GolfStinks

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A Quick Round of Golf – The Ultimate Oxymoron

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When you ask golfers what is their biggest pet peeve about the game, there’s a good chance the most common response is going to be the pace of play.  It seems everyone is in a hurry to get their round over with, like they don’t have the time to be playing the game right from the start.  What’s that all about?  If you don’t have the time to play the game, maybe you should consider something else…or playing only nine holes instead.

Don’t get me wrong, I get frustrated when a group in front of mine is intentionally slow and has no golf etiquette whatsoever.  But it’s certainly not enough to ruin my day.  After all, I’m exactly where I want to be…on a golf course.  I’m doing what I want to do…playing golf.  I’ve waited through a long week at work to have the chance to be out here on a Saturday or Sunday morning.  I’m in no hurry to leave.  But I must be in the minority.

Think about how long it takes to play a round of golf.  We’re looking at 4 1/2 hours, give or take, right off the bat.  Compare that to some of the other sports you watch on TV.  That’s almost two full basketball games and easily a game-and-a-half of football or baseball…including commercials!  So we’re talking about a slow moving, time consuming game to begin with.  Knowing that going in…what gives you the right to complain?  It seems like you should have planned your time better.  Then consider that the skill level of most golfers out on the public links is…well…sub-par.  So naturally, that’s going to slow the game down even further for everyone.

Being that I am one of those sub-par golfers, I do want to say that while my lazy approach to the game does slow my round down, I do certainly know the difference between poor play and slow play.  If I’m moving too slowly, I’m more than happy to let the group behind me play through.  As I said, I’m in no hurry.  But sadly, in this rush-rush society in which we live, few people take the time to slow down and enjoy the good things for a while.  There’s always some place else they have to be.  Always time constraints.  Never enough time to dedicate to something they enjoy.  And they get stressed out over an additional 20-30 minutes for their round.  They’re taking part of the enjoyment out of the game.

Not me.  See, I don’t get to play golf as often as I would like.  So when I have the chance, I do the best I can to dedicate that time to golf and the activities surrounding a day of golf.  I’m not trying to get out there and rush through my round so I can jump back in my car and hurry off somewhere else.  Instead, I want to enjoy my time outdoors, relax, sit down after the round with a beer and burger and just enjoy hanging out with my friends.  I think too many people take the time for granted and just try to squeeze too much onto their plates.  Consequently, they get stressed out during their round because someone else is not moving as quickly as they would like them to move.  These are the same people that leave their house in order to be somewhere at a certain time and don’t account for traffic and red lights.

Why not try this – The next time you plan to go out and play 18, don’t make any other plans for that day.  Go into the round relaxed, knowing you don’t have anything else to do and nowhere else to be.  Your only post-round commitment is to hit the 19th hole for a bite to eat and a couple of brews with your pals.  See how much more enjoyable your round is.  See how much less stressful the game becomes.  See how much more fun and relaxing the entire day will be.  Trust me, just give yourself less to do and you’ll thank yourself at the end of the day.

Swing ’til you’re happy!

The Beauty Of Parity In Golf

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It’s funny, in any sport when a team or player is said to “dominate” their opponent, we all picture a blowout. Whether it be a 20-point win in basketball, a three touchdown victory in football or a double-figure pounding in baseball – when you hear the word “dominate” or something related to it, you think of a blowout. So why is golf different?

For instance, two weeks ago at the Phoenix Open we heard about Phil Mickelson dominating the tournament, from his first round 60 to his -28 final score. But when you stop to look at the final scores of the other players, “domination” is not exactly the word I would use. A four stroke victory over Brandt Snedeker somehow doesn’t quite qualify as a blowout win in my book. Beating your opponent by what works out to be an average of one stroke per day seems more like a pretty tight match to me.

But it wasn’t just that tournament. There are many that go by deemed a dominating win, or a player runs away with it. But more often than not, that’s just not the case. So is it the media that overuses the terms? Do they want to make it seem like a player is more dominant than actually is the case? If so, why? Wouldn’t the parity of the PGA Tour make for more exciting tournaments and possibly better viewership?

Parity, to me, makes for a better overall sport. In football, there’s something about knowing that any team can win at any time – the god awful Jacksonville Jaguars can be a playoff team in two years. Same in the NBA – a perennial loser like the LA Clippers has become one of the most exciting teams in the league. Even baseball is on the right track with some smaller market teams making yearly runs at the playoffs. A little more balance to the playing field and they’ll have it just right. But there’s parity in golf, right? Of course there is.

When you see the final scores of a golf tournament, you see that there isn’t much difference in the final scores between first place and tenth, especially when you take into account the scores are over a four day period. So when tenth place finishes twelve strokes back of first, that works out to only three strokes per round on average. So how much better was the winner?

Now I think that’s great! I love the idea that anyone can win any tournament because not a whole lot of strokes separate the best from the mid-level players. Sure, there’s a favorite…there’s always a favorite. But at the level these guys play, anyone can get hot at the right time. And that’s the beauty of parity, which the PGA already has. Any player can win any tournament at any time. The field is open week in and week out. How can that be a bad thing?

Swing ’til you’re happy!

