Commissioner's Blog: Fitting time to honor Sifford
Editor's note: PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem writes a blog for PGATOUR.COM. The commissioner wants you to send him your questions and comments about the TOUR and in future installments, he will open a dialogue with fans about the things near and dear to TOUR fans.
Hello from the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. I am here playing this week with Davis Love III on the invitation of Randall Stephenson, CEO of AT&T. It will certainly be interesting seeing the competition from the other side of the ropes, and I look forward to spending time with Davis, Randall and his playing partner, Hunter Mahan.
The 2009 season has gotten off to a good start, with a good mix of veterans and young players performing well. I enjoyed watching Nick Watney, John Rollins and Camilo Villegas competing hard for the Buick Invitational title last week, and send my congratulations to Nick for his superb play.
I wanted to make you aware of a special program that airs Wednesday, Feb. 11 at 9 p.m. ET on the GOLF CHANNEL. I encourage everyone to watch Uneven Fairways which profiles the struggles of African-American golfers to play the game professionally, and the circumstances that led them to create their own Tour, the United Golf Association.
This documentary, which is hosted by Samuel L. Jackson, includes interviews with such notable golfing pioneers as Pete Brown, Calvin Peete and Charlie Sifford.
Uneven Fairways, which is based on the books Uneven Lies by Pete McDaniel and Forbidden Fairways by Calvin H. Sinnette, chronicles the difficulties these pioneers of the game faced as they fought for their right to play.
You will enjoy hearing from these men and also from legends of the game like Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods.
It is timely that this story is being told now. Next week marks the 40th anniversary of Charlie Sifford's victory in the Los Angeles Open, which is now the Northern Trust Open. Charlie's victory 40 years ago also came at the very first tournament played on what has become today's PGA TOUR. In late 1968, touring professionals broke away from the PGA of America to form their own organization. The 1969 Los Angeles Open was the first event, and Charlie beat Harold Henning in a playoff for his second career title.
The tournament is honoring Charlie in a number of ways, none more significant than the establishment of the Charlie Sifford Exemption, which tournament will be giving out on an annual basis to a player who represents the advancement of diversity in golf.
The inaugural Charlie Sifford Exemption has been awarded to Vincent Johnson. Vincent, who played collegiately at Oregon State and won two titles, is a fitting recipient and I wish him the best of luck next week.
The contributions made to the game by the men profiled in Uneven Fairways can not be ignored, and I hope all of you will watch as their story is told.
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Blog: Welcome to the 2009 PGA TOUR season
Greetings from Hawaii.
I spent last week at the Mercedes-Benz Championship, and will be in Honolulu for this week's Sony Open in Hawaii, the season's first full-field event. I am looking forward to visiting with the players and meeting many of our new members, who will be making their PGA TOUR debuts.
The 2009 PGA TOUR season got underway last week with Geoff Ogilvy putting in a dominating performance in his six-stroke victory at the Mercedes-Benz Championship. He will be making the short trip over to Oahu for this week's Sony Open in Hawaii, and it will be interesting to see if he can join Ernie Els as the only players to win the two Hawaii events in back-to-back weeks.
I am excited about the upcoming season for a number of reasons. First, we will witness Tiger Woods' return to the game after a lengthy absence recovering from knee surgery. His return will be the biggest story in sports, and it will be interesting to see how he performs and the reaction of his competitors to him being back.
During Tiger's absence, both new stars and established veterans emerged to provide some of the most compelling performances on some of golf's biggest stages in 2008. Anthony Kim won twice, earning victories against strong competition in the Wachovia Championship and the AT&T National. Sergio Garcia won THE PLAYERS Championship for his biggest victory to date, and then performed superbly in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup, losing in playoffs twice to eventually move to second in the Official World Golf Ranking.
Speaking of the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup, Camillo Villegas earned his elusive first victory in the BMW Championship and then followed it immediately with a win at THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola in the next tournament.
Boo Weekley captured the imagination of fans with his performance and his personality. Both of these were prominently on display at the Ryder Cup as he helped the United States team to victory.
Padraig Harrington won consecutive majors at the British Open and PGA Championship and was honored by his fellow players as the PGA TOUR Player of the Year, while veterans like Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson played well, both adding more victories to their names.
