Forgive me if this opening paragraph is interrupted by a gaping yawn – sorry, I’ve just yawned – but a 3.30am flight back from the Turkish Airlines Open makes the act of winkling out a column such a creaking, cumbersome process, it’s akin to heaving each individual letter off the keyboard like it’s a clump of granite and dumping it on to the page.
So, before we keel over under this wearisome, bleary-eyed burden, let’s have a quick look at some of the topics that have emerged in recent days . . .
To go or not to go? That is the Saudi question
The Middle East continues to be financially fertile ground for the European Tour. In 2019, there will be six visits to the region. Of course, the addition of Saudi Arabia to the stop-offs has brought renewed scrutiny after the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi focused attention on the country’s regime.
In a sit-down with the golf writers in Turkey, Keith Pelley, the tour’s chief executive, gave little away other than repeating the phrase,
“I can simply say the Saudi International is on our schedule,” while adding that, “we will monitor the situation.”
A few years ago, HSBC, a major corporate partner of the Open, publicly expressed concern about the male-only membership issue the R&A was embroiled in and stated that “it’s a very uneasy position for the bank”. You could have argued that a bank which flung millions into golf events in China, a country of questionable human rights, was equally an “uneasy position”. Money and morals have always been awkward bedfellows.
The effects of a Ryder Cup hangover . . .
The problem with hosting a big bash is the mess that’s left over. ‘Look, is that a half-eaten vol-au-vents and some fag ash splattered on a cherished family portrait?’
Golfing bashes don’t come much bigger than the Ryder Cup but just weeks after Le Golf National put on the show, confirmation arrived that the French Open, staged regularly over the same venue, had not had its sponsorship renewed and would go from a $7million Rolex Series showpiece to a reduced rank-and-file event. Ireland and Wales both suffered lingering Ryder Cup hangovers after hosting the biennial bunfight with a dwindling of resources and a withering of events while the successful 2014 match at Gleneagles still meant the popular Johnnie Walker Championship was sacrificed.
The Ryder Cup is a mouth-watering prize for a golfing nation . . . but it can come at a price.
Sponsors don’t grow on trees you know?
According to Pelley, the European Tour’s sponsorship has grown from some £40m in 2016 to £70m the following year.
Meanwhile, at a time when major players like IMG are stepping back from promoting events, the tour has taken on more and are now operating and running 15 tournaments out of their own pocket. A risky strategy? Undoubtedly, but Pelley believes it can breed sustainability down the line.
The British Masters, to be hosted by Tommy Fleetwood, has been saved next year but there is no title sponsor. At a time when British golf, and English golf in particular, is bullish and buoyant on the world stage, it begs the question: if you can’t find a backer now, then when can you?
It’s easy to look after No.1
Just the other month, Justin Rose suggested that there are “so many events on the European Tour that maybe shouldn’t be there” as he mulled over the benefits of a less is more approach.
That’s all well and good if you’re a global, independent contractor like Rose and others who can follow the cash and pick and choose where and when they play. The majority, of course, don’t have that luxury.
“All our tournaments are incredibly important to different members,” said
Pelley as he stressed the needs of the many, not the few.
Golf can be an incredibly selfish game. It’s hardly surprising players at the top can often lose sight of the bigger picture.
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