I have to preface this with the fact that I’m not – in any way, shape or form – a golf fan. The extent of how much I play golf is the occasion mini-putt whooping of colleagues or hammering some drives down at the range on a hot summer day. When it comes to watching the sport, the only time I’ll really take a gander at the TV is when I’m at work and one of the guys puts it on opposite the Jays game. Really, I don’t find it interesting to watch because of the lack of excitement the majority of the time and playing it isn’t too high on my to-do list because playing the short irons game is too involving for me personally. And how often do you see casual fans willing to part with three-plus hours of their time to play 18 when there are other things to do?
Back to the point, when I was growing up – and loosely paying attention – it seemed that every year a superstar was always the sure shot to win the majors. A big name was always destined to be donning the fabled green jacket. Now, it seems like any shmo can take home golf’s most coveted prize. This year, despite Tiger and Phil surging to make it a little interesting, the final day came down to Kenny Perry choking it all away and Angel Cabrera winning it all.
Three side notes about Kenny Perry: 1) How awful was his storyline of the weekend? You know, the potentially-the-oldest-guy-to-ever-win storyline. That was beaten into my head so much and ESPN wasn’t even trying to switch it up. Three straight days that was the front page story on their site. 2) This is the same guy who skipped the British Open last year to play in Milwaukee. Shouldn’t he get a ban for doing something as selfish as that? 3) How does that rank for choke jobs? He lead the entire tournament pretty much. Way to let it slip away, buddy.
So now, the past three Masters champions are Zach Johnson, Trevor Immelman and Angel Cabrera. Is parity in golf a good thing? This should be the one sport where they aim to make a powerhouse and let him run wild. Look at pre-surgery Tiger, for example. He had the star power and the wins to make fair-weather fans tune in and maybe even buy tickets to events. Would you ever pay to see Trevor Immelman? I didn’t think so. It’s about time that Tiger re-emerges from the pack and gets butts back in the galleries at golf courses. How about un-“Tiger proofing†some courses and letting him run wild. Seriously, what’s the worst that could happen?
Jim Nantz at CBS jinxed Kenny Perry with the “oldest player to win” story ! He was almost giving him the green jacket on the 16th hole. It’s always fun to watch the pros play, but even more fun when they flub a shot, even I could have done that !