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.
Played this morning at Hampshire Greens; tee to green I was about as good as I could hope for; hit 8 of 14 fairways, 10 of 18 GIR but with a soul-destroying 38 putts. Played with three younger folks (including a woman who could flat-out hit the ball despite this being her first round of the year) and enjoyed their company. Nice to see folks in their 20’s and 30’s get out and enjoy this game including one of them who’d only been playing a year. If you’re reading this, stay at it and have fun. Hopefully I didn’t get in your way.
Hampshire Greens #7. It’s out there somewhere.
Hampshire Greens was in good shape despite the usual rollercoaster weather we’ve been having. It was a bit damp (it was drizzling for about half the round which didn’t help) but otherwise the course was playing fair. One thing that did help was playing from the green tees (it’s 6000 yards as opposed to 6500 from the blue tees) which meant I was hitting 9 irons and wedges into the greens rather than mid-irons. If you haven’t played Hampshire Greens it’s a decent track and definitely worth a visit. A few holes have homes in shouting distance (and not for anything, but while we were teeing off, I learned that MacKenzie is going to wear that dress to prom AND is going to wear the Jimmy Choo flats that mom got her…also, Tiffany was really mean to Brody at Amber’s party last night), so thanks for the update, young girl sitting on the deck who needs to learn volume control.
Hampshire Greens #9.
Significantly more troubling than my ongoing struggles with the putter was the PGA Tour’s response to Stephanie Wei using Periscope during a practice round at the WGC Match Play at Harding Park in San Francisco. If you don’t know, Periscope is a live streaming application for mobile devices that was purchased by Twitter. It allows you to live stream things to anyone who follows you through the application. If I wanted to, I could film my rounds and people could watch. Why anyone would want to is, frankly, a question best left to the mental healthy community. It got a lot of free publicity last weekend during the “awful human being v. slightly less awful human being” event that was the Mayweather-Pacquiao boxing match where many people were streaming the fight on their periscopes (figuring “just because I paid $100 to watch this garbage fire doesn’t mean you should”).
In short, the PGA Tour has a whole list of regulations about what you can and can’t do as a credentialed member of the media, and I suppose that, according to the letter of the law, that Ms Wei (who I’ve never met and am only marginally aware of her work) violated their media rights policy. During a practice round that isn’t televised. Specifically, she used the application to air a lighthearted discussion involving Masters Champion Jordan Spieth. Nobody could claim that Golf Channel or the PGA Tour were losing viewers by virtue of this being aired. However, rules are rules.
PGA Tour TV ratings are generally not particularly good compared to team sports, and for the tournament in question, according to Sports Media Watch it had the lowest rating since 2010 and the second lowest since 2001 (the final match featured Rory McIlroy). In short, we’re not talking about a major championship and we’re not talking about a highly viewed event. We’re talking about a practice round (and not for anything, but the PGA Tour has stopped admitting fans for practice rounds for most of their events).
A reasonable person would think that the PGA Tour would, in this instance, pull Ms Wei aside for a quiet word along the lines of “enjoy your work and thanks for helping to grow the game, but please don’t use Periscope without our approval.” Instead, the Tour revoked her credential for the entire 2015 season.
PGA Tour Media Relations at Work
Not a warning, not a “don’t ever do that again” but they went straight to the proverbial death penalty for the equivalent of a parking ticket. I don’t think for one second that the PGA Tour pulls the credential of a “name” reporter (i.e. Doug Ferguson of the AP). This was selective enforcement at it’s worst.
