WEBVTT - Drafting a New PGA Tour Schedule 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 --> 0:00:06.960 And when I find my ball in a brid egg 0:00:07.200 --> 0:00:11.960 Friday egg, the dreaded Friday Friday Friday Bride egg, Lie. 0:00:11.880 --> 0:00:38.159 I'm about ready to run off of the course. Welcome 0:00:38.240 --> 0:00:41.040 back to the Friday Golf Podcast. I am your host, 0:00:41.159 --> 0:00:45.040 Andy Johnason. Today I am joined by a couple of 0:00:45.120 --> 0:00:49.080 my colleagues at Friday Golf. Excited to chat with Kevin 0:00:49.159 --> 0:00:53.120 van Valkenberg and Joseph Lamannia as we do every month. 0:00:53.440 --> 0:00:53.559 Uh. 0:00:54.360 --> 0:00:56.840 Today we are going to be talking about what I 0:00:57.000 --> 0:00:59.800 think will be the hot topic in golf in the 0:01:00.080 --> 0:01:05.200 coming weeks. The schedule moving forward. I think there have 0:01:05.280 --> 0:01:07.160 been a lot of rumors about what it might be, 0:01:08.600 --> 0:01:12.720 and you know, kind of the big through line of 0:01:12.840 --> 0:01:14.960 all the rumors, it's gonna be a lot smaller. It's 0:01:14.959 --> 0:01:17.160 gonna be a condensed schedule. There are a lot of 0:01:17.200 --> 0:01:19.640 rumors about when it might start. It seems like we're 0:01:19.680 --> 0:01:25.800 speeding towards a February to August PGA Tour schedule. Fewer events, 0:01:26.480 --> 0:01:30.560 more selective, you know, fewer players exempt into these fields. 0:01:31.080 --> 0:01:35.919 So I'm going to talk with Kevin and Joseph about 0:01:36.000 --> 0:01:38.319 this and kind of what we would like to see 0:01:38.680 --> 0:01:43.000 from the PGA Tour schedule. Before we get to Kevin Joseph, 0:01:43.400 --> 0:01:46.800 today's podcast is brought to you by our friends over 0:01:46.880 --> 0:01:49.920 at Golf Galaxy. 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So visit 0:02:50.200 --> 0:02:53.440 Golf Galaxy, go to your local store, check out the 0:02:53.480 --> 0:02:57.000 mobile app, and start playing your best golf with fitted clubs. 0:02:57.360 --> 0:03:07.200 All right, let's get to Kevin and Joseph. All right, 0:03:07.440 --> 0:03:10.920 I'm joined by Kevin van Valkenberg and Joseph Lamania from 0:03:11.000 --> 0:03:13.440 Friday Golf, our monthly catch up. 0:03:14.160 --> 0:03:17.720 Boys, how are we any fantastic? 0:03:18.880 --> 0:03:21.760 I'm excited. I actually love this topic. So it feels 0:03:21.760 --> 0:03:23.760 like a huge news coming over the next couple of weeks. 0:03:23.800 --> 0:03:24.480 It feels timely. 0:03:24.960 --> 0:03:27.480 Yeah, so this is I think this is a little precursor. 0:03:27.600 --> 0:03:30.640 I think next week we get the players next week 0:03:31.200 --> 0:03:34.560 or two next week, and it will be I think 0:03:34.639 --> 0:03:38.400 dominated by Brian Rollapse kind of press conference. He'll be 0:03:38.480 --> 0:03:42.520 his first one as a commissioner. And from you know, 0:03:42.680 --> 0:03:45.360 intel that I've gathered over the last few weeks from 0:03:45.480 --> 0:03:50.200 numerous people, I think a seismic schedule change is coming. 