Why Golf Needs an All-Star Game

The Major League Baseball All-Star Game was last night at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. It was the host site to commemorate and celebrate the final season of baseball being played at the Cathedral of Baseball. The all-star festivities are much more than the game, though.

If you were watching the Home Run Derby, you saw that the sideshows and exhibitions can be just as important as the All-Star Game itself. Additionally, there is Fanfest — a chance for fans to meet players, get autographs, and experience the many facets of the game.

While watching Josh Hamilton belt 28 home runs in a single round, I could not help but think back to golf. Golf does not really have something like an all-star game. If you go to a tournament on any circuit, you basically get to watch the players play (quietly), stripe ball after ball (quietly), and maybe get an autograph or two. That is the standard experience.

Baseball has a similar experience for the other 162 games per season. Their All-Star Game and Weekend stands out as something to break from the norm. It serves largely as a commercial for the sport — even if home field advantage in the World Series is determined in the game. Golf needs an experience for fans that largely serves as a commercial for the sport and provides fans with a new level of intimacy with the game. Golf needs an all-star game.

Some would argue that golf already has all-star games and that they would are the major championships. To some extent, this is true. The best players in the world generally gather together four times per year in four unique tests to validate who the best golfers are for a season. Still, those championships have such history and reverence that it would be almost impossible for a professional golfer to actually enjoy the experience. Major championships are not meant to be fun for the player. They are meant to be trying, stressful, and downright annoying. The reason professionals subject themselves to these types of examinations is for the hope of becoming a part of history through victory.

What I mean, though, is an event that rotates location every year that gives attending fans the chance to celebrate the game and get closer to the PLAYERS. (That's not for emphasis.) I would bet that the people in Milwaukee would kill to be the host of the PGA Tour All-Star Challenge instead of having to endure being an opposite field event for the Open Championship. Or maybe we could host this thing in Atlanta somewhere other than TPC Sugarloaf. There are so many throwaway events every year on the PGA Tour that one could stand to be singled out for improvement.

If I were to make a suggestion for the date of the hypothetical all-star tournament, it would be as the first event of the season. The winners-only Mercedes-Benz Championship is not very much fun anymore. Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson routinely skip the event because of the travel time and having to play at Kapalua is not much of a treat for them. (Par 73, seriously?) Still, though, you are likely to have a collection of all-star type talent in a field of event winners. There would be the mix of the great in Woods and Mickelson, the developing superstar in Anthony Kim, and the reluctant resurgent in Kenny Perry. The field would not be the problem.

The spirit behind that event is the problem and it is something that can be fixed. Golf tournaments are a lot of work — media interviews, sponsor obligations, actually playing golf — that can annoy players despite the payoff. The idea behind an all-star game is such that the event in question is fun for the fans (as it always is) and for the players (as it isn't always). How, though, do you achieve that?

First, take the pressure off. Make the event a non-sanctioned PGA Tour event that is presented by the Tour and the players. There's no FedEx Cup business. No one has to pee in a cup for drug testing. The more simplistic, the better it is for players.

Next, change the format. Stroke play golf for 72 holes is the standard PGA Tour format. Why not mess with it some? How about a combination of formats to get one ultimate champion? Follow me on this.

The event begins with 16 two-man teams. Each of the top 16 on the prior year's money list is a team captain. The team captains then get to pick their partner in order of their money list finish. Therefore, Tiger Woods would be able to pick from guys 17 through 32 in the event, and down the line. The teams play nine-hole matches against one another. Tiger's team would play the lowest ranked team in a four ball format, and down the line. The nine-hole format would lend itself to upsets, something good for the game — believe it or not.

The eight winning teams would then square off in 18 holes, best ball matches. This would be where the fireworks really begin. Birdies and eagles galore would be the highlight of four matches. With the fewer number of matches, television could provide a more intimate view of players, their approach to the game, and the like. Also, the crowds in person would have easy access to eight great players. These matches would determine the final two teams for the event.

The big twist would then be that each team is split up and the final two teams become the final four. The final four would then become a single foursome that plays the entire 18-hole course under the Modified Stableford format. Again, this would encourage players to be aggressive in how they play. Additionally, there would be long drive and closest to the pin contests on each nine with points on the line for each. Finally, there would be points awarded for fewest putts and longest putt to emphasize the short game aspect of the game.

In the end, the tournament would produce a champion that was able to exhibit all aspects of the game in just 45 holes. It is a lighter load for the players. There is more intimacy for the fans and the television audience. The format would work well.

Then, of course, there has to be the golf celebration. It is very rare that golf celebrates itself in a gala fashion with professional players playing a crucial part. Yes, at the majors there are tents for equipment and free lessons for fans. It would be great, though, to include Q&A sessions with players, trick shot exhibitions by players, and autograph sessions with everyone in the field. The fans could come out and get to see the lighter, more human side of professionals. The professionals could also have fun in meeting and experiencing the fans without the pressures and labors of pro golf obligations.

Ticket prices would be accessible, corporate presence would be low-key, and the whole week would be about fun. Fans could bring cameras to take pictures. The selection of host courses would be a big deal and something that people anticipate — just like majors (though to a lesser degree). Everything would be done with the fan in mind, which is an experience that is rare in golf.

The point, again, of all of this would be to make the game more accessible. In the end, I think it would benefit the sport much more than events that draw weak crowds and little attention. Our sport has four classics every year. Perhaps it is time to invent a new one.