I’m not really sure what this accomplishes. The TV demographics for golf are not favorable (in short, it’s old, white and apparently in love of medicare sleds, boner pills, and shitty beer). If the PGA Tour is serious about growing the game (and if they’re not then they’re in real trouble) they need to embrace new media and they need to embrace new voices (and not 20-something almost exclusively white male golf bros who yell “mashed potatoes” during tournaments- these people should be hit with a cattle prod and be fed to angry bears). It’s bad enough that NBC and CBS do not have a single woman on their coverage (Kelly Tilghman anchors Golf Channel’s Friday/Saturday coverage but haven’t seen her this year on NBC’s weekend coverage; CBS is an older version of “Stuff White People Like”), and among minorities, only Native American and Notah Begay (best known for being a teammate of Eldrick Woods when both were at Stanford) is non-Caucasian. You’ll find one minority in the Golf Channel studios (Damon Hack), and among women, the best of a short list are Judy Rankin (I’m sorry but she’s better than 99% of the men), Lauren Thompson and a very under-used Paige MacKenzie. I’m giving FOX a pass for now, but I will hope that they will do better than CBS and NBC when they cover the US Open next month.
Cumulatively, this is but another “you’re not welcome here” sign to women in sports. In the last few weeks, we’ve seen two high profile (and very talented) reporters (Michelle Beadle and Rachel Nichols) have their credentials revoked at last Saturday’s boxing match because they had the temerity to report on Mayweather’s pervasive issues with domestic violence against women. Earlier this week the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers thought that a video that displayed a man throwing his girlfriend to the ground because she cheered for another team was a good idea (the end of the video showed the woman using an ice pack on her head), and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman get rightly criticized for not being critical of Winnipeg Jets fans chanting “Katy Perry” at Anaheim Ducks forward Corey Perry.
What happened to Wei isn’t domestic violence and I’m not equating the two. What I am saying is that we can, and should, do better. My favourite hockey blog Pension Plan Puppets have an article that might be the best thing I’ve read on the subject. I can’t recommend this article enough (their blog has female voices who, quite frankly, are damn good writers).
We need new voices in sports, and unfortunately, too often women are still being made to feel unwelcome in covering sports. It was wrong then and it’s wrong today. Whether it’s selective enforcement of policy, offense over honest coverage of an issue that merits it, over an overall culture that needs to change, none of this is remotely good enough and isn’t close to being good enough for a sport that needs to embrace new voices and new perspectives.
This isn’t about hiring women for the sake of hiring women. It’s about hiring people who are good at what they do and getting rid of the dinosaurs when they’re no longer good at what they do. It’s about letting the cream rise to the top.
Finally reading former PGA of America President Ted Bishop’s interview with Golf Magazine made me realize why the game struggles like it does…Bishop, while well meaning, comes off as another old white dude who doesn’t understand why you can’t say certain things, especially when you’re the head of an organization that pulls in upwards of $1 billion in annual revenue (according to their most recent tax forms). He came from the world of private country clubs, and yes, he was a teaching professional (which is what the PGA of America is for- please don’t confuse them with the PGA Tour which are two entirely different organizations who serve entirely different populations).
So over two scotches (or “thinkin’ juice” as I like to call it), I came up with a plan to help them move into the 21st century and bring some badly needed change to the two events that they’re best known for contesting (the PGA Championship and the Ryder Cup).
Thinkin’ juice? Yes please
Starting things off, I accepted the nomination from the PGA of America to be their CEO. Sorry, Mr Bevacqua but you won’t be needed. This idea of naming major championship venues 10-12 years out (especially given your choices) is, to put it politely, a pile of horseshit. I don’t need a 7-figure pay packet…I’ll take a third of that and the PGA of America can put that money into junior golf programs and turfgrass research (work on trying to find grasses that are more heat and drought tolerant).
Step one is fixing the PGA Championship. It falls in August, and despite this, the PGA of America has a hard-on for the mid-west and the north east portions of the country. They’ve held the championship on the West coast 7 times (8 if you count the 2020 PGA Championship at Harding Park), or less than 8% of the time. Insulting and short sided doesn’t even begin to describe it.
Having lived in both Southern and Northern California, you know what you don’t have to worry about in August? Rain. Thunderstorms. Humidity. Since August is usually a dead period for TV viewing, we’ll follow what NBC did with the US Open- have a finish during East Coast prime time. There you go, East Coast/Midwest golfers- enjoy your day and then come home and watch the final round over dinner.
