"Specifically, each member of the PGA TOUR Communications team is responsible for measurable results"

This is from the May Golf Writers Association of America newsletter. It's a "note from the communications staff" in Ponte Vedra.

PGATOURMBASPEAK bingo boards at the ready?

“The PGA TOUR has introduced a new initiative to engender, among all members of the Communications team, more ownership in the results of individual media outlets. Specifically, each member of the PGA TOUR Communications team is responsible for measurable results -- number of stories published or aired in print, television, radio and internet -- for two to three particular Top 50 or PGA TOUR tournament markets. Similar assignments have been made for national media, such as USA Today, Wall Street Journal, ESPN, ESPN.com, Yahoo!Sports.com etc.”

It's as if they take words and say, let's put them in a blender and make them as difficult to read as possible.

I just want to know Ty, who is assigned to me?  

Seriously, who has the job of counting ownership results? And if the results are just a bunch of negative stories about slow play or John Daly's latest hiccup, does that hurt your ownership stake? 

"I have told the players we are going to make them play faster."

John Hopkins reports on the slow play epidemic, and though he says the final pairing at The Players took only 4:15 (according to some readers it was 4:40), he offers this:

The answer lies partly in easing the set-up of some courses but more in harsh penalties for slow players. The LPGA Tour in the US recently introduced a policy of penalizing players who took more than 30 seconds a stroke and, furthermore, penalized Angela Park when she was only one stroke out of the lead. Compare this with the PGA Tour's policies under which a player has not bee fined for 15 years.

Tim Finchem, Commissioner of the PGA Tour in the US, said in an interview with The Times last week: "I have told the players we are going to make them play faster. I think we owe it the sport, to the players who play at this level and to the fans that we are doing everything we can to analyse and take steps on this issue."

Well, it's something. This isn't so hot:

Last Monday the World Golf Foundation, a body incorporating the United States Golf association and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, the professional tours from around the world as well as Ladies Professional Golf Association (in the US), met in Jacksonville. I understand that slow play was on the agenda but nothing substantive was discussed even though slow play was an item on the agenda.

Thankfully, there is great news. According to Doug Ferguson, the big execs in golf are working on the real priorities at the expense of their carbon footprints. What for? To grow the game with 72-holes of stroke play once every four years. 

PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem headed for London this week, stopping along the way to pick up USGA executive director David Fay and LPGA commissioner Carolyn Bivens.

They were to join R&A chief executive Peter Dawson and European Tour chief George O’Grady at a meeting with the International Olympic Committee, the first step toward bringing golf back to the Olympics.

It was not a formal meeting, but no less important to show the IOC a unified front in golf’s desire to be part of the games.

“This will be a protracted process,” Fay said. “But this is an important first step.”

Vital. Just vital.

The Farmers Almanac Schedule

Rex Hoggard tackles the question of what an ideal tour schedule based on weather would look like. The current one doesn't look so bad after all.

"Imagine how the new sponsorship development will be received by the guy who lost everything, including his self-esteem, because of the falling dominos in the ailing banking sector."

Steve Elling raises the delicate question of whether fans and company employees will embrace their favorite corporations putting out up to $7 million for a week of professional golf.

 With the U.S. economy in the toilet, convincing companies to re-up or sit tight on deals with the pro tours is going to be increasingly harder, especially those with ties to banking or real estate, like the Ginn Company, a realty development firm which sponsors events on the PGA and Champions tours and two on the LPGA.

 For the PGA Tour, re-signing Wachovia was beyond crucial, since the 6-year-old event has become one of the top 10 tournaments on the circuit. With title sponsors and corporate America being held evermore accountable for questionable, discretionary expenses, it will be interesting to see if companies blink going forward on inking deals.

You know, like 84 Lumber, AT&T, PODS, Buick, Chrysler and Booz Allen have done over the past couple of years -- all have either pared back their sponsorships or walked away from existing tour contracts, largely for economic reasons. The Tampa and Atlanta events are still seeking new sponsors for 2009 and beyond, in fact.

Based on this Larry Bohannan story about the LPGA having trouble with U.S. sponsors, perhaps the economy is already catching up to one tour.

"Actually, my plan is to die in office at the age of 82"

Alan Shipnuck pens a lengthy and compelling profile of Tim Finchem for this week's SI Golf Plus. This is by far the riskiest move yet in the Finchem rebranding project, which started in earnest this February and takes on an edgier tone by the very notion of allowing SI access. (I shudder to think of the negotiations that took place before Shipnuck got the green light.)

