WEBVTT - What's Next for LIV Golf? 0:00:00.040 --> 0:00:02.800 I miss a green, for example, I'm already upset. When 0:00:02.800 --> 0:00:04.920 I find my ball in the bunker, I'm really upset. 0:00:05.000 --> 0:00:06.320 And when I find my ball. 0:00:06.120 --> 0:00:08.920 In a Friday Egg, Friday Egg, the dreaded Frida Egg, 0:00:09.039 --> 0:00:12.040 Friday Egg, Frida Egg brid Egg, Frida Egg bride Egg Lie. 0:00:11.920 --> 0:00:38.199 I'm about ready to run off of the Welcome to 0:00:38.240 --> 0:00:41.880 the Friday Egg Golf Podcast. I'm Garrett Morrison, and today 0:00:42.080 --> 0:00:46.519 with the Live Team Golf Championship approaching, we're talking about 0:00:46.800 --> 0:00:49.559 what Live is doing well and what it could be 0:00:49.640 --> 0:00:52.640 doing better. But first we're going to discuss what we're 0:00:52.640 --> 0:00:55.640 in on and what we're out on this week. Here 0:00:55.680 --> 0:00:59.280 to do that with me are Andy Johnson and Joseph Lamania. 0:00:59.720 --> 0:01:02.120 Let's start with you. Joseph, what are you in on? 0:01:03.160 --> 0:01:03.520 Garrett? 0:01:03.560 --> 0:01:07.680 I am in on playing golf tournaments in the countries, 0:01:08.160 --> 0:01:11.360 in the home countries of superstars, and I think this 0:01:11.440 --> 0:01:14.880 sometimes gets framed as national opens, right, which we had 0:01:14.880 --> 0:01:17.240 the Irish Open this past weekend and it was an 0:01:17.319 --> 0:01:21.920 unbelievable scene with Rory McElroy playing to a crowd that 0:01:22.000 --> 0:01:25.520 was extremely friendly to him. One of I mean unbelievable 0:01:25.560 --> 0:01:28.919 scenes watching him walk down the seventy second fairway. Shane 0:01:28.920 --> 0:01:31.959 Lowry similarly had a lot of support out there. But 0:01:32.040 --> 0:01:34.399 I just think in general it's a great way to 0:01:34.640 --> 0:01:38.759 engage fans sell tickets. I think it's something that Live 0:01:38.920 --> 0:01:41.040 does effectively. And I know we're going to talk about 0:01:41.080 --> 0:01:44.080 Live a little bit later, but having a tournament in 0:01:44.120 --> 0:01:47.200 Spain when John Rahm and Sergio Garcia are two of 0:01:47.200 --> 0:01:49.640 your biggest stars, I think this is something for the 0:01:49.680 --> 0:01:55.400 PGA Tour to heavily consider. The Zozo in Japan is 0:01:55.520 --> 0:01:58.280 not a high profile event, and that could be really 0:01:58.320 --> 0:02:01.240 cool if you had more of the top players showing up. 0:02:01.280 --> 0:02:05.880 When Hideki Matsuyama is one of your most marketable global stars, right, 0:02:05.920 --> 0:02:08.320 the Irish Open could be really cool if more players 0:02:08.320 --> 0:02:08.679 were there. 0:02:09.040 --> 0:02:12.920 I thought that Zozo was becoming a huge event before 0:02:12.960 --> 0:02:15.639 COVID because you had Tiger go and. 0:02:15.600 --> 0:02:16.040 I win it. 0:02:16.120 --> 0:02:19.120 Yeah, and it felt like it had a lot of 0:02:19.120 --> 0:02:21.960 momentum until the pandemic, you know. 0:02:22.720 --> 0:02:23.040 Yeah. 0:02:23.200 --> 0:02:26.760 And I think another small example would be getting rid 0:02:26.800 --> 0:02:29.919 of the match play in Austin, where Scotti Scheffler and 0:02:30.000 --> 0:02:32.680 Jordan Spief both went to school. Like some of there's 0:02:32.760 --> 0:02:35.200 so much local support for those golfers some of their 0:02:35.240 --> 0:02:37.600 biggest stars. I think there should be more of an 0:02:37.639 --> 0:02:40.280 effort to be a little bit more flexible with venues 0:02:40.520 --> 0:02:43.840 and get to the places where your best golfers, your 0:02:43.919 --> 0:02:48.079 most marketable golfers have either grew up or have ties 0:02:48.120 --> 0:02:49.919 to So that was a big takeaway for me from 0:02:49.919 --> 0:02:54.720 watching the Irish Norway Here we Come. That'd be sweet. 0:02:54.919 --> 0:02:56.320 It's the star still. 