Greetings Golfers,

I watch golf on tv … especially in the winter. And I like it … but I don’t love it – except for the Majors – I love the Majors! The Majors have the natural excitement that comes from being the big game. They don’t need to hype it – in fact too much hype gets in the way. For example, I love football but I haven’t watched the Super Bowl for the past 10 years because all of the hoopla drives me crazy.

I like team sports. I like the strategy and the physical skill involved … and it helps if I like the culture of the team. Some teams I’ve hated since I was a kid – they’ve had the same gross culture for 50 years.

Because golf doesn’t have teams … it needs interesting golfers. It’s not enough just to be a good player … people are attracted to personality – that’s what makes them care.  It’s hard to care about a robot.

And maybe that’s what’s lacking on the PGA Tour – not enough interesting personalities. Nice maybe … but too bland. The problem is that the commissioner – Tim Finchem – has promised the corporate sponsors a Tour of squeaky clean players. I get it … I’m not a big fan of thugs … but I also want real people – not sanitized Stepford Wives and Husbands.

Why did Dustin Johnson leave the Tour? Do we really know? Do we ever get a straight answer on anything? Here’s Commissioner Finchem’s response to his wall of silence “I think it raises a good point when you say, well, if it triggers a situation where a player is stepping away from the game or getting, maybe being suspended but we really don’t know, does that create confusion, and that’s one point that we are giving some thought to on that particular situation”.

Huh? That was crazy double-talk … remember, Finchem was a political lobbyist. But we don’t need the Tour players to talk like that.

Again … I get it – I don’t want “The Real Players of the PGA Tour” reality show … but I do want to know who they really are – not some scrubbed version of a real person.

Then I’d probably love all Tour events – not just the Majors.

Cheers,

Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com