Videos: TPC Trying To Get Out From Under Downpours

Garry Smits calls them a "strange few days" and the videos would seem to confirm freakish weather in advance of The Players where a cool spring had already been causing trouble.

Video of the 18th fairway:



Meanwhile, if the grass growing thing doesn't work out for TPC Sawgrass Agronomy team member Lucas Andrews, he's got the accent and desire to let his hair get messy in high winds to be a CNN hurricane correspondent, as evidenced by the latest post on the TPC Sawgrass Agronomy blog.

Update on Saturday, May 4, 2013 at 10:50 PM by Geoff

**They're up to 9 inches through Saturday afternoon. Garry Smits with an update from superintendent Tom Vlach, including help from the Jacksonville Electric Authority who offered pumps.

Vlach said more than 9 inches had fallen on the course as of 2 p.m. Saturday. However, there had been enough breaks in the rain squalls for his staff to begin verti-cutting the greens. The greens were cut and rolled four times Saturday morning with plans to do it again four times in the afternoon.

The Precision Air pumps under the greens also were working non-stop to drain even more moisture from the putting surfaces.

Video: Sergio Chips A Four Foot Putt

Jason Sobel reports on Sergio Garcia's wild second round 68 at the Wells Fargo Championship, which included a clever way around a spike mark, a strained back and a called-in viewer concern about his 17th hole ball replacement.

As Bob Harig wrote, 45 minutes later the rules staff determined Sergio had not committed a violation.

The classy wedge from four feet over the spike mark, posted by PGA Tour Productions:

Friday Fun Viewing: Trevino & Seve One-Club Challenge

Thanks to DTF for this one-club event held many years ago (anyone know when) at the Old Course, featuring the Lee Trevino, Seve Ballesteros, Nick Faldo and Isao Aoki playing one club with Peter Alliss announcing.

The 11 minute video.

“It wasn’t a shining Friday for Fred Ridley and he has at his disposal the best rules officials in golf."

David Eger's comment in today's Charlotte Observer story by Ron Green Jr. about sums up the sentiment I've heard most from the rules community in the story that won't go away: Tiger's Friday Masters drop.

“It wasn’t a shining Friday for Fred Ridley and he has at his disposal the best rules officials in golf,” Eger said. “I’m sure he had more resources available to him than I had sitting at home with my digital recorder playing it back. For the head guy not to use all the resources available to him is disappointing.”

Meanwhile, thanks to reader Chris for tipping me to the Jerry Tarde's just-posted July Golf Digest column stirring up what seems like a non-issue to many at this point: Tiger's decision to keep playing the 2013 Masters. Tarde goes with the what if angle and it's certainly a provocative take.

The decision to, in effect, disqualify himself would go down as one of the legendary gestures of sportsmanship alongside Nicklaus conceding Tony Jacklin the two-foot putt that would tie the 1969 Ryder Cup and German long-jumper Luz Long advising Jesse Owens to start his long jump short of the foul line to ensure qualifying for the final after fouling in his first two attempts at the 1936 Summer Olympics. (Long would go on to get the silver to Owens' gold.) 

"THE PLAYERS announces schedule changes due to weather"

Sounds like quite the rain event on Thursday at TPC Sawgrass.

For Immediate Release:

THE PLAYERS announces schedule changes due to weather

Saturday’s THE PLAYERS 5K with Donna postponed

Course closed to public on Monday; tickets honored Tuesday

Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. (May 3, 2013) – Due to heavy rains that have brought more than 5 inches to THE PLAYERS Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass over the past 36 hours, tournament and PGA TOUR officials have adjusted the event schedule in order to allow the course to drain properly, minimize any damage that would affect the competition and give the course maintenance team as much time as possible to prepare the golf course once the storm conditions subside.  Most notably, THE PLAYERS Championship will not be open to fans on Monday, May 6.  All Monday ticketholders – whether grounds, Clubhouse, Benefactor, The Turn or any other hospitality venue – can use their Monday tickets for the same access on Tuesday, May 7.  PLEASE NOTE: Executive Women’s Day will be held on Monday, as scheduled.

Additional adjustments:

Saturday, May 4

THE PLAYERS 5K with Donna, scheduled to take place on the back nine of THE PLAYERS Stadium Course, has been postponed.  The run is now scheduled for Saturday, May 18, at 7:30 a.m.  The post-race celebration will be in The Patio.  For more information, contact runner relations at info@breastcancermarathon.com or 904-355-PINK.