0:02:58.040 --> 0:03:01.280 That's a good question. After this season, Yeah, who knows? 0:03:01.600 --> 0:03:04.360 Who knows how Victor Hovlin is doing? All right, So 0:03:04.919 --> 0:03:06.920 what I'm in on, first of all, The big thing 0:03:07.000 --> 0:03:09.280 I'm in on is something I'll touch on quickly and 0:03:09.320 --> 0:03:12.960 we'll discuss maybe later. Is Bubba Watson being relegated and lived. 0:03:14.760 --> 0:03:18.040 That's hilarious, don't. I don't know what's gonna happen there. 0:03:18.120 --> 0:03:20.320 I mean, he's basically he's like a co owner of 0:03:20.360 --> 0:03:21.640 the range Goats. 0:03:21.240 --> 0:03:25.160 From what I've gathered. What I've gathered, not a lot 0:03:25.200 --> 0:03:27.840 of people like playing on Bubba's team. That could be 0:03:27.919 --> 0:03:30.560 part of why they made the late rule switch is 0:03:30.600 --> 0:03:35.720 that Bubba, Bubba and in and of himself, is a 0:03:35.800 --> 0:03:38.320 cancer in his own clubhouse potentially. 0:03:38.760 --> 0:03:41.680 Yeah, well, I mean if he isn't playing, then he 0:03:41.720 --> 0:03:45.480 would be a non playing GM presumably, or maybe he 0:03:45.640 --> 0:03:50.160 just end up playing for another team and retaining equity 0:03:50.320 --> 0:03:53.040 in the range. I don't know. It could get really messy, 0:03:53.120 --> 0:03:56.520 but I'm pretty in on that. The serious thing I'm 0:03:56.560 --> 0:04:01.160 in on is during the Solheim Cup, what I saw 0:04:02.360 --> 0:04:05.920 was really refreshing in terms of the dynamic between the players. 0:04:06.360 --> 0:04:09.920 I thought there was a great combination of competitive spirit 0:04:10.440 --> 0:04:15.120 and genuine friendship between the two teams, and it was 0:04:15.200 --> 0:04:18.200 just it warmed my heart. I couldn't help it. This 0:04:18.240 --> 0:04:20.920 is a little bit sentimental, but you know, like it 0:04:20.960 --> 0:04:24.320 seems like Nellie Korda and Charlie Hole are really friends, 0:04:24.320 --> 0:04:26.640 but they went after each other. They had this I mean, 0:04:26.680 --> 0:04:28.720 it wasn't that great of a match because Charlie Hole 0:04:28.720 --> 0:04:31.720 absolutely wiped the floor with Nelly, but it was a 0:04:31.720 --> 0:04:35.680 great matchup, a great combination of two big personalities and 0:04:35.720 --> 0:04:39.600 great players, and they seem to keep it really friendly 0:04:39.680 --> 0:04:43.080 but at the same time take the competition very seriously 0:04:43.160 --> 0:04:45.440 and put all of their energy into it, and so 0:04:45.720 --> 0:04:48.880 that was just a wonderful competition. It just seems like 0:04:48.960 --> 0:04:54.039 that balance of the friendliness and the classiness and the 0:04:54.080 --> 0:04:59.279 competitiveness isn't always there in the right cup. It seems 0:04:59.279 --> 0:05:02.359 like the men don't quite get that right all the time. 0:05:02.839 --> 0:05:05.919 But for whatever reason, this past week's Soulheim Cup was 0:05:05.920 --> 0:05:08.280 was right on the money with the with the vibes. 0:05:08.400 --> 0:05:11.920 The vibes were great. All right, Andy, what are you 0:05:11.920 --> 0:05:12.200 in on? 0:05:12.440 --> 0:05:16.880 I would just add one thing. I thought the personalities 0:05:17.080 --> 0:05:18.839 were great in the Solheim Cup. 0:05:19.040 --> 0:05:21.200 Megan Kang was like, it was a big week for 0:05:21.320 --> 0:05:21.919 Megan Kang. 0:05:22.080 --> 0:05:24.919 I just think that in general, like the personalities really 0:05:25.000 --> 0:05:28.599 came out in the group atmosphere. And I think for 0:05:28.720 --> 0:05:32.799 women's golf, that's a big thing that they could differentiate from. 0:05:33.279 --> 0:05:36.159 You know, men's golf is men's golf doesn't have a 0:05:36.200 --> 0:05:39.159 ton of personality. It's kind of like, oh, we like 0:05:39.240 --> 0:05:41.440 this guy because he hits the ball far, or we 0:05:41.560 --> 0:05:43.640 like this guy because he's got a good short game, 0:05:44.000 --> 0:05:47.920 you know, and there's very few players who show personality. 