Ryder Cup price consternation continues. Plus, PGA may be closing in on a CEO, 2024 Masters film debuts, ratings can go up in the cordcutting era, This, That and Reads.
A lot of money for one of the worst viewing experiences in golf. 50,000 fans trying to watch four matches, way too many hangers on inside the ropes and just when you think you have found a good spot, a dozen people and a golf cart park in front of you.
That was the nice thing about Le Golf Natinonale thanks to its hideous containment mounding: unobstructed views for thousands. Bethpage sadly has little of that or even room for grandstands. Which is why I (still) say TPC Sawgrass or Scottsdale would be ideal Ryder Cup venues. Both would be match play friendly and could handle the crowds. Though it might be a little toasty in both places in late September!
Nobody likes a show off. The last straw will be a photo with Sandy. RIP to a great hurler when complete games and shutouts had value.
$750 to watch these guys and surround yourself with some overserved louts? One more sign of the Apocalypse.
These actions are consistent with the trend lines of a sport intent on self-destruction and just short of the lunacy we witness daily as we march to November 5.
The bifurcated game becomes more unwatchable as the wallets of the players bulge and one of its major organization’s raises the ante on greed.
$750? Watch how many swallow hard and sign the chit. As someone once said “there is no underestimating the American electorate - or in this case the American consumer.
Golf might be better served if we had the Covid audience
That's the end of my Dodger great photos. Somewhere I have the photo Tommy signed to Jeff, A Future Dodger. Spelling was not Lasorda's strength.
I do wonder on the timing of the pricing and Seth Waugh's role (or lack of one). He brought a certain common sense sanity to the organization that may now be lacking. It's possible he signed off on this but I seriously doubt it.
Geoff - In the spirit of the Ryder Cup, I'd like to offer you $50 to let me volunteer to work on the Quad. Qualifications: I got an A in AP English so I could probably proofread or something. I'm assuming that would get me a press credential for Augusta?
It's amazing how the movie has taken on a life of its own. I'm glad I used it in Golf Arch For Normal People as a reference now seeing how popular it remains. I watched it a few months ago and it has aged like a Hitching Post pinot!
Sadly I don’t! The thing I really miss is the cut out of Fernando’s head that Angelenos had in their car windows during Fernandomania. It had a suction cup and springs and would bobble as you drove.
My parents and I volunteered at Medinah in 2012. Not sure, but I think we paid about $400 a piece to volunteer and felt lucky when we "won the lottery." Being on site among the crowds and walking the course everyday was thrilling. The work itself was difficult, chaotic, demeaning and sometimes felt unsafe. We will never do it again, but cherish the shared memories.
Great variety of "stuff" as always! My wife and I attended the Ryder Cup at Kiawah Island in 1991 - the "War by the Shore". I could write pages on that experience - particularly what we witnessed up close and personal the last day, but there was quite a contrast as to how I obtained tickets for that event versus what is going on for Bethpage. Almost impossible to believe now, but the interest leading up to that Ryder Cup a year or so in advance was not that high compared to more recent Cups - even after the 14-14 tie at the Belfry in 1989 and the US loss in 1987 - but we recall the Ocean Course wasn't even finished yet so there were few expectations of what it would end up being, and for whatever reasons actually attending the Ryder Cup hadn't yet exploded in popularity.
My job at the time had me traveling to Charleston about once a month so on one of those trips at least a year before the 1991 dates I decided it might be fun to actually go. I recall driving out to somewhere in Charleston (may have been on the island itself) to visit a temporary trailer where I simply bought the tickets. I don't recall the price but they were pretty cheap for the weekly grounds badge. We ended up renting a place with friends and went all days by riding bikes down the beach to the course. An amazing week. Of course, we all know what happened at the matches and after that attending became "must see" leading us to where we are now with the ticket prices...
Also, great photo with Fernando! Someone forgot to tell him to "say cheese" in Spanish to get a smile out of him though... 🤔
Crazy that was only 33 years ago you could walk up and buy, but that was the one that changed it all thanks to that crazy combination of matches, personalities, course and agronomic, uh, immaturity!
In Fernando's defense, that was peak Fernandomania when he was 20, barely spoke English and somehow kept hurling as the city started stopping what they were doing whenever he started.
It was indeed the one that changed everything. We were right there on #18 green when Langer missed the putt. My most vivid memory though is being right next to Mark Calcavecchia as he walked from the 16th green to the 17th tee - talk about seeing a ghost or the walking dead - I've never seen someone look so distressed. People going to the gallows probably looked better than he did. Calc then proceeded to hit the worst shot I've ever seen a professional hit in person...
I was living in South Carolina during Fernandomania, so in the age long before every game is available right on your phone I didn't see as many of the games as you did right there in the city. I do remember those times and it was fun even across the country. I never did figure out how he found the plate looking to the sky before the release..
