PGA TOUR: What 2011 Taught Us

Now that the FedEx Cup has concluded, so has the 2011 PGA TOUR season. While there were certainly flashes of brilliance throughout the year, there were also a few glaring suggestions that the association itself would benefit from some subtle changes moving forward into 2012. New superstars were born, especially in Europe, while others seemed to melt away. The various scoring and ranking systems remain a hot discussion topic among many players and fans; however, this doesn't necessarily mean these systems need to be altered. And yes; we are all well aware that the TOUR will survive without "you know who".

Here is my rundown of the 2011 PGA TOUR season along with a few questions that need to be answered moving forward.

PGA TOUR Financials

Let's get the boring stuff out of the way first: the financial status of the PGA TOUR. One of the bigger storylines that came out of the 2011 season revolved around the TOUR's nine-year contract extension with CBS Sports and NBC Sports. This would prove to be the biggest television deal in the history of the TOUR, and it came at a time when the association's biggest product (Tiger Woods) was quickly becoming an afterthought.

What was so brilliant about this move, of course, was how PGA commish Tim Finchem, CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus and NBC Sports chairman Mark Lazarus constructed and agreed on a long-term business plan knowing that Woods would no longer be as large a draw to their respective parties.

"In our business plan, we did not assume any golfer was going to be as dominant as Tiger had been in the past," CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus said in a telephone interview with the AP. "Tiger played in a relatively small number of PGA Tour events, anyway. It would be great if he came back. It would be great if we were dominant again. But we were not assuming that in our numbers."

Along with their current 15-year contract with the Golf Channel (signed in 2007), the PGA TOUR has undoubtedly shown that while dominant players can help in the short-term, no single player is bigger than the association itself (and this shows in terms of cold-hard cash; revenues totaled roughly $80 million in Woods' first year on TOUR and has now reached over $280 million today.) The obvious question is this: will sponsorship remain interested in names like Fowler, Johnson, Mickelson, McIlory, and others?

The "European Invasion" and Chubby

Ugh. Can we, as a fanbase, please realize that there has been no "invasion" of any kind by the highly-talented European golfers on TOUR? Newsflash: they have always been here, and this was their game in the first place!

The 2011 season saw multiple European winners in various TOUR stops throughout the year, but most attention was placed on their major dominance. It all started with Charl Schwartzel winning The Masters thanks to an impressive charge by multiple players on Sunday. Next, we had Northern Ireland's Rory McIlory dominate the field at Congressional to capture his first US Open title. The Open Championship came next, where Darren Clarke achieved a lifelong dream on a blustery day at Royale St. George's. American fans didn't know what to think, and they all had one man to blame: Chubby Chandler.

The idea of a golf "super agent" was also introduced to the world in 2011, and it all started with a man named Chubby. Finally, signs were pointing to another agency - International Sports Management - who could potentially rise up against long-time sports agent juggernaut (and U.S.-based) IMG. What was even more interesting was how Chandler and his players muscled their way to the top (there's no wonder that former professional wrestling guru Shane McMahon sits on ISM's board) and how Chubby has been viewed in the eyes of American golf fans and media outlets. Just ask Darren Clarke.

"He doesn't pussyfoot around the way some so-called agents do. In America his style hasn't gone down well at times because certain players don't play in certain tournaments, but there's a reason for that. Besides, he doesn't make our decisions."

Fair enough, Darren. Who are we to argue with common sense? After all, you are the ones with the hardware now. My question: how will IMG respond to their newest competitor in the sports representation department?

Numbers, Rankings, and Arguments

Do the World Golf Rankings really mean anything to anyone anymore? That's a glaring question that I continue to bounce around in my head on what seems to be a weekly basis. Luke Donald remains locked at the top of the list, yet he still hasn't won a major, and he didn't win the FedEx Cup trophy which presumably marks the best golfer of the season (won by Bill Haas - who just now cracked the Top 20 in the OWR).

But wait... there's still the Player of the Year Award... which will likely go to Keegan Bradley, Nick Watney, or someone else not named "Luke Donald" or "Bill Haas". Oh, and I couldn't even imagine if Matt Kuchar somehow won the FedEx Cup without really winning anything. So how does any of this make sense again?

Regardless, many believe that the current FedEx points system is about as good as it is ever going to get. There are still many opponents to implementing a type of playoff-bracket scenario to determine the FedEx Cup Champion, and I'm not even sure if that would work anymore, either. Besides, we wouldn't want to make the World Matchplay Champion angry? Who was that again this season?

Oh, right. Luke Donald. That guy can't catch a break.

Here's looking forward to an equally successful - and interesting - 2012 season. At least we all have the Fall Series and Presidents Cup to tide us over until then, right?