0:05:48.120 --> 0:05:50.880 And I thought that was a big part of the 0:05:50.920 --> 0:05:55.279 women's game this week. I guess I like, since you 0:05:55.320 --> 0:06:00.120 guys haven't haven't said anything, I guess I'm in on 0:06:00.120 --> 0:06:03.760 on golf being held at the greatest golf courses in 0:06:03.800 --> 0:06:04.240 the world. 0:06:05.000 --> 0:06:06.640 Robert Trent Jones Golf Club. 0:06:07.640 --> 0:06:09.400 Royal County Down was incredible. 0:06:09.760 --> 0:06:10.640 Yeah, of course it was. 0:06:10.960 --> 0:06:14.920 It was awful coverage, horrendous like in terms of like 0:06:15.720 --> 0:06:18.279 it was. I think at the shotgun start we talked 0:06:18.279 --> 0:06:21.560 about how we were excited for like a modern broadcast 0:06:21.720 --> 0:06:25.080 at Royal County Down with bells and whistles. It was 0:06:25.160 --> 0:06:28.680 like a two thousand and five broadcast at Royal County Down. 0:06:28.720 --> 0:06:32.120 It was handheld cameras. They couldn't track the ball. It 0:06:32.160 --> 0:06:36.120 was just straight world feed. There was no like drone, 0:06:36.360 --> 0:06:41.720 There was nothing, nothing out of this world about it was. 0:06:41.800 --> 0:06:47.000 It was horrible, horrendous coverage. That being said, it still 0:06:47.120 --> 0:06:53.120 was honestly probably the most captivated I have been for 0:06:53.200 --> 0:06:58.599 a golf tournament non major division in uh forever, outside 0:06:58.640 --> 0:07:01.680 of like the Ryder Cup and made That was the 0:07:01.720 --> 0:07:05.839 most into a golf tournament I've been. And it's because 0:07:06.160 --> 0:07:09.320 the golf course like really forced, Like what you saw 0:07:09.520 --> 0:07:13.840 was a golf course forcing its will on players. Players 0:07:13.840 --> 0:07:17.880 had to play certain ways because of the golf design, 0:07:18.200 --> 0:07:22.640 the elements that were thrust in their way. And you 0:07:22.680 --> 0:07:25.640 know the other thing that worked really well with it 0:07:25.720 --> 0:07:27.920 was the time that it was on, at this time 0:07:28.000 --> 0:07:32.160 of year. It was done wrapped up before the kickoff 0:07:32.160 --> 0:07:36.720 of football, and golf has made this like they've moved 0:07:36.760 --> 0:07:41.400 mountains to avoid football, move like, done everything. But the 0:07:41.400 --> 0:07:45.520 reality is like it doesn't work because golf the best 0:07:45.560 --> 0:07:50.560 golf season is September and October, arguably like late August, 0:07:50.760 --> 0:07:55.000 September October. That's when you you have every venue, every 0:07:55.080 --> 0:07:58.360 venue in the world is a possible destination for the 0:07:58.400 --> 0:08:03.240 most part outside of the Southern sphere, and you have 0:08:03.440 --> 0:08:07.800 like these delightful, delightful opportunities to have great golf tournaments 0:08:08.000 --> 0:08:12.040 and the tour. Because of how US centric it is, 0:08:12.480 --> 0:08:16.840 which Joseph just hit on. Because of how US centric 0:08:16.920 --> 0:08:20.360 it is, it acts like like we can't avoid football 0:08:20.560 --> 0:08:21.560 in any other way. 0:08:22.160 --> 0:08:22.600 But the. 0:08:24.920 --> 0:08:30.360 Opportunity, the way to avoid football was very abundantly clear, 0:08:30.840 --> 0:08:33.120 and it's also in the part of the world that's 0:08:33.160 --> 0:08:36.120 got some of the best golf courses that you could 0:08:36.120 --> 0:08:40.720 play tournament golf on. It just seems like it makes 0:08:40.760 --> 0:08:46.080 too much sense to have a Links season. Everybody talks 0:08:46.120 --> 0:08:48.840 about Link season in July. I think they should have 0:08:48.840 --> 0:08:51.960 a Lenk season in September and October. And you have 0:08:52.080 --> 0:08:56.000 these tournaments that end before football, and people wake up 0:08:56.040 --> 