There are many highlights including lots of new insight into the $5.2 million man. We learn about how his political career was derailed (got to pay those speeding tickets Tim!), about where he likes to vacation, why the WGC's are staying in the U.S. (it's TV's fault now!) and more seriously, moving anecdotes about his mom who sounds like she was truly a special person. We're also reminded what a big Democrat Finchem used to be, which is always good for getting the juices flowing with the groupthinkers on tour.

The only disappointing aspect of the piece was not Shipnuck's fault, but instead, the peculiar decision to headline it this way: "PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem has made a lot of golfers very, very rich — and a few very, very angry."

While we hear from a few angry folks you'd expect to hear from (Norman, Vickers, Pernice), it would have been nice to hear more from the rank and file about beefs with say, his excessive salary, their take on lavish executive compensation, the stockpiling of VP's or Finchem's weak record when it comes to actions related to equipment regulation, slow play and course setup. Though we learn Phil Mickelson is still definitely not a fan.

There was also this quote about his passion for restructuring and, well, firing people.

"An organization needs to be constantly refreshed," he says.

You ever notice that executive types who say stuff like that never feel that applies to themselves? And in Finchem's case, it seems he may want to keep working beyond the end of his current deal.

Should it come to pass, the Olympics would wreak havoc with the Tour's schedule, but Finchem sees it as one of the best ways to expand the game globally, which makes it the right thing to do. On the other hand, 2016 is the target date, by which time the logistics will be another commissioner's problem.

Or will they?

"Actually, my plan is to die in office at the age of 82," Finchem says with a hearty laugh.

In fact the commissioner says he has no time line in mind for the end of his tenure and that "it would be a mistake to assume" he will step down in four years when his contract expires.

How can I complain? He makes blogging easy.

"TPC San Francisco Bay at Stonebrae" To Vie For Most Overbranded Golf Course Name In History

I don't get this one, but I'm sure charity was at the heart of the decision...

PGA TOUR Adds TPC San Francisco Bay at Stonebrae to Its Network of Private Clubs

Course to Host Nationwide Tour Event in 2009 Benefiting Bay Area Children’s Charities

HAYWARD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The PGA TOUR announced today that it will expand its presence in the San Francisco Bay area through an agreement to manage the David McLay Kidd-designed championship golf course at Stonebrae, a private, gated country club community located in the East Bay hills. The newly renamed TPC San Francisco Bay at Stonebrae will become the host site for the Nationwide Tour’s new Stonebrae Classic, scheduled for March 30 – April 5, 2009, which will assume the Livermore Valley Wine Country Championship at Wente Vineyard’s spot on the Tour schedule. The Stonebrae Classic joins two other prestigious PGA TOUR events in the region: The Presidents Cup, scheduled to be held Oct. 5-11, 2009, at Harding Park Golf Course in San Francisco, and the Champions Tour’s pinnacle Charles Schwab Cup Championship at Sonoma Golf Club in Sonoma, CA, Oct. 30 – Nov. 2, 2008. The Schwab Cup Championship will be held at Harding Park Golf Course in 2010 and 2011.

The Santa Cruz-based Jordan & Kyra Memorial Foundation (www.jordanandkyra.org) dedicated to pediatric cancer research and family care will serve as the host tournament organization for the Stonebrae Classic. The Foundation was founded by Rob Stuart, father of Jordan Stuart, and David Pillsbury, uncle of Kyra Pillsbury – two Bay Area children who died at a young age from brain tumors. The primary beneficiary of the tournament will be George Mark Children’s House (www.georgemark.org) in San Leandro, established in 2004 to provide the best quality of care for seriously and terminally ill children and their families. The event will also benefit Koret Family House (www.familyhouseinc.org) in San Francisco, a non-profit residence for the families of children undergoing cancer treatment at UCSF Medical Center.

“We are excited to plant the PGA TOUR flag at this prestigious David McLay Kidd design, which will become the new flagship private club on the west coast for the TPC Network,” said Pillsbury, PGA TOUR Golf Course Properties President.

The flagship? I guess TPC Valencia as the mother of all west coast TPC's?

“In addition to providing private club members and Stonebrae residents with a unique PGA TOUR golf experience, TPC San Francisco Bay will bring the future stars of the PGA TOUR to the East Bay during the Stonebrae Classic, as well as serve as an outstanding platform for supporting seriously and terminally ill children throughout Northern California.”

The Stonebrae Classic will feature 144 players competing in 72 holes of stroke play, with a cut after 36 holes. The tournament will be part of the 2009 Nationwide Tour, the official proving ground of the PGA TOUR, which awards TOUR cards at season’s end to its 25 leading money winners. All four rounds of the Stonebrae Classic will be televised on the Golf Channel, the exclusive television home of the Nationwide Tour. With support from the Stonebrae Classic Host Committee, led by John Chen, Chairman & CEO of Sybase, the Stonebrae Classic will work in partnership with The Presidents Cup to develop tournament and sponsorship opportunities that will include TPC San Francisco Bay memberships and other exceptional benefits.

