This week the PGA Tour is playing The American Express in La Quinta, California.
But, why would the PGA Tour want a sponsorship from a company who associates with an anti-Semite group such as the Nation of Islam?
The Nation of Islam is known for their antisemitism and hatred toward whites. Their leader, Louis Farrakhan has been classified by the Anti Defamation League as a “divisive figure and one of the most prominent antisemites in America.”
Either the PGA Tour is willfully ignorant or they agree with American Express and the Nation of Islam.
Which one is it Jay Monahan? Perhaps Jay needs a little bit of education.
Player Impact Program and the Rewards of Being Mediocre
The PGA Tour should not reward mediocrity! Photo courtesy of tlnt.com
By now, most of my readers know my total disdain towards the PGA Tour and its mafioso style commissioner Jay Monahan, so my next opinion blog will not be a surprise.
The $40 million dollar Player Impact Program has been clouded under ridiculous secrecy. Most people think that if it needs to be kept secret, is probably garbage, and I agree.
When you understand the purpose of the program, which is to compensate players based on them driving their fan base and sponsor engagement, you come to realize this program is nothing more than a PGA Tour welfare program.
It gives the mediocre player an opportunity to make money, not because they are a talented player, but because they can tweet the most or have the most endorsements.
I have not given the program much though until today. Tiger Woods posted a video of him on Tweeter hitting some golf balls just months after his almost fatal car accident.
Former PGA Tour player Colt Knost was quoted as saying, “So @PGATour we just need to know who finishes 2-10 on the PIP. Enjoy the 8 mil @TigerWoods.”
Seriously Knost? I do not know if he meant to be funny or cynical about it, but it was a ridiculous comment in my opinion.
So, Tiger Woods got over a million hits on Tweeter and that entitles him to make $8 million dollars? The man is lucky to be alive, which is a good thing.
After today’s frenzy, I was reminded how this indeed is a welfare program for professional golfers. Ricky Fowler has been a bust for most of the past two seasons, but he can sell you some mortgages and some beer.
He is a better advertisement agent than a golfer these days and he will probably make more money by selling stuff and tweeting than playing golf, go figure. We will never know because the PGA Tour has decided to keep the program and who gets the money a secret.
What are you ashamed of Jay? You do not want people to find out how mediocre players are going to make more money from this welfare program than on the course?
I understand in today’s society, when everyone is a victim and working hard is an afterthought, the PGA Tour had to do something to try to keep the mediocre players happy.
What kind of message the PGA Tour is sending to kids learning the game? Be a better online personality than a player? Mediocrity pays?
The Shark, Greg Norman Photo courtesy of newsofamerica.org
To read holier than thou commentators, including the mostly underachieving PGA Tour Radio ankle bitters and The Golf Channel less than stellar crew, disparaging Greg Norman, and his new position as CEO of LIV Golf investments, is laughable and hypocritical at best.
Sure, for people like me, golf is just a game, but for people like Norman, it is also a business.
Norman will be the commissioner of a new golf league, funded by Saudi Arabia, and with emphasis on the Asian Tour. By attaching this league to the Asian Tour, players who wish to play on it will be able to gain world rankings. If that is the case, well, that is a smart move.
Greg Norman attempted something similar back in the mid 90’s, but was blocked by the PGA Tour, and the idea never flourished. This time it appears Norman’s chances are much better, and with a $200 million dollar investment, there’s money to be made.
Of course, the media is having a field day and jumping on Norman and anybody who even dares to approve of such an idea.
USA Today writer, Dan Wolken, suggests players must decide between the money and morals. Is this guy serious?
He forgot how the PGA Tour saved an honorary tee time for crackhead, convicted felon, and women’s abuser, George Floyd, at the Charles Schwab Challenge in June 2020.
Spare me the morality Dan. Wolken is nothing more than your typical USA Today leftwing writer. Not much substance, little facts, and tons of nonsense.
PGA Tour Commissioner, Jay Monahan, has said any player who joins this endeavor will lose their PGA membership. Well, I am not sure is that easy Jay.
I guess the PGA Tour is ready to spend lots of money on legal fees and high power attorneys.
Typical Jay Monahan, he sounds more like a mafia boss than the PGA Tour commissioner. He was quoted as saying, “anybody who joins a breakaway tour would be suspended and likely barred from playing the PGA Tour.”
What’s Jay afraid of? Let the free market speak Jay, that is the American way.
I am happy to see a viable alternative to a PGA Tour that has become, political, preachy, woke, and anti-free market. I do not watch PGA Tour events other than the four Major Championships, and even then, I do not get out of my way to do so.
I applaud Greg Norman for having the guts to go against the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour lapdog, the European Tour. These organizations have monopolized the golf industry while at the same time preaching phony equality and inclusiveness.
As to the government of Saudi Arabia’s involvement? This is not news. They are host to the Saudi International, an Asian Tour event and only professional golf tournament played in the Kingdom.
Furthermore, Jack Nicklaus announced he will be designing a new golf course in Saudi Arabia, outside Riyadh. Is the PGA Tour going to shun Jack Nicklaus for his business enterprise with Saudi Arabia? I think not.
The PGA Tour, and all the golf governing bodies, wanted golf to be a more inclusive and a more global sport, well, they succeeded, and Greg Norman is taking full advantage of it.