0:08:59.040 I thought it was great. You wake up, you're having 0:08:59.080 --> 0:09:02.400 your coffee, you're watching golf, and it rolls right into 0:09:02.400 --> 0:09:06.839 football and it solves your your big issue with the fall, 0:09:07.720 --> 0:09:09.840 and then the season makes a lot of sense. It 0:09:09.880 --> 0:09:13.760 goes from January to October. There's a two month off 0:09:13.800 --> 0:09:17.040 season for everybody, and there you go. It doesn't have 0:09:17.080 --> 0:09:21.000 to be as congested, it's spaced out, it's it's it's 0:09:21.040 --> 0:09:22.480 the way that the season should go. 0:09:23.400 --> 0:09:26.320 They've got to commit to that, though, and train people 0:09:26.360 --> 0:09:30.080 to watch golf at those times, because the ratings issue 0:09:30.160 --> 0:09:35.920 is a profound one, an issue regular tournament, but even 0:09:35.960 --> 0:09:39.079 more so when you're when you're televising these tournaments in 0:09:39.520 --> 0:09:42.720 the morning. You know when you're in that you know, 0:09:42.840 --> 0:09:47.000 three to six pm Eastern time zone, uh kind of 0:09:47.120 --> 0:09:53.040 tournament playing prime prime time, you know, golf time zone. 0:09:53.559 --> 0:09:55.480 You know you're you're getting the ratings that you are 0:09:55.559 --> 0:09:59.480 what it's like two to three million on Sundays. But 0:09:59.600 --> 0:10:02.960 if you're earlier in the morning, I'm agreeing with you. 0:10:03.040 --> 0:10:05.679 I think it could work. But it's just like the 0:10:05.800 --> 0:10:08.920 ratings for the Open Championship in the US are not 0:10:09.160 --> 0:10:12.480 very good, and for better or for worse, mostly for worse. 0:10:12.520 --> 0:10:17.319 Probably US ratings are really meaningful for the PGA Tour, 0:10:17.400 --> 0:10:20.280 and it's it's financial well being, and so they've just 0:10:20.320 --> 0:10:22.839 got to train people to get up and watch golf, 0:10:22.880 --> 0:10:26.080 make coffee golf a thing, like, really commit to it 0:10:26.120 --> 0:10:29.240 and actually say this is a fun thing to do. 0:10:29.600 --> 0:10:32.200 Let's get up early and let's watch them golf before football. 0:10:32.360 --> 0:10:34.800 I just feel like they have a shot in the 0:10:34.840 --> 0:10:37.400 fall of getting people to watch golf in the morning, 0:10:38.520 --> 0:10:39.000 you know, and. 0:10:38.960 --> 0:10:40.360 They don't have much of a shot of getting them 0:10:40.360 --> 0:10:42.040 to watch golf in the afternoon. 0:10:42.320 --> 0:10:47.200 Right pro Core pro Core was not a hot ticket, 0:10:47.640 --> 0:10:51.679 did not register on the Doppler this past weekend. 0:10:52.160 --> 0:10:53.640 Okay, I want to get into what we're out on. 0:10:54.520 --> 0:10:57.800 Yeah, sure, I'll start garts ready to go. 0:10:59.280 --> 0:11:02.920 I'm ready, and I am out on the LPGA Tours 0:11:03.000 --> 0:11:07.679 and NBC's seeming lack of readiness to channel the enthusiasm 0:11:08.120 --> 0:11:11.280 that fans felt for the Solheim Cup this past week. 0:11:11.760 --> 0:11:16.640 There was real momentum behind the Solheim Cup. People wanted 0:11:16.679 --> 0:11:19.680 to get on site and watch that tournament. People wanted 0:11:19.679 --> 0:11:23.480 to watch it on TV, and guess what, they couldn't 0:11:23.600 --> 0:11:26.840 get to the golf course. There were buses going to 0:11:27.000 --> 0:11:31.560 the wrong golf course. There were endless lines where people 0:11:31.600 --> 0:11:35.760 were leaving. Our own megat Cans covered this very well, 0:11:36.200 --> 0:11:38.320 and this was a big subject earlier in the week, 0:11:38.360 --> 0:11:40.480 so I'm sure that people have already heard about it. 0:11:40.520 --> 0:11:44.400 But I think the incompetence here on the part of 0:11:44.440 --> 0:11:47.439 the LPGA Tour, and I'll put this at the doorstep 0:11:48.040 --> 0:11:51.959 of the Commissioner, Molly mark Us Sammon. This is their 0:11:52.000 --> 0:11:55.800 responsibility to make sure that fans who are enthusiastic about 0:11:55.800 --> 0:11:58.840 the product can actually get on site and have a 0:11:58.840 --> 0:12:02.400 great experience. And there at the first tee when they're 0:12:02.480 --> 0:12:04.760 hitting the first t shots, I mean, it was like, 0:12:05.280 --> 0:12:10.280 you know, half empty, So just a ridiculous display there. 