So where would I look? I’d put Pebble Beach on a short list of courses to consider with Bandon Dunes (they have the land and they’ve already hosted a US Amateur), Torrey Pines, TPC Harding Park, Olympic Club, Riviera, Pumpkin Ridge in Oregon (hosted a US Amateur- some fella named Woods won it in 1996) and Shaughnessy Golf Club in Vancouver, BC. Before you start screaming and yelling, you can golf just about year-round in Vancouver and the course is a traditional classic that with no whistles and bells beat up the best of the PGA Tour a few years ago when it hosted the Canadian Open. If Riviera isn’t an option, I’d look at Trump National Los Angeles.
Just think of the possibilites
I’d also change the format. Not to drop history on you, but the PGA Championship used to be match play…or what the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup use. I understand CBS isn’t going to run the risk of having a final between two guys that the vast majority of casual sports fans have never heard of, so we’re going to make a couple minor tweaks.
Rounds 1 and 2 will be in threesomes in two waves off the 1st and 10th tee with guys either going early/late or late/early. Sounds simple enough, right? The cut will be the top 65 and ties. Period. Now here’s where the fun begins. We start a whole new tournament after the cut. Before you retire to your fainting chair or your chaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaasssssssssssse or whatever, the US Amateur does essentially the same thing.
What I would do, however, is allow the top 20 finishers to pick their own tee time for the third round and then let the PGA of America do the rest. So let’s say you finished early and you like to play early…this is your reward (the fourth and final round goes out like it already does).
My overall thought is this (while watching the Stanley Cup Playoffs)- everything a team did in the regular season simply determines seeding in the playoffs. It’s not like they start with a lead or something. It also means that the guy in front can’t coast on their laurels, and the guy who gets in on the number starts with equal footing.
The Ryder Cup is already a great event, but it hasn’t seen the West Coast or the Rockies since 1959. It’s never been held at Pebble Beach. Bandon Dunes should also be considered. Cherry Hills CC in Colorado is another course I’d put up for consideration. The Olympic Club in San Francisco is another great option. The Europeans shouldn’t mind that much, and if they do, then let them pout.
Let’s hope the rain holds off tomorrow and everyone can enjoy a nice (albeit cool) day of golf. Hit ’em straight!
With the Leafs having mercifully ended their season in burning tire fire style, new team President Brendan Shanahan cleaned house- fired the coaching staff, GM David Nonis, the vast majority of the scouts, Carlton the Bear, and the guys who run the Tim Hortons kiosk.
Yup, everyone’s fired.
The expression “burn it to the ground” seems appropriate.
After nearly a decade of one failed season after another followed by false hope and one playoff appearance in 2013 (that ended in the kind of epic failure that you rarely see anymore), it’s good to see them try to get it right.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t plug my favourite Leafs blog Pension Plan Puppets who have been covering this with their usual level of excellence and hilarity.
Unrelated, congrats to Under-Armour logo-wearing human billboard Jordan Spieth for winning the Masters on Sunday. I was pulling for fellow 40-something Phil Mickelson and while he played some fantastic golf, Spieth was the better golfer and deservedly won. I think I could hear Kevin Plank from my house.
Yeah, he’s pretty good at golf.
Hopefully the rain will hold off this weekend and we’ll see golf courses full of golfers enjoying spring in the mid-Atlantic.
Under clear skies and a stiffening breeze, my 2015 golf season got off with less of a bang and more of a whimper with the sound of golf balls hitting trees (with the trees still in winter hibernation, it says something that I was able to hit trees on five shots- I mean, that’s accuracy right?) at Northwest Park.
Ready for action. Hide yo trees.
