Payne: Bringing Back "Win-and-you're in" (Maybe)

Doug Ferguson sits down with new Augusta National Chairman Billy Payne and manages to wrestle one bit of news out of him:

Payne wants to restore starting in 2008 the eligibility criteria that PGA Tour winners receive an automatic invitation to the Masters. Johnson did away with the category after the '99 Masters when the Tour began scheduling events – usually with weak fields – the same week as the World Golf Championships and the Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup.

But bringing back the "win-and-you're in'' category is not that simple.

Should the Masters recognize winners from opposite-field events in Mexico, Milwaukee and Reno, not to mention the seven events after the FedEx Cup?

Hey, what about PGA Tour events played against European Tour events with much better fields? Oh, sorry. Continue... 

And does it continue to take the top 40 on the PGA Tour money list or the top 30 in the FedEx Cup? Or both?

"There's a lot of arithmetic in this,'' Payne said. "What you don't want is all of a sudden to have 100 playing participants, and we have arguably eroded the quality of the tournament. Notwithstanding folks' opinion of how the best way to get there is, we're going to do the best we can.''

His goal is to keep the field around 90 players, and "anything that puts that number at significant threat has got an uphill battle.''

The International, R.I.P.

John Hawkins says the Denver event is ending after this year. Tim Finchem and Jack Vickers will be doing a joint press conference. That ought to be fun!

Woods Skipping Nissan

Tommy Bonk has the not-very-surprising news.

"When a smart person...sees what we've done"

I'm a bit behind on my reading, but yesterday's beach weather afforded the chance to finally power flip through the Golf Digest Hot List as a seal frollicked before me. I managed to weed through the Hot List spread in 7 seconds, but before I got to Belt and Gulag's must flip-through project, I did enjoy the laughs from Jaime Diaz's Golf Digest piece on the FedEx Cup.

First, here's a solid entry for the corporatespeak file...

The shortened schedule, says Sean McManus, president of CBS Sports and CBS News, "takes a fair amount of inventory out of the network marketplace, which is healthy for CBS and NBC.

Healthy for ABC too, apparently.

And this was nice from the Commissioner:

"When a smart person--whether it's a player, a sponsor, a television executive or a fan--sees what we've done," Finchem says, "they nod their head and say, ‘This makes sense.'"

Translation: only dumb people fail to get the FedEx Cup.

And less funny but quite astute was this from Larry Thiel, the International's director who was talking about the FedEx Cup overshadowing individual tournament sponsors.

Through just a few weeks, he's looking prophetic:

"The other thing is that when we sell a sponsor, that sponsor is to receive all the branding and all the positive reinforcement of being a part of the event," Thiel says. "I think that when it's all said and done, all we're ever going to hear about is the FedEx Cup. So I would be fearful if I were one of those three tournaments that my title sponsor would get lost in the shuffle."

Golf Digest 50 Toughest...

...Courses For Couples To Play Without Bickering?

No, they haven't gone that far yet in Wilton. This time, it's a retro list of the toughest 50 courses, so says Jerry Tarde.

According to the story:

This is not a scientific or even definitive ranking. It's our list of layouts that have battered and bruised us, ruined our scorecards and made us want to weep.

Translation: we editors decided not to use the "Resistance To Scoring" category because our panel is clueless.  

Here's the list, starting with Kiawah in the #1 spot.  

USGA, The Corporation

Well now that the USGA has officially gone all corporate on us, (treat yourself here and here for great lessons in business 101), this raises a few of those pesky questions that shareholders like to ask.

Because looking at the latest annual report a few things jump out about the uh, "business model" in 2006. And since I can't find a message from Treasurer Missy Crisp explaining the red ink, I guess we'll have to draw some conclusions here.

As Frank Hannigan first reported on this web site (and as the golf publications have not even apparently noticed), the USGA lost an unprecedented $6.1 million in 2006 after netting $2.3 million in '05, so we're looking at an $8.4 million turnaround in the wrong direction. A few of the culprits:

• There was a $32 million 2006 increase in the cost of running its championships.
  