0:12:10.320 --> 0:12:13.320 And then the coverage by NBC predictably at this point, 0:12:13.360 --> 0:12:16.240 it's been a really bad year for NBC golf. This 0:12:16.280 --> 0:12:21.120 has been well covered, but it was strikingly poor how 0:12:21.559 --> 0:12:24.760 NBC was covering the Solheim Cup, missing a lot of shots, 0:12:24.800 --> 0:12:29.360 just not getting a grasp on the narrative of each day, 0:12:29.840 --> 0:12:32.680 especially on Sunday. They were just lost and it was 0:12:32.760 --> 0:12:36.360 really hard to keep track of. They did not find 0:12:36.640 --> 0:12:39.400 a storyline, they didn't have cameras in the right places, 0:12:39.400 --> 0:12:43.920 they weren't following the right groups, and they just didn't 0:12:43.960 --> 0:12:48.560 have an idea of how to lay out the narrative 0:12:48.720 --> 0:12:52.079 of the day. And those were really really disappointing things 0:12:52.120 --> 0:12:56.920 because to me, it really felt like there was there 0:12:57.200 --> 0:13:01.120 there was potential for this event to kind of blow up, 0:13:01.600 --> 0:13:05.400 and in a sense it it sort of did, at 0:13:05.480 --> 0:13:08.760 least in my little world of the Internet and social media. 0:13:08.760 --> 0:13:11.199 It seemed like people were excited about it, and there 0:13:11.200 --> 0:13:14.280 was a lot of coverage of it and genuine enthusiasm, 0:13:14.679 --> 0:13:18.600 but I think that was that was tempered by the 0:13:18.760 --> 0:13:22.840 LPGA Tours and NBC's lack of preparedness. 0:13:23.320 --> 0:13:26.559 I thought the first Tea coverage was outstanding. I mean 0:13:26.880 --> 0:13:30.520 it was. It was for like two straight hours, and 0:13:31.360 --> 0:13:34.120 they just neglected all the matches that went out on 0:13:34.160 --> 0:13:37.439 the because you know, the most consequential shot of every 0:13:37.480 --> 0:13:41.480 match is the first T shot. I'm being starcastic here. 0:13:43.120 --> 0:13:45.920 You really appreciated the thoroughness of the first tea. 0:13:45.760 --> 0:13:48.480 Coming, Yeah, I mean, like you talk about, literally the 0:13:48.559 --> 0:13:51.600 least consequential shot in a golf match is the first 0:13:51.640 --> 0:13:55.040 T shot, and I think, like we need to address 0:13:55.080 --> 0:13:58.000 this with like team competitions. I get there's a lot 0:13:58.040 --> 0:14:00.520 of fans there. I get the golf and have a 0:14:00.559 --> 0:14:06.920 stadium feel. Very often. I understand why it's like this spectacle. 0:14:07.000 --> 0:14:09.720 It's like this shiny object, but when it comes to 0:14:09.920 --> 0:14:14.480 showing a golf match, it's literally the least important shot 0:14:15.520 --> 0:14:18.720 of the day is the first te shot, and I 0:14:18.880 --> 0:14:21.760 just can't It's like now a pet peeve of mine, 0:14:22.360 --> 0:14:25.400 because like it's just like running for like the thirsty 0:14:25.680 --> 0:14:30.280 social impressions it's run. It's like the coverage just being 0:14:30.360 --> 0:14:33.240 like trying to make golf cool. Like you know, what's 0:14:33.280 --> 0:14:37.440 actually way cooler than the first tea is when somebody 0:14:37.480 --> 0:14:40.800 hits like an unbelievable chip to save par and have 0:14:40.880 --> 0:14:43.920 a hole and throw the kind of throw the momentum 0:14:43.920 --> 0:14:47.680 of a match on its head. We miss that because 0:14:47.680 --> 0:14:51.080 we're showing people walking up to the first tea and 0:14:51.160 --> 0:14:54.880 a crowd cheering, like to me, like this is I 0:14:54.880 --> 0:14:56.840 guess