Shotgun Start: Euro poaching, Lefty's start, TV numbers
Forget from sea to shining sea. From desert to sandy desert, CBSSports.com senior writer Steve Elling and Augusta Chronicle golf writer and columnist Scott Michaux take a look at the happenings on the game's two biggest tours.
There was much squawking last week at the Bob Hope Classic about the number of PGA Tour members who were allowed to play in Abu Dhabi on the European Tour. With such a weak field, did Hope officials have a point?
ELLING: It pains many fans greatly to see how far and how fast the Hope has fallen since the late entertainer died. The field was thin, there is no title sponsor, and the semi-celebrities in the pro-am seemed more interesting than the players, which isn't saying much. So it's fairly natural to feel sympathetic for the Hope organizers, who bemoaned the fact that nine U.S. tour members were given conflicting-event releases to play on the E-Tour last week, including short-sighted American Anthony Kim, who blew off the Hope even though he went to high school in the Palm Springs, Calif., area. In general terms, players get three foreign-tour passes for satisfying their requisite 15 events for membership in the States. Sure, the E-Tour pays appearance fees to top players like Kim, too, which gives it an oft-cited advantage. But the nine releases were given to players who are members of both tours, and six of them are native Europeans. Yeah, it stinks for the Hope, but the U.S. circuit has forever characterized these guys as independent contractors, often to the tour's advantage, so it's hard to rein them back in, punish them or selectively grant competing-event passes when they want to play elsewhere. As the Associated Press so succinctly put it, "Given these tough economic times, PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem has asked players to pitch in by adding tournaments to their schedules. Perhaps he should have been more clear. He meant tournaments in the United States."
MICHAUX: It was laughable hearing the Hope tournament director whining about how eight of the top 14 players in the world rankings had opted to play in the Middle Eastern desert instead of the Southern California one last week. It's funny how he didn't mention how the six of the top 14 who weren't in Abu Dhabi -- including scandal-free stars Phil Mickelson, Jim Furyk, Kenny Perry, Steve Stricker and Padraig Harrington -- all took the week off instead. The highest-ranked player to bother showing up at the Hope was No. 37 Mike Weir. Restricting travel isn't going to make the best guys choose to spend five days shooting darts in the desert, four of them slogging around for six-plus hours with B-list celebrities. It's a global game now, and quite frankly it would be nice to see more Americans take their show on the road to far-flung places. If you go about placing moratoriums on road games, maybe the Euro Tour could return the favor and do the same with its star attractions who spend an awful lot of time skipping school to get 15 at-bats in the States. You can't have it both ways. Seven of those top 14 guys are native Europeans trying to collect points in a Ryder Cup year. You think Ian Poulter might have benefitted more from finishing second in Abu Dhabi than Justin Rose did missing the cut at the Hope? Let's see which one makes the European team come September.
Amid much ado, Phil Mickelson makes his 2010 debut this week in his native San Diego as the PGA Tour has its first weekend appearance on network television, with no NFL games on the weekly horizon, to boot. Can Lefty shoulder the load as the de facto No. 1?
ELLING: Well, he frankly hasn't handled the burden very well when given similar opportunities in the past. When Woods was out in late 2008, Mickelson disappeared over the second half of the season. With Woods still ailing in early 2009, Mickelson (and Sergio Garcia, too) failed to make a run at his No. 1 ranking, even though he was losing points each week he sat on the sideline. With Woods again MIA for the indefinite future, Mickelson has a huge opportunity to win over even more fans for an array of reasons -- both because of his play and because plenty are unhappy with the way Woods was living his life. Mickelson is a notoriously spotty starter and his record early in the season is full of wins and missed cuts in consecutive weeks. But one thing about Phil is that he can handle the attention, good or bad, and can quickly shake off sloppy play. He has been prepping for the West Coast Swing and understands what's on the table. And no, that's not a food joke. For once.
MICHAUX: As great as Mickelson is, he just can't summon his best on demand as consistently as Woods can. He suffers from the same ebb-and-flow syndrome as everyone else in the world, he just flows better on the high tides. But when Phil is rolling, it's every bit as fun as seeing Tiger in top form. And the way he finished 2009 bodes well for a nice start in 2010. It would be a huge lift if Mickelson could fill the Torrey Pines void with a kickoff victory in his hometown. He has won every West Coast event (except the Match Play) at least once, so he knows how to handle those tracks. It would do the PGA Tour a lot of good to see Mickelson start off hot and pick up a few victories as he builds up to the Masters. But there's no need to put pressure on him to win them all, just keep his name on those leaderboards on Sundays and fire away. The beauty about Phil is that he's still fun to watch even when he fails. But it sure would be great to see him step up and claim the yellow No. 1 jersey from you know who.
According to reports, the average TV audience for the SBS Championship was down 21 percent from 2009 levels and the numbers at the Sony Open were off by 30 percent. The Wall Street Journal suggests that even though Tiger Woods hasn't played in either event for years, it "suggests dwindling interest by core golf fans." Thoughts?
ELLING: Hard to see a silver lining in any of these digital downturns. Wait until they start comparing the before-and-after numbers from the events that have always featured Woods in the field, yet likely won't have him around this year, right? No question, this is exactly what some envisioned when the Woods sexcapades began two months ago. It begs for more thoughtful and deeper examination, such as whether fans have been turned off because golf has always been a sport in which honor and integrity are paramount. As weak as the Bob Hope field was, and given that weather pushed the final round back to Monday, the numbers this past weekend won't be any better. We won't be able to fully gauge the full radioactive fallout of the Escalade Escapades for weeks, if not months, and, possibly, years, when new TV deals are struck. Sure there's going to be a hellacious ratings spike when he returns, among both casual and ardent fans, but when will it be and how long can it last? Much of the game's fortunes are wrapped in his identity. Critics claim too much stock was placed on one player, but when you have the most-recognized sports figure on the planet, what's the tour supposed to do, pimp and pump up Bubba Watson? If you have the top cat, then use that marketing leverage to your advantage and sell, sell, sell. This is clearly the downside of what part-time, sidewalk golf fans might consider a one-note opera. The TV numbers won't make it any easier to sell title sponsorships, will it?
MICHAUX: Would it really be all that bad if golf slipped back into its niche days entertaining the avid fans? Before all these escalating purses made mediocrity so lucrative, golf did just fine for almost 50 years being what it was to whoever bothered to care. And frankly, I thought the sport was healthier back then. The trickle-down wealth that the Woods surge generated didn't necessarily make the golf or golfers any better. A market correction might be the best thing that ever happened to the sport, making the players hungrier and forcing them to be more accessible to the fans and the media who present them to the fans. As it stands, the PGA Tour seems to be drifting into the recesses of relevance as the majors have become more and more the defining elements of the season. It's a lot like tennis, where the only time the general public bothers to step up and take notice is during the Grand Slam events. The TV ratings -- even with Tiger thriving -- are never going to rival other marquee sports that inspire team loyalties. Obsessing over them really doesn't say anything about what golf means to its core fans, and sponsors are going to always want to reach that market in some fashion and probably for a reduced price. Woods wasn't going to carry the PGA Tour on his shoulders forever, so maybe it's a good thing the tour has to start making its adjustments now. Curb the greed and the insatiable lust for growth and the game will ultimately survive.