Golf Digest Hot List Demo Day, scheduled to take place on the driving range at TPC Sawgrass, has been cancelled.  Details for a rescheduled event during the Web.com Tour Championship in September will be announced at a later date.

Operation Shower will take place as scheduled, from 2-4 p.m., but will be held in the Sunset Room of the TPC Sawgrass Clubhouse rather than in the Birdies for the Brave® Patriots’ Outpost. Parking will remain in Lot 3.

Update on Friday, May 3, 2013 at 10:01 AM by Geoff

**From the TPC Sawgrass Agronomy blog...

Taylor Made's First Quarter '13: Up 13%

Some rather huge numbers in a down golf economy.

For Immediate Release:

TAYLORMADE-ADIDAS GOLF REPORTS STRONG Q1 2013

Global Industry Dominance Continues with Strong Metalwood, Iron and Footwear Growth

CARLSBAD, CALIF. (May 3, 2013) – TaylorMade-adidas Golf (TMaG), the largest and most profitable golf equipment, apparel and footwear company in the world, today announced strong Q1 2013 results of $559 million (€423 million), representing  an increase of 13% on a currency-neutral basis. Additionally, TMaG recorded significant currency-neutral, year-over-year growth in nearly every category in Q1, including metalwoods (+8%), irons (+35%), balls (+21%), and footwear (+23%).  Regionally, the U.S., which accounts for approximately half of TMaG’s global sales, enjoyed the strongest market growth with sales up +21% year-over-year.

TMaG’s ongoing success is a direct product of the company’s expanding global dominance in the golf equipment, footwear and apparel industries, as evidenced by numerous recent achievements:
•       The R1 driver holds the No.1 position in U.S. sales.1
•       RocketBladez irons, launched to market last November, is far and away the top-selling iron in the U.S.2
•       RBZ and RBZ Stage 2 fairway woods and Rescue hybrids currently rank No. 1 and No. 2 in U.S. sales.3
•       TaylorMade is the No. 1 driver and fairway wood brand on the world’s six major professional golf tours: PGA, European, Champions, Japan, LPGA and Web.com.
•       adizero footwear, launched in January, is having remarkable success around the world, making it the best-selling golf shoe in company history.

Additionally, TMaG’s acquisition of Adams Golf last year offers a significant opportunity for future growth.  Adams has increased its presence on the PGA TOUR by adding Robert Garrigus and Jeff Overton to a Tour Staff that already includes Aaron Baddeley, Tom Watson, Bernhard Langer, Kenny Perry, Yani Tseng and Brittany Lincicome.  Adams is the No. 1 hybrid brand on the PGA, Champions, and Web.com Tours.
 
TMaG’s first quarter success is all the more impressive given that an unusually cold spring in the northern United States has delayed the start of the golf season for hundreds of thousands of golfers, stunting equipment sales significantly.
 
“Last year was our best ever in terms of sales, so to start this year with a 13% increase over last year’s first quarter is very satisfying,” said Mark King, CEO and President.

Bummer: Venturi Not Well Enough To Make HOF Induction

Ed Sherman talks to Jim Nantz, who will be inducting Ken Venturi into the World Golf Hall of Fame on Monday without his former sidekick able to make the journey due to health issues.

Nantz said the acceptance speech will be “very spare” in the hope that Venturi can return in 2014 and speak on his own behalf.

“We’re going to tell people that we want Ken to be making this talk,” Nantz said. “We were thinking if he didn’t make it to the Hall of Fame, it would crush him. He would have a hard time recovering. But once he hears he has a chance to come back in ’14 and give that speech, he’ll be OK. God willing, he’ll be there.”

Did The Tour Go Out Of Its Way For Vijay?

I've heard from quite a few people over the last day or so about the Vijay Singh ruling and the response is pretty consistently negative for the PGA Tour. There is a sense they looked for a way out for Singh, even though I believe the order of events as they outlined and that WADA simply changed its rules.