this is what I'm out on. This is what 0:14:56.880 --> 0:15:00.560 I'm out on. I'm out on Golf's constantly to water 0:15:00.720 --> 0:15:04.440 down the product and like think that we need stuff 0:15:04.480 --> 0:15:08.000 like a cool first t atmosphere to appeal to people, 0:15:08.320 --> 0:15:12.920 like show the sport what's exciting about the sport is 0:15:12.960 --> 0:15:17.360 when players hit miraculous shots in match play that that 0:15:17.560 --> 0:15:21.840 somehow square matches, or hit unbelievable shots that you know, 0:15:22.360 --> 0:15:24.840 flip a hole when it looks like they're going to 0:15:24.920 --> 0:15:27.560 lose a hole, they hit a great recovery shot and 0:15:27.640 --> 0:15:31.640 win a hole. Show those shots. That is what's exciting 0:15:32.160 --> 0:15:35.720 about the sport, especially match play, and it gives you 0:15:35.760 --> 0:15:39.960 this awesome opportunity to show these shots and follow these 0:15:40.000 --> 0:15:43.760 matches that hinge on like these micro moments. That is 0:15:43.840 --> 0:15:47.520 what's amazing about the sport. It's not watching somebody walk 0:15:47.600 --> 0:15:51.080 to the first tea box and people cheer. That's actually 0:15:51.160 --> 0:15:55.720 extremely dull and it gets repetitive after like you know, 0:15:55.920 --> 0:15:58.320 show the matches go out, but like we didn't get 0:15:58.360 --> 0:16:00.640 to see any of the beginning of the Harley Hule 0:16:00.960 --> 0:16:03.960 Nelly Corda match, like two of the most marketable players. 0:16:04.240 --> 0:16:06.720 We're not getting to watch the match because we're watching, 0:16:07.160 --> 0:16:10.640 you know, Lily Avou walk from from the from the 0:16:10.680 --> 0:16:14.840 tunnel to the first t Like this is insane. Like 0:16:15.240 --> 0:16:20.600 imagine like the NFL, the greatest TV sports product. You 0:16:20.640 --> 0:16:23.320 know what they show about ten seconds of players walking 0:16:23.360 --> 0:16:25.480 out of the field. You know what they never miss 0:16:25.600 --> 0:16:29.520 a play. They never miss a play because that's what matters. 0:16:29.600 --> 0:16:33.480 They don't water down the product. It's not like, hey, 0:16:34.400 --> 0:16:36.400 like maybe they water down the product a little in 0:16:36.480 --> 0:16:39.480 Taylor Swift's in the stands. Okay, maybe they they do 0:16:39.640 --> 0:16:39.960 do that. 0:16:40.680 --> 0:16:45.240 It's like after Travis Kelcey makes makes a play. 0:16:45.760 --> 0:16:48.360 That's like the only time I water the product down. 0:16:48.800 --> 0:16:54.640 But anyways, my point is like, show the matches, lean 0:16:54.800 --> 0:17:01.120 into the beauty of the sport. To stop andering, stop 0:17:01.320 --> 0:17:05.600 trying to think that golf needs something outside the product. 0:17:05.960 --> 0:17:10.600 It is an unbelievably captivating, complex sport and by just 0:17:10.720 --> 0:17:17.560 showing the action that's in talking at about it in 0:17:17.800 --> 0:17:21.640 like not worry not worrying about trying to make it cool. 0:17:21.920 --> 0:17:23.480 You're you're gonna make it cool. 0:17:24.640 --> 0:17:28.240 Can you imagine if if Taylor Swift were dating a 0:17:28.320 --> 0:17:31.639 PGA Tour golfer, how much of her they would they 0:17:31.640 --> 0:17:34.680 would be showing during the telecasts. I mean it would 0:17:34.720 --> 0:17:38.840 be insane, it would be it would be remarkable. All right, 0:17:38.880 --> 0:17:40.439 Sorry you were going to say something, Joseph, go. 0:17:40.440 --> 0:17:42.439 Ahead, No, I think the first team build out is 0:17:42.480 --> 0:17:44.879 important for the on site experience. 0:17:44.920 --> 0:17:48.320 You got to. You got to. It's a matter of ratios, though, right. 