While I’ve tried to commit to a new fitness regimen that doesn’t rely solely on Scotch (Glenlivet, Johnnie Walker Black Label and The MacAllan if you’re asking or buying), I’ve been hitting the gym in hopes of becoming more flexible and maybe just a bit stronger. Unfortunately, in doing so I’ve developed a form a tendinitis in my left ankle and foot area which has become progressively more and more painful. Being right-handed because…hell I don’t know why- my father was a lefty and played minor league baseball so of course I’m a righty- it means that when I swing it puts a lot of pressure on my left foot/ankle. Huzzah! This problem started four years ago, and has gotten progressively worse. I suppose I’m glad that it’s not a fracture or something worse, but now I’m in that “this is probably going to be around for a while” mode which isn’t exactly what I wanted to hear.
Northwest Park #10. Managed to hit the fairway.
The course was wet and thus, cart path only (I mention this because of the recurring issue I referenced above). Nonetheless, despite the brutal winter that we had, the fairways were green and in good shape and the greens were better than you’d expect for this time of year (they haven’t been punched yet near as I could tell). My only note of concern was that, despite the area getting only moderate rain this past week, several parts of the course were fairly wet.
Northwest Park #18. I’m over by that big tree on the right. Again.
It’s still Northwest Park and it’s still one of the best tracks in the area among your public courses. It can bog down during the middle of the day (our morning twosome was given the “play through” of the foursome in front of us and despite neither of us playing particularly well we finished in just over 3 hours. Not the norm by any means, but a fast-moving twosome should be able to do this (if I’m being honest the guy I played with played from the blues as did I, which probably wasn’t the smartest decision I made that day).
Hope you were able to get out and play this weekend, and congratulations to Jordan Spieth who won The Masters in pretty dominant style. Congrats to fellow 40-something Phil Mickelson on a T-2. If you’re scoring at home, that’s two straight 2nd place finishes for Phil.
It’s that time of year-we’re on the eve of the first major of the year, and finally it feels like golf weather today (except it’s supposed to rain the next three days…so we’ve got that going). And if it’s going to rain all weekend and keep you off the links, how better to watch than with your very own SGIC-approved Masters Drinking Game?
These guys are good at golf. Real, real good.
I’m sure that there are “other” Masters Drinking Games that you could follow, but the distilled spirits industry would probably like it if you follow mine because my game is for professionals.
Take ONE drink (an actual drink- this sipping stuff won’t do) if any of the following happen:
-CBS shows Tiger Woods on Sunday and he’s more than 12 shots off the lead
-Jim Nantz is wearing a J.Peterman roll collar sweater and Zubaz sweat pants on Sunday when he says “hello friends”
Paging Jim Nantz.
-David Feherty says anything remotely critical of the players
-Feherty says anything remotely interesting that isn’t him being a total fanboy
-Frank Nobilo is shown wearing an eye patch with a peg leg
-If the over on the over/under of 100 for “how many times will they mention that Ben Crenshaw won 20 years ago” take a drink
-If the over on the over/under of 11 billionty of “how many times will they mention “azaleas”, “dogwoods” and “pine straw”
-If someone says “gallery” or “fans” and you don’t hear gunfire within 10 seconds or “GET HIM!”
Take TWO drinks if any of the following happen:
-Dan Jenkins is found passed out on the Hogan bridge with a bottle of Mad Dog 20/20 wearing nothing but a purple TCU thong
At least I didn’t photoshop Dan Jenkins wearing them
-Jim Nantz forgets to put pants on for the Butler Cabin ceremony and we find out his boxer shorts say “hello friends” on the back AND the front because that’s how he rolls
-If anyone finds out that “the crows nest” is actually Masters Chairman Hootie Johnson’s safe word
-If an amateur is within three shots of the lead on the back nine on Sunday
-Phil Mickelson takes less than 10 seconds to explain a bad shot
-Tiger Woods spends longer than 10 seconds explaining a round higher than 75 that doesn’t involve the word “process” and “speed”
-If anyone is seen throwing or breaking a club on Saturday or Sunday
-If you hear an audible profanity on Sunday and there aren’t at least two dozen apologies within two minutes
Take THREE drinks if any of the following happen during Sunday:
-Tiger, Phil, Rory and Mike Weir are tied for the lead at any point on Sunday
-Ian Poulter shoots a final round score above par and doesn’t go on Twitter or post a photo of his private plane
-Adam Scott is in contention and Ian Baker Finch is seen following the other leaders with a tire iron.
