The 19^th Hole

August 15, 2006

The Gimmick Tournament

Tom Lehman should have won the INTERNATIONAL on Sunday.  After all, he did get around Castle Pines in thirteen strokes less than par as compared to -9 for Dean Wilson.  But, the INTERNATIONAL is not contested as a stroke play event.  It’s contested on the Modified Stableford Scoring system which rewards aggressive play.  Over 72 holes, Dean Wilson and Tom Lehman both had the same number of points through a combination of all of their play.  Dean Wilson took advantage and won in the second hole of the subsequent playoff to pick up his first PGA Tour win.

Though Wilson was technically not the best player all week, he left Colorado with the trophy.  While that happens on the PGA Tour sometimes (see the 2006 US Open), that is because of player mistakes, not the architecture of the scoring system.  By definition, then, the use of the Modified Stableford Scoring system makes the INTERNATIONAL a gimmick event.  And that’s not a bad thing!

Why, you ask?  Because the PGA Tour is boring from week to week.  The courses all kind of blend together because the Tour tends to pick uninspiring tracks for their tournaments.  The style of play is the same almost every week – drive it as long as you can, flip as many wedges and short irons at every pin, make a lot of birdies, and profit.  It’s not a mystery why golf gets horrible ratings on television, especially when Tiger is not in the field.  The perception that golf is static and never changing is more prevalent than the view that the NBA fixes games.  Something has to be done.

Currently on the PGA Tour schedule, there are only three events that really can be considered unique – the Accenture Match Play, the Open Championship, and the INTERNATIONAL.  Everything else pretty much is the same form of Americanized medal play from week to week.  The Tour needs more events on the calendar that break away from the norm and challenge the players’ abilities at playing under new and different conditions.

For instance, I have advocated an event that is played under the lights, in primetime.  Have it called the Midnight Open and light up the course like they used to do for the latter holes on the ABC-Tiger Woods golf specials.  The game basically stays the same, but the added shadows and light problems that would be caused by playing at night would be interesting.  On top of that, the only time they could show the event is in primetime which would help the Tour.

Washington Post columnist Len Shapiro had a great idea as well.  He advocates the concept of an Off the Rack event in which players would be given a standard club and ball and they would not be allowed to tweak the equipment at all to fit their game.  This, in his opinion, would prove who is the best raw player and not just a product of some amazing equipment fitting to keep a player relevant.  Again, amateur players could appreciate the concept because most of us don’t have access to the same kinds of fitting facilities that the pros do.

And the Tour does not even have to go all that far to introduce gimmick events that might just work.  Look no further than the very compelling CVS Charity Classic held every year by Brad Faxon and Billy Andrade.  This team styled event is different and interesting because of the caliber of teams created and their varying styles.  Make this event for actual money list dollars (and Fed Ex Cup points) and watch teams come together and bring the rain with birdies.

I’m not asking for the world of tournament golf to be turned upside down.  It is a bit too unreasonable to ask a Tour that isn’t too adept at moving away from a structure that benefits mediocrity and a lack of imagination.  What I am asking, though, is that the Tour continue from the momentum it does have by trying to implement the Fed Ex Cup and take it a step further. 

If Commissioner Finchem modeled the Fed Ex Cup after NASCAR, then he should also know that NASCAR races on probably a dozen different types of tracks every season.  Sure, the racing may appear the same (turning left for four hours), but it is radically different because of rules and pitting strategies, and the like.  Were that concept to be converted to professional golf, then the players would face new kinds of rules and restrictions several times per year – not just thrice.

Since the game is not creating enough excitement by itself right now, it may be time for the Tour to artificially create it.  Rule changes dramatically helped NASCAR, the NHL, and the NFL to grow, and they can work for golf, too.

Ryan Ballengee is host of The 19^th Hole Golf Show, found at The Golf Newsnet.com.  You can also get The 19^th Hole on the go through podcasting by clicking here Feedburner.com - The 19th Hole Golf Show.  Contact Ryan via e-mail at the19thholeshow@hotmail.com.

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