I would rank rain delays of televised golf events right next to root canals and five-hour-long high school graduation ceremonies on the fun scale. And this year, we’ve had nine – count ‘em – nine soggy Tour events to slog through already. For three days, it appeared the Masters would be a watery washout. Even worse, it might have been won by someone named Thomas Bjorn or Chris DiMarco. We didn’t even have Martha Burke ranting and raving, and Hootie kept a very low profile during his “toonament.” What a yawner…
Then, a sunny Sunday morning dawned at Augusta yesterday, and the old Tiger showed up.
You saw it, so I won’t rehash it. It’s sufficient to say the image of his Nike ball hanging on the edge of the cup on #16 – and then ever-so-softly succumbing to gravity – will be replayed long after all of us are dead and gone.
My point today, friends, isn’t so much that it was fun and exciting to see Tiger win a major again. My point is that this is money in the pocket of everyone in the golf industry.
When Tiger wins, we all win. When Tiger is on TV, more people watch. When more people watch, more people are likely to play. When people play, they pay. And that’s what we need most right now.
I’m beginning to think that instead of complaining about the Augusta National Syndrome and the annual spike in golfer expectations, we should all get down on our knees and thank Brad Owen and Marsh Benson and their whole team for showing us what’s possible (albeit with nearly unlimited resources) and for helping to jump-start our business when we need it most.
So, like yesterday at Augusta, let the sun shine and let the Tiger hunt. It is quite simply the best thing that can happen to our happy little industry.
See you on the 1st tee…
Pat