Ted Bishop’s New Hat
Once again, Ted Bishop (formerly of the PGA of America) managed to put his foot in his mouth over the weekend with an ill advised tweet directed at Ian Poulter which did not end well for him.
You’d think Bishop (who lost his gig with the PGA of America over a wholly inappropriate tweet directed at Poulter) would have learned. And you’d be wrong.
This started because Sports Illustrated further sullied its reputation by having an anonymous poll of pros as to who the most overrated player on Tour is (Rickie Fowler, who won on Sunday, and Poulter were tied for most overrated). Poulter’s record on the European Tour speaks for itself (12 wins on the European Tour and 2 WGC wins).
I don’t really understand what Bishop’s issue is with Poulter. Is he mad that Poulter has been a part of the last two European Ryder Cup wins and three years ago in Chicago pretty much carried the European team to back into something resembling contention on the Saturday? Does Poulter’s sartorial taste rub his triple-pleated khakis the wrong way?
Look, I get that Poulter isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. He’s brash, outspoken, and tweets about almost anything and everything (golf and non-golf). Personally I wish he’d throttle back on photos of his toys (expensive sports cars), but he clearly can afford the lifestyle that this sort of thing costs (plus, he didn’t exactly come from wealth and privilege). He surely doesn’t need me speaking for him, but he’s said as much that if you don’t care for him, then you’re free to unfollow him and ignore him.
Poulter got into an imbroglio (this happens a lot with him) over his choice to not play the European PGA at Wentworth. In the end, it’s his decision to make, and if he doesn’t play well at Wentworth (and he doesn’t) then I suppose that’s his choice to make. Golfers are independent contractors- they can choose to not play in a particular event, and Poulter is at that level where he can pick and choose where he wants to play (and doesn’t want to play) because his world ranking allows him to do this. He chose to move his family to the Orlando area, and play on the PGA Tour. His skill and talent enabled him to make this choice. If this is what works best for him, his family and his career then that’s the end of the discussion.
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