Many share the sentiment voiced by Tommy Gainey, as quoted by Jason Sobel in this story:

“I’ve got nothing against Vijay – he’s done a lot; he’s a Hall of Famer – but you just don’t come out and admit that you used a banned substance, then Mr. Finchem and the Tour don’t punish him for it,” Tommy Gainey said Wednesday. I’ve got a problem with that as a player. Because now it’s on the banned substance list, so there’s no gray area. Either he did or he didn’t. He admitted he did, but he got no punishment. I just think it’s going to open the door for a lot of bad things to happen.”

Still, perception is everything and I'm curious what you all think: Did the PGA Tour handle Vijay Singh's admitted violation of doping policy correctly? Do you feel they were right to let WADA provide an opening, or does the handling leave you with a sense that the Tour went out of its way for a Hall of Famer?

Eger: Not Likely To Pick Up The Phone Again

In case you were still unclear on the completely harmless effort by David Eger to save Tiger from a 2013 Masters DQ for signing an incorrect card and the questionable response to Eger's call from Masters championship chair Fred Ridley in responding to assistance from an outside agency of Eger's stature, check out this Golf Central interview with Eger.

It won't be up long, but the key quotes are:

"I wouldn't have called if I wasn't 100 percent certain."

"First time I've ever called."

"With the outcome, I probably wouldn't call again."

Padraig, Against The Belly Putter, Puts It In Bag At Quail Hollow

Brian Keogh with the suprising details and past quotes from R&A Amaassador Padraig Harrington, outspoken critic of anchoring, placing a belly putter in his bag for the 2013 Wells Fargo Championship.

A year ago he had this to say, according to Keogh.

Having missed a hatful of putts in the final round of the 2012 Masters, Harrington was asked if he had considered moving to the belly putter and immediately ruled it out.

He said: “I’ve tried other people’s but never had one fitted. I am against them. I don’t like the idea of attaching something to myself. I just doesn’t sit well with me.”

Update on Thursday, May 2, 2013 at 12:23 PM by Geoff

**He spoke at length after an opening 80 with 32 putts. Steve DiMeglio with Harrington's extensive rationale.

"The R&A and USGA support the rules of golf, and (anchoring) is well within the rules," he said. "I think (anchoring) is bad for the game of golf. But if something's going to help me for the next 3½ years, I'm going to use it. It's the same as the box grooves. It's hurt me deeply having the box grooves banned. I knew it wasn't good for my game, but it was for the good of the game.

Not From The Onion Files: "12-year-old Ye Wo-cheng fails to impress on debut"

Nice catch by PaddyPower to Tweet this ESPN UK headline on 12-year-old Ye Wo-cheng's 79 in the Volvo China Open:

Ryan Herrington wrote about Wo-cheng's debut as well as the entries of a 15 and 16-year-old in the same event.

Guardian's Hyde To R&A: "Grow a pair."

The Guardian's always pithy Marina Hyde chimes in on the R&A stance's against bullying clubs into taking female members and, well, you need to read the entire thing. Thanks to reader David for the column, which also includes a photo I'm sure Peter Dawson regrets posing for. 

Cover your eyes boys and girls, but the adults will find this fun:

And yet, even those of us sympathetic to the idea of men in golf might be troubled by the idea that the sport's own governing body feels that making policy amounts to "bullying".

But evidently it does. In a round of media interviews last week that some have bizarrely characterised as his meeting the issue head on, Dawson explained: "I can't deny that my job would be a lot easier if the issue didn't exist."

Oh do man up, Peter, as I believe the expression goes. You mustn't allow yourself to be – what's that other figure of speech? – pussywhipped by these clubs. They are making you what's known as their bitch, and it does look as if you need to, well, grow a pair. Alas, indications are that the R&A's collective testicles are to remain undropped for the foreseeable future – which, as I say, makes one wonder whether men are really suited to these kinds of important and complex leadership roles. Would they not be happier at a less operational level, where their innate gentleness could be showcased, instead of being forced into the unnatural position of exercising power?

And this about Augusta's move…

It really is grimly hilarious that some believe Augusta allowing two women to join its ranks – Condoleezza Rice and billionaire mogul Darla Moore – means they have "dealt with" their discrimination problem, when in a more insidious way, they have doubled down on it. What such sweet outreach gestures always say is that the absolute "best" women are now fit to take their place in line right behind whichever comparatively ordinary bloke was the institution's last admission.

Pac 12 Championship: Cal Men Win 10th Tournament!

