on the Euro Tour coverage...
I heard them mention that the World Ranking Points at Abu Dhabi were much higher than at the Hope. Martin Kaymer, for example, will probably move from 14 to 6 in the world with his win today. Maybe the money isn’t the only thing pulling the big name players away from the Hope.
Granted, I suppose you could argue that the Hope would be worth more ranking points if more highly-ranked players were there. But with the number of highly-ranked European players right now, and they play their home tour, that could give the Euro Tour several events that offer more points than the US Tour over the next year or two. Am I correct in that understanding, Ryan?
If it’s true, then Anthony Kim may have had other reasons for going to Abu Dhabi. (Not that it worked out for him this time.)
Mike Southern
www.ruthlessgolf.com
T13 not so shabby
for 4 rounds in the sun vs. 5 days (possibly 6) in the rain? Of course I assume he went there to win so weighed up his choices beforehand (and however many points he picked up was more than zero for not playing Hope at all?)
The points were higher because the players were in Abu Dhabi – the players didn’t go there because of the points. They caused the points to go up.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
A little Dhabi'll do ya, no?
Too old a reference for most. That’s from an old Bryllcream commercial: A little dab’ll do ya.
Easing,
doesn’t all this go back to a discussion we had some time ago….A truly WORLD TOUR. I frankly think this is why Ol Timmy took the trip he did…trying to line things up and still keep his toes in the pie….First, as an Indep. Contractor, if I needed a note from the teacher to play somewhere else, the tour wouldn’t employ enough attys. to handle the law suit I would lay on them…It wouldn’t cost me that much out of pocket either, as there are mucho cut throats out there that would jump at the chance to do this battle..Next, there is always ebbing and flowing on the tour….not only with personal, but with events, money, etc….The WGR are a huge joke, in that they were made primarily to promote for TV coverage…I don’t have the answer, but they need to be revamped….Back to Easing…I don’t know the numbers that the players would have to do for each tour, or who will be the big dog, but we need a world tour, and not just by reason of a players ethnicity…STUB
By a World Tour – do you mean a series of tournaments just for the top…80/100/120 players and expect them all to show up for however many tournaments they have outside the majors, then let them play wherever they want the rest of the year ?
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
I always saw a world tour as the fairest way of determining who the best players are.
For far too long, Americans have had an unfair advantage…home tour, no need to travel abroad, 3 majors on home soil. All grew up in the most prosperous nation on earth, with all those advantages. Any international player has had the harder route…travel to America, months away from home, missing his family, etc. Most Americans wouldn’t stay 4 weeks away from home and who can blame them ? But as the world has caught up, more international players in the top 100, it is a natural thing to play in their part of the world also. If Tiger was , say, Australian, he might play more in that part of the world, then you get more of the top Americans following him and wanting his scalp. The more countries sponsor tournaments, the more likely this will happen. The top 100 players in a world tour would follow a world tour schedule, thus world golf rankings making sense. This happens in tennis already. The US tour and the Euro tour would have to combine with others to allow this to happen and they are both too long in a calendar year anyway. The Nationwide tour could take the Hope this week that can’t draw a top player any longer.
TX
when ya gotta explain um, your in trouble…STUB
Obviously explained it for those too young
to grasp the meaning. Yeesh. No one will ever type in Deep before your Thinker moniker.
Still thinking about the points...
I understand that the points at Abu Dhabi were higher because the highest rated players were there. I guess my question really concerns the fact that those top-rated players were European. I would expect the European players to support their own tour, and at the start of the week when the powers-that-be figured how much “weight” the tournament should carry in the rankings, only 6 of the top 20 in the world were American… and most of the other 14 were at Abu Dhabi.
When the Hope was in its heyday, you would never have seen that many Euros at the top. I guess my question should be whether this change in the world rankings will, over the next couple of years, change the balance of power between the US and Euro tours. If the Euros monopolize the rankings the way Americans have in the past, and they decide to play Euro Tour events, wouldn’t that shift a lot of the highest-ranking tournaments from the PGA Tour to the Euro Tour?
Tiger or Phil certainly skew the weightings in favor of the tournaments they happen to play… but they don’t play that much, so they affect a relatively small number of tournaments, and many of those will be majors and WGC events that draw the big guns anyway. I’m wondering if we might not see players like Anthony Kim head overseas just to get world ranking points, since the events played by the highest-ranked golfers — who are predominantly European right now — are where you have to play to move up in the rankings. Is that a clearer question?
Mike Southern
www.ruthlessgolf.com
Thats part of my point, Mike
International players have sought out the US tour in the past for compitition and the money. If that criteria is elsewhere, thats where they will play.
Granted, without reservation. But will it change things enough to level the playing field between the tours? Will we see the Euro Tour become “the place to play” if the Euros continue to dominate the world rankings? That’s what I’m wondering.
Mike Southern
www.ruthlessgolf.com
by Ruthless Mike on Jan 24, 2010 4:10 PM EST up reply actions
As always – it’s not where the players are from it’s where the sponsorship dollars are. right now, US PGA Tour tournaments pay almost twice what Euro Tour events pay. If that switches around – the top players will be moving to the Euro Tour and the rest will be fighting it out to get Euro Tour cards
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Ruthless Mike Asks a Good Question...
…I wonder the same thing … three majors notwithstanding. The balance could change over time, couldn’t it?. Particularly if, as Mike suggests, Europeans and Internationals dominate… and the European economy recovers faster/better than the US economy.
Independent contractors ! LMAO
You’ve nailed it Ryan. It’s a myth. Finchem needs to protect the US Tour and it’s sponsors from the $$$ raiding types overseas. I think it is disrespectful that American players turn their backs on American events/sponsors to chase overseas $$$. The “conflicting event release” should be eliminated, especially when we here in the US have seen our Tour lose sponsors due our economy. Support America first ! Finchem knows this, and I believe these exemptions will be scrapped, or at least reduced to 1 or 2 a year. We simply cannot afford this practice any longer……………………………………………….Z.
you're still away,...choke on it !
3 releases per year max??
Paul Casey played four Euro tournaments in 2009 even before he got injured (Abu Dhabi, Dubai Desert, Johnnie Walker in Australia, BMW PGA). McIlroy is down to play at least 4 this year by end July. Have they got extra exemptions, or is it one rule for some and another for others, or do we misunderstand the rules?
RYAN
Is there a reason why there has been no mention of the Champions Tour event this weekend?
Congrats re your Saints, Em.
and not yesterday I almost nailed it with my 31-24 prediction.
Thanks......We are happy and relieved......
it’s been a long road and now we have a chance, but the Colts are tough. It won’t be easy.
The Saints are in the SUPER BOWL....WHO DAT!
I'm a big Indy fan, so
we kinda have to part ways now, but if your Saints can keep causing fumbles you’ve got a solid chance. But Reggie’s gotta play big.
Do a FanPost
RB can’t write about everything – that’s where the FanPosts come in. If something you want to talk about doesn’t come up – you can write about it yourself.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
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