I'm taking Fernando's lack of a smile as just his being starstruck recognizing that the "kid" next to him was going to be a future star on television, a well-known writer, and one of the foremost experts on golf architecture... 😉
Always enjoy Lorne Rubenstein. Shame a fair number of legendary courses aren't suitable for the modern professional game , primarily due to infrastructure requirements and fade from the public eye. Please to see the ladies have the 2025 CPCK Open at Mississauga. I live close by...that will be on my calendar.
This continues to be a great opportunity for the women to scoop up places the men's game is passing by. It's amazing how few people within the PGA Tour world grasp the importance of artfully crafted venues and their rich histories.
Great column considering the focal point is an event 11 months away. bethpage is not a great venue for fans as the corporate area and so many small raised greens will not give the proletariat very good views and their are only 4 matches at a time. Throw in the fact it will be about an hour each way from the parking facilities. Price of parking is or issue included?, just a buyers beware. But in the end the “People’s “ event is not for the people but to enrich the PGA of America. Also Geoff is this event reminding you of the Roman gladiators?
Parking is not included but the bus from the LIRR is included in the ticket price.
Yes the more I think about it the more confounded I get by the approach at the "People's Course." The market may support the pricing, but it's still remarkable that they did not want (in their hearts...if they exist) to make sure Bethpage die hards had an opportunity to get in at a better price. And the change in the junior policy is really gross. They offer it during the week when kids are school but not when the actual matches are underway and a the kids might get to tag along to possibly get to experience thrills.
At the suggestion of another commenter I purchased the book "The Last Innocents" by Michael Leahy. It's about the '60s and the Dodgers. A paperback from Amazon. Am 40 pages into it. Will be a interesting read.
Two pictures now with Geoff and famous Dodgers. Who's next? Mike Piazza?
A lot of money for one of the worst viewing experiences in golf. 50,000 fans trying to watch four matches, way too many hangers on inside the ropes and just when you think you have found a good spot, a dozen people and a golf cart park in front of you.
That was the nice thing about Le Golf Natinonale thanks to its hideous containment mounding: unobstructed views for thousands. Bethpage sadly has little of that or even room for grandstands. Which is why I (still) say TPC Sawgrass or Scottsdale would be ideal Ryder Cup venues. Both would be match play friendly and could handle the crowds. Though it might be a little toasty in both places in late September!
Great pix of Fernando🙏 and the kid from Sandlot.
Geoffrey,
Nobody likes a show off. The last straw will be a photo with Sandy. RIP to a great hurler when complete games and shutouts had value.
$750 to watch these guys and surround yourself with some overserved louts? One more sign of the Apocalypse.
These actions are consistent with the trend lines of a sport intent on self-destruction and just short of the lunacy we witness daily as we march to November 5.
The bifurcated game becomes more unwatchable as the wallets of the players bulge and one of its major organization’s raises the ante on greed.
$750? Watch how many swallow hard and sign the chit. As someone once said “there is no underestimating the American electorate - or in this case the American consumer.
Golf might be better served if we had the Covid audience
That's the end of my Dodger great photos. Somewhere I have the photo Tommy signed to Jeff, A Future Dodger. Spelling was not Lasorda's strength.
I do wonder on the timing of the pricing and Seth Waugh's role (or lack of one). He brought a certain common sense sanity to the organization that may now be lacking. It's possible he signed off on this but I seriously doubt it.
Geoff - In the spirit of the Ryder Cup, I'd like to offer you $50 to let me volunteer to work on the Quad. Qualifications: I got an A in AP English so I could probably proofread or something. I'm assuming that would get me a press credential for Augusta?
You'll be shocked to know you were not the first to offer this, but unlike those writers at Reuters, I can't get someone into The Masters that way.
you have quite the archive of classic Dodger pictures. Love um!
Thanks for the Sideways link. A classic.
TGL = Ugh.
It's amazing how the movie has taken on a life of its own. I'm glad I used it in Golf Arch For Normal People as a reference now seeing how popular it remains. I watched it a few months ago and it has aged like a Hitching Post pinot!
Please say you still have that NBC Sports hat!
Sadly I don’t! The thing I really miss is the cut out of Fernando’s head that Angelenos had in their car windows during Fernandomania. It had a suction cup and springs and would bobble as you drove.
My parents and I volunteered at Medinah in 2012. Not sure, but I think we paid about $400 a piece to volunteer and felt lucky when we "won the lottery." Being on site among the crowds and walking the course everyday was thrilling. The work itself was difficult, chaotic, demeaning and sometimes felt unsafe. We will never do it again, but cherish the shared memories.