-Jim Nantz fails to show up but is found wearing ass-less chaps and a “Sun’s Out, Guns Out” tank top and singing with his new band with John Daly and the entire staff of the Augusta Hooters and their first record is due out in June.
-Bubba Watson shows up for his final round and his driver has no pink on it.
Take FIVE drinks if any of the following happens:
-If the Masters decides to go to “Brass Bonanza” as their melody.
If CBS can’t find Brass Bonanza, let me assist. You’re welcome. Make it happen!
My Prediction? Pain. My other prediction? A top 10 that will feature Speith, Reed, Westwood, McIlroy,
I know that the blog hasn’t been updated for the better part of two months. While I’d like to say I’ve missed out on a nice early start to the season with all of the courses locally enjoying a bumper start to the season, we all know that this isn’t the case. So let’s review the last two months:
Not even cart path only today.
-The end of January and all of February were butt-ass cold. I’ve looked longingly at my bag, whispering sweet nothings at it and hoping that sooner than later I’d be taking it from its spot in the family room to my car where it will hopefully get heavy usage. Plus, it snowed. A lot. At least my hounds got to enjoy a few runs in the snow, and the snow blower I bought for Black Friday (online) got broken in (the electric snow blower is the way to go- no dealing with gas and oil…just plug and go).
Best putting aid ever.
-I switched jobs, which was a six week odyssey of interviews with my new employer before finally handing in my notice to my now former employer. Not that the weather was going to allow so much as a trip to the range but any thoughts of this vanished pretty quickly. I took a week off in some fantasy of at least being able to hit the range. We had two ice storms and a snow storm that gave us 10″ of snow here in the Ho Co. Clearly someone was mad at me.
-Making things even better my laptop’s hard drive crashed. My relationship with inanimate objects is, at best, not very good and at worst we’re not on good terms. Luckily SWIRIC (she who is really in charge) knows people who are far, far better equipped at these kinds of things than I am. I finally got my laptop back, and after a couple challenges, it’s up and running.
-My new job required me to be in Texas to start my job. Any dreams or fantasies of sneaking out for a quick nine evaporated as I landed. I didn’t so much as leave the hotel to breathe fresh air. My room did, however, have a lovely view of the Jerry Dome in Arlington, TX and the surrounding landscape (fast food restaurants, an amusement park, and an interstate highway). So there was that. Luckily, the week I was in Texas happened to correspond with a crap-ton of snow melting here, so when I returned the snow had mostly vanished. Happy to be of assistance.
-On the PGA Tour, I watched Tiger WD at Torrey Pines and he hasn’t been seen or heard from since. I’m not a Doctor so I don’t know what his health is like (or his mental state), and the talking heads who continually speculate…just stop. He’ll start playing when he decides to, and his results will speak for themselves.
-The LPGA Tour has finished its Australasian leg of its tour and is back on US soil. I’ll say it again- if you get a chance tune in or go to an event.
-In News You Can Use, Sligo Creek, Laytonsville, Northwest Park, Hampshire Greens and Little Bennett are open. So think Spring!
-If you need a boost to get into spring, just click below and let Jim Nantz “Hello, Friends” you into your happy place.
As I settled in last night to watch the (allegedly) drunken debauchery that was the NHL All Star Fantasy Draft (starting in 2011 the league skipped their old East/West and North America/World formats and chose teams via fantasy draft), I took away a few things- for one, it looked like everyone was having fun, and two- why can’t the PGA Tour do something similar?