0:17:48.560 --> 0:17:50.879 Right, absolutely, I think the way that they missed the 0:17:50.920 --> 0:17:52.720 opening shots and you couldn't see a lot of the 0:17:52.720 --> 0:17:54.760 whole court of match, like you've lost the plot at 0:17:54.760 --> 0:17:57.120 that point, And the same thing happens with the Ryder Cup. 0:17:57.720 --> 0:18:02.200 Exacting as a hardcore go to not see the opening 0:18:02.280 --> 0:18:06.280 few holes of some of the coolest, most high profile matches, 0:18:06.320 --> 0:18:09.200 and you're missing. Oftentimes the best players are sent off first, 0:18:09.640 --> 0:18:12.560 so the longer they dwell on the first team build out, 0:18:12.560 --> 0:18:15.840 you're missing the most high profile match, like the entire 0:18:15.880 --> 0:18:18.320 front nine. So I'm with you on that. What I'm 0:18:18.359 --> 0:18:21.680 out on, I think is a combination of both things 0:18:21.680 --> 0:18:24.240 that Garrett and Andy, you both said, I'm out on 0:18:24.280 --> 0:18:26.440 a lot of what's happened on the LPGA tour this year. 0:18:26.960 --> 0:18:29.600 I think you could make the argument that it was 0:18:29.640 --> 0:18:32.520 a successful year. Nelly Korda had an unbelievable year, and 0:18:32.560 --> 0:18:35.080 there's a Salheim Cup that had some enthusiasm for it. 0:18:35.359 --> 0:18:37.679 But I think the alternate view, and the one I 0:18:37.720 --> 0:18:40.879 subscribe to a little more is, yeah, you had Nelly Korda, 0:18:41.080 --> 0:18:47.919 like a generational, very marketable young American star, have a 0:18:47.960 --> 0:18:51.280 good year, and a Salheim Cup year, did you capitalize 0:18:51.280 --> 0:18:53.920 on it? And it feels to me like they did 0:18:53.960 --> 0:18:57.200 not capitalize on it in any way. The turning off 0:18:57.240 --> 0:18:59.320 of a lot of fans with the shuttle bus situation 0:19:00.240 --> 0:19:03.600 is one incident, but I think it's emblematic of larger 0:19:03.680 --> 0:19:06.280 leadership issues to an extent, and I think you have 0:19:06.320 --> 0:19:09.080 to question after this year if it's moving in the 0:19:09.160 --> 0:19:12.159 right direction, like why is twenty twenty five going to 0:19:12.200 --> 0:19:14.560 be a more successful year for the LPGA Tour than 0:19:14.560 --> 0:19:16.920 twenty twenty four was, Because, at least from my perspective 0:19:16.920 --> 0:19:19.600 as somebody who doesn't watch it every week but does 0:19:19.640 --> 0:19:23.320 engage with the high profile LPGA Tour events, I certainly 0:19:23.440 --> 0:19:25.760 was not greeted with a great viewing experience at any 0:19:25.800 --> 0:19:28.000 point this year, and I think enthusiasm for the LPGA 0:19:28.080 --> 0:19:31.080 Tour is low. I think it's reasonable to question if 0:19:31.080 --> 0:19:34.160 this was a successful year despite some of the windfalls 0:19:34.200 --> 0:19:35.040 that they could have had. 0:19:35.200 --> 0:19:37.720 They could have had, Yeah, tell me if this is 0:19:37.760 --> 0:19:40.840 an unfair comparison. It is at an unfair comparison. I 0:19:40.880 --> 0:19:44.080 know that, But look what's going on with the WNBA 0:19:44.240 --> 0:19:50.000 right now, And obviously Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese are 0:19:50.920 --> 0:19:52.000 rare superstars. 0:19:52.640 --> 0:19:56.280 I'm glad that you acknowledge the Chicago sky Superstars. 0:19:56.280 --> 0:19:58.840 Oh god, oh god, no, thank. 0:19:58.680 --> 0:20:02.359 You, thank you for acknowledging Skytown. We're very proud of 0:20:02.840 --> 0:20:04.440 it in Chicagoans. 0:20:05.960 --> 0:20:08.840 Thanks Sandy, this has been this has been your your 0:20:08.880 --> 0:20:15.600 daily word from Chicago. Man. Clearly, clearly those are are 0:20:15.880 --> 0:20:22.320 are a rare breed of athlete. But the w n 0:20:22.359 --> 0:20:25.719 b A has done a really great job of channeling 0:20:26.359 --> 0:20:30.679 the organic enthusiasm for these players and for the league. 0:20:31.280 --> 0:20:33.840 And it just seems like the LPGA Tour is not 0:20:34.280 --> 0:20:40.960 similarly situated to deal with the breakout popularity of any 0:20:41.000 --> 0:20:44.320 given player where whether that's Nelly Korda or to an extent, 0:20:44.560 --> 0:20:45.200 Charlie Hole. 0:20:45.400 --> 0:20:48.720 Right, Rose a couple of years ago was a disaster. 