How to build a "Great" tour pro

20-ish years ago Tiger Woods lit the golf world on fire, 20 years before that Jack did it, and before him was Arnie. These guys all had "something" that made people that didn't watch golf, start paying attention. Without these guys it could be argued that the pros of today wouldn't be getting nearly the money that they get from purses, and sponsorships.

In today's world of multi-million dollar clothing contracts, live coverage of an industry trade show, hours of programming and events all over the world, no one stands out. Rory, DJ, Jordan, Justin, Phil, Rickie, and Sergio are as likely to lose a tournament as they are to win it. The field is deeper now, the players are stronger, fitter, faster, and more media savvy for sure.

What is it going to take for someone to come along and drag the game back to the spotlight, to make golf really fun to watch?

***DISCLAIMER*** I'm going to use Tiger an an example, because I spent a lot of time watching him play when I was younger. I missed Arnie and Jack, and I've only seen some highlight reels, but I assume similar things apply

Tiger did more than win. Tiger won in spectacular fashion, Tiger did insane things, with a high level of success, and Tiger was emotional. You could watch Tiger for one or two holes and have a pretty good idea if he was doing well or if he wasn't. Tiger energized the crowd, and the announcers, and could have non-golfers on the edge of their seats. All of this led of course to more money, more sponsors, not just for him, but for those around him.


So in today's world what will it take for a player to take the world by storm, and have people on the edge of their seats following events? What will it take to get the title "great one"?

I know it's kind of a vague question, but lets have fun with it.

I think if someone could stay at #1 for 265 weeks or whatever the 2 streaks Tiger did would be a good start. That would mean they are dominant, and most likely all the intangibles would come along with it as well. You don’t stay at the top that long without doing some pretty spectacular things.

When Tigers son wins a major

For the past 4 years the tour has had several golfers take the world by storm. Rory, Day, Spieth, DJ, Rickie, Stenson...you could argue that the top 10 have really shinned. Hell we had one of the best Ryder cups since Brookline. We have great even awesome tour players. They hit great shots, have power and get their fans going.

The likes of Jack, Arnie and Tiger are once in a generation type stars. With so much talent on tour, it will be tough to find another. I believe he will have to possess the game and attitude the so many hate TW for. He won’t be all smiles but will just stomp the yard when he plays. And with the feel good society we live in, I’m. It sure that is possible. Our next polarizing golf figure with have to be very selfish and want nothing but to win.

I think this may not happen for a while as long as the money is attracting the better athlete away from other sports, competition is getting more balanced . I feel we will continue to see a "Group" of top players fighting for position year after year. I'm in favor of this type of golf though, fun to watch. I want to see a JT, Spieth amen corner dual at augusta on the final day.

ChristopherKee said:

I think this may not happen for a while as long as the money is attracting the better athlete away from other sports, competition is getting more balanced . I feel we will continue to see a "Group" of top players fighting for position year after year. I'm in favor of this type of golf though, fun to watch. I want to see a JT, Spieth amen corner dual at augusta on the final day.

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That’s an excellent thought. Question for the class, could we see the same kind of explosion in interest with a group of 2-4 guys battling consistently for the win or the number 1 spot?

And to Freddie’s point, if we’re looking at a group battle would the players involved have to be super polarizing, or would the consistent competition be enough to drive interest?

How to build a "Great" tour pro

How to build a "Great" tour pro

Think of the NBA and the finals rivalries. Do we remember a team that won just one year or teams like the Celtics/Lakers or the long run of Celtics victories with Bill Russell? 20 years from now, people will remember the Warriors dominance and the fact that LeBron has made it to 7 straight finals, not the fact that the Rockets are trying to compete.

In golf, I believe that if JT and Jordan start lapping the field, we will have our next Jack and Arnie. Throw in some DJ, Ricky and Rory for fun and you will have a hell of an exciting 20 year stretch of golf. I also think that they should start having feature tournaments a few times a year where the men and women pair up in competitions. How cool would it be to see Jordan/Michelle Wie against a JT/Lexi battle?!


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Erikferner said:

Think of the NBA and the finals rivalries. Do we remember a team that won just one year or teams like the Celtics/Lakers or the long run of Celtics victories with Bill Russell? 20 years from now, people will remember the Warriors dominance and the fact that LeBron has made it to 7 straight finals, not the fact that the Rockets are trying to compete.

In golf, I believe that if JT and Jordan start lapping the field, we will have our next Jack and Arnie. Throw in some DJ, Ricky and Rory for fun and you will have a hell of an exciting 20 year stretch of golf. I also think that they should start having feature tournaments a few times a year where the men and women pair up in competitions. How cool would it be to see Jordan/Michelle Wie against a JT/Lexi battle?!


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I was thinking down a similar line to answer his questions. I was thinking more of a mix. I feel the NBA really grew it's best during the Celtics, Lakers, Pistons, Sixers battles in the 80's and transitioning into the Pistons, Bulls, Pacers, Nicks battles in the early 90's.

Yes its fun to watch someone dominate a sport like tiger, but I think in this media age, with access to more information, the rivalry, like in the NBA 80's & 90's, is what gets people watching.

ChristopherKee said:

I was thinking down a similar line to answer his questions. I was thinking more of a mix. I feel the NBA really grew it's best during the Celtics, Lakers, Pistons, Sixers battles in the 80's and transitioning into the Pistons, Bulls, Pacers, Nicks battles in the early 90's.

Yes its fun to watch someone dominate a sport like tiger, but I think in this media age, with access to more information, the rivalry, like in the NBA 80's & 90's, is what gets people watching.

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There's definitely a lot of truth to that, even at Tiger's peak, Phil was chasing him and battling him. The conflict makes for better watching. That being said, the personalities of the players also have to be engaging, boring people battling it out is still pretty boring. Guys getting really truly excited and and frustrated adds an element of humanity that gives the viewers a physical representation of the pressure they're under. Freddie touched on it when he mentioned selfishness, you definitely have to have a player that wants the win, and is willing to push himself.

dazeedmonds said:

There's definitely a lot of truth to that, even at Tiger's peak, Phil was chasing him and battling him. The conflict makes for better watching. That being said, the personalities of the players also have to be engaging, boring people battling it out is still pretty boring. Guys getting really truly excited and and frustrated adds an element of humanity that gives the viewers a physical representation of the pressure they're under. Freddie touched on it when he mentioned selfishness, you definitely have to have a player that wants the win, and is willing to push himself.

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The fact that the stars like Rickie, Jordan and JT and a lot of other pro golfers make themselves accessible through Twitter, Instagram and Facebook has helped build the brand. Even Jack is out there with a lot of posts about his thoughts. Since many of these golfers are true friends and bros make things less cutthroat out there.


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