Every Golf Tournament Could Be An All-Star Game

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So we all know by now that the NFL’s Pro Bowl has become more of a side-show than an actual competitive game.  Defenses haven’t really shown up since 1998.  Star players opt out.  Super Bowl players don’t participate.  The rules are changed to make the game “safer.”  It’s a sham really.  It’s bad football, but it’s still football nonetheless, so I usually watch.

Like any all-star game in any sport, the potential is there.  It has the chance to be such a great game!  How could a game featuring all of the league’s best players at their respective positions not be fantastic if played as hard as the game should be played?  But with the risk of injury, the changes in rules and lazy play, it becomes just the exhibition game that it actually is.  But all of the pieces are there…it’s just missing that meaningful game feel.

But this is an area where the PGA Tour has a leg up on every other major sport.  They have the ability to put together an “all-star” lineup at every tournament if they would simply shake-up their tournament schedule a bit. 

I’ve said it several times before, but the PGA Tour needs a real championship at the end of their season.  Enough of the money leader.  Enough of the ranking system that no one understands.  The players need to battle it out on the course.  And if there was a smaller, more streamlined schedule in which players were required to play in order to qualify for the championship, then every required tour stop would result in a star-studded field.  If this was the case you’d have to imagine the TV ratings would rise, as would the gate.   

But you can’t expect every player to play all of the tournaments, right?  Of course not.  Only a certain amount of the stops would be required – maybe in the 15-20 area.  The rest would be their choice to play either for a shot at the purse, the chance to make some more money or just to keep the competitive juices flowing.  But certain stops would be required to qualify.  Play all of the required stops and you play in the championship.

The point is, the PGA Tour has the ability to field an all-star game every time out.  What if every meaningful tournament featured all of the top players on the tour?  No one skipping out on tournaments because if they did, they wouldn’t qualify for the championship.  I don’t know about you, but I don’t watch golf on TV very much…but an idea like this would certainly get me more interested.

Swing ’til you’re happy!

Nike Golf’s Dynamic Duo Party Put On Hold

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If that picture to the left doesn’t speak for a look of frustration, then I don’t know what does.  It’s not that they’re in trouble, but let’s just say Nike’s new dynamic duo is off to a bad start.  After promoting Tiger and Rory leading up to their first tournament together as the brand’s stablemates, things couldn’t have possibly gone worse for Nike.  Once both were sent packing before the weekend, questions immediately began piling up.   

Now I know there are simply Nike-haters out there.  Many people call Nike bullies, say that they make an inferior product or that they charge too much money simply because they can, not because the product is worth it.  Those people have got to be laughing their butts off right now.  But it’s certainly a bit early to write them off, no?

I think Nike had a couple of ideas in bringing on Rory.  More than just signing the current top player as well as what should be considered the future face of the tour, I’m sure they also know that Tiger’s skills and dominance are certainly fading.  So now’s the perfect time to transition the face of Nike golf from Tiger to Rory.  Tiger put Nike Golf on the map, and now it will be Rory’s job to keep it there.  In the meantime, while Tiger is still one of the top players, why not get the most out of both of them while they can?  But when both fail to make the cut in their first tournament, one can see how many would begin to question the Nike product, especially when Rory has already supposedly tossed aside the Nike putter and gone back to his old one.

But one tournament is certainly not enough to judge anything.  It’s not like either of them hasn’t missed a cut before.  And they certainly will miss more.  It’s simply the timing and the fact that they both missed the cut in the same tournament.  So what do you say we give them a little more time.  But if this somehow becomes a pattern, then you can start to say that something is wrong at Nike. 

Swing ’til you’re happy!             

Is The Demand For Tiger Woods Waning?

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About a year ago I was first made aware of the “appearance fee” some golfers (in this case Tiger Woods) will charge just to show up to a tournament.  I was on the fence about the idea at the time, and still am a year later. 

Back then I wondered whether this was a good idea.  I wondered if the tournament could be taken seriously if you have to pay players just to show up.  But I also wondered, if the PGA is never going to put together a meaningful tournament schedule with the ultimate goal being a season ending championship, would this be a good idea for many smaller tournaments with the intention of drawing bigger crowds?   One would think it could certainly help.  But if events from last week are any indication, maybe some tournament organizers are shying away from this practice.

Tiger Woods’ game may not be what it once was, but the name still carries much weight.  Having Tiger at your tournament would obviously draw bigger crowds therefore collecting more at the gate.  But how much is he going to cost?  And will his asking price be worth it?  Apparently, the organizers at the Qatar Masters have decided no, it isn’t worth it. 

Tiger Woods wants $3 million just to show up to the tournament.  So whether he gives a half-hearted effort or not, he gets that money anyway…even if he doesn’t even make the cut!  So maybe Qatar just doesn’t see the value in Tiger anymore. They’re not willing enough to shell out the money to have the game’s most polarizing figure there. 

I’ve heard it mentioned that a country (or state) as small as Qatar can’t afford to spend that type of money for one player.  But this is an oil-rich country with one of the highest GDP’s per capita in the world.  They can afford it.  So what then?

Maybe they really don’t see the value anymore.  Maybe they don’t want the media baggage that comes along with Tiger.  Maybe they simply don’t want to shell out the money for a guy who may not want to be there to begin with.  Maybe a trend is starting…

Swing ’til you’re happy!             

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