King of the Links: How to Make Golf Exciting

Even as a golf fan and commentator, I find the last few months of the golfing season to be incredibly tedious. After the PGA Championship, or in this year's case, the Ryder Cup, I become incredibly unmotivated to love watching golf. It's too early in the morning for me to watch the European Tour on The Golf Channel, so I can't watch the Match Play (held this week) or the Dunhill Links Championship (that's not a typing error).

So, what I am left with are the events presented almost exclusively on cable, encompassing the Fall Finish. There's nothing quite like watching events filled exclusively with guys who are struggling to make the top-125 on the money list. No offense to the Andre Stolz-es of the world, but I honestly do not care who gets their Tour card by their chinny chin chins. Thus, from late August until the Tour Championship in November, I have very few reasons to watch PGA Tour golf.

Where in the hell are the superstars? Tiger Woods isn't playing because he's married and his pride has been wounded. Vijay Singh has won a million times this year, so I don't think he has much motivation to play. Ernie Els splits his time with the European Tour in remarkable fashion for a superstar. He is so even in his time commitments that uppity Tim Finchem demanded Els play more events on the U.S. PGA Tour because of his newfound fame as the world number two. If that is not desperation exemplified, then maybe I can publish some letters from girls I've dated.

The Tour, in order for a season to be a complete success, must compel fans from the beginning in January to the end in November. That can only be accomplished either by shortening the season dramatically, or by finding a way to have the best players involved through the duration of the year.

In the spirit of my hick beginnings, I turned for answers in the "sport" of NASCAR racing. It occurred to me that this points system NASCAR has for its ultimate championship really seems to bring fans in race after race. So, then, why couldn't golf do the same thing? Having a points/playoff system could be very beneficial for the Tour. Now that you've stopped laughing, hear me out on this one.

Let's face it: you rarely see from the men in the top-30 on the money list after the PGA Championship. What incentive is there to play after you've won three times and cashed in for over $4 million dollars? That's right: none. Thus, I propose that we create an incentive through a season long points race to qualify for a final playoff series to crown who is the yearly King of the Links.

Who would qualify for such a season-ending playoff? It has to be a small number, like 10. So, the top-10 guys in this points race would qualify for the final points chase. Then these top-10 players' point totals would be reset for the final, oh, nine Tournaments of the year. (You know you like the significance of nine. It's so marketable! The "Back Nine" of the PGA Tour season? It's money.)

In order to get to that final 10 guys, though, they have to be whittled down from the over 200 qualified Tour players. That will take points. There are nearly 40 events before the hypothetical final nine. But, not every event is equal in field strength, size, or prestige. The Fall Finish currently treats every event as the same in its points scale. This is unfair to Ernie Els, who, in winning the WGC American Express, received the same number of points as Fred Funk, who won the concurrent Southern Farm Bureau Classic.

The solution is simple then. Each of the tournaments must give points based upon a strength of field measure. Thus, the majors are worth way more than any other event, and the best full field and invitational tournaments that are not in the special four get some recognition. The Southern Farm Bureau Classics and BC Opens of the schedule should be able to help struggling players win their Tour cards, but have no place in my perfect world of playoff golf.

Any discussion has to include prize money and for what exactly the players are playing. The Fall Finish bonus is laughable to any player in the top-20 on the money list. So, the prize is of major concern in my hypothetical King of the Links competition. My conception would be a $4 million first place prize, following by $2 million to the runner-up and $1 million to the show pony.

Such a system would encourage play throughout the year. With an absurd first place prize, there is no reason for stars not to be intrigued. Even if you've already made $4 million, another $4 million on top of it would be worth the final nine events. Woods, Els, Singh, and the rest would have to play with some regularity, even with successes, to be able to make the top-10.

While just a few wins on the PGA Tour would be a good year on the money list, they would not be enough necessarily to get into the final chase. This is where pride enters the equation of the player's psyche. With the egos involved in golf and the emphasis placed upon prestigious championships, all players from top to bottom would be driven to make the final chase.

On top of the money, the public notoriety from fans and the media could go a long way in supporting an upstart player's career. Just as in college football, where "BCS Buster" schools gain national attention with a good year, players who have one amazing year can be thrust into the global golf spotlight and benefit tremendously. It is a method of self-promotion that the NFL and NASCAR have grasped very well. The whole King of the Links system would be a circle of marketing and public relations for the Tour, individual players, and the many corporate sponsors that have infiltrated the Tour's events.

This is a pretty basic outline of the King of the Links. I'm sure that I failed to touch of some niche questions, but that's why I'm writing. I want to begin a discourse on how to make the Tour more exciting down the final stretch. Actually, it's a discourse on how to make the PGA Tour more viable, especially in light of the struggles of Tiger Woods.

Even if you have no interest in NASCAR, you have some clue about who Jeff Gordon is. Why not do the same thing for guys like Jay Haas, or David Toms? What does the Tour have to lose in trying to inject some level of intrigue into the season that is very apparently absent currently?

I love golf, and I love watching professional golf. But, there are only so many times that I can watch the feel good story of a guy who is struggling to maintain his livelihood. I like watching winners. People like watching winners. And the more often winners are compelled to play on Tour, the better the image professional golf will have in the pantheon of sport.

Please e-mail me with your comments or better yet, post them in the comments section below. I hope this is just the beginning of a professional golf revolution ... or at least some fun talk in the offseason.

Comments and Conversation

October 24, 2004

Kevin Beane:

I do like your idea, but I have another one, one SportsCentral golf writer to another.

Unless your plan or a simliar one is enacted, the only way for you to be interested in the home stretch (and the subsequent “silly season”) is change the way you view things. Rather than declaring you’re not interested in a tourney unless superstars are playing, and letting that be the end of it, why not, as a writer, (and IMO a good one), find the story or the interest in some of these events? It’s not hard.

For example, in the Carlsberg Malaysian Open of the European Tour, I found the story of the who-dat winner, Thongchai Jaidee, so compelling that I wrote about him in my column and continue to put “Thongchai Jaidee watch” in my column occasionally.

Beyond that, some of the Andre Stolz of the world go on to be the Ernie Els of the world, and it’s nice to be on board for that sort of thing early. Even the guys who win once and disappear are so earnest in their joy over that one win that I enjoy it. It’s why I root for the Stolz when they head up against the Singhs.

Granted, I’m a bit of a nut. I watch all 3 non-senior’s televised men’s tours (US, European, and Nationwide) extensively enough to be at least vaguely familiar with virtually all of the players, and I follow the Asian and Australasian Tours on the internet as well. But doing so has enriched my knowledge as a writer and definitely enriched my enjoyment as a fan. Anyone could do the same just by reading the full wrapups of all the different tour’s tournaments each week.

Just my 2 cents. Keep up the good work.

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