If Tiger Woods was doing this the Internet would explode
So armed with that idea, a piece of paper, a pen, and a barely functioning brain, I came up with a plan- the 1st Annual LPGA-PGA Tour All Star Weekend!
We have a trade to announce…see ya Phil.
Each Tour selects their best 12 players. Players that are nominated but decline are deducted FedEx Cup points/CME Globe points. Players that show up get the equivalent of a top 10 finish in a marquee event and guaranteed status for two years (same as winning an event).
Take one of the spring events. For some reason I keep thinking Dallas would be a great “first option”…some time in April (after the Masters in that nine week period between the Masters and the US Open).
Pick two playing captains…don’t overthink it. Mickelson and Woods? Sure! Think high profile. Have fun with it.
Each team picks 12 players (6 men, 6 women). You know…like, oh, I don’t know…the Solheim, Ryder, and Presidents Cups? Have the “draft” on television. I’m dead certain the Golf Channel would show it. Allow a trade? Hell yes! Encourage drinking? Oh hell yes! Have Feherty or someone similar act as emcee. When they go on stage they get their team bag and shirt (you make up bags for each team…the unused ones get raffled off for The First Tee or Donors Choose (have fans vote among a few selected charities). The last player picked gets a car.
Format? Team format, obviously. Day one (Friday)- everyone plays one round of fourballs (teams are one man/one woman). Day two (Saturday)? everyone plays one round of foursomes (alternate shot). Day three (Sunday)? Match play. Have the women play the odd numbered games, the men the even (so women take slots 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, the men 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12). Tied? Putting contest on the 18th green as to who can make the longest putt. I’d chop down the rough. We’re encouraging birdies and eagles here.
Nobody has to play 36 holes in a day. The winning team gets FedEx/CME Globe points. Shit, I’d let ’em ride carts if they want to. I’d even let it be known quietly that a little on-course wagering won’t offend anyone’s tender mercies. Everyone at this event is wearing a mic.
But what of tradition, you say? Please. You’re telling me that a tournament wouldn’t want this in lieu of a pedestrian 72-hole event? People would buy tickets and quite happily (in fact, my guess is that a lot of places would be happy to host something like this).
It’s still golf. Would you like to see, say, Rickie Fowler and Michelle Wie as teammates for a day or some tournament that nobody cares about?
Besides, isn’t the whole point of this to be entertaining?
As I will often do, I have debates in my head about things. Am I wearing pants, for example? Should I wear them or should I have no pants day? What should I have for dinner? And how do I turn two conversations 8 months apart into something meaningful, or should I split them up?
Sure- I could spend my commute time listening to podcasts and thinking of how to make the world a better place. Instead, this is what I think about. Well, that and scotch. And the Maple Leafs’ annual descent into complete shit show, paused momentarily by the firing of Randy Carlyle, who will be best remembered by this moment of brilliance last December during HBO’s 24/7:
If you’re scoring at home, that’s Toaster 1, Carlyle 0. And people wonder why I drink like I do.
So anyway, in lieu of two separate blogs, I’ve combined two separate interviews into one super-duper blog post.
Steve (not his real name) has been playing for less than five years, and I’d estimate his handicap at 18-20. We play occasionally, and he gets around pretty well but gives up strokes around the green (in other words he’s like most of you). He got bit by the golf bug like many of us, and he’s now at that healthy level of obsession that is so endearing; sadly with Golf Channel now showing “golf” he’s missing out on staying up until 3:00 a.m. to watch infomercials (in my younger days I had a sexual tryst while the Perfect Club infomercial was on- I feel like there should be some kind of award for this, but we digress). Now that some of you are possibly vomiting, I’ll steer back to point.
Sally (not her real name) has been playing for 10+ years. I’ve seen her at the driving range a few times, and like me, she shows up, hits her bucket and is on her way (I’ve seen her get bothered on several occasions while she’s hitting balls). I’m not sure she was particularly thrilled that I approached her in the pro shop to ask her about golf (at least initially) but she soon realized I had no motive other than her two cents on the state of golf.