The only controversy here is the one created by the mafia bosses at PGA Tour headquarters. The PGA Tour is damaged goods, morally and ideologically.
Larry Nelson, PGA Tour Professional and Vietnam War veteran
With all the hype about the Ryder Cup this week, after been delayed a year due to Covid-19, I cannot stop thinking about one of the biggest injustices in professional golf and Ryder Cup history.
The United States team has had some exceptionally good captains, some not so good, and the ones that never were. Larry Nelson falls into the later category and the PGA of America should be ashamed of themselves over it.
Larry Nelson is not only an American war hero, but also had a remarkable PGA Tour career and an excellent Ryder Cup record. Him, along with Lanny Wadkins, accrued a 4-0-0 record in the 1979 Ryder Cup. Only one other team in Ryder Cup history have accomplished such a feat, the duo of Molinari and Fleetwood at the 2018 Ryder Cup in Paris.
Why Larry Nelson never given the opportunity to be Ryder Cup captain is a mystery to me.
Back in a 2012 article by Stan Awtrey, Nelson did not minced words regarding the selection process and the rationale behind it.
“It never really made any sense to me,” he said. “I played on three Ryder Cup teams and two of the captains I had (Billy Casper in 1979 and Dave Marr in 1981) were not really playing on the TOUR anymore. I feel like their decisions were much more effective, because they weren’t based on friendships or relationships. Sometimes it can be a positive.”
When addressing the issue regarding his age, at 65, he went on to say:
“It’s not like a lot of us are out of the game and don’t know what’s going on. We still love the game. We love to compete. Inside our minds we’re just as competitive as we were 30 or 40 years ago. Our physical bodies aren’t quite as good, but I don’t have to arm wrestle anybody. All I have to do is put together a team and get a team prepared. I don’t think age or actually being part of the TOUR is a detriment at all.”
Larry Nelson’s Ryder Cup record of 9-3-1, two-time PGA Champion, United States Open Champion, and the fact he beat Seve Ballesteros 3 and 2 in singles, should have been good enough for the PGA of America to have reach out to Nelson with a captaincy offer.
This has been one of the biggest mistakes, and injustices, ever made by the PGA of America and the Ryder Cup committee.
As we get closer to the first tee shot at Whistling Straits, I salute the great golfer, American hero, and Ryder Cup captain who never was, Larry Nelson.
U.S. Ryder Cup Captain, Steve Stricker Photo courtesy of yardbarker.com
First off, enough with these Captain’s assignments. Steve Stricker may be a nice guy, but he barely plays on the PGA Tour to be in touch with the younger players on tour. As a matter of fact, Stricker hasn’t played a PGA Tour full schedule in close to a decade.
Which probably explains his decision to keep Kevin Na, Patrick Reed, Jason Kokrak, and even newly crowned European PGA Championship winner, Billy Horschel, off the United States Ryder Cup team.
On Na he claimed he was too short off the tee. Is he seriously using that lousy excuse to keep one of the most charismatic players on the PGA Tour off the team? Couldn’t have he paired him with a bomber?
I think the incident with Dustin Johnson at the Match Play influenced Stricker’s decision. In my opinion, a dumb decision.
Unfortunately for Na, this may be the last chance he’ll get to make a Ryder Cup team.
Na brings a lot of swag and fighting spirit to the table. That’s one of the things you need in a Ryder Cup locker room. With all due respect to Tony Finau and Scottie Scheffler, but they are as dull as a butter knife.
Billy Horschel didn’t even get a phone call. Horschel won the WGC-Dell Match Play this year. Sure, he wasn’t in his best form coming in, but anybody who has followed his career knows Horschel can deliver. At least he should have been considered.
Patrick Reed, Captain America himself was left out of this team. This man is the Ryder Cup! He played the Tour Championship after been sick. If that didn’t show Stricker grit and guts, then Stricker is out of touch. With a 4th in S.G. Putting stat Reed should have been on this team, period.
Jason Kokrak, two-time winner on the PGA Tour this year and he wasn’t a pick. To me this is probably one of the biggest boneheaded decisions made by Stricker. Kokrak has been playing great golf and has become one of the best putters on tour, reaching 6th in S.G. putting.
I don’t intend to pick on the Captain’s Picks, after all, that’s all on Stricker. But of all the picks, Finau and Scheffler are questionable. Finau just won the Northern Trust after God knows how long chocking after leading, that’s not a trend, that’s just a good week.
Scheffler hasn’t won a tournament on the PGA Tour despite that fact he has led a few times. So, he’s not a proven finisher.
Finau and Scheffler are very good players, but shooting stars are not what we need in the Ryder Cup. We need fire, we need grit, we need good putters. Scheffler (107th S.G. Putting) and Finau (91st S.G. Putting) are not good putters and have as much fire in them as an ice box.
Finally, Jordan Speith. Well, at least we will get good commentary from the lad, I don’t think he’s in good form either. 33rd on S.G. Putting with his best stat a 6th on S.G. around the green.
Ryder Cups are won on the greens, not on the fairways, that’s a fact.
Captain Stricker will have lots of explaining to do about these picks if they get their rear end beaten by a European Team that looks solid all around.
I think Stricker got it wrong, but I don’t expect anything less from a guy who has been removed from a full PGA Tour schedule for quite some time.
