I love this rant it about covers everything that is really wrong with the game!!!

Well friends now that the Woods-Williams feud has been turned into a complete circus (thanks media), it's time once again to SCREW THEM ALL. For this golf fan at least. That's right screw them all. Go out and enjoy golf on your own terms. Let your own golf game be your favorite. What these people, the media and the would-be golf stars want is attention and we ought to do our best not to give it to them.

The world of golf has sadly, like other pro sports before it, devolved into little more than cult of personality. Pro golf these days is all Twitter, belt buckles, and who's talking shit. Adam Scott changed coaches late last year and made a serious run at the Masters long before Steve Williams picked up his golf bag but the media won't tell you that in the wake of his latest big win because that's a boring story.

Sport for sport's sake is old hat these days. If you don't have flair or a big mouth the media has little time for you no matter how good your game is. Case in point, that Italian kid Manassero, who at 18 has won twice on the European Tour but gets nary a mention because the media is too busy talking up how soon Rickie is going to win, or how brash and outspoken Rory is or what a rock star Ryo is in Japan. Manassero might have more talent than all these guys but we would never know it because the media again, is more interested in stars than winners.

(By the way is anyone else tired of this term? Jimmy Page is a "rock star". If you play golf for a living, or cook food or sell real estate for a living, I don't care how awesome you are at it, you are not "rock star". David Bowie is a rock star, Anothony Kim, I don't think so.)

See Ben Crane is not a golfer that I like but he sure is savvy. He figured out that in these times, good golf alone does not make one a popular player. You need more than Twitter even. You need a schtick, and boy did he come up with one. Now he is the the PGA Tour's resident funny man. Pretty impressive considering what a retarded comic sensibility he has to work with. Johnny Miller is another one. He figured out that controversy sells, and that he can be the star of the show too.

The media is so glad that Martin Kaymer's world-beating form did not last, because they don't know how to tell the story of Martin Kaymer. Lee Westwood's boring but at least he has a colorful manager called "Chubby" whose exploits give the media something to chew on. Thank God.

My secret wish for pro golf is that someone like Andres Romero, mysterious dark-skinned foreigner who doesn't speak English would up and do something amazing like win the Grand Slam and send the golf media into complete disarray and disorientation. Basically do what Yani Tseng is doing to women's golf. (Typical media comment: "Yani Tseng is a supremely talented player and deserves to be #1, but does she really have what it takes to be a global golf superstar?) My point is that the media does not know how to tell the story of this sport and tell it straight.

I think it started when Tiger hit the scene and played with such dominating excellence and the media started with the hero worship. His exploits and story were so compelling that there was little onus on the media to present the story of golf with any objectivity or integrity. It became all about a cult of personality. Now that Tiger has fallen from grace the same cultish behavior continues, only now its the ugly mean side of it. Because they still have these outsized expectations about golf's audience and revenue size to meet somehow.

Call me old-fashioned but I believe sport should still be a meritocracy. Let the TMZ/Jersey Shore/American Idol mainstream culture be the place where the squeakiest wheel gets the grease. When I tune into a golf tourney, I want to see players grinding out a score for the love of the game. I don't want to hear about what so and so says on Twitter. If I want that, I'll go to Twitter and read it myself.

Thank God the reason we all love golf is because we can play golf. We should let ourselves be wholly consumed by the drama of our own pursuit of birdies, pars, and yes bogeys too. That is purity folks, that is what the game is about. All this constant chatter about caddie/coach feuds, knee injuries, xenophobes named Bubba, etc, etc is cheap and tawdry by comparison.

Say again ?

Go Beef!

Matt

Beef, when next you're in Pennsylvania near Lancaster I would like to buy you a beer.

birdieXris wrote:

Beef, when next you're in Pennsylvania near Lancaster I would like to buy you a beer.

Yuengling perhaps? Thanx Chris, same goes for you if you're ever in NYC!

SCREW YOU LEGITIMATEBEEF

love this guy

The Golf Channel should hire you for a weekly commentary. Andy Rooney style.

You are absolutely right about slow play on public courses. I played Sunday on a nice day. Got to the second par 3 on the front nine and there was a total of 4 groups at the hole. One on the green, one on the tee, my group waiting for the group on the green to finish so that the group on the tee could play and head for the green so we could then move onto the tee and wait for the group in front to finish. Then there was another group waiting on the group waiting on us to finish waiting for the group on the green to finish so that we could play and then make our way to the green. It took almost 6 f-in hours to play. I really miss the days before Tiger came along and turned every jerk into a golf fan. Rounds in 5 hours were considered marathons to be avoided. Plus what is with all the shouting on the golf course. It is totally annoying and I have had enough.

legitimatebeef wrote:

Whoa, I wrote that? What a tortured psycho. I must've written that stuff after suffering through yet another six hour round. Things are better now. I still think everyone sucks but now that the weather's turned cold and I can play golf without bumping into too many clueless fucksticks, I am feeling much better about the game. My swing is feeling good and my short game confidence is riding high. Over the last couple rounds I have hit some fantastic shots as well as scrambling par saves. I can't wait for my next round. So come to think of it I really don't have any time for any other golfers. Screw you.

Wes11point5 wrote:

Plus what is with all the shouting on the golf course. It is totally annoying and I have had enough.

That is a problem. Someone manages to hole a putt outside of fifteen feet and then the whole group has to let the entire course know about it. Jerkoffs.

Here are some of the problems I see with the current state of the game.

1. There is too much emphasis placed by the media on personalities rather than talent. There were several good examples listed earlier in the thread (belt buckles, et al). Sure, all the pros can play but I am sick and tired all the focus on things like that crappy rap video done by Crane, Watson et al. I think I threw up a bit in my mouth the first time I saw it. This was quickly followed by douche chills like you can’t imagine. Somehow, I don’t think Ben Hogan would have been amenable to doing such a thing. Like Beef said, there are numerous players that are incredibly gifted but get no attention from the media because they have no gimmick.

2. The game/tour has been adversely affected by in influx of douchebagery over the past few years. That stupid #16 at the Phoenix Open (the “loudest hole in golf”)! Ugh! Give me a f-in break. It is more of a scene than anything else. That type of boorish behavior may be fine at an NFL game (not that a regular person can afford it), but not at a PGA event.

3. I said this earlier but it bears repeating. The advent of the Tiger Woods has brought way too many people to golf. Many of these folks have never taken a second to learn about etiquette or the rules. Nobody fixes a damn ball mark or rakes a bunker anymore and it flat out sucks. Some of the courses I play here in Portland more look like the surface of the moon than a putting surface. Plus, as has been stated several times, it takes waaaaaaay too damned long to get a round in on the weekend.

4. Golf Digest. Why in the hell do they have a section devoted to fashion with Mr. Style or whatever the hell his name is? $5000 dollar watches? Really? WTF does that have to do with lowering scores? Nothing……..that’s what.

I may rant more but that gets it off my chest a bit for now.