"The financial crisis gave the European Tour a perfect chance to get together with other tours around the world"

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John Huggan explains why Rory McIlroy's pending decision to play four more times on the PGA Tour could prove to be a huge black eye for the European Tour, but more interesting is the criticism from Rory agent Chubby Chandler about George O'Grady's missed opportunity for creating a world tour.
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"We have been assured that our agreement is proceeding substantially as planned."

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While John Hopkins thinks the prize money cut for the Race to Dubai could have been a lot worse because of Dubai's fall, Mark Reason and Lawrence Donegan sound much more suspicious about the short term future of the European Tour's big gamble, both pouncing on word that the Euro Tour does not even have a firm commitment for next year. Reason writes:
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2018 Ryder Cup Bidding Commences; Euro Tour Still Demanding A Ninth Hole Returning Somewhere Close To The Clubhouse

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...And a whole lot of money.

Mark Garrod reports that the demanding, inten$ive and wide-reaching $earch to find an appropriate 2018 Ryder Cup venue has begun. And bidders, please make sure that 9th comes somewhere close to the clubhouse.

Six countries - France, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Sweden - have announced their intention to bid for the 2018 Ryder Cup.

The deadline for the submission of bids is the end of April next year, with the announcement expected in 2011.

Celtic Manor in Wales plays host next year, and the 2014 contest is at Gleneagles in Scotland. But when both were selected it was decided that after that the European home match would return to the continent if suitable venues could be found.

No Dubai? Perhaps the pushback on that little floated idea wasn't what they hoped for?

"We have excellent relations with Setanta"

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Lawrence Donegan reports that the demise of sports network Setanta means that the UK rights holder to PGA Tour coverage may be leave the Tour as "the hardest hit sports league."

Where will the PGA tour go now? Sky, which used to hold the rights and bid around £5m-a-year when they came up for auction in 2006, may be interested. But it will not be interested at a price anywhere near that paid by Setanta - especially as it was miffed to lose the contract in the first place.

And this...

It is hard to know for certain because we don't know how the deal with Setanta was structured. But let's say the $103 million was spread evenly over the reported five years; that's $20.6 million a year. Two years have already elapsed, which leaves three years at $20.6 million - a total of $61.8 million. Ouch!

Improved Lie?

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Thanks to reader Aleid for pointing out that the replay of Richie Ramsay's incident during Saturday's Wales Open is now posted. 

 

"Truth is, we would love to apply a one-stroke penalty if the opportunity arises because the message this sends out is very powerful."

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Mark Garrod talks to the European Tour's Andy McFee about why Christian Cevaer was not assessed a slow play penalty during the recent European Open.

This McFee comment was interesting in light of the PGA Tour's hasn't doled out a penalty in 17 years.

"Truth is, we would love to apply a one-stroke penalty if the opportunity arises because the message this sends out is very powerful.

"But we will always treat all players fairly and we will not seek to penalise when the circumstances don't warrant it.

"Incidentally, 17 one-stroke penalties have been earned (and I use that word deliberately] since 1997 - hardly inaction.

"True, most of the penalties fall to those who don't know the system, but you have to be either naive or dim to have a second bad time after a ref has told you that you already have one bad time and one more will be an instant penalty of one stroke.

"Most hard-nosed pros then manage to get business done inside the limits, meaning they either get back in position or we have no opportunity to act further."

"What I saw was very strange, very strange indeed."

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Since there was so much complaining about coverage of Kenny Perry's FBR Open pre-shot routine, and since there is no video posted (yet), I've held off posting something on Richie Ramsay's rules incident Saturday. I had hoped video would be posted now, but we'll just have to rely on the accounts until someone at Sky puts it up on YouTube.

Here's a straightforward AP story, a more titillating tabloid report from Jim Black quoting rules official John Paramor.

Also, Mike Aitken reminds us that Ramsay has had other run-ins with the rules.

And I don't quite understand Douglas Lowe's logic here.

Let's make one thing clear: Richie Ramsay's integrity is not under question. He is an honest broker of the fairways and, yes, I would buy a second-hand car from him. A question mark, however, does hang over his knowledge of the rules of golf and, as they say in the best of legal circles, ignorance of the law is no excuse.

This Norman Dabell story recounts how the day after the incident in question, Ramsay did receive a one shot penalty for another violation.

"I happen to think that a course is up to Ryder Cup standard if the ninth green comes back somewhere close to the clubhouse."

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John Huggan examines why Europe puts their Ryder Cup venue selection "up for sale to the highest bidder" and obtains this beautiful quote from European Tour head George O'Grady.

"I don't think the Ryder Cup has to be played on the greatest course in the world," says O'Grady, only a little defensively. "Look at the Belfry, where there have been some great Ryder Cup matches. I happen to think that a course is up to Ryder Cup standard if the ninth green comes back somewhere close to the clubhouse."

"This would be just another tale of housing woes were it not for the fact Leisurecorp’s money is funding the European Tour’s Race to Dubai"

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In this Richard Gillis look at the recession and high-end developments, he focuses on the places that have chased a "championship" course and "signature" architect. The Leisurecorp part is interesting:

Leisurecorp’s business model is focused on selling expensive houses around its golf courses and so is very exposed to the downturn. For example, it is currently building 1,000 houses around its Earth course, a Greg Norman-designed lay-out, which forms the first of four such projects planned in the city.

According to new chief executive Colin Smith, a former Uefa executive, 90 per cent of the homes have been sold, with final payments due when the houses are completed, “sometime after the first quarter of next year”.

However, many of these people are likely to be “flippers”, speculators who bought off plan and intended to re-sell the house as it comes to market. With property prices down, there is a real risk that they will write off their down payments and join those whose cars are at the airport.

“The housing market in Dubai has taken a major hit,” says Sartori. “There has been an oversupply of residential property and too many speculators as a proportion of the houses that are being sold, rather than people buying their houses to live in them. Now there is a huge stock of property which they all want to put on the market at the very discounted price. It will take some time before demand and supply balance off.”

This would be just another tale of housing woes were it not for the fact Leisurecorp’s money is funding the European Tour’s Race to Dubai and Dubai World Championship.