Over the weekend, I had a wonderful idea for LPGA Commissioner Carolyn Bivens on how to resolve her issue with the 121 Foreign Players on her tour. My idea was to hire a great American Orator and Hall of Fame Golfer to teach the players his kind of English. His name, Thomas “Terrible Tempered Tommy” Bolt. Unfortunately, the man with one of the smoothest swings in the history of the game and also the foulest of mouths, passed away last night at 92. Can you just imagine any of the 45 South Koreans doing Tommy’s kind of English after winning an LPGA event?
“I want to thank all those >>>> sponsors for >>>> this incredible tournament. The >>>> volunteers were >>>> wonderful. I want to also thank my >>>> teacher and Tommy >>> Bolt for helping me learn this new >>>> language.”
What a perfect resolution to the silliest new rule in golf.
“Today’s players owe a debt of gratitude to Tommy Bolt and his fellow pioneers,” said PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem on Wednesday. “His golf prowess was only matched by his formidable and colorful personality and he helped launch the game’s popularity.”
An interesting comment from the Commish in light of the seemingly enormous lack of appeal from his tour during the last couple of months... I sat by the TV on Monday (that’s right, I didn’t play golf) and watched the final round from Boston. Over the 4 plus hours, I kept asking myself, “Who, besides Tiger brings any excitement and passion to my screen?” Certainly not Vijay. Think about it, Vijay Singh is the greatest 40+ player in the history of golf. The guy has won 22 tournaments since turning 40. He’s better than Nicklaus; better than Palmer; better than Player - so why don’t we care? Why can’t we get excited like my dad did when he watched those previously mentioned men? Is it our fault? Are we all becoming too emotionless?
I don’t believe that. I spoke with too many friends after Tiger’s win in the US Open to believe we are void of passion. (You should have seen me in front of the TV, Monday night watching UCLA.) It is, quite simply, that most players today really believe this is their JOB and they treat it that way. Does Vijay love the game any less than Palmer or Player? I think not. It’s just that he comes across that way. It’s not that we have lost our passion for the game we love so much… it’s that the players have lost their understanding that showing their love of the game is what makes it fun for us.
We don’t want to watch men at work. We don’t want to watch men going through the motions of their jobs. I want my Tommy Bolt; I want to see guys throwing clubs when they miss a shot without worry of being fined. Well, maybe not throwing clubs, but you know what I mean. Most of the problem is the players… they have forgotten it is ok to be vulnerable. Part of the problem is the Tour. Fining players for this, fining players for that. The tour has become just like my old office. Watching great shots is not enough. It’s not enough in any sport. We want the high fives; we can’t wait for the fight; we want the crash; we want the player jumping into the stands. Without the passion we have our own lives and none of us want to watch that.
I want my passionate players. Show us you care, guys. I see it from Sergio, I see it from Anthony and very view others. How cool would it be to watch Vijay running around the green slapping fives with all the fans, showing he cares?
A couple of other thoughts… I am going way out on a limb here, so far on the limb that I can feel it breaking. Ready? Nick Faldo’s ego got in the way of his picks. Look at all the facts and you must conclude that Darren Clark deserved to be named to the European Ryder Cup team over Poulter and Casey. Way, way over both. So why wasn’t he? Why did he leave Clark off? Why did he leave Monty off?
I think Nick Faldo wants all the attention on himself. I think by naming Clark or Montgomerie to the team if would have taken some of the media attention away from Nick. What other possible reason could there be for not choosing one of them? Darren Clark is their soul; Colin Montgomerie is their heart. Those of us that truly look forward to this event got “jobbed” by Faldo.
Talk about missing the passion. Whether you like Monty or not, he brings to the game everything that we are missing without Tiger around.
My final thought for the week. WAY TO GO, DALLAS! 25% of the American team is former members of the Northern Texas PGA Junior Golf Foundation. No other city can say that.
