Let's Just Make the Tiger/Phil Tour an Official Series
by Ryan Ballengee on Jul 1, 2010 4:45 PM EDT
in Pro Golf
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PrintAbout a couple of months ago when the rumors first started coming out about the notion of "designated tournaments" on the PGA Tour, it drew a good amount of public support. Of course it would be great of the PGA Tour to compel its "independent contractors" (who get pensions) in the upper echelon of whatever ranking system to play in events that typically lack the stars. It would draw in more/replacement sponsors, help at the ticket gate, and do better on the tube, right?
Maybe not.
Consider, as Jason Sobel does, the notion that "designated tournaments" is a nice way of saying "the two-thirds of the schedule that neither Tiger nor Phil play." Really, this concept is designed to force two players into a couple of more starts each year. Very few other players on the PGA Tour move the public's attention span away from Justin Bieber to golf. Bieber lookalike Rickie Fowler does, but few others.
Let's call a spade as it is then. The Tour's concept is really an expansion of the Tiger/Phil Series. Those events are the four majors, the three WGCs, the Players, Memorial, Colonial, Pebble, Riviera, Aronimink (for now), and a few others. And then there is the rest of the Tour.
In the same way that there is a Fall Series, maybe the ridiculous notion of formally recognizing the Tiger/Phil Series is not that outlandish. There is a self-reinforcing circle to my forthcoming plan in the next paragraph - hey! just like the Official World Golf Rankings! - but follow me here.
Say that the Tiger/Phil Series is real. It's the twenty or so best event on Tour. Those events, too, have the best purses because they attract the two players that draw the most. Award more FedExCup points for tournaments in which either of these two play. (If I wasn't being a little obscene here, I would honestly suggest that FedExCup points per event should be weighted on quality of field, but I digress.) Charge more for sponsorship.
In other words, create a tiered structure for events that not only separates the FedExCup from the Fall Series, but the more popular FEC events from the ones that struggle at times. Effectively, it is kind of the opposite approach to the "designated tournament" idea. It would lower the intrinsic and extrinsic value of the tournament, its fields, and sponsors. Purses would go lower, markets could get a little smaller to host these events, and it could mean a scaling down of the Tour.
What the Tour is trying to accomplish is the same thing - tiering the PGA Tour schedule - but they're trying to make more money with the idea of "designated tournaments." If they can guarantee a sponsor, city, and fans that either Tiger or Phil will show up every, say, four years, then tournaments are likely to last longer and sponsors will put up money without a doubt that their hospitality tent will have some kind of view of the number one or two ranked players in the world.
The problem is that solution is really only temporary. Phil's 40 years old now. Tiger's not all that far behind, is he? Sure, the viable golfing life of professionals is much longer these days - thanks, almost singularly to Tom Watson - but there is a point in the not too distant future when neither Tiger nor Phil will be number one or two. Who knows if their replacements will be able to send a shiver up the public's collective leg like Barack Obama does for Chris Matthews. If not, then the incentive for sponsors to stick around for a dud of a number one or two or thirty is, well, zero.
It seems easier now for the Tour to be able to formally recognize a more tiered structure of events that command different fees based upon the quality of field. Fans in smaller markets will appreciate the events in the same way that the longer standing Fall Series events have held on for years. The reality, though, is that struggling events are transient and the power index in golf is in ebb and flow. It may not be today, with two clearly established alpha dogs, but it soon may be.
Care for an example? Look at the LPGA Tour. Annika Sorenstam was the queen of the game and made some kind of public splash. She retired and gave way to the clear number two and successor Lorena Ochoa. Both are now gone and there have been three number one players in the last three weeks, with perhaps two others available to step in to replace them. None particularly inspire curiosity from the average sports fan. What good would the "designated tournaments" model do for the LPGA Tour? Looking harder at the subject, what does the "one in four" rule really buy the LPGA Tour?
The reality is that transcendent figures push or pull a sport closer into a broader consciousness. Men's golf has two such figures right now. They may still in five years, or may not. But, the Tour needs to exist and evaluate not based on specific players. Rather, the Tour needs to evaluate in a way that recognizes the fickle nature of performance and the recognition that PT Barnum does not work in Ponte Vedra.
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Even if this creates a Tiger-FIGJAM
logjam, just do it.
RB – will you please dig the Stat-man cape out of the shredder and call Sobel ? The Tour schedule has 36 weeks of tournaments. Mickelnuts averages about 20 starts a year. Tiger, except for the last few years with his injury streak, gets in about 18.