“For the past three years, the Livermore Valley Wine Country Championship at Wente Vineyards has done an outstanding job of bringing championship golf to the East Bay and we are excited that the Nationwide Tour will continue to have a presence through the Stonebrae Classic,” said Nationwide Tour President Bill Calfee. “We look forward to the opportunity to work in partnership with the PGA TOUR and The Presidents Cup to generate funding and awareness for children’s charities benefiting families throughout the region.”

Wait, Bill Calfee works for the PGA Tour at PGA Tour offices. Hasn't he already had the opportunity to work with the PGA Tour?

The course at Stonebrae was developed by Stonebrae LP, part of YCS Golf Properties, known for its award-winning Dallas National Golf Club. Opened for member play in 2007, TPC San Francisco Bay’s magnificent par-72, 7,200-yard layout was designed by world-renowned Scottish golf course architect David McLay Kidd of DMK Golf Design, designer of Bandon Dunes in Oregon and currently in the process of completing the new Castle Course at St. Andrews. The Scottish links-influenced layout was etched into the Walpert Ridge hillside on 1,700 pristine acres more than 1,500 feet above the Bay, and features sweeping panoramic vistas, an abundance of rolling grasslands, wind-twisted oaks, and lichen-glazed rock outcroppings, creating a stunning natural backdrop for a challenging but enjoyable test of golf.

Lichen-glazed? You know, I think it's best we don't know what kind of glazing that is.

Update on 2008-05-02 02:50 by Geoff

Adam Schupak fills in a few more details and quotes David Pillsbury.

"It is a tribute to the incredible bench strength of our executive team that we can quickly assign responsibilities when opportunities for change are created."

Wednesday was VP promotion day in Ponte Vedra. Let's see who can't ride on the same Falcon as Tim Finchem any longer. (You know, protecting that line of succession stuff should, God forbid...).

The PGA TOUR Announces Executive Appointments

April 23, 2008(Ponte Vedra Beach, FL) — The PGA TOUR announced today that Ron Cross, Executive Director of THE PLAYERS Championship, has accepted a position as Director of Corporate Affairs for Augusta National Golf Club.

Take that Cliff Roberts!

“Ron Cross has significantly impacted each of the areas he has worked in at the PGA TOUR over the past 19 years,” said Tim Finchem, PGA TOUR Commissioner. “His contributions have helped the PGA TOUR immensely. He served at a time of great momentum and growth for the tournament. We are delighted this opportunity has been presented to Ron and although we will miss his leadership role with THE PLAYERS, we wish him well in his new position with Augusta National.”

And we really hope he can get us on the course from time to time.

The PGA TOUR further announced that Henry Hughes has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer of THE PLAYERS Championship, where he will continue to report to the Office of the Commissioner.  Hughes’ responsibilities will include long-term positioning for the event, as well as chairing the search committee to select Cross’ replacement.

Boy, that sounds fun. By the way, I thought we were lower case on The and all caps on Players. Did I miss a press release?

“Henry and I have been discussing a succession plan for the PGA TOUR for some time,” said Commissioner Finchem. “With Ron Cross’ departure we saw an opportunity to execute an effective change in the management of THE PLAYERS and maintain Henry’s key position as a member of the Executive Committee.

Henry will focus on the development of a management strategy to ensure the continued growth of the event. For 25 years, Henry’s leadership and vision have made an indelible mark in every department he has led.  He is held in the highest regard by everyone in the golf industry, especially the players, the tournaments and the sponsors. His appointment as CEO indicates the significant magnitude we place on the future of THE PLAYERS and the role we have asked him to take on with the event.”

Well, I think we need to hear from Henry about how thrilled he is with this uh, C-level restructuring.

“It’s been thrilling for me to witness the significant growth and expansion of THE PLAYERS Championship over the course of my career,” said Hughes. “I look forward to providing the leadership and strategic development of the TOUR’s flagship championship.”

And now, drum roll please, who has just moved into chair No. 2 where he can dream of someday raking in the millions as Commish?

With the appointment of Hughes as CEO of THE PLAYERS, Rick George, currently serving as President of the Champions Tour and Executive Vice President Championship Management, will move into the PGA TOUR Chief of Operations position, formerly occupied by Hughes. With George’s move to the PGA TOUR, Mike Stevens has been promoted to President of the Champions Tour. David Pillsbury, currently serving as President, PGA TOUR Golf Course Properties, will expand his operational oversight leading the Championship Management team.

