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Bivens Thinks Tweets are the answer

JB

JB

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Are you kidding me? Bivens wants players to use Twitter during their actual rounds!!!! In my mind it is things like this that seem to be a sign of desperation by this commissioner. That would be taking away from the focus of an athlete after a hole to stop and do something like that.

Carolyn Bivens wants players on the world’s top women’s golf tour to follow birdies with Tweets.

Bivens, the LPGA Tour commissioner, said she “encourages” players to use handheld devices to post content on social-media Web sites such as Twitter or Facebook during tournaments, even if it runs counter to golf etiquette.

It’s part of her plan to have more interaction between players, fans and sponsors as the tour deals with the recession and searches for new tournament backers.

“I’d love it if players Twittered during the middle of a round,” Bivens said in an interview today in New York. “The new media is very important to the growth of golf and we view it as a positive, and a tool to be used.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aID_hnzyN2xY
 
that is ridiculous. that will totally distract the players and look absurd when everyone is typing away on their blackberry
 
Before and after a round I'm ok with, during a round a big "no". Should be interesting to see the comments from players.
 
Imagine Bivens having to twitter everytime she stepped out of a meeting on her way to another.... Imagine anyone doing that in a job that was busy and required concentration...
 
Awful idea....maybe it's just me but I don't get the whole Twitter thing yet. Can you imagine some of the tweets from some of the players if this happened?


Suzanne Petersen- "no, I'm not Annika"
Michelle Wie- "I wonder how much endorsement money I have left"
Natalie Gulbis- "I need a new sports bra. Wonder if people know these are fake?"
 
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I think Twitter is a interesting social network device because it is basically the same thing as txt messaging but on a much larger scale. However this seems drastic. Bivens was one of the last commissioners to believe that the internet media was truly media. Just this year she started recognizing that they were.

Now it seems like rather than be far behind the curve like before she wants to get ahead of it and I applaud her in the pro-active thinking rather than re-active thinking that has plagued her in the past, but this is absurd!!!
 
Twittering during a tournament round is ridiculous, however I do think having the payers on Twitter is brilliant. I just joined and I love finding out what players are doing. These are personable girls, let them show that! I truly believe that if more people followed them on Twitter more people would then watch them on TV. Christina Kim is hilarious and she does tweet during practice rounds. Sometimes showing pictures of a gorgeous hole or commenting that it started raining, whatever. It really is a lot of fun to follow them.
 
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Agreed Soxy. Twitter is a great idea, however that was hardly Bivens idea. The girls were on it and she jumped on with marketing it and now asking players to do it. While they are playing is absurd!
 
JB said:
It’s part of her plan to have more interaction between players, fans and sponsors as the tour deals with the recession and searches for new tournament backers.

“I’d love it if players Twittered during the middle of a round,” Bivens said in an interview today in New York. “The new media is very important to the growth of golf and we view it as a positive, and a tool to be used.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aID_hnzyN2xY
Click to expand...

Sounds like it is "re-active" to me, the LPGA is struggling and losing tourneys and she thinks this will somehow help. And yes during the round is just plain stupid....
 
It is ridiculous. How bout encouraging players to interact more with the gallery between holes instead of typing away on a pda. That tour needs more players to act like Arnold Palmer more than it does the CEO of Zappos . Having Christina, Paula and Morgan pose for pics and shaking hands seems much more of an effective human relations tool than tweeting. It seems that if players shift their attention to typing away, spectators could be even more bored than they are now. I understand what she is trying to do because that sport will never sell itself on performance and great golf alone, the way the PGA TOUR does, but fan interaction faced-to-faced seems to be a much better method than through a small screen. Plus, how pissed are patrons going to be when their cell phones are taken at the gates, but they see the players and caddies txting away on their cells during play. I like the idea of players tweeting in the evenings after their rounds and letting us know what they're doing for dinner and giving us an inside look at parties we otherwise would've never seen, but tweeting during tournament play just strikes me as off-base.
 