The FedExCup enters its third year in 2009, and we are excited about the changes that we made to it. With these changes, it is more important than ever to play well during the Regular Season to be positioned to succeed in the Playoffs. Good play in the Playoff events will be essential because the better a player's standing entering THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola, the better his chances will be to win the FedExCup. Every player at THE TOUR Championship will have a mathematical chance to win the FedExCup, with the highest seeds having the best chances. Any of the top-5 players will win the FedExCup with a victory at THE TOUR Championship.
These changes will keep the emphasis on Regular Season performance, while ensuring an exciting Playoffs and providing drama that culminates at THE TOUR Championship.
I wish you and yours a successful and happy New Year. Enjoy the 2009 PGA TOUR season.
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Blog: Three ways to improve FedExCup
I arrived in Ponte Vedra early this morning from a meeting in Las Vegas, Nev., with our Player Advisory Council, where we discussed potential revisions to the FedExCup in 2009.
Having recently witnessed four exciting events comprising the 2008 PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup, I am delighted with the impact the FedExCup has had on the PGA TOUR and am very positive about the future. Most of the objectives we set have been accomplished over these first two years. This includes increased media coverage at a time when sports fans in the U.S. traditionally focus on the beginning of football season and the baseball playoffs, as well as strong fan interest as evidenced by record attendance at several venues. This is largely a result of the terrific golf that has been on display at The Barclays, the Deutsche Bank Championship, the BMW Championship and THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola, both in 2007 and 2008. We've had stellar fields on great courses, with most of the events resulting in a down-to-the wire battle among top players.
The FedExCup is clearly working. Because of its benefits to our membership, our sponsors and our fans, the essential structure of the FedExCup should remain in place, including the basics of the Regular Season and the four Playoff events. That being said, there is room for continued improvement as we go forward.
After the first year, we made tweaks to the system intended to address playoff volatility and the likelihood of having more players with a chance to win the FedExCup going into THE TOUR Championship. Based on feedback we have received from players, sponsors, media and fans over the past month, as well as our own preliminary review, we have three key objectives for improvements in 2009:
• The Playoffs should build towards a climactic finish, meaning the FedExCup should be decided at THE TOUR Championship.
• The FedExCup competition should culminate in a dramatic way, meaning a reasonable number of players should be in strong contention to win it at THE TOUR Championship.
• THE TOUR Championship field should consist of the top performers in the Regular Season in addition to players who have excelled in the Playoffs.
I believe we can achieve these objectives while maintaining the essential structure of the FedExCup, including the four Playoff events.
Because we think these goals are achievable and would prefer to make any changes before the start of the new season, we are moving quickly to consider possibilities. We have gotten ideas from fans, the media, players and our broadcast partners and have considered these options and others, incorporating to a greater or lesser degree the fundamentals set forth above.
Last night, we discussed some of these concepts with our Player Advisory Council. We received good feedback from them and will be taking the options under consideration to the Player Meeting in Scottsdale next week. We will also be seeking feedback from our sponsors and television partners in the weeks leading up to the Policy Board meeting next month, and encourage fans to keep sending suggestions through PGATOUR.COM. Based on this feedback, we will develop a recommendation for the Policy Board to consider.
In closing, I want to again congratulate Vijay Singh for winning the FedExCup, and recognize all of the other players who excelled during the Regular Season and Playoffs. Familiar names resurfaced and new stars emerged throughout this year, making for compelling golf in 2008, and promising great things for the years ahead.
Posted Oct. 15, 2008
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Blog: Working to bring golf to the Olympics
I've just returned from Augusta National and the Masters. I always enjoy Masters Week very much, not only for the great golf we see but also because everyone involved with golf attends. It gives me an opportunity to discuss issues and ideas with everyone from around the world.
One of the matters that we have talked about over the last several years and which came up again last week is whether golf should be an Olympic sport. In 1993, we actually announced that golf would be in the 1996 Games in Atlanta. However, this never materialized for various reasons.
Since then we have continued to examine the various issues presented by golf being an Olympic sport. While there remain questions to be answered and issues to be resolved, I believe the time is now right to move forward. The LPGA and the European Tour have previously indicated their support for Olympic golf. Also, the R&A, the USGA and the PGA of America are evaluating the possibility of Olympic golf.