0:03:50.320 --> 0:03:54.480 I don't think this is any groundbreaking news to golf fans. 0:03:55.600 --> 0:03:58.800 I do think there are some some details in here 0:03:58.920 --> 0:04:01.920 that I'm just kinda gonna, you know, lay down what 0:04:02.000 --> 0:04:05.520 I've heard from a variety of sources of where this 0:04:05.680 --> 0:04:09.480 thing's going. And I think it's interesting. Everybody's been kind 0:04:09.480 --> 0:04:13.920 of battened around the scarcity schedule. I think there's going 0:04:14.000 --> 0:04:17.400 to be a, yes, a scarcity schedule, but it's also 0:04:17.560 --> 0:04:20.719 going to be a golf calendar that looks and feels 0:04:20.760 --> 0:04:23.120 similar to what it looks and feels like now. I 0:04:23.160 --> 0:04:26.840 don't think there's a huge seismic change coming when you 0:04:27.000 --> 0:04:31.880 see it in practice, we're i think speeding towards a 0:04:32.080 --> 0:04:34.360 tour that's like one hundred to one hundred and twenty 0:04:34.440 --> 0:04:38.440 players exempt. There will be you know, roughly twenty to 0:04:38.560 --> 0:04:42.960 twenty five events a year that PGA Tour runs on 0:04:43.080 --> 0:04:45.960 this top tier schedule. The way it would fill in 0:04:46.400 --> 0:04:50.080 outside of that would look a lot like Fall Series events, 0:04:51.400 --> 0:04:53.720 So that would be the type of event I think, 0:04:53.800 --> 0:04:56.520 like currently there's a misconception that it would like all 0:04:56.600 --> 0:04:59.440 the players that don't qualify for this upper tier tour 0:05:00.320 --> 0:05:02.800 will just go into Corn Fairy Tour and they'll be 0:05:02.839 --> 0:05:05.800 playing for Corn fairy tour purses. I don't think that's 0:05:05.880 --> 0:05:08.600 true at all. I think it'll be more in the 0:05:08.800 --> 0:05:11.520 four to six million dollar person, which I think is 0:05:12.040 --> 0:05:16.800 plenty of money to live for these guys. I think, 0:05:17.040 --> 0:05:20.080 you know, the big thing will be that they're I 0:05:20.200 --> 0:05:23.080 think that the attempt right now and we'll see where 0:05:23.120 --> 0:05:27.719 it gets to, is like a no exemption tour. You're 0:05:27.839 --> 0:05:31.280 you're either up or you're down, and that should be 0:05:31.720 --> 0:05:34.800 I think personally, if you if you want golf to 0:05:34.880 --> 0:05:38.719 be a meritocracy, as the tour often likes to puff 0:05:38.760 --> 0:05:42.440 his chests out that they're this great meritocracy, the truth 0:05:42.560 --> 0:05:46.039 is they aren't really a true meritocracy. But if they 0:05:46.120 --> 0:05:50.520 went this direction, it would be a meritocracy. So there'd 0:05:50.560 --> 0:05:53.320 be you know, roughly like twenty to thirty players churned 0:05:53.600 --> 0:05:56.640 up and down per year, and that's the way it 0:05:56.680 --> 0:06:00.320 would work. It would be like a single churn year. 0:06:00.880 --> 0:06:03.840 I think the one of the big emphasises of this 0:06:04.000 --> 0:06:08.160 schedule will be market media markets. I don't think this 0:06:08.320 --> 0:06:11.159 is a surprise with with the with Brian roll app 0:06:11.200 --> 0:06:14.200 and coming from the NFL, I think he understands that 0:06:14.680 --> 0:06:16.440 you need to play your sport in the in the 0:06:16.520 --> 0:06:20.320 biggest media markets possible. So you know, I think for 0:06:20.480 --> 0:06:22.840 this exercise, what we're going to kind of kick around 0:06:23.000 --> 0:06:26.040 is events that we like to see make this schedule. 0:06:26.520 --> 0:06:29.719 But let's start with the idea of obviously we're going 0:06:29.800 --> 0:06:32.400 to have the players in this schedule. The players is 0:06:32.480 --> 0:06:36.799 going to exist. The other thing that's going to happen 0:06:37.120 --> 0:06:39.120 is they are going there are going to be events 0:06:39.160 --> 0:06:44.159 in in the likes of New York, Chicago, Los Angeles. 