Don’t know if you noticed that almost half the field at the Masters last week – at least 30 – were “foreigners.” That would include past champions such as Jose Maria Olazabal and Gary Player, as well as former Bulldog golfer Sepp Straka, a native of Austria.
That allows for three deductions one could make. One is that golf is growing at an unprecedented rate across the world and is turning out championship players in droves.
Two, that there may soon be a major champion from Timbuktu someday, and third, perhaps more importantly, it would be good to replace the United Nations with the PGA Tour.
Don’t know where that would leave the LIV bunch, but I’m sure Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas would be able to figure something out. He too is a world traveler.
Even though no professional athlete is exempt from greed, there seems to be more compatibility among golfers than all the rest of sports, give or take a Patrick Reed or two.
Critics, namely the media for the most part, and those who lost loved ones in the World Trade Center attacks are never going to retreat. There will always be a bedrock of contempt for the Saudi Arabian government, which apparently “wants to have its cake and eat it too.”
What’s the big deal most would say? Add up all the plusses and life on the PGA Tour is certainly not too shabby. The retirement package for Tour members and the escalating purses make you wonder why anybody would want to jump to a league that has nothing redeeming about it except you get big checks – with no real prestige – after winning in the LIV competition.
The Player’s Championship is an example of a paradox. It is major in every respect: field, prize money, and the best environment for championship golf – but still is not considered a major. I would vote in favor of it being given major status, but as we speak, three of the four majors are in the United States. It would be a hard sell to get everybody who counts to add “major” to another American tournament.
If it is a challenge for the Players Championship to gain the “major” appellation, when will there be a LIV event that has anything to boast about other than a bucket of cash?
As well as he played at Augusta, Phil Mickelson is over the hill. Brooks Koepka had an interesting explanation when he said health issues forced him to consider the LIV tour, though probably what also influenced his decision was the reported $100-million signing bonus. In addition, he has won four majors – two U.S. Opens and two PGA championships – which helps validate his career.
If his health is as compromised as he indicates, the security of guaranteed money would make sense in most circles. But what does money do for posterity?
It was another sunny Masters finish, which makes one feel good for the passionate Masters' fans.
A cloudless day for a Sunday finish when a sweater feels good and your emotions are placated in that remarkable Masters environment sends everybody home with feelings of fulfillment.
Jon Rahm is a winner whom the Augusta brass and members will appreciate. A Basque from Barrika, Spain, Rahm is a graduate of Arizona State University.
He married an ASU coed and will have many opportunities to bank more money and bring home more trophies before he rides off into the sunset.
The only negative about this marvelous sporting event was the weather. Sometimes it is not the weather itself, but the threat and foreboding of what the forecasts predict.
But, there is nothing anybody can do about the weather, and as bad as Friday and Saturday were, Sunday made up for it with pleasant conditions.
All’s well that ends well.