I see two very positive developments coming from including golf as an Olympic sport. One would be a significant boost to the popularity and perception of the game all around the world. While golf is a developed sport in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Japan and some other countries, it is only a minor sport in many countries, including some of the larger developing countries, like China and India. If golf were an Olympic sport, the profile and importance of the game would increase, generating additional interest in people playing golf and also generating funding from both national Olympic committees and individual governments for the development of golf and young golfers.
Recently, a subcommittee of the World Golf Foundation headed by the USGA and R&A conducted a study of many national golf federations throughout the world. As a result, for the first time we have specific data indicating what benefits would accrue to the game from including golf as an Olympic sport.
The other major benefit is that it would further help bring the world of golf together to work on this major initiative. Golf is truly a global sport and there any many organizations throughout the world involved, in addition to the USGA, the R&A, the LPGA, the PGA of America, the European Tour, and all of the other foreign professional golf Tours, there are numerous national golf federations. It has always been one of my major objectives as Commissioner of the PGA TOUR to help bring the various golf organizations around the world together in addressing problems and realizing opportunities. Golf in the Olympics presents a unique opportunity for all of these golf organizations to work together in an effort to promote and grow the game.
While golf has many significant events throughout the year, including the major championships, THE PLAYERS Championship and the World Golf Championships, adding golf to the Olympics would provide another dimension to our competitive landscape. I do not believe that Olympic golf would have any effect on the stature or prestige of these other significant events but rather would provide another, complementary opportunity for our players to compete and demonstrate their skills on a global stage.
But, as I indicated above, there is work to be done. Chief among the things that we need to work on is developing a schedule of tournaments that will allow the world's top players to compete in the Olympic Games. The PGA TOUR and all of the other Tours around the world already have fully developed and longstanding schedules and, therefore, we need to work together to make the necessary changes.
Another matter we need to work on is identifying the appropriate structure to stage and conduct the Olympic competition and to interface with the IOC. This is important not only to ensure a top-flight golf tournament in the Olympics but also to make certain that financial resources generated by Olympic golf can be distributed in ways that will grow the game and the number of players globally.
The constitution of the International Olympic Committee now requires a seven-year lead period for the inclusion of new sports, which means the earliest golf could be part of the Olympic program is 2016. While that seems a long way away, the actual decision to include golf as an Olympic sport will be made sometime in 2009.
I'm excited about the opportunities golf in the Olympics presents for our sport. I am hopeful we can overcome the challenges we face, and I look forward to further discussions with our Policy Board, Player Advisory Council and membership and taking a leadership role, along with the organizations represented on the Board of the World Golf Foundation, in making golf in the Olympics a reality in 2016.
Also, I look forward to joining with other golf leaders around the world in meeting with the leadership of the IOC in the next few months to further the possibility of including golf in the Olympic Games of 2016.
I'm interested in your thoughts on this as well. Let me know what you think about golf in the Olympics.
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Blog: Two extraordinary people
This year's first major championship is rapidly approaching, with two great tournaments -- this week's Zurich Classic of New Orleans, followed by the Shell Houston Open -- leading up to next month's Masters Tournament.
Of course, we've already enjoyed some amazing storylines, including Tiger Woods' streak of five consecutive PGA TOUR wins, and the top-flight list of contenders, led by eventual winner Geoff Ogilvy, that denied him a sixth straight at last week's World Golf Championships-CA Championship in Doral.
But while the action has been fantastic on the course, there are stories outside the ropes that also deserve your attention. I'd like to tell you about two remarkable people who come to mind.
The first is D.J. Gregory, a 30-year-old man with cerebral palsy who is planning to walk every competitive round in every week of the PGA TOUR Regular Season and Playoffs for the FedExCup.
D.J. walks with the aid of a cane because he has no abductor muscles in his legs, and thus must lock his knees to take a step. Prior to this year, he had attended many tournaments on his own, and befriended a number of people connected with golf, including Jim Nantz of CBS.
He told Jim of his desire to walk each round of each event throughout the season, and Jim suggested he contact me, which he did late last year. Since the beginning of the 2008 season, D.J. has walked every competitive round (and most practice rounds) with a different PGA TOUR player at each tournament, and is blogging about his experience at PGATOUR.COM. He has impressed countless players he has met and reporters who have written about what he's up to -- here's an example from the Palm Beach Post.
