GolfStinks

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A Fitting Farewell To A Golf Buddy

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Recently, a friend of mine (and fellow hack) had unfortunately lost his father. You see, his dad was an avid golfer and the game was a big part of their lives. Not only was he his father, he was also his first and best golf buddy. A lot of their issues were discussed and resolved on the course. Needless to say, it was almost therapeutic for them to be out there together.

As an advocate for the game this means a lot. This is something that goes above and beyond winning a tournament. The more I thought about it the more I realized that a loss of this magnitude is life changing. Don’t get me wrong, if there was a slight a chance that I could win the Masters that too would be life changing but, I’m referring to something that is much more significant than a green jacket.

When my buddy’s dad would hit the course, it was “Big Bird” and “Lady Luck” that would come through for him in the clutch. “Big Bird” was his Big Bertha driver and “Lady Luck” was his lucky #7 iron. According to him, these were his essential clubs that he relied on so much almost like a safety blanket. He was confident with those two clubs.

I’ll never forget my friends ultimate tribute to his dad and favorite golfing buddy. A couple days after his father passed, we took him out for a quick round to help him get his mind off of what was going on. As he placed his bag on the cart, we all noticed something different…there stood “Big Bird” and “Lady Luck”.

Hit’em Long…yell FORE! Enjoy the game.

Are There Too Many Golf Courses?

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Can there ever be too many golf courses? (photo by Saskia2586 / CC BY 3.0)
Can there ever be too many golf courses? (photo by Saskia2586 / CC BY 3.0)

Now that The Masters is over I have to tell you, I am all golfed out. Honestly, I may have watched about a half-hour, in total, of the tournament. But between all of the coverage on ESPN and various other sports networks and news shows, specifically the Tiger coverage, I feel like I was in the galleries all four days! I don’t think I can watch another five minutes of a tournament for the rest of the year!

However, that does not curb my desire to get back out onto the many courses which my home state of Connecticut has to offer. But a couple of stories in my local news lately have me wondering…are there too many golf courses?

The obvious answer for one who loves to golf, especially those of us who enjoy playing different courses all the time, is “not a chance.” How can you have too many golf courses? After all, the old saying “variety is the spice of life” indeed equates to your golf life also. Maybe the more appropriate question wouldn’t be to ask if there are too many golf courses, but instead to ask, is a new golf course really necessary? Or, is there a better use for that land?

In my current hometown, a town of about 45,000, we have two nine-hole courses. Recently, the idea to use a piece of undeveloped public land to build another nine-hole course was proposed by a local developer. The Economic Development Committee approved the proposal, but many spoke out at a recent Common Council meeting. In favor of the course were some local business owners hoping the course brings more people into the city. However, many spoke out against the course. Some concerns were tax and rent payments (or lack thereof), privatization of public land, outside investors and the plan meeting environmental standards. However, one major concern asked, what if the course fails? You are left with nothing more than carved up land, which would make later development more challenging, and the city expected to foot the bill. One can see where the concern would be.

My personal opinion? There are already two nine-hole courses in town. Additionally, there are four eighteen-hole courses within ten miles. Is another nine-holer necessary? As for bringing people into the city, how many golfers regularly travel to other towns to play nine-holes, especially when the surrounding towns have eighteen-hole courses? Add to that the fact there are already two nine-hole courses in this town, then how much more business is the course actually going to generate?

This reminds me a bit of a situation from the town in which I used to live – my hometown (population of about 60,000). It offered one eighteen and two nine-hole courses. But when the idea to build a new middle school on the grounds of one of the nine-hole courses was proposed, it was met with some hostility. The course in question was, to put it lightly, a bombed-out disaster of a mortar range which I had the displeasure of playing exactly once and swore to myself to never play again. It was in fact, with no exaggeration, that bad.

But, the course was very popular with the senior crowd. It was flat, wide open and an easy course to walk if you chose. And not too mention, cheap. Due to its low (if any) maintenance costs and the popularity with seniors and first-timers, I’m sure the course made some money for the town. But the question actually was: What’s more important, keeping this crappy course around to satisfy a few people who have other options, or building a new, better, safer school, in a better, safer neighborhood for 1,200 students year-in and year-out?

To me, the answer here seems obvious – kill the course. But I guess there are some of us who believe the future of our children isn’t as important as having to spend an extra six bucks to play a different nine-hole course.

Now don’t get me wrong, being a golfer, I always looking forward to playing a new course and feel a new course is typically a great idea. But, we also have to consider the cost. Be it a risky investment at the cost of the taxpayer, environmental issues or the future of our young students. All of these issues, and then some, have to be addressed before we can truly learn the value of a golf course.

Record Broken at The Masters..

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Matteo Manassero (photo by Vinod Divakaran / CC BY 2.0)

No, it does not consist of how many women a golfer has slept with. As a matter of fact, Tiger is not even involved in this.

Check out this tidbit the AP reported: “Italian 16 year-old Matteo Manassero became the youngest player to ever make the cut at the Masters, sinking three long par putts on the back nine Friday to finish at 3-over—right on the cutline. Manassero has now made the cut at both his majors, having tied for 12th at last summer’s British Open. “I always want to stay levelheaded since that’s the education that my parents gave me,” he said. “My parents help me also in this period to stay more level. But I dream for something like the Masters.” So do older golfers, and they don’t have his track record.

Manassero, who last summer became the youngest winner in the 124-year history of the British Amateur, shattered Augusta National’s previous record for youngest player to make the cut. South African Bobby Cole was about a month shy of his 19th birthday when he made it in 1967. Manassero is also the first amateur to play the weekend since 1999.And he’s the lone teenager out of the four in this year’s field to make the cut.”