Cal held off UCLA to win the 2013 Pac 12 Championship by nine strokes. The win unofficially ties them with the 1985-86 Oklahoma State squad for most victories in a season by a college golf team, with two events to go.

Cal Senior Max Homa's 9-under 271 held off teammate and U.S. Amateur runner-up Michael Weaver by five strokes. After the round, host club Los Angeles Country Club presented Homa with a framed lithograph that included a plaque commemorating his opening round and course record 61.

A few images from the day:

Players: Quail Hollow Greens Victim Of 24/7 Media

It's the media conjuring up a story, say a few players quoted by Jason Sobel on the eve of the Wells Fargo Championship opening round.

“You know, in the age that you guys [in the media] have to talk about something 24 hours a day,” Joe Ogilvie explained, “you’ve got to come up with something.”

“Once the tournament starts, I think all of that stuff will stop and it will be about the tournament, about the shots and the scoring,” said Mickelson. “We’ll see what’s made this tournament great in the past and it won’t be an issue. But I think leading up it will be the talk, because we haven’t had the actual action to discuss yet.”

“One thing I’ve realized is that there’s always a new story,” Trevor Immelman added. “There’s a new story every week. Just when you think you’re going to be able to latch onto something and wear it out for a few months, something else happens. It’s amazing to me. I think it’s just one of those things that we work through and next week there will be another story.”

We'll see what the boys say after they've posted their first round scores!

Juding by this image from Jeff Sisner of the Charlotte Observer from his pro-am slideshow, this is more than just a story whipped up by the 24/7 press.

Ridley's First Glance At Tiger's Drop: "Splitting Hairs"

On the day the USGA and R&A filled up everyone's inbox with a pretty longwinded and not terribly groundbreaking endorsement of the Masters use of Rule 33-7, Michael Bamberger revealed that David Eger was the caller attempting to alert the Masters rules committee to Tiger's improper Friday drop.

What becomes apparent in Bamberger's dissection of the events is that Masters championship chair Fred Ridley actually blundered this in worse fashion than first realized.

At 7:30 p.m., 10 minutes after Woods completed his round, Ridley responded by text to Bradley. Regarding Eger's estimate of three to four feet, Ridley wrote that Woods "was closer than that." To look at it closer, he wrote, would be "splitting hairs." Ridley determined that Woods had done nothing wrong, so there was no point in asking him about the drop.

So he did not get a tip from some Joe watching on television, but from the former top rules guy at the USGA and current Champions Tour player. And when he watched, Ridley concluded there was no reason to even ask Woods about the drop. Yikes!

Also interesting to me is the willingness of Eger, as well as the PGA Tour's Mark Russell and Mickey Bradley to confirm the details on the record, yet as Bamberger points out, Ridley is not interested in talking about what three very knowledgable officials tried so desperately to do to prevent an issue for Tiger.

UCLA Closing In On Cal As L.A. North Bites Back

Thanks to some stellar play under difficult conditions, the lucky few taking in round three of the Pac 12 Mens Golf Championships were treated to some fantastic golf. While the scores didn't quite match the incredible opening day scoring, the precision play inspired by U.S. Open greens (almost 14 on the Stimp, extremely firm) and George Thomas and Billy Bell's architecture revealed the level of talent in the Pac 12.

I'll leave the summary to the Pac 12's website where you can also see scores and a photo gallery. Also, Golfstat has the individual and team leaderboards.

Instead, a few random observations from L.A. North prior to final round play.

-- I spent most of the morning watching Stanford's Patrick Rodgers and the afternoon following Cal's Max Homa, UCLA's Jonathan Garrick and Washington's Chris Williams. All impressed with their swings, attitudes, precision and short game while playing the course intelligently...other than the painful sight of their repeated rangefinder use.

--Ahhh yes, the rangefinder. What a waste of information on a course with firm greens where yardages to the flagstick mean so little. Which is probably why players still check sprinklers, yardage books or simply walk the numbers off if they are within 80 yards of the green. Speed up play?  Rangefinders, they do not.

-- The aforementioned players and many others I saw from various Pac 12 schools are placing the ball in unfathomable locations off the tee. That would be my nice way of saying they hit the ball absurd distances. The next time I hear the governing bodies insist driving distances have peaked, I now have photographs of young lads in fairway landing areas so far beyond what hazards that even they might have a hard time justifying their decade long indifference to the obvious. Peter Dawson recently said on anchoring, better late than never!

