NY Times: "Nike Tosses Its Golf Clubs. (Shirts to Stay On.)"

Sam Borden of the New York Times went to East Lake trying to gauge the impact of Nike's equipment exodus and concludes a few things.

First though, there was this shrewd observation:

“The secret sauce in the equipment business that Nike didn’t have is that each of these companies that’s thriving comes from a core competency that they grew out of,” said Casey Alexander, a senior vice president at Compass Point Research & Trading, which has long tracked the golf industry. “Callaway still uses the Big Bertha name — that’s what people know them for. TaylorMade invented the metal-headed driver, and that’s still a huge part of what they do. Titleist has a core competency in golf balls. Ping has a history in cast-iron clubs. Nike just never broke through with something like that.”

Borden shared this compilation of observations that is of interest:

Several agents speculated that one (somewhat counterintuitive) ramification of Nike’s move out of the golf equipment business is that there will actually be more, not fewer, Nike swooshes on the golf course at top events.

In the past, the thinking goes, Nike could not attract some players it wanted to work with because many players believed Nike’s clubs were inferior. Now, Nike will be free to chase any player without demanding that the player use Nike’s clubs as well as wear its clothes.

We shall see!

Storylines Galore At Tour Championship! And FedExCup Too!

The points have been reset again, the algorithms are working on 10 days rest and the lamest competition in all of sport has just four, cut-free days to go. On the list of storylines this week, who wins the cup lands a solid fifth.

As I note in this week's Forward Press, the tenth anniversary of the ResetCup has brought many salutes to how far this grand competition has come and how far it still could go with more tweaks. Shoot, by year twenty we might even stop discussing the greatness of the playoff concept because will be so big, it won't play second fiddle to Notre Dame football. We can dream!

As great as the whole thing supposedly is, the playoff concept faces an uncertainty, writes Brian Wacker. With the change in Don's, new PGA Tour leader Jay Monahan is expected to rethink the timing of the playoffs.

It was nice reading a player quoted (William McGirt) who sees the big picture issues created by too many events in a short span, with the big conclusion coming when people want to be watching other sports...

“What do you think the ratings are going to be this fall?" McGirt continued. "Nobody is watching these events. Eventually you water down your product.”

But at least we have reversed nines at East Lake to possibly make for a better finish, a great field and the Ryder Cup pick to make this interesting!

Playing Through: NBC Sports Answering The DVR?

Long overdue in sports coverage too obsessed with cord cutters and not enough with the DVR have been counterpoints by networks to deal with digital video recorders. We've seen test runs at some changes in how golf tournaments are delivered and now NBC will be all-in on a NASCAR/Indy 500 style split screen approach to commercials at its big upcoming events.

For The Tour Championship, the final nine holes will be presented free of national ads, according to this press release.

Sponsors Coke and Southern Company can be thanked for going along with this, which will give us more time for the points race explanations too!

At the Ryder Cup, NBC will be going full split screen as an an ad with its audio runs on one side, while the golf coverage continues on the other side of the screen. This will spoil some "just a moment ago" drinking games and also make watching via DVR a bit tougher.

Here is the look:

Today In Unnecessary-But-Highly Entertaining Ryder Cup Drama: Westwood Questions Tiger Role, DJ Says Pair Me With Anyone But Phil

You know you're living in peculiar times when Bubba Watson is saying all the right things to Golf Channel's Todd Lewis as he hopes to play well enough to land a captain's pick.

Thankfully, otherwise sane individuals (who should know better) are offering up plenty of pre-match fodder, starting with Lee Westwood. Talking to ESPN radio, the veteran presence sought by Darren Clarke inexplicably questioned the influence of Tiger Woods as one of several Team USA cart drivers. The remarks had nothing to do with Tiger's driving ability, but instead, with is presence.

Leo Spall of ESPN.com transcribed the comments and put them end, which didn't stop multiple outlets from rightly picking them up.

"I don't know what impact there will be from having Tiger around," Westwood said. "They [the U.S. team] have always struggled to find a partner for Tiger that's been successful.

"He could have an adverse effect in the team room. People have always seemed to try to do too much when they have partnered him. It might be different if he's one of the vice-captains -- you don't know."

I could certainly see a young player finding themselves a bit star struck or even intimidated if Tiger comes driving up in his Club Car and asks if he wants his water flat or fizzy. But Westwood insinuated that the team room presence could be the issue. Wow.

Meanwhile Dustin Johnson surprised the gang at East Lake by saying he's ready go with whoever the analytics tell Davis Love is a good partner. Except Phil Mickelson, Johnson's buddy.

Jim McCabe reports for Golfweek.com that Johnson said, “I think I can partner well with pretty much anyone,” Johnson said. “Except for Phil.”