Me: One of the things people often cite when asked why they don’t play golf is the cost. You’re not a millionaire. Did this bother you?
Steve: Not really; my first set of clubs were used, I got them cheap, paid a few bucks to get them re-gripped and I was off. I found that by looking around and looking for value and sales, I could find stuff fairly cheaply.
Me: The other thing you hear is that new golfers are intimidated by more experienced golfers. Any issues?
Steve: Not really…never encountered any issues from other golfers. Most other golfers just want to get around and shoot good scores.
Me: Other than spending time outdoors, why did you take up the game?
Steve: I wanted a new experience. I wanted an opportunity to meet people, take up a new hobby, and be able to mix business in with what I do. And what they say is true- golf is a great place to conduct business, or at least get to meet new people.
Me: What issues did you encounter as a novice/beginner?
Steve: By far pace of play was the biggest issue. If you can keep up and keep moving along nobody bothers you.
Me: Okay, so if you had $500 to spend right now on golf, what would you buy?
Steve: A new pair of waterproof shoes! Playing early means the courses are wet. I’d also invest in some more lessons; maybe a short game clinic or something like that. Before I buy anything I’d do research though. I don’t care about a particular brand; I’m looking for value.
Me: Neither of us will ever play on the Tour (Steve and I are roughly the same age), so why do you play?
Steve: Having those great holes make for a rewarding experience. It’s fun to see if you can beat your best-ever round. I can see why you love to play even though you drink way too much. I mean, does Johnnie Walker sponsor you or something?
Me: How long should a round of golf take?
Steve: No more than four hours.
Me: If you could give one piece of advice to newcomers, what would it be?
Steve: Take lessons and don’t be afraid to play from the forward tees.
My chat with Sally appears below:
Me: So how long have you been playing?
Sally: Over ten years. I played off and on and have gotten more serious about it in the last five years.
Me: I’ll admit I see you at the range quite a bit, and every time you’re hitting balls at least one or two guys will come up to you. I’ve wondered what they’re talking to you about?
Sally: Equal parts tips on my swing and seeing if they can help me.
Me: From afar it doesn’t appear to be the case.
Sally: It’s not. I just want to hit balls, work on my game, and unwind. Is that too much to ask?
Me: Not at all.
Sally: (tone slightly irritated) I’m not here looking to meet anyone. I want to work on my game and ideally be left alone. Why do you guys think I need your help?
Me: I don’t. That’s what PGA Professionals are for.
Sally: Thank you.
Me: When you play rounds do you get bothered?
Sally: It depends. If I’m playing with business colleagues, generally everything is fine, other than having to remind them at least a half-dozen times that I play from the forward tees even though I tell them before the first hole. Getting paired up with a group of guys can go fine or it becomes really frustrating?
Me: How so?
Sally: For one, ask me what set of tees I’m playing from…don’t assume. Two, I don’t want your advice on my swing, stance, or posture. Three, I don’t want your phone number. Four, don’t assume I’m going to pick up or that a putt is good. Why do guys assume that anything inside four feet is “good”?
Me: Because deep down four footers scare the crap out of us.
Sally: Me too, but I didn’t start playing to avoid this. Just let me either finish, mark it, or pick it up.
Me: Fair enough. I noticed you have a pretty big cart bag. Any reason?
Sally: The first set I bought had everything (bag, clubs, putter), and it was pink. I like the clubs but I don’t want or need a pink bag. So I bought a giant bag (which actually works out- I can leave my waterproof pants and jacket in it).
Me: How do you get treated at public courses?
Sally: Depends. If I’m part of a twosome or a foursome there’s generally no problems, but if myself and another woman join a twosome of guys it can be difficult.
Me: How so?