Now, I’m not knocking Tiger’s return or his warm welcome by the fans. It’s just that I noticed how this feat by Manassero got pushed to the back burner because the prodigal son has returned. You know last time I checked, there weren’t too many 16 year olds making there way around Augusta National for a crack at the green jacket. Know why? BECAUSE IT’S THE FIRST F%@$IN’ TIME…EVER!

Kudos to you, Matteo! From one Paesano to another, in bocca al lupo!

The Masters to the Rescue?

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Image courtesy of someecards.com

The folks over at someecards.com really have a way with words. But all sarcasm aside, the above graphic isn’t too far fetched. For the last few months, everyone tied to the golf industry has looked at this Tiger situation with a weary eye.

From the pro tours down to the golf retailers, the thought of a season without the sport’s golden child was troublesome to say the least. No Tiger meant no ratings, which would inevitably lead to lower sales and less interest – all this piled atop an already slow market do to the current economic climate.

Meanwhile, those of us in the golf blogosphere have had a field day as the public gorged themselves on all the lusty details. Yet even the non-traditional media harbored an ominous feeling for the golf industry in general – once the gossip hounds digressed, would our readership digress as well?

But then came the announcement that Tiger’s eagerly anticipated return would play-out at the most renowned golf event of the year – The Masters. With this news, the power-players in the golf industry breathed a sign of relief – the prodigal son had returned. But will it matter?

I think people will watch this tournament – and I think many will be virgin viewers, who have never watched a golf tournament before. They will look intently at every move Tiger makes – diagnosing not his swing, but his demeanor.

What will his body language tell them about his frame of mind? Has he been mentally compromised? Is he truly sorry for what he did? These are questions people want to know the answers to – despite the fact they may never learn those answers. So yes, in a way – The Masters has inadvertently come to the rescue of golf in its time of need. But what about next week?

The good news is, eventually golf (especially the pro tours) will return to normalcy. The bad news is, golf (especially the pro tours) will return to normalcy. Pondering some foresight, November 2009 – April 2010 will just be a spike on the graph of golf’s timeline – a swirling media buzz that brought widespread interest to an otherwise niche group of fans.

Tigers Graph

The trick is, for the golf industry, to capture that media buzz on a more frequent basis…albeit without the scandalously delicious plot.

Are You Betting on Tiger to Win The Masters? Or Just Betting?

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Are you betting on The Masters? (photo by Tom Lianza / CC BY 2.0)

Are you like me? Do you think betting on sports makes things a bit more interesting? No? Well, you’re wrong. It does. Let’s say you’re watching a football game between the Browns and Rams. Unless you’re a fan of one of the two, most people don’t care about the result, right? Well, put $50 on it. Now what?

Throughout every individual sport’s season, there are all kinds of games that don’t matter to a casual fan. But once the chance to win some money enters the equation, suddenly an all new interest becomes apparent. Think about the Super Bowl. The boxes get passed around the office and even the people who think the Lakers played the Yankees in the Stanley Cup Finals last year are scribbling their name into three or four empty slots. They’re dropping $20 or so, on a game they don’t know the first thing about, in the hopes of winning a couple of Franklins. NCAA tournament time is another great example. I don’t follow college hoops all that closely, but year in and year out, I’m filling out at least one bracket! Between all the boxes, brackets, pools and, who could forget, fantasy sports, a little wager makes watching the game(s) all the more interesting.

However, some of the greatest wagers you’ll find come from Vegas around Super Bowl time. Fun, out of the ordinary bets such as, “Will the Colts and Saints combine for more points than the New Jersey Nets?” or “Will Kobe Bryant outscore the Colts?” or “What color hat will Peyton Manning wear on the sideline, blue or white?” Some of these bets have almost nothing to do with the game, but they simply provide some fun to either a fan or non-fan. It gives everyone at least a bit of a reason to tune in.

Sparked by the return of Tiger, some of these off-beat wagers are now becoming popular in the golf betting world. According to Bodog Sportsbook Manager Richard Gardner, betting on the Masters has doubled from last year. Included in all of those extra wagers are not only the old “Who will win The Masters?” and “Where will Tiger Woods finish?” Now we’re seeing wagers a little more, dare I say, fun? Let’s take a look at some examples:

What color hat will Tiger Woods wear in Round 1?

Black 5/4
White 7/4
Red 7/2
Blue 11/2
Any Other Color 8/1

Will Tiger Woods be Heckled after Addressing the Ball and Step Away?
Yes -120
No -120

Will Elin Nordgren be Seen on Camera?

I hope you already placed your wager on this one since Tiger has already given away the answer.

Will Tiger Woods cry during his acceptance speech if he wins?

Yes -120
No -120

Thank goodness for the world of sports gambling. Without it, for many people who aren’t all that interested in the PGA Tour and have lost interest in the Ringling Brothers & Tiger Woods circus, this is just another golf tournament. But for people who partake in the gambling side of things…there’s more to it than the tournament itself. There’s the prospect of winning (or losing) some money. There’s the idea of looking at things in the tournament that, normally, you would pay little to no attention. And the PGA should be happy also, as this brings in more viewers who normally may not have paid any mind.

Don’t get me wrong, the amount of wagers is not exactly approaching Super Bowl standards. But to have the amount of wagers double, that alone shows, thanks to Tiger, the amount of interest generated for this years Masters. Me personally, I never do much more than quickly peek in to see what’s going on. This year will likely be no different. Although, I’ll most likely be peeking in with the hopes Tiger dons a red hat on day 1.

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