R&A Lowers The Open Prices For (Some) Millennials!

Last year they rolled out their festival housing concept to not much enthusiasm while still charging a lot for tickets. For the 2017 Open at Royal Birkdale, the R&A is hopefully setting the stage for more organizations to target younger ticket purchasers. Now, if we could just get the R&A to also offer a nice weekday ticket for seniors...

For Immediate Release:

GOLF’S OLDEST CHAMPIONSHIP EVEN MORE OPEN FOR NEXT GENERATION OF FANS

21 September 2016, St Andrews, Scotland:  Tickets for The 146th Open at Royal Birkdale will go on general sale tomorrow, 22 September 2016, at 9:00 am with a variety of different ticketing options and early season prices available.  For under-25s, The Open is more accessible than ever with Youth Tickets extended from 16 – 21 years of age to 16 – 24 year olds and The R&A is once again providing free camping accommodation for Youth Ticket holders.

Sports fans should have 16-23 July 2017 firmly in their diaries as Champion Golfer of the Year, Henrik Stenson will look to defend the title he won in record-breaking fashion following a gripping duel with Phil Mickelson at Royal Troon in 2016. The world’s best golfers will join him next summer at Royal Birkdale as they compete for the most coveted prize in golf, the Claret Jug.

More than 200,000 spectators are expected to come together across the magnificent dunes of Royal Birkdale, arguably The Open’s best viewing course.

Spectators can secure their place at The Open from tomorrow at TheOpen.com and take advantage of early season pricing. Adult daily tickets will be available from £15 for Practice Days (16-19 July) and £60 for Championship Days (20-23 July).

Fans will enjoy £5 off the price of their ticket if they purchase with a MasterCard – the official card of The Open.

Weekly tickets, covering the whole Championship - Sunday 16 to Sunday 23 July - are available for £230 before 28 February, a saving of £105 on the daily ticket prices for the full week.

A limited number of Twilight Tickets will also be on offer providing access to the evening action from 4:00 pm onward on Thursday and Friday of the Championship for only £25.

The Open offers a number of incentives to welcome the next generation of golf fans to the Championship, including the Kids Go Free initiative, which provides free admission to children under the age of 16.

Johnnie Cole-Hamilton, Executive Director – Championships at The R&A, said: “We are very much looking forward to another exciting Championship next summer when The Open returns to Royal Birkdale for the tenth time. The course offers a tremendous viewing experience for spectators and it has produced many of The Open’s finest Champions including Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson, Peter Thomson and Padraig Harrington.

“Our aim is to deliver the best possible experience for golf fans and to ensure that the Championship remains affordable and accessible. There are few sports events in the world where fans can get so close to the star names. Innovations including the Sky Open Zone practice area and player Autograph Zone will return in 2017. Reduced early season pricing, our Kids Go Free policy and free camping accommodation for under-25s are also part of that commitment.”

A limited number of official hospitality packages are also available providing the very best on-course locations to experience The 146th Open, including the exclusive Claret Jug Pavilion at Royal Birkdale’s first tee and the stylish, relaxed atmosphere of the Champions Club.  For more information visit www.TheOpen.com/Hospitality.

Tickets will go on sale from 9:00 am BST tomorrow, Thursday 22 September. For more information, to purchase tickets and for full ticket terms and conditions please visit www.TheOpen.com/Tickets.

East Lake's Nine Reversal: Heresy Or Overdue?

The AJC's Chris Vivlamore considers the sensitivity of reversing the East Lake nines for this week's Tour Championship and given the course's traditional routing, says there are concerns about upsetting the legacy of Bobby Jones.

Why, I'm not entirely sure, given that Jones did not route the course or declare its design sacred in any writings. And as Viviamore points out, Jones and MacKenzie flipped the nines at Augusta National early on because sometimes it just makes sense.

In the case of East Lake, the switch means the island green 6th becomes the 15th and the reachable par-5 9th is the finishing hole. So while the previous configuration did produce it share of moments, it's hard to say that the old sequencing was particularly sacred.

Viviamore writes and quotes tournament chairman Rob Johnston:

"It came down to two things," Johnston said. "One, we wanted more hospitality venues and more friendly patron viewing experiences. We think it does this by reversing the nines. The second thing is, if you just look at raw scoring, there is very little volatility on the old Nos. 16, 17 and 18 versus what we think the new Nos. 15-18 will be. It's the drama, the excitement and the fan experience."

Finishing on a par-5 likely will bring more leaderboard movement with the tournament on the line. Since 1998, the former 18th hole had a scoring average of 3.169 (plus-.160) and yielded zero eagles and 153 birdies. The new 18th had a scoring average of 4.677 (minus-.323) and yielded 16 eagles and 700 birdies.

Excitement has never been a word associated with East Lake, so why not?