Last time I checked – that’s not a third of the tournaments. Between the two of them, they are in half the schedule.
RB – thanks for making the extremely simple and common sense point that Tiger and Phil aren’t going to be around long enough to make all this nonsense worthwhile….unless…as I have been saying around here for several years….the idea is to give tournaments that don’t get one or the other or both of these guys in the field a break in sponsor cost.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Tennis
Isn’t that basically what the tennis tours do now? Break up the tornament stops into tiers with the slams at the top, the Masters series the next and so on until you get the bottom tier of clay court snoozefests in Budapest that pay nothing?
Sounds like an eventual merger of the pro tours.
So, how do we create 'the Masters' series without all the events being in the US
This is heading back to the discussion on 21st Century Grand Slam – where the desire to have top events outside US attracting world class fields exists, but no-one can agree what they should be. So let’s leave the Majors, and instead, as suggested, create a ‘Masters’ series – perhaps we could call it the World Golf Championships.
The WGC format could be extended so that there is say an 9 event Masters/WGC series alongside 4 majors, at which we would expect virtually all top 50 WGR players to compete. Currently 5 events fit this criterion – 4 WGCs plus the Players, and 4 of these 5 are in US. How about scrapping the WGC matchplay, leaving 2 WGCs plus Players in US, HSBC Champions in China, so we need 5 more events to step up to WGC status:
- Australian Open, with timing adjusted so it can be played with HSBC Champions in one trip
- BMW PGA
- A Middle Eastern event say in first week of Feb
- French Open (possibly adjust dates so played next to The Open)
- An event in Spain/Portugal in October?
So we finish up with:
- 4 Majors and 9 WGCs,
- 6 in US, 4 in Western Europe (2 UK, 1 France, 1 Spain/Portugal), 1 Middle east, 2 in Far East
A bit of work to be done on scheduling so there is a proper off season break, and so that, where possible, 2 majors/WGCs can be played on one international trip, as with Bridgestone/USPGA at the moment.
They TRIED. The WGC’s were originally spread around the world, but they didn’t get corporate support around the world. The TV numbers were down around the globe for events not in the US.
They just started a WGC in China last year and it was a ratings flop. It wasn’t watched in Europe OR the US.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
The truth is most Americans wouldn't make the trip.
It will take time. But lets suppose all but one WGC event is outside the US. Leave the Majors as they are for now. If these world events carry the ranking points and prizemoney, etc, the top 50 must go for them. Schedule it right and watch the Players turn up. You know International players would…it might even be in their home country too. (well it’s nice to play on your home soil ) And if the ever diminishing number of Americans in the top 50 do a no show ( too far, I get jet lag ) then they slip down the rankings. The beginnings of a world tour are already here…10 years ago, your would never see top players play in China…now one can expect it.
Dang Eas – can you possibly be more arrogant about this ? Why don’t you go look at the field in that WGC in China. Looks like there were plenty of Americans there – including Tiger and Phil – and would you be whining like this if those two weren’t the world’s biggest draws ? Most of the top 50 were there.
If the top two draws were Europeans who actually played there full time – would you be carrying on like this ? I doubt it. You would be thrilled that the world was looking at your tour and wouldn’t give a rat’s behind about what was going on with the US PGA Tour.
Socialism hasn’t worked – doesn’t work – and never will work. Fairness is a fantasy.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
I thought Easing was making the point
that most of the top players were at the WGC in China now whereas they wouldn’t have been 10 years ago?
What’s with you and this European socialism fixation? What’s it got to do with the price of tea?
Not sure how you can make a claim like that, Wendy. You don’t know what players 10 years ago would have done. WGC’s are big bucks and big rankings points…but especially big bucks.
The tournament was played at a time when the American Tour players who were on the invitation list had been sitting around for several weeks and were rested up. The European Tour players on the list were starting their season and were already in the neighborhood.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
I'm not making the claim Court
Easing said “10 years ago you would never see top players play in China …now one can expect it.” You replied “Why don’t you go look at that field in China – looks like there were plenty of Americans there”. It appeared you two were in agreement on this point so I didn’t see where the accusation of arrogance came from?
Happy Independence Day btw.
The arrogance is suggesting it's ok for the top 100 in the world to play all but 2 weeks in America.