I agree with that a whole lot.
 
amen to that :pray:
 
I disagree with the consensus. She said she "would love if players Twittered during the middle of a round." Not that she's going to make them. If they want to, great; that player's Twitter page would get bunches of hits and publicity. I'd read that page, even - especially - if the tourney wasn't aired. Who cares what they do if they're not in the hunt for the win that day, and/or no cameras are on them because they're not in the lead group? Maybe they're waiting for 10, 20 minutes to tee off. Maybe they're a new player wanting some attention and airtime and sponsors, it might be a fine idea. They don't even have to do the button pushing themselves.

Live and let live, I've learned the players will do what they want.
 
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I disagree completely Julie. For a sport to be taken seriously, the consumers must THINK that the players take it seriously. If the average consumer thinks that the players are not giving 100% concentration to the game, they will walk away from it.

Not too long ago, the NBA had a huge story about a guy sending something on Twitter during the game from the bench. He was crucified.
 
I don't think folks take the LPGA very seriously. One moment guys are advocating bikini calendars because it gets attention to the game and the players, but then they're anti Twitter. Go figure.
 
I dont think anybody is anti-twitter. I think most love the connection to the players that they get from it. They want it separate from the actual competition though. Just like I am sure that many would like bikini calendars, but that does not effect their actual play or go on during the event.
 
Right...I understand you meant during competition.

Are you a fan of Bivens banning it, then? Wouldn't you, out of curiosity even, read a Twitter page with mid tourney updates?
 
Sure I would read it. Just like I gawk at car wrecks curiousity). But if its a legitimate competition, it has no place. It should be banned just like it is in the PGA.
 
Fair enough.

I guess I come from the standpoint that, the LPGA is starved and more and more tourneys are shutting down or not being put on TV. Twitter's a free service, and as interrupting to play while sitting waiting to tee off as, say, shaking hands or signing a little girl's ball.

As for the NBA - I don't think I'd ban that guy either, although I can see it since there's team strategy involved.
 
Here are a few tweets between Michelle Wie and Morgan Pressell from twitter this afternoon. Read from the botom up.

morganpressel@themichellewie better than during the round...
about 7 hours ago from web in reply to themichellewie


morganpressel@themichellewie it takes us so long there's plenty of downtime! Big wait on 14 tee. Keeping up with the french thanks to @justingimelstob
about 7 hours ago from web in reply to themichellewie


themichellewie@morganpressel haha u twitting during a practice round too?!
about 7 hours ago from web in reply to morganpressel
Click to expand...
 
soxngolf said:
Here are a few tweets between Michelle Wie and Morgan Pressell from twitter this afternoon. Read from the botom up.
Click to expand...

I saw that too soxy. :D

I don't think it's going to happen. But these girls sure seem to like tweeting! Holy cow they tweet a lot!
 
This is one of the most hair-brained ideas I have heard in a while. What next....players at Wimbeldon or Ice Hockey twittering? If the LPGA puts a quality product on the field people and the networks will tune in. I agee with most on the forum that I couldnt care less what a player is thinking after a bad shot or a good shot. And all they are doing is walking between holes (no comment needed from the peanut gallery....I have learned a few things since getting on the forum:act-up:) I am all for it tweeting after the round or even at the a Pro-Am, but not during the round these players already have enough pressure trying to play. Would any of us Hackers want to playing behind soem one who tweets after every hole? I doubt it. Any way, this tweeting will only further slow down the pace of play and take away the focus of the upcoming shot. My guess is that the caddie will end up doing the actual messaging. Just what they need..something else to do during the round. If the LPGA was results oreiented they would come up with better ways to engage the fans. Just my 2 cents.
 
I'd like to see track stars twittering next. During the race.
 
Bivens now says she was taken out of context about this. I have a feeling if people thought it was a good idea, she may have a different view.
 
As I said elsewhere, no mid-round tweets.

And Helen doesn't seem to be on Twitter. :bad:
 
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