The second person whose dedication to golf has put her in a spotlight this year is Phyllis Wade, who has been volunteering at PGA TOUR events for 60 years. Volunteers are the backbone of our tournaments, and are a critical reason why PGA TOUR tournaments are able to donate over $100 million to charity each year.
Phyllis first volunteered at the L.A. Open in 1948, and was a walking scorer for Ben Hogan. In recent years, she has provided clipping services for the media at several tournaments on the West Coast. During a ceremony honoring Phyllis, she received a standing ovation from the media in attendance, something I can't remember ever happening for anyone. The New York Times ran an excellent article about her recently, available here.
I mention these two individuals because, to me, they are symbolic of all that is great about our game. It would be difficult to find two more disparate people than D.J. and Phyllis, but golf has somehow touched both of them in the same way.
I am sure there are people who love other sports as much as D.J. and Phyllis love golf, but in my experience, the people who love golf are the most passionate, not just about the game or its players, but about the qualities the game represents. Integrity, charity, sportsmanship -- these traits are important to golf -- not just as a "lip service" checklist, but as a prescription for the proper way to play.
Mike Greenberg, of the "Mike & Mike in the Morning" radio show (here's a link to the website), recently said "There is no question that you see more examples of sportsmanship on a regular basis in the game of golf than anywhere else, because golf is the one sport I know of where players routinely penalize themselves. The reality is, the overwhelming majority... of players on the PGA TOUR could be in position to win The Masters... and if they accidentally broke a rule, they... would penalize themselves. They would rather lose than win by breaking a rule, and that is the only sport you can say that."
I couldn't agree more, and I admire people like D.J. Gregory and Phyllis Wade who are attracted to and become impassioned about the game because of it.
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Blog: Welcome to the 2008 season
Hello and welcome to the second year of the FedExCup on the PGA TOUR. We are very excited about this year and really anxious to talk with you, our fans, on a consistent basis throughout the year.
We have redesigned PGATOUR.com to make it cleaner and easier for you to navigate. We hope you enjoy it, but let us know if you do or don't and what changes you think we should make to make it even better. In a month or so, we will have additional features up and running to allow us to interact with you on a better and more consistent basis. We will be making message boards available to you so that you can talk to us and to each other, and you will also be seeing more blogs not only from me but from our players, our management staff and others in the world of golf. We'll also set up a section where you can ask me any questions that are on your mind, and we will answer as many as we can. We hope that you will tell us what you think, both good and bad, about the PGA TOUR so that we can continue to make it as interesting and enjoyable for you as possible.
I'll be heading out to the Buick Invitational in San Diego next week to meet with our Player Advisory Council. If you don't know, the Player Advisory Council has 16 members that are elected by our players. We meet and talk with the Player Advisory Council many times throughout the year and get their recommendations on issues that will be presented to our Policy Board. Our Policy Board is the board of directors of the PGA TOUR and consists of four players -- Joe Ogilvie, Brad Faxon, David Toms and Stewart Cink -- and four independent businessmen, who are currently Vic Ganzi, CEO of Hearst Corporation, Ed Whitacre, recently retired Chairman and CEO of AT&T, John McCoy, former CEO of Bank One, and Ken Thompson, Chairman of Wachovia. Also, the President of the PGA of America (currently Brian Whitcomb) makes up the ninth member of our Policy Board.
The main topic that we will be discussing at our meetings at the Buick Invitational concerns our new anti-doping policy. While we continue to believe this really is not an issue on the PGA TOUR, unfortunately, the current state of the world necessitates any major professional sport to have such a policy. We will be educating our players on this policy and the prohibited substances weekly throughout the first half of this year and will begin drug testing some time in the second half of the year.
Other matters that we will be talking about at our player meeting this week and in the future weeks leading up to our Policy Board meeting at the end of February will be ways to make the Playoffs more exciting. We are looking at ways to have more players get into contention for the FedExCup through exceptional play during the Playoffs, and we are also looking for ways in which more players in the field of THE TOUR Championship will have an opportunity to win. We would be very interested in your thoughts on this subject.
Well, that's all for now, and I look forward to talking to you again in the coming weeks.
Tim
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