Court, the top 5 20 years ago were European. Even you remember those days…Americans were 2nd best. That was despite the PGA being the strongest tour by far. I couldn’t give a rats behind where they are from. I want to see great golf, played all over the world. America is a great place, but it’s not the only place.I have only heard complaints about Koreans from America. I know this might seem painful to you, but why do you seem frightened to see top pro golf played more around the world ? I suppose it’s only natural to want to see most of the season in your own country, but it’s also very selfish. And arrogant to suggest it wouldn’t work anywhere else. And please stop this political crap about Socialism..it’s not about fairness…I’m tired of some of the pampered pro’s from America moaning about traveling like a bunch of spoilit brats. The days are long gone when some US pro’s cried when an overseas player took their spot on the PGA tour…the world stage is coming and they had better get on board or be left behind. The only whining is coming from you at even the suggestion of change.
BINGO !!!!!
You’re wanting to force a group of men who play professional golf, who are free to play when and where they want, to play when and where YOU want.
It has nothing to do with your European Union socialist ideas of “fairness” (which is a complete load of bunk). It has everything to do with people being free to earn a living the best way they see fit. If they want to have most of the biggest tournaments in a part of the world that pays the most and has the most support – then that’s what the market dictates.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Court, this is not politics.
This is about a world tour for professional golfers. Touring the world, on different courses, countries, testing all the top players in various parts of the world, including America. They would all travel to the biggest tournaments (WGC’s dotted around the world,as the titles would suggest ) testing all parts of their games and a true world ranking would then be credible. Americans would travel like International players have always done. Americans would even become better shotmakers, getting away from the “target golf” played on PGA courses much of the time. More important, fans in Australia , South Africa, Asia etc would be able to see players like Tiger and Phil without the crazy appearance money on their home soil. Of course, some telecasts wouldn’t suit you, you would have to record them if you were interested. You have to get away from this silly notion of yours about markets and jobs…these top players are millionaires many times over. This is not about America, land of the free or the European Union…this is Sport…more importantly World sport. It’s not what I want…fans all over the world would embrace it…except fans such as you, who always want it in your own back yard.
Is it the fans or the players that don't like it outside the US?
Court says ratings were down for the HSBC Champions, but that’s played in November. Are you saying that if extra WGCs were played during the regular US golf season, but outside USA, that American audiences wouldn’t watch?
Nobody likes flying across a whole bunch of time zones from week to week. That tournament pretty much has to be played outside of the regular season for US PGA Tour players to pack their bags and fly halfway around the world. The top players pretty much take three weeks out of the year at a minimum for The British as it is.
The fans here don’t like it for the same reason the Europeans hate the US Tour – because they don’t get to watch their best golfers compete during a decent hour…hard to argue with that.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Re ‘watching ’their best golfers’ – one major point of my posts is that I want to watch all the best golfers playing together more often, regardless of nationality/regional allegiance.
Actually we can watch US tour golf at a decent hour except when it’s played on the west coast!
You’re doing the same thing Eas is doing – you want to force the players to play your schedule. To do this – you’ll have to erase the PGA Tour and the way they do things as “independent contractors” planning their schedules under a few general constraints – and start a new Tour that tells the players when and where they will show up.
The first thing that happens in a league like that ? TW and Phil go home and kick their feet up for good. Without those two, the league fails…at least right now.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
"the Europeans hate the US Tour"
Can you back this statement up up with any facts, CG? As lusakajoe says we can (& you know we do) watch US tour golf at a decent hour except for West Coast (8 hours diff.) tournaments. In fact with standard working hours, one rarely gets to watch the first two rounds of European golf tournments, whereas one can watch the US tour after work. As you would say – “be serious”!
Hey Wendy !!
are those the regular telecasts, or the dreaded reruns, over and over and over..by the GC ?…STUB
Hah! Direct opposites.
(That works on so many levels …. well, two, at least.)
He hasn't ranted about the commentators
for at least …. oooh – a day?! Don’t get GC, STUB ( & that works on more than one level).
The Golf Channel, over here.
But nobody tries to swim it.
And I'll take CG's rants over Dennis Miller's every time.
Much easier to follow. Don’t need a dictionary, which is good, cuz mine isn’t in alphabetical order anyway.
Reminds me of a motto/sign outside the Scotland Yard
building that read: What’s this then?