Two of my favorite corporatespeak specialists will have even more opportunities to humor us. All in all, a good day for the blogosphere. Especially with sports -metaphor laced gibberish like this:

“It is a tribute to the incredible bench strength of our executive team that we can quickly assign responsibilities when opportunities for change are created,” said Finchem.

Wow, that was special. Sorry, continue.

“I want to commend Rick George on the exceptional job he did elevating and growing the stature of the Champions Tour as well as the leadership he provided to Championship Management. He brings an array of talents and experience to his new role with the PGA TOUR. The work Rick and Mike Stevens have done together on the Champions Tour will result in a seamless transition. David has performed admirably as the President of Golf Course Properties, strategically repositioning the operations of the PGA TOUR’s Tournament Players Clubs and overseeing the complete renovation of the TPC Sawgrass facilities. David brings with him a creative vision, marketing and operational expertise that will propel Championship Management events to new heights.”

These appointments are effective June 1.

Got all that? 

Look At The Branding!

Why do I have visions of PGA Tour VP's high fiving each other over Richard Oliver's San Antonio News-Express story on TPC San Antonio, where he dutifully reports on construction progress at the "AT&T Canyons Course" and the "AT&T Oaks Course."
 

"I don't know if we're impervious"

Garry Smits is the first to address the inevitable questions about the PGA Tour's financial well-being in the face of an economic downturn, with quotes from Tim Finchem and Joe Ogilvie.

He reported that TV ratings are up slightly over last year, mostly because of Tiger Woods being on another hot streak and stars such as Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson winning tournaments in which Woods did not appear. That keeps advertisers happy.

Tournament pro-ams, ticket sales, corporate hospitality and other tournament-site revenue, part of which flows to the Tour's charitable concerns, also remains level with 2007 or even slightly up, when taken as a whole.

Close to home, The Players Championship is seeing corporate tents, sky boxes and other forms of hospitality at nearly the same pace as last year, with ticket sales a bit ahead of last year, said executive director Ron Cross.

But even Finchem agreed that the PGA Tour, like any other business, probably could not avoid being affected if the economy continues a downward trend.

"I don't know if we're impervious," Finchem said recently. "We have a lot of long-term stuff with fundamental building blocks at the tournament level. Ads and TV ratings are on a shorter leash, but so far we haven't seen any falloff."

Finchem said the economic outlook for the Tour is not as dire as in 1999 and 2000, during the dot.com bust. For example, the Tour had to fill nearly 10 title sponsorships within a year, including an umbrella sponsor for its developmental tour to replace Buy.com.

And...

"Anything to do with residential development might be a problem pretty soon," Ogilvie said.

"You look at retail, like cars, which would be a problem, but we have a great relationship with Buick, and they have Tiger on their team. They're one U.S. car brand that is doing well.

The Tour season also has six months remaining, and more bad news from the economy could start having ripple effects.

"When businesses suffer, they put on the brakes," Finchem said. "They don't entertain, and advertising is easy to cut. But some are cutting back now and some remain aggressive. We might come out OK."

Huggan: WGC's Should Be Out of Finchem's Hands

He's allowed to dream a little. Well, a lot...

Anyway, with Finchem out of the way – no bad thing in any circumstances – control of the WGCs must pass to a committee formed by those who run the four major championships. While far from perfect – the R&A and USGA, for example, have badly let down the game with their neglect of the various technological issues over the last decade and a half – their hearts are at least in the right place.

Besides, in these days of multi-million dollar/pound/euro incomes, the only things capable of exerting any real influence over Tiger and the gang are the game's four most important titles. They certainly don't pay much attention to the pathetic posturings of the various tours when it comes to the currently appallingly slow pace of play worldwide. So it should be that, if a player misses a WGC for any reason other than injury, illness or a family crisis, he will automatically be banned from competing in the next major. You don't fancy that trip to Australia in February? Then don't bother making any plans to visit Augusta in April.

Oh yeah, that'll happen.

Imagine, a World Match Play Championship at, say, Morfontaine or Royal Dornoch, or even the Old Course at St Andrews. I'd love to see a top player chipping to the second green at Dornoch, or, one up with two to play, deciding whether or not to risk all and go for the green at the Road Hole.

The possibilities, of course, are almost endless. But I would expect my committee to come up with an Open Championship-like rota of maybe 20 courses worldwide. Places like Kingston Heath, the Emirates club in Dubai, Barnbougle Dunes, Muirfield, Sunningdale, Fontainebleau, Portmarnock, Royal County Down, the Durban Country Club, Cape Kidnappers, Royal Portrush, Royal Porthcawl and Carnoustie, where the very best players and shot-makers will be suitably inspired rather than bored by their surroundings, never mind the inherent drawbacks of modern clubs and balls.