• The $16 million museum project is up to $19.4 million (and counting).
  

• There was a $2.3 million increase in the cost of growing the membership program. That's right, $4.6 million was spent last year trying to add members. I seem to remember that David Fay cited Golf Journal's pricey $3.5 million a year price tag as one of the reasons for dropping it, along with the usual nonsense about a 24/7 world, the Internet, yada, yada, yada.

So I'm curious what those of you in the corporate world would make of this? It would seem such massive expenditures and losses would require a change at the top? Or at least, more explicit explanation beyond the usual stuff about platform restructuring or leveraged cross polination and revaluation of liquid assets.

Well, there is this message from the shareholders in the annual report.

In 2002 they reported 720,000 members with $18.2 million in contributions. In 2006 they reported "about" 900,000 members, with revenue of $19.1 million. With a USGA membership costing $25, that should show an increase of around $5 million between in '02 and '06.

So either they are giving away a whole bunch of memberships, or the contributions aren't coming in like they used to.

Clock Builders and Time Tellers

From Marty Parkes's USGA annual meeting blog, talking about Walter Driver's vision for the governing body of North American golf:

I found the most noteworthy part to be near the end.  He said it was crucial for non-profits like the USGA not to become “clock builders” and become too cozy and comfortable and “tell time” without accomplishing much.

Are you writing these metaphors down?

Instead, the trick is for an established organization like the USGA to “preserve the core but change the process.”  To put this concept simply, we need to remain absolutely dedicated to serving the needs of our game (the core) but be willing and able to change the way we operate (the process). 

 Wow, to have been there when Driver delivered this brilliance. I wonder if they gave the original copy of this historic address to Rand Jerris for storage in the museum archives?

That means adapting to things like new equipment technology for clubs and balls and using the Internet well...

Oh yeah right!

Someone Thinks Wie Will Win Soon...

Got to love the LPGA, they still have confidence in Michelle Wie. Announcing eligibility changes for the season ending ADT Championship that the PGA Tour ought to emulate, note this little change...

For the first-time ever, a non-LPGA Tour member has the opportunity to compete in the ADT Championship. If a non-LPGA Tour member wins one of the four majors, she is eligible to compete in the season-ending ADT Championship and is not required to become a member to do so. Furthermore, if she needs a note to get out of her classes at Stanford, the LPGA Commissioner will personally write and sign it.

Oh there I go again adding on sentences to perfectly good press releases. Sorry.

"You'll Get Nothing And Like It"

David Feherty pens a classic piece on John Barmon, the dude who played Spaulding in Caddyshack.

The New FedEx Cup Leader...

...is John Rollins.

Thanks to reader Charlie for noticing, because I forgot to check. 

And for those of you media members searching for a "storyline" on this?

If the FedEx Cup playoffs started today, Matt Hendrix and Stephen Leaney would just miss out on being eligible for the 144-man field at Westchester. Ponder the ramifications.

The Future of Bandon

Peter Sleeth offers the most in depth look I've read into Mike Keiser's future plans for Bandon.

The Chicago greeting card magnate who turned a stretch of isolated coastal dunes into one of the most highly rated golf complexes in the world has been quietly buying up nearly 1,000 more acres of land on the Southern Oregon coast, according to land records in Curry and Coos counties.

Michael Keiser also has taken the unusual step of helping finance a proposed 90-foot dam just two miles outside this coastal town -- an attempt to help local cranberry farmers flood their bogs, which will provide more capacity to an expanding Bandon and, potentially, to water new golf courses.

And...

Keiser said last week that he is considering building at least one more golf course on his property south of Bandon -- in addition to the four, 18-hole courses he owns north of the city. Further, another golf course owned by a Eugene couple is under construction south of Bandon.

The rest of Keiser's land, including more than 300 acres on the Pistol River in Curry County, will mostly be used as conservation areas to preserve the beauty of the south Coast, he said. The multiple purchases range from 10 acres to 235 acres in Coos County, and are primarily farms.