Compliments of Monty Python or Monty the golfer, can’t remember which.
by TXQ on Jul 3, 2010 3:21 PM EDT up reply actions
Wendy,
You know we don’t hate it. We enjoy the different courses etc. Court might hate the idea of a proper world tour because it would dilute the PGA tour. In the interests of golf as a sport, worldwide, he’s being selfish.
But at least he's not a protectionist
at least as far as golf goes. Otherwise, who knows? Possibly D?
Sure – read just about anything Eas has written about how “unfair” it is that three majors are in the US, or how “unfair” it is that so many great players from around the world move to the US to play on the PGA Tour, or how “unfair” it is that those top ranked players aren’t forced to travel around the world to play.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Players are not forced to do anything.
but they are compelled to play against the best. If there ever was going to be a major to replace the PGA, then Australia, with their fantastic courses, would get my vote. For them, sometime around the Tennis Aussie Open, like here, Wimbledon is just before our Open. So lets say early February. Masters in April. Then the 2 Opens, maybe the US Open a few weeks earlier to space majors out more. To have 3 of them now 8 weeks apart leaves big gaps in the calendar year. Then, spread the WGC events around the rest of the globe, say, South Africa in March, China in October. Wouldn’t it be great for locals of those events to see the world’s top players ? Each major event could have another event with it ( Scottish Open is the week before the Open) so top players could be there 2 weeks at least. The PGA , European Tours would cease to combat eachother and work together as a combined tour. Sponsors internationally would embrace this because it is now a world market. Top players play these events because they want to compete against eachother. The Rankings then mean something. They win. Fans win. Sponsors win. WGC events win too, because now the “world” title is accurate. All I ever hear about the PGA tour is that it is too long, top players only play in half of it’s events, so not a lot would change there. Americans might look forward to top golf arriving on their shores on a world stop and really appreciate it like we do when the Open comes around. The 2nd tier events on the PGA and European tours would be what they are now…stepping stones for players wanting to get to the top. What this has got to do with politics like court says is beyond me…it’s just evolution. One more thing…for court use the threat of Tiger and Phil staying home is silly…they would be retired in 10 years anyway, when I would expect half of this idea would be off and running. Now, if people like court want to keep their heads in the sand saying this would never work,I don’t mind. Other sports have gone down this road that are played worldwide and do it. Golf is bigger than most of them, more fans play it. It’s easy for Americans to think of golf like the NBA, NFL, MLB, etc, TV has etched that into them for over 40 years. Soccer, Golf, Rugby, Tennis, Athletics are far bigger than those sports and played on a world stage and golf should have a structured tour that reflects that. Forget politics court, I know it’s tough over there for you with who is in power, but try to look at the bigger picture.
When would you suggest that they play this tournament in Australia ? If you put it in August to replace the PGA, you’ll doom a “major” to failure unless someone is playing for The Grand Slam. November ? When the Euro Tour is getting their season started, but the US PGA Tour guys are finishing and resting ? They’re not going to travel to China for a WGC, then go back that way a few weeks later.
Still wondering how you plan to announce that the professional golfers of the world are just going to declare a random tournament to be a major. What is there about golf in Australia that makes it worthy of a tournament called a major ? Where is the pedigree of great golfers from Australia ? Australian tennis was dominant in the 50’s and 60’s and even into the 70’s. The British and US Opens, and the PGA are majors because of traditions built up around them. The Masters grew up around Bobby Jones and that great golf course. Who is Australia’s Bobby Jones ? Greg Norman ? Please. Australia had to Tiger Woods $3 million last year to show up. Just declaring some tournament a major is silly.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Did you read my post above ??
Australia’s Open would be in February. Australian golfers were world class in a golfing world that was geared towards Americans. That is my main point. Once Americans would travel there, they would soon find out that golf is a tougher sport that6 they realised. Read my post above. Players from outside the USA have had odds stacked against them. How do you think Americans would compete abroad ? Not as good as International players do in the US. You seem to live in denial.
oh sure – NOW you’ve started an oil war with the middle east by taking those dates. (by the way – de Nile is in de same area !) :-)
lol – golf is tougher than Americans think when it is played in Australia ? That’s pretty funny. who won the JBWere Masters in Australia last November ? That American guy…Woods.
Golf is golf. The best in the world will adjust to wherever they play.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Tough as in the travel...