Yeah, but where are the partner's chalets going to go?

PGA Tour Joins Facebook!

It's great to see the PGA Tour trying to tap a younger audience since they typically resist such pandering (see Ty, I listen!).

Yet the gang in Ponte Vedra couldn't resist opening themselves up to the privacy-violating social network du jour, Facebook. And you can just see the kids swooning with an opening page self-explanation like this:

The mission of the PGA TOUR is to expand domestically and internationally to substantially increase player financial benefits while maintaining its commitment to the integrity of the game. In addition to providing competitive opportunities for its membership, PGA TOUR events also generate revenue for charitable causes in their communities.

That ought to have the friend requests coming in drives.

But you have to love the discreet use of Tiger's image on their homepage:

 

"We’re the electives. And there are lot more requirements now.”

Doug Ferguson looks at Tiger Woods' increasingly picky schedule and features this epic quote from Wachovia Championship tournament director Kym Hougham on the impact of Woods essentially locked in to the majors, three WGCs, three or four (!?) playoff events and The Players Championship The PLAYERS:

“It’s a dwindling opportunity because of the majors, the WGCs, and now the playoffs,” Hougham said. “It’s like in college, when you have requirements and electives. We’re the electives. And there are lot more requirements now.”

PGA Tour Finds Isenhour "Incident Regrettable and Unfortunate"

Not much grey area here...

Statement from Ty Votaw, PGA TOUR Executive Vice President

We  are aware of the incident involving Tripp Isenhour at the Grand Cypress Golf Club in Orlando  last December that resulted in the death of a protected migratory  hawk.  Obviously, any set of facts which involve an individual  hitting a golf ball at a living target is clearly inappropriate behavior.

Tripp has publicly apologized and has expressed remorse and regret about his actions. We find this entire incident regrettable and unfortunate.

"He won't even go over there and look at it. I don't think he wants to play there."

Leonard Shapiro says the folks at Congressional don't want to see Tiger's AT&T National anywhere near Washington in 2010 or 2011 so they can sell those corporate chalets for the US Open. Oh but Ponte Vedra thinks otherwise...

Another Congressional source indicated the PGA Tour still would like to persuade the Woods Foundation to play the event in 2010 and 2011 at newly renovated TPC Avenel, about a mile from Congressional. The club is owned by the tour and had been the site for Washington's annual tour event since 1987, when the course first opened for play. Avenel is undergoing a $24 million course and clubhouse renovation scheduled to be completed in November.

Something tells me the USGA was on the phone to the club after word got out they were using the 2009 AT&T to pay for the greens reconstruction. And you wonder why they went to Chambers Bay?

They're upbeat at Avenel:

"It's going to be a lot different golf course for the pros," said Mike Sullivan, Avenel's general manager. "It would be ideal for us to have the [Woods] tournament here; we'd love to have it. All we can do is prepare and be ready."

Another Congressional source said Woods, who has not played in a PGA Tour event at Avenel, has heard so many negative comments about the course, "he won't even go over there and look at it. I don't think he wants to play there."

Sullivan confirmed Woods has never visited Avenel but said: "Maybe once we get some grass on it, we can persuade him to take a ride around here. It might change his perception."

Key word: might. 

“We don’t need to grow for growth’s sake, only if it’s good for the portfolio and the brand.”

Gene Yasuda and Scott Hamilton look for an explanation about the recent TPC naming deal to the game's master of inane doublespeak (is that repetitive?), the PGA Tour's David Pillsbury:

“Every TPC we will do going forward is either built or operated with the idea that ultimately it’s going to host competitive golf on one of (our) three tours,” Pillsbury said. “That’s the core purpose of the brand.”

That's good to know what the core purpose is. 

The AT&T contract complements the Tour’s recent mission to upgrade its TPC network. According to Pillsbury, typical naming-rights deals will run for five to 10 years. The majority of the proceeds will be earmarked to improve the sponsor’s property, but some funds may be allocated to aid other facilities within the TPC network.

 Is that a nice way of saying to redo the other dogs in the network?

The Tour owns 17 TPC locations and is developing three others: San Antonio, TPC Treviso Bay in Naples, Fla., and TPC Cancun in Cancun, Mexico.

“We’re focused on growing with the right assets,” Pillsbury said. “We don’t need to grow for growth’s sake, only if it’s good for the portfolio and the brand.”

And don't forget the share price!