An engaging Quad! I hate the Eagles. lol
Great variety of "stuff" as always! My wife and I attended the Ryder Cup at Kiawah Island in 1991 - the "War by the Shore". I could write pages on that experience - particularly what we witnessed up close and personal the last day, but there was quite a contrast as to how I obtained tickets for that event versus what is going on for Bethpage. Almost impossible to believe now, but the interest leading up to that Ryder Cup a year or so in advance was not that high compared to more recent Cups - even after the 14-14 tie at the Belfry in 1989 and the US loss in 1987 - but we recall the Ocean Course wasn't even finished yet so there were few expectations of what it would end up being, and for whatever reasons actually attending the Ryder Cup hadn't yet exploded in popularity.
My job at the time had me traveling to Charleston about once a month so on one of those trips at least a year before the 1991 dates I decided it might be fun to actually go. I recall driving out to somewhere in Charleston (may have been on the island itself) to visit a temporary trailer where I simply bought the tickets. I don't recall the price but they were pretty cheap for the weekly grounds badge. We ended up renting a place with friends and went all days by riding bikes down the beach to the course. An amazing week. Of course, we all know what happened at the matches and after that attending became "must see" leading us to where we are now with the ticket prices...
Also, great photo with Fernando! Someone forgot to tell him to "say cheese" in Spanish to get a smile out of him though... 🤔
Crazy that was only 33 years ago you could walk up and buy, but that was the one that changed it all thanks to that crazy combination of matches, personalities, course and agronomic, uh, immaturity!
In Fernando's defense, that was peak Fernandomania when he was 20, barely spoke English and somehow kept hurling as the city started stopping what they were doing whenever he started.
It was indeed the one that changed everything. We were right there on #18 green when Langer missed the putt. My most vivid memory though is being right next to Mark Calcavecchia as he walked from the 16th green to the 17th tee - talk about seeing a ghost or the walking dead - I've never seen someone look so distressed. People going to the gallows probably looked better than he did. Calc then proceeded to hit the worst shot I've ever seen a professional hit in person...
I was living in South Carolina during Fernandomania, so in the age long before every game is available right on your phone I didn't see as many of the games as you did right there in the city. I do remember those times and it was fun even across the country. I never did figure out how he found the plate looking to the sky before the release..
I'm taking Fernando's lack of a smile as just his being starstruck recognizing that the "kid" next to him was going to be a future star on television, a well-known writer, and one of the foremost experts on golf architecture... 😉
Wow:
1. Volunteers: amazed that any volunteers showed up for Kuchar's Monday finish at the Wyndam
2. Cam Smith: good for him but who cares....throw another shrimp on the barbie
3. The Dude: "I hate the f-ing Eagles man..."
Always enjoy Lorne Rubenstein. Shame a fair number of legendary courses aren't suitable for the modern professional game , primarily due to infrastructure requirements and fade from the public eye. Please to see the ladies have the 2025 CPCK Open at Mississauga. I live close by...that will be on my calendar.
This continues to be a great opportunity for the women to scoop up places the men's game is passing by. It's amazing how few people within the PGA Tour world grasp the importance of artfully crafted venues and their rich histories.
Great column considering the focal point is an event 11 months away. bethpage is not a great venue for fans as the corporate area and so many small raised greens will not give the proletariat very good views and their are only 4 matches at a time. Throw in the fact it will be about an hour each way from the parking facilities. Price of parking is or issue included?, just a buyers beware. But in the end the “People’s “ event is not for the people but to enrich the PGA of America. Also Geoff is this event reminding you of the Roman gladiators?
Parking is not included but the bus from the LIRR is included in the ticket price.
Yes the more I think about it the more confounded I get by the approach at the "People's Course." The market may support the pricing, but it's still remarkable that they did not want (in their hearts...if they exist) to make sure Bethpage die hards had an opportunity to get in at a better price. And the change in the junior policy is really gross. They offer it during the week when kids are school but not when the actual matches are underway and a the kids might get to tag along to possibly get to experience thrills.
At the suggestion of another commenter I purchased the book "The Last Innocents" by Michael Leahy. It's about the '60s and the Dodgers. A paperback from Amazon. Am 40 pages into it. Will be a interesting read.
Two pictures now with Geoff and famous Dodgers. Who's next? Mike Piazza?
Will check that one out, thanks!
That's the end of the photos. Don't remind of Piazza...worst trade in Dodger history (yes, worse than Pedro Martinez!).
Great photo with you and Fernando Geoff. Two icons!
Thanks Ed...only one icon though. He was magnificent.
Great work on sharing the 990 forms!
Geoff, it's very cool that you experienced a little Fernandomania at such a young age. Do you splurge for the $90 parking at the Ravine these days?
I paid $55 for an NLCS game because I had no choice. It's especially painful since Frank McCourt still gets some of that. 🤦🏻♂️