--UCLA trails by two strokes. UCLA's Pontus Widegren was penalized two shots in a second round 75 for just barely missing his afternoon tee time after he was changing to the prescribed second round UCLA team shirt. Because the first round was running long, Widegren only had a few minutes to change.

I'm not sure how quickly I'll get to post round 4 observations and photos, so here's a big gallery from the first two days:

Quail Hollow's Greens Not So Green, High Profile WD's Ensue

It's hardly a surprise that Ian Poulter WD'd from this week's Wells Fargo Championship for "personal reasons" since he telegraphed the move on Twitter last week after hearing about the spotty putting surfaces. Dustin Johnson cited a "sore wrist" in his WD.

And about those greens, Doug Ferguson describes them this way in his weekly notes column:

Due mainly to an unusually cool spring, the home of the Wells Fargo Championship has struggled so mightily with its greens that two of them (Nos. 8 and 10) have had to be resodded in recent weeks, and tournament officials have asked players to hit only one shot into Nos. 12 and 13 during practice rounds.

The rest of the greens are spotty at best, most with several patches of brown. And it's not just looks. Some players say the greens are running at different speeds.

''It's tough to see,'' said Webb Simpson, the U.S. Open champion who lives at Quail Hollow. ''I think their biggest challenge is going to try to get it to be the same firmness and speed of the other greens.''

First Reactions To Vijay's Acquittal...

So in a nutshell: Vijay Singh violated the tour doping policy, was found guilty by the tour, appealed, and in that process the World Anti-Doping Agency decided what he took was not so testable or so helpful, so he got off even though he remained guilty under tour policy whether he took the stuff or not.

Deer Antler Spray for all! Another feather in WADA's cap!

You can read Tim Finchem's press conference here and there's not as much gobbledygook as normal, just some choosing words carefully. But also several interesting points about the problems with blood testing even though the policy violation occurred before a single test was ever conducted.

Bob Harig reviews the finding and like me, seems to be stuck on this pesky fact:

The tour had warned its players about deer-antler spray in August 2011, but there is no test available in routine blood testing. At this time, the tour only conducts random urine tests. But an admission is still a violation of the policy, and Finchem said a sanction was issued to Singh on Feb. 19.

Alex Miceli also seems fixated on the same issue.

According to Section One of the PGA Tour Anti-Doping Program Manual, a player is strictly liable whenever a prohibited substance is in his body, regardless of the circumstances.

“This means that if a test indicates the presence of a prohibited substance in your test sample, you have committed a doping violation regardless of how the prohibited substance entered your body,” according to the manual. “It does not matter whether you unintentionally or unknowingly used a prohibited substance.”

Because Singh did not test positive for the banned substance, according to Section Two (D) (8) titled PGA Tour Anti-Doping Program, Prohibited Conduct, Singh’s verbal admission was treated as a positive test.

Rex Hoggard calls the PGA Tour's handling a "slam dunk" in using this "emergency exit" solution, but then writes...

It’s also worth pointing out that IGF-1 was on the banned list when Singh admitted to using it. By comparison, if someone is given a speeding ticket for going 70 mph in a 55 mph zone, but the speed limit is increased on the same stretch of byway the next day to 70 mph, was there a violation?

Randall Mell goes big picture and concludes that "Golf seems more vulnerable today to the plague that has infected so many sports" after the decision:

If the lab coats were watching Tuesday’s news conference, they must have been giddy over the opportunity the sport presents as a new market. Singh gets a reprieve, basically, because deer-antler spray isn’t as effective as he thought it was. His ignorance and carelessness saved him, but those are qualities ripe for exploitation.

Vijay Acquitted, Share Your Resounding Joy Here

I'm out watching PAC 12 golf but I know you need an outlet to express your joy at the heartwarming news of Vijay's acquittal on admitting to having purchased a banned substance.

Update on Tuesday, April 30, 2013 at 03:48 PM by Geoff

**John Strege explains the decision.

And the statement...

PGA TOUR Statement Regarding Vijay Singh

The PGA TOUR Anti-Doping Program, which has been in effect since July 2008, closely follows the International Anti-Doping Standard set forth by the World Anti-Doping Agency (“WADA”) particularly as it relates to the interpretation and application of the List of Prohibited Substances and Methods.

