Did you know that a 'symposium' was a convivial meeting for drinking, music and intellectual discussion among the Ancient Greeks?
Of course you did. Most of you will use the word on a weekly basis when you host your lavish Greco-Roman toga parties on a Friday night.
In golf, the term symposium conjures up images of thinly-haired men in suits embroiled in the kind of long-winded, paper-shuffling exchanges that tend to be as a dry as a cracker topped with sawdust. Next month, the United States Golf Association will host such a gathering as a 'think tank' gets round the table to discuss the issue of slow play. Perhaps Tiger Woods should pop in to usher proceedings along.
"Play faster," he responded simply when asked what he would say at such a meeting of minds. On the same day as Woods was talking to promote his Foundation and his forthcoming World Challenge event in December, Guan Tianlang, the 14-year-old from China who was handed a one-shot penalty for slow play during April's Masters, was thanking those in positions of power who cracked the whip on him.
"I still respect what they did for me," said Guan ahead of the defence of his Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship crown. "It was a really good experience for me and I should thank the referee because I have learned and now pay more attention to my routine and speed."
While many felt that officials had picked on the easy target by penalising the inexperienced Guan - there are serial offenders on the main tours who have been playing the slow play system for seasons and have escaped punishment - Woods knows that a harsh lesson in the formative years is one way of nipping the long-standing problem in the bud. "It's the grass roots," added the world No.1 and 14-time major champion. "People just aren't educated about pace of play. Even on public courses, all the way up to the tour, the play has gotten slower over the years."
Woods remains firm in his stance on slow play at the top end of the professional game. "At our level, it's easy to fix; just start fining guys," he insisted.
Woods will make the trip to Turkey next month for the Turkish Airlines Open, the penultimate event of the European Tour's $30m Final Series, before competing in his own limited field World Challenge event in December. Despite racking up five wins during a profitable 2013 campaign, Woods' major drought continued. He was down among the rank and file in the US Open and the PGA Championship, his Masters challenge was hamstrung by a two-shot penalty for a decidedly dodgy drop, and his Open assault simply petered out on the final day.
There were plenty of reasons for optimism, of course, but getting his game to click on the biggest stages remains the ultimate goal. "To have a five-win season, I've done some pretty positive things to accomplish that," said the 37-year-old. "Again, I just need to shore up some of these things, then head off into the new year with some good, positive momentum. As for some of the things I'd like to get better at? That's obviously peaking at the right times and getting the four big events next year that I'd like to win."
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