The news of another golf course brings mixed feelings to local residents. With another course south of town, Bandon could easily become a new golf destination, "probably like no other place in the nation, or the world," Winkel said.

And...

Keiser said he bought into a 15 percent share of the Johnson Creek dam out of both altruism and investment savvy. The cranberry farmers who first conceived the dam were short of the expected $9 million to $12 million the dam would cost.

"Water's the new resource everybody wants," Keiser said.

The story goes on to talk about some local opposition to the dam.

"This is yet another example of continued evolution of the USGA’s business model."

Mercifully, the USGA only posted an excerpt from Walter Driver's shareholders annual meeting address.

Now, I'm not making this up (Honestly, check the link, if nothing else to see the bizarre underlining of certain key words):

We intend to (1) improve the platform of the USGA so that the USGA is organized to meet present and future golf and economic challenges and (2) build the best staff and volunteer team. We believe you will see the USGA is getting better at everything it does. You will see more evolution to meet current needs.

Classic empty corporatespeak. Fine, I'm sure the groupthinkers in attendance ate it up. 

We have recently announced corporate partnerships with American Express and Lexus. The corporate partners program will allow the USGA to reach more golfers and educate them on our programs and initiatives. This will strengthen the USGA Members program as part of the golf community and improve our communication with the golfing population.

Translation: since we dropped Golf Journal and started that tacky newsletter, our membership numbers are plummeting and we had to sell out so we could pad the numbers. 

Both companies share many of our values, beliefs and high standards.

I bet those companies hope they don't shre the USGA's values, at least, not with the USGA that lost $6.1 million last year.  

With American Express, the USGA can help AMEX add value to millions of cardholders while allowing the USGA the opportunity to educate them about our Association and its programs. Lexus will become the official car of the U.S. Open, U.S. Women’s Open, U.S. Senior Open and U.S. Amateur, alleviating a huge operational issue of our needing 10,000-12,000 "car nights" throughout championship season. These partnerships will benefit both partners and, ultimately, golfers as well.

Right!

Okay, I repeat, I am NOT making this up:

We are also exploring new ways to use the Internet and better communicate to USGA members, volunteers, players, fans and the golf community. Golf has become increasingly global. In 2006, the U.S. Open television broadcast was seen in excess of 150 nations. USOpen.com received 117 million page views and provided streaming video during the week of the championship. The ideas are unlimited and very exciting – the harder part will be prioritization and implementation. This is yet another example of continued evolution of the USGA’s business model.

Yep, he just said business model. This business just spent $30 million more than it did last year running the U.S. Open and is bleeding red. What a model!

Oh, and I know, you were thinking this was a non-profit, not a business. Get with it people!

You may ask "why are we doing this?" And the answer is Built to Last.

Built to Last is the leading business management "bible" and has been on the New York Times Best Seller list for years.

Yes the USGA, once run by volunteer captains of law, business and medicine now has a President citing a New York Times bestseller as the organization's guiding source of light!

The keys to building a lasting, effective institution include:

# Preserve the core and change the process – Absolute dedication to the game but keep up with distribution and media challenges and equipment technology

Answer: sell out to a foreign auto maker, start a boring blog and ban those pesky U-grooves!

# Big, audacious goals – best championships in golf, superior volunteers, great player experience, make the game more affordable and accessible

Yeah, those are pretty audacious goals for an organization that has trouble keeping those pesky mowers from undertaking middle of the night green rollings.

# Cult-like cultures – boy, have we got that!

Wait, did Walter just crack a joke that was actually funny? Well, he is an outgoing president.

# Try a lot of things and keep what works – this is what we are doing, open-minded, determined to constantly improve

Boy this is some book! Whoa, try a lot of things and keep what works. Why didn't I think of that?!

And you say you don't learn things on this blog? 

"Money was not the big motive for Tiger"

Yes and if you believe that, I have some land in Dubai for a golf...oh wait. Wrong joke.

Anyway, John Garrity offers a few gems in a Dubai-filed column. Writing about Al Ruwaya, home to the first Tiger Woods design... 