Sally: Your “great, we have to play with women” body language. The idea that you might have to wait for us to tee off. The look that somehow we take forever to play when it’s usually men who have to play from the tips that slow things up (guilty). I’m not saying you need to bow in front of us…just some basic courtesy is all. Oh, and maybe not hit on us.
Me: How often does this happen?
Sally: Only occasionally, but it still puts me off- it’s not like I’m paying any less or something. I’ve become used to it to some level, I suppose.
Me: Thanks for your time, and best of luck this year.
As we bid farewell to the 2014 season and look ahead to 2015, your friends at Single Golfer in Cart have a few wishes for the upcoming year in golf.
It’s a new year!
-Christmas is a great time for new clubs to find their way into one’s hands (and if I’m honest the new Titleist 915 woods look pretty good), and certainly, this means you’ll want to get to a driving range and get in a few wallops before taking them out on the course for the first time. So when you do go to the driving range, be respectful of those around you. If you’re a natural Chatty Charlie or Chatty Cathy, maybe don’t plop yourself next to people who are hitting balls quietly. Find a quiet end of the range and have at it.
-To that point, unless your last name is Haney, Pelz, or Harmon (and you’re a PGA Professional) avoid giving lessons to random strangers based on something you saw on The Golf Channel. Michael Breed looks and acts like a guy who teaches golf between doing meth; he’s also a licenced PGA Professional. You’re not.
Notice the lack of unsolicited advice
-My wish list would be incomplete without wishing for an early start to spring and a fall that allows courses to stay open and enjoy a fruitful year.
-If you’ve decided to take up the game, welcome to this wonderful game, and might I say you have great taste in golf websites! While learning the mechanics of the game is important, so is key fundamentals like pace of play and etiquette. Read up on these things. You can find cheap books (and even e-books) on golf etiquette. You’ll play better, have more fun, and make a ton of friends.
-I’d like to see local courses start enforcing a true time par relative to the day of week and time of day, and actually enforce it by speaking to groups. Helping people play faster helps the game as a whole.
-I’d like Fox Sports to decide if they’re serious about golf or not. Their initial foray into golf was a complete disaster, and the next time it’ll be at the US Open on a course that has never hosted a professional tournament.
-I’d like to see courses enforce a 2-minute time limit on lost balls, and a rule that if you carry one of those ball retrievers I can kick you in the raisins if you deploy it.
-Given the success that the NHL has had with the Winter Classic and outdoor games in general, I’d like to see the PGA Tour have an event that sets up to finish at night (they did this with the late 90’s/early 2000’s exhibition matches). I’ve played at courses that are lit for night play- it’s a different element. Spare me the sanctity of “oh, we can’t do that”…because that’s complete bullshit. Nobody is using a gutta percha ball anymore (hell nobody uses a balata ball anymore), and nobody uses persimmon woods. I’m not saying have a major do this…pick an event (Dallas or Phoenix come to mind), and have ’em finish at night under the lights.
-I’d like to see the USGA adopt bifurcation with respect to wedge grooves and the long putters. No other sport forces amateurs to play by the same rules as professionals.
-I hope that the final rounds of the four majors of the men’s tours all have excitement and drama, and it’d be nice to see Phil Mickelson finally win a US Open.
-Similar for the vastly-underrated LPGA Tour; I’d love to see Christina Kim win a major and Michelle Wie find a second major. Seeing both on the Solheim Cup would make for a must-watch event.
Let’s see this in 2015
-I’d like to see the Howard County courses pull their collective heads out of where they don’t belong, and embrace who they are. The county needs them. Looking at you, Timbers at Troy and Waverly Woods.
-I’d like to play several courses I haven’t played before…maybe I can finally get my way up to Bulle Rock.
-I’d like to have at least one round at 75 or lower.
-I’d like to make a hole in one.
-I’d like everyone to have their best year ever, and enjoy every round.
My new favourite music video featuring Paul Rubens (Pee Wee Herman) as a race car driver:
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