In a January 28, 2013 article that appeared on SI.com, Vijay Singh was quoted as admitting to his use of a deer antler spray supplement.  Subsequently, Mr. Singh confirmed his use of deer antler spray in a statement he issued.  Deer antler spray contains IGF-1, a growth factor listed on both the WADA and PGA TOUR Prohibited Lists, which the TOUR warned players about in August 2011.  After the SI.com article came out, WADA also issued a warning about deer antler spray on February 5, 2013.

There is no test for IGF-1 currently available in routine blood testing.   However, the PGA TOUR Anti-Doping Policy provides that an admission to the use of a prohibited substance is a violation of the policy even if there is no positive drug test.  After confirming the presence of IGF-1 in the deer antler spray product provided to the TOUR by Mr. Singh through tests at the WADA-approved UCLA laboratory, the TOUR proceeded with the matter as a violation of the PGA TOUR Anti-Doping Policy, and a sanction was issued.   Mr. Singh subsequently appealed the sanction under the PGA TOUR Anti-Doping Program guidelines.  During the appeal process, PGA TOUR counsel contacted WADA to confirm a number of technical points.  At that time, WADA clarified that it no longer considers the use of deer antler spray to be prohibited unless a positive test results.  Indeed, on April 30, WADA subsequently provided written confirmation to the TOUR that:

“In relation to your pending IGF-1 matter, it is the position of WADA, in applying the Prohibited List, that the use of "deer antler spray" (which is known to contain small amounts of IGF-I) is not considered prohibited.

On the other hand it should be known that Deer Antler Spray contains small amounts of IGF-1 that may affect anti-doping tests.

Players should be warned that in the case of a positive test for IGF-1 or hGH, it would be considered an Adverse Analytical Finding.”

Based on this new information, and given WADA’s lead role in interpreting the Prohibited List, the TOUR deemed it only fair to no longer treat Mr. Singh’s use of deer antler spray as a violation of the TOUR’s anti-doping program.

Since his initial quote was made public, Mr. Singh has cooperated with the TOUR investigation and has been completely forthcoming and honest.  While there was no reason to believe that Mr. Singh knowingly took a prohibited substance, the PGA TOUR Anti-Doping Program clearly states that players are responsible for use of a prohibited substance regardless of intent.   In this regard, Mr. Singh should have contacted the PGA TOUR Anti-Doping Program Administrator or other resources readily available to players in order to verify that the product Mr. Singh was about to utilize did not contain any prohibited substances, especially in light of the warning issued in August 2011 in relation to deer antler spray.

Going forward, the PGA TOUR is committed to increasing its educational initiatives to remind players of the PGA TOUR Anti-Doping Program and the risk of utilizing any product without a full understanding of the ingredients contained in that product. Such educational initiatives will include reinforcing with its members the many resources available to them on a 24/7 basis to respond to any questions they may have concerning any product.

The PGA TOUR recognizes that the science of anti-doping is an ever evolving subject, and the TOUR will continue to work with its consultants and WADA to stay abreast of all current developments in this area. This will include staying abreast of developing policies and procedures, specifically with regard to testing for growth hormone and IGF-1.  When fully implemented tests for those substances become available in routine blood testing, the TOUR will continue to monitor the situation and make changes to the policy as necessary or appropriate.

R&A/PGA Of America Relations Moved To DEFCON 2 As President Brings Up R&A's All-Male Membership

You may recall my Golf World story from Augusta noted the deteriorating relationship between the PGA of America's Ted Bishop and R&A Chief Executive Peter Dawson over the proposed anchoring ban.

There is also now a growing the game component...

Tim Rosaforte fleshes out the festering feud and receives some fresh fuel from Bishop, who is firing back at the R&A's male-only membership.

"I find that to be very curious and perplexing given the fact that the R&A has not been inclusive as evidenced by their unwillingness to accept women as members to the R&A," Bishop said. "This is a much different approach than we have taken in America."

And besides confirming the details of the Masters week brouhaha, Bishop adds this:

"In the end, I pass off the differences between the PGA of America and the R&A to be a result as the difference between our two cultures," Bishop said in his email. "Europeans have a tendency to accept the things that are imposed by their respective governments, while Americans will debate, argue and vote on issues. I think that is the fundamental premise that America was founded on."