Could you imagine Phil putting in the miles Els has done in his career ? Playing at home all but 2 weeks in the year is much easier on the system. Woods is one player. I’m talking about all players in the top 100. Tell you what…why don’t we all just pack it in and all pro golf should be played in the USA…the rankings would mean something that way too. We cab call it the NGA ( National Golf Association ) and the world’s great courses can become cow fields. That way I can stop trying to ask you to look outside Fincham and co and see a great big world out there full of great talent waiting to be discovered . If nothing else, it’ll stop you going on about your elected President :)
Yes – I’ll admit it – Ernie Els and Vijay Singh are superhuman beings…as are the rest of the European Tour players….which means that the United States sits under some sort of red sun that stops American players from being able to travel and effectively play the game.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
You and I go in circles here.
I never blame anyone playing most of their golf in the US..I do draw the line when they do a KP and miss the Open to pick up easy bucks. I’m not attacking players, but the tours. I happen to think that a world tour is the best way to test all top pros and make the rankings accually mean something. It’s evolution, it’s a world sport and like many other world sports, played on a world stage. You don’t and that’s fine. But not once I have heard you come up with anything constructive as to how top players would play together more often, rather just leave things as they are.
Easing - I thought KP's reasons were reasonable!
Never understood why Woody Austin didn’t take the possibly one and only chance in his life to play The Open though.
As you have failed to acknowledge
that your wild statement that “the Europeans hate the US Tour because they don’t get to watch their best golfers compete at a decent hour” was completely erroneous, I’m throwing in a little snark from The Times sport pages today especially for you.
“Rose is pretty much on his own in the AT & T, as most of Europe’s top players are getting ready for The Open in 10 days by playing in the French national championship. This must have come as a relief to CBS and the Golf Channel, as the Americans are so parochial that they spent decades declining to aim a camera anywhere near a foreigner if Frank Linkliter was in a bunker or Tom Pernice was lining up a putt.” A nice cold beer should do the trick, CG!
excuse me ? I replied to that question – and from your response, it sounds like you have the same attitude as Eas.
Where did you get, ignorant and incorrect quote about CBS ? And if you’ll take a look through the leaderboard for the AT&T, you’ll notice that a lot of the top American players aren’t there either. They are on their way to the UK to play in Scotland before The British. Whoever wrote that snide comment should probably put in for a job at a US paper with that kind of stupidity. Do we need to go through the list of great “foreigners” we have seen the last 20 years ? Three of the last five #1’s have not been American – Norman, Faldo, and Singh, with Woods and Duval.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
What question was that?
You stated that “The Europeans hate the US tour because they don’t get to see their best golfers compete at a decent hour”. Both lusakajoe & I put you right on that score ( tho’ you never replied to my request for you to back up that erroneous statement). This had NO connection with anything Easing posted.
I told you from where I got that quote . I specifically said it was from The Times sports pages today. And I said it was a snark.
The article continued in an inflammatory way -
“Once upon a time, the occasional Brit would get an invitation and, after broadening his education with a couple of nights in a Day’s Inn watching unspeakable television and nipping out to the Waffle House or Dunkin Donuts, he’d be flying back in economy after missing the cut”. Now that I’ve finished laughing, (I did like the line about Tom Pernice lining up a par putt) the article concludes “but it’s competing in the States that turns them from good to world-class golfers”.
Surely you can tell that the article is tongue in cheek (with a little snide thrown in) re DECADES ago?
PS And why didn’t you defend GC as well as CBS?
Court has invited a bunch of the GC announcers/commentators to
a surprise party at his house in Atlanta. Court himself won’t be in attendance. He, unfortunately, has an engagement a few hundred yards away with a detonator.
You’ll be reading about it soon.
The sooner the better, according to Court.
by TXQ on Jul 4, 2010 2:41 PM EDT up reply actions
Tongue in cheek ? Not a chance. It was written not as journalism, but as a reaction piece – which, sadly, makes up a very large part of what is supposed to be news reporting. Newspapers are less concerned with facts and truth than they are with selling copies. Even worse, they started doing that because readership has been dumbed down over the decades and too many people are more interested in Tiger’s divorce than the poison, subversion, and even treason being carried out by the people entrusted with leadership in our societies.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
I am largely in agreement with you
re newspapers being less concerned with facts and truth than they are with selling copies, but I hardly think an article on page 14 of the Sports supplement of “The Times” is going to lead to an increase in readership or was intended to do so.
Court, each of us has to live with a political leader we did not elect at some point in our lives (hell, we didn’t even get the chance time before last).
Court is a good bloke...
unfortunately, he is 20 years behind the times…often, us plus 50’s get out of touch.
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