The golf course deal had been in the works for a couple of years, and local sources say that Sheikh Mohammed had to fend off a strong bid from Chinese interests, who were equally determined to land Tiger's first course design. ("Money was not the big motive for Tiger," says businessman and seven-time UAE golf champion Ismail Sharif. "There were other countries that would offer one more zero to get him.")

I guess I would tell myself that too if I was writing a check for $45 million.

Woods was coy when asked if he planned to spend much of his week in the desert, stepping off yardages and planting little red flags. ("I'll probably go out to the site and take a look.") His nascent design team, however, met with the Tatweer staff and got the ball rolling. Tiger's man on the ground was his childhood friend and high school teammate, Bryon Bell, who caddied for Woods on occasion before going to work at the Tiger Woods Foundation. Bell will reportedly manage Tiger Woods Design from an office in Orlando, Fla.

"Sadly, he doesn't pay much attention to that, and never has."

In his Scotland on Sunday column, John Huggan lets Greg Norman rant about the usual stuff. I still enjoy reading it even if he's made many of these points before. Well, he's taken it up a notch on the topic of his good buddy, Tim Finchem.

"I can't fault Finchem in some respects," said the two-times Open champion in Dubai. "You have to say he has done a good job in getting prize- money up in America, so that players from all over the world are going there to play. But when you are the leader of the free world, as the United States is, you have responsibilities beyond that. President Bush has global responsibilities on his shoulders, whether he likes it or not, because of the power of the position he is in. It is the same for Finchem.

Ouch, a Bush-Finchem analogy. Has Greg turned on 43 too?

"He has a responsibility not to forget the rest of the world. He must support the likes of the European Tour, the Australian Tour and the South African Tour. Which has not been happening. Finchem has to be aware that every decision he makes has an impact around the world. Sadly, he doesn't pay much attention to that, and never has."

Now now, he $ee$ great potential in China!

On the subject of the world No.1, Norman is just one of a growing number of informed observers despairing of the fact that, Woods and one or two others apart, the sharp end of the professional game is populated by an ever-growing number of golfing robots devoted to hitting basically the same shot, time after tedious time.

"Because I grew up in an era when we could manoeuvre the ball maybe 60 feet in the air either way, I wonder at the game today," he sighed. "You don't see that any more. There were a lot of shot-makers in my day. And now, even though the very best players still come through, technology has bunched the players up. Tiger, of course, is the exception that proves the rule.

"I see so many players making a lot of prize-money without ever winning a tournament. In my day, you could make the cut, and still not win any money. You had to play hard to get anywhere. I realise people don't like hearing the old war stories about what we went through, but the powers that be in golf - the USGA, the R&A and the PGA Tour - should put some restrictions on the equipment used by the best players in the world."

They should, but that would require an ounce of integrity!

"I would rule the golf ball back to 1996 specifications, number one," he declared. "It's a crying shame that so many of the world's great courses have been lengthened by 400-500 yards for one week a year. The cost of that is just ridiculous, especially when you multiply it 30 or 40 times. That money could be better spent elsewhere. Golf is too expensive, and getting more expensive.

"I look at the Open at St Andrews two years ago. There were four tees there not even on the golf course. And I think of golf courses like Merion or Inverness. There is a long list: Royal Melbourne and Royal Sydney in Australia. The men who designed those great courses must be rolling over in their graves. I know I would be, in their position."

USGA Clears Monday of Women's Open For Most Important People: AmEx and Lexus Customers?

The USGA reduces the U.S. Women's Open playoff from an 18-holer on Monday to 3-holes at the completion of play Sunday.

"This makes sense for the players, fans, volunteers, vendors, the general media and our broadcast partners regarding the Women’s Open," said USGA President Walter Driver. "And if you use the Marquis Jet Card like I do, you know how difficult it can be to book time on a Sunday night only to have to reschedule it."

Oops, don't know how the second part of that quote got in there!

Seriously, will Monday's now be Lexus and AmEx outting days (well...that is, after the Executive Committee has played)?

Ah the cost of corporate partnership: priceless.