0:20:49.640 --> 0:20:52.920 The rollout was was not great. And you know what, 0:20:53.400 --> 0:20:57.720 like Roseaning has done some remarkable stuff in the past 0:20:57.760 --> 0:21:00.520 couple of years now, I will say that that Rose's 0:21:01.600 --> 0:21:04.480 personality is low key, that's just who she is. She 0:21:04.920 --> 0:21:10.040 doesn't kind of sparkle in interviews and so maybe that 0:21:10.080 --> 0:21:13.680 element isn't there. But she won her first event as 0:21:13.720 --> 0:21:17.040 an LPGA Tour player. She has kept winning and she 0:21:17.119 --> 0:21:20.200 hasn't been impressive in majors, but this is still an 0:21:20.240 --> 0:21:25.000 exciting developing storyline in women's golf. And clearly what Nelly 0:21:25.080 --> 0:21:27.320 Corda did this year, especially in the first half of 0:21:27.320 --> 0:21:31.639 the year, was remarkable and I think probably could have 0:21:31.720 --> 0:21:36.480 been capitalized on a lot more effectively by the LPGA Tour. 0:21:36.520 --> 0:21:39.879 The LPGA Tour, I believe, needs to have the attitude 0:21:39.960 --> 0:21:43.560 that we're trying to lift up and promote our star 0:21:43.680 --> 0:21:46.679 players and try to get them to resonate in the 0:21:46.720 --> 0:21:50.800 culture as much as possible. The strategy is different than 0:21:51.320 --> 0:21:54.320 you know, the PGA Tour, which can allow things to 0:21:54.880 --> 0:21:58.160 kind of just unfold, but the LPGA Tour really needs 0:21:58.200 --> 0:22:00.480 to kind of pounce on these moments, and it just 0:22:00.480 --> 0:22:04.240 doesn't seem like the current leadership is really into that. Right. 0:22:04.800 --> 0:22:08.200 For a while when Mike Wan was commissioner, there was 0:22:10.160 --> 0:22:13.280 a feeling of energy like we're going to make this happen. 0:22:13.880 --> 0:22:17.800 But things have calmed down during the reign of the 0:22:18.200 --> 0:22:22.080 current commissioner, and I think that's a problem. 0:22:22.600 --> 0:22:25.199 The difficult part of the comparison is that the WNBA, 0:22:25.440 --> 0:22:28.000 I think this warrants being said, doesn't go head to 0:22:28.000 --> 0:22:32.000 head with the NBA and with the golf men's professional 0:22:32.040 --> 0:22:35.560 calendar basically spanning year round. In it being an outdoor sport, 0:22:35.800 --> 0:22:39.320 it's a little bit difficult. The Kaitlin Clark isn't playing 0:22:39.320 --> 0:22:41.679 at the same time as Lebron James and Steph Curry. 0:22:41.960 --> 0:22:44.480 It's really hard for the women's game to earn its 0:22:44.480 --> 0:22:47.040 spot in the certain television window. 0:22:47.080 --> 0:22:47.720 But I don't know. 0:22:47.760 --> 0:22:51.440 Maybe there's a streaming option. The WNBA has their own 0:22:51.520 --> 0:22:54.320 league pass set up, and I don't know if it's 0:22:54.640 --> 0:22:56.600 the LPGA Tour is going to build out a whole 0:22:56.680 --> 0:22:59.639 league pass, But I think the availability of watching it 0:22:59.680 --> 0:23:02.479 on television has been a huge problem for the LPGA 0:23:02.520 --> 0:23:04.520 Tour this year. It's very difficult to find where it's 0:23:04.520 --> 0:23:07.360 going to be, so a lot of issues. I'll cut 0:23:07.359 --> 0:23:09.399 on some slack on that, but it doesn't feel like 0:23:09.440 --> 0:23:11.040 they capitalized. Andy, What were you about to say? 0:23:12.119 --> 0:23:15.719 I just think in general it's a tough situation. I 0:23:15.720 --> 0:23:20.600 think like there are a lot of aspects of the 0:23:20.760 --> 0:23:25.720 LPGA and I think we could this probably can parlay 0:23:25.800 --> 0:23:28.200 us into Live a little bit. But I think when 0:23:28.240 --> 0:23:31.679 you look at the organization, how they view the sport, 0:23:32.080 --> 0:23:36.920