"But we did notice that at this year's U.S. Open at Torrey Pines that the public authorities there in San Diego banned smoking in the public areas."

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Ty Votaw, while speaking for the PGA Tour on a number of subjects, was asked about banning smoking at PGA Tour events.

"We certainly had conversations and discussions with John in the past when certain behavioral issues have come up," Votaw said. "We hope to not have many more of those conversations."

Votaw also said the tour has no plans to ban smoking at events, as has been done at the venues of some other sports.

"We play our sport on an expanse of geography that's a little bit different than contained stadium situations," he said. "But we did notice that at this year's U.S. Open at Torrey Pines that the public authorities there in San Diego banned smoking in the public areas."

And it was wonderful not to smell that rancid odor created by grown men sucking on a bobcat turd.

Seriously, the smell I and others connect with the tour stop at Riviera is not the wonderful eucalyptus scent or that distinctive acacia fragance that floats through the property in February. No, it's cigar smoke. Not a nice connection.

I'm setting 2010 in the PGA Tour bans smoking over/under. Place your wagers!

A Shame For The Nationwide Tour..

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Phil Kosin reports on and laments the loss of one of the premier stops on the Nationwide Tour. He explains how it had become such a nice annual gathering.

Brand Lady Rakes In More Than Some Of Us Thought

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Okay, it's not Finchem money, but based on reporting that I thought she was languishing at $500,000 a year. Nope.

From Doug Ferguson's weekly notes column:

According to the most recent IRS forms available for the LPGA Tour, commissioner Carolyn Bivens earned $710,812 in salary and benefits in 2006. Two years earlier, in his final full year as LPGA commissioner, Votaw was paid $478,897.

With all of the great stuff she's done since 2006, I would hope she's reached the $1 million mark by now. Heck, she might even be making more more than the PGA Tour's EVP of Market Deliverables and Bandwidth Disintermediation.

 

Monty Flees England In Search Of More Ideal Speeding Conditions

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Doug Ferguson notes:

Colin Montgomerie, who married for the second time in April, has moved from the London area to his native Scotland. “Quality of life has risen,” he said.

Perhaps this unbylined Telegraph story sheds some light on why Monty is looking for improved speeding conditions quality of life:

He was caught speeding in his silver Bentley along Kingston Road, the A3, in Kingston upon Thames, South west London, on March 30.

It is the third time the sportsman has been involved in court proceedings for allegedly driving too fast.

Last year, he was accused of driving at 88mph on the M80 near Falkirk, but the case was dismissed when Montgomerie was not served with a summons.

And in 2004 he was accused of travelling at 96mph, again on the A3, but the case collapsed when a policeman failed to attend court.

The golfer was also given three points on his driving licence in 2006 for speeding.

On Monday at Feltham, chair of the bench Jagpreet Tucker said: "This court does take seriously speeding and we hope we don't see you again."

Montgomerie escaped a driving ban but was fined £750 plus £85 costs.

Prosecutor Suqi Smith said the golfer told police: "I did not realise I was going that fast, this car is too quick."

It's the car's fault. That's our Monty!

“Right now, our focus is to add to our operating reserve and be in a position to transcend this downturn"

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Tim Finchem, engaged in bold adverb usage with Bloomberg's Michael Buteau who asked about PGA Tour purses in the coming years:

It will certainly flatten,” Finchem said in an interview with Bloomberg Radio’s “On the Ball” program that will air this weekend. “Whether it will go down, I’m not prepared to go that far. ‘‘I don’t see the kind of growth that we’ve had these next three or four years versus the last six or seven, and it might be a flat period.”

And...

“I suppose if the economy continues to spiral away from us, if we get significant difficulties with sponsorships, anything is possible,” said Finchem, who has led the tour since 1994. “That would be the worst-case scenario. We don’t know how this is going to play out. Right now, we seem to be weathering the storm pretty well.”

I guess this means that the second most popular sport behind the NFL scenario is out?

“Right now, our focus is to add to our operating reserve and be in a position to transcend this downturn,” he said.

"It was a very tough decision, but there are times, like we’re in right now, where tough decisions have to be made.”

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After reading Ron Balicki's story on the prospective Walker Cup team members and assorted USGA committeemen not getting to schmooze on the back lawn at Seminole this January, I asked around to determine if this was:

  • A) the USGA realizing that a "winter practice session" for a ceremonial, two-day competition was a ridiculous show of excess in today's economic climate
  • B) the USGA realizing that a "winter practice session" for a ceremonial, two-day competition was really just a funded vacation for too many well-off mid-ams who had no chance of making the team
  • C) the USGA realizing that a "winter practice session" for a ceremonial, two-day competition was an excessive expense when their very own nest egg had taken a huge hit in the recent financial crisis.

The folks I reached out to all voted for "C", though many wanted it noted for the record that it should have been dropped regardless of the economic crisis. And that we'll know just how significant the hit was when the annual report is released in February.

"Coming into the Playoffs with 1,600 points or so, which the top 8-10 players likely will have, should guarantee passage to Atlanta."

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Steve Dennis permutates us through the possible ways that the PGA Tour's finest can get to East Lake. Reading the latest breakdown of FedEd Cup scenarios, all I could think was, it sure is amazing what hard work it is to keep the rich guys rich! And then somehow I accidentally landed at Wikipedia's page devoted to defining Ponzi scheme. Just a coincidence.

“There’s a lot riding on (Michelle) getting her card and getting to play in more than her customary eight events"

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Golfweek.com offers two nice primers for those hoping to target some Q-school players to watch (men here, women here). Both schools are in session Wednesday.

Beth Ann Baldry focuses on the biggest Q-school story of '08, Michelle Wie and reports that LPGA.com will have live scoring for the first time.

Finchem's Compensation Drops; Explains BMW 5 Series Brochure On Desk

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Jon Show reports:

Tim Finchem received $4.8 million in compensation in 2007 as the commissioner of the PGA Tour, a drop of about $400,000 from the previous year. His income included $1.3 million in salary, $3.2 million in bonuses and another $240,000 in benefits.

The year-to-year drop was due to an additional bonus Finchem received in 2006 for “extraordinary service in 2005,” said Ty Votaw, executive vice president of communications and international affairs. The commissioner made $4.2 million in 2005.

Extraordinary service? Was that for coming up with the FedEx Cup, Version 1? The Casey Martin legal bills were finally not on the balance sheet?

Here are the real eye-openers:

According to the PGA Tour’s tax forms, its executive vice presidents and co-chief operating officers, Ed Moorhouse and Charlie Zink, were the next highest-paid officers at $1.6 million and $1.5 million, respectively. Chief Marketing Officer Tom Wade and Chief Financial Officer Ron Price brought in about $1 million apiece. Rick George, executive vice president of championship management and president of the Champions Tour, made $628,122. Bill Calfee, president of the Nationwide Tour, made $592,992.

Rick would have been 31st on the '07 Champions money list whereas Tim would have landed 3rd on the PGA Tour list. Back to Q-School for you Rick!

Ed and Charlie would have been just outside the top 50 on the PGA Tour money list and Bill, congrats, you are the leading money winner on the Nationwide Tour by $150,000. Way to go!