0:06:44.640 --> 0:06:48.160 Those are definite cities that will have events. So I'm 0:06:48.240 --> 0:06:51.000 just going to take riv off the table. But then 0:06:51.080 --> 0:06:54.040 I'm going to also say that New York and Chicago 0:06:54.600 --> 0:06:57.720 will have events. There's likely going to be like a 0:06:57.880 --> 0:07:02.279 Boston event, uh maybe splits between two cities at one point, 0:07:02.720 --> 0:07:05.599 so you know that will be another event. But these 0:07:05.920 --> 0:07:12.480 these starved media markets, massive media markets that for incomprehensible 0:07:12.600 --> 0:07:15.400 reasons for the last ten years, haven't had regular events, 0:07:15.440 --> 0:07:20.440 whether it's Chicago, New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, d C. 0:07:21.800 --> 0:07:24.760 They they are coming. Those are going to be events. 0:07:25.280 --> 0:07:28.280 And I think that like when you do the math 0:07:28.400 --> 0:07:32.360 on that, all of a sudden you're set with like 0:07:32.680 --> 0:07:35.520 probably five to six events that are going to be 0:07:35.880 --> 0:07:39.880 of these twenty and I think it's fascinating to talk 0:07:40.360 --> 0:07:44.080 about where the things go. I was speaking with a 0:07:44.160 --> 0:07:48.720 gentleman this week, this past week in Florida, who who 0:07:49.360 --> 0:07:53.440 who had looked into a tour sponsorship, and he was 0:07:53.480 --> 0:07:57.160 telling me, listen, like, the thing about it, you know, 0:07:57.360 --> 0:08:02.000 is you don't you don't even get a certainty at 0:08:02.040 --> 0:08:06.240 this point that your your event is going to stay 0:08:06.280 --> 0:08:09.840 in the market that you sign up for. So what 0:08:10.040 --> 0:08:14.200 that told me is the tour is ready to really 0:08:15.480 --> 0:08:20.440 change this to extreme measures where you know, a tour 0:08:20.520 --> 0:08:24.280 sponsor could sign up for an event, have it be 0:08:24.400 --> 0:08:27.680 their home base or whatever it may be, and then 0:08:27.800 --> 0:08:32.079 have that event change markets one year into the contract. Right, 0:08:32.840 --> 0:08:35.520 So I do think this is this is the direction 0:08:35.640 --> 0:08:39.960 it's heading. I think, you know, obviously some stuff that's 0:08:39.960 --> 0:08:44.440 been floated around various reporting. I know Amon Lynch has 0:08:44.559 --> 0:08:48.240 reported on this. The tour is looking at a schedule 0:08:48.360 --> 0:08:53.560 start around around February. But I wanted to get your 0:08:53.600 --> 0:08:56.160 guys as insight. Kind of the directive I gave you 0:08:56.280 --> 0:08:59.160 guys has come with the three events that you are 0:08:59.240 --> 0:09:02.160 going to stand on the table and bang your fists 0:09:02.200 --> 0:09:07.480 against the desk saying these must be a part of 0:09:07.679 --> 0:09:10.199 the schedule and we could kind of just jump off 0:09:10.240 --> 0:09:10.559 from there. 0:09:12.120 --> 0:09:14.640 All right, Joseph, I have got one that I'm ready 0:09:14.679 --> 0:09:16.640 to fire up, that I'm ready to kick off. 0:09:16.679 --> 0:09:18.199 If you're going to be upset if you take mine, 0:09:18.280 --> 0:09:18.640 go ahead. 0:09:19.000 --> 0:09:22.760 Okay. There's a lot of talk about that this tour 0:09:22.840 --> 0:09:27.559 should start at the WM in Phoenix. I disagree with this. 0:09:28.520 --> 0:09:30.839 I want us to go back to Hawaii and back 0:09:30.880 --> 0:09:34.480 to the Plantation Course. But here's my catch. I want 0:09:35.080 --> 0:09:38.040 a thirty six person field. I want two days of 0:09:38.080 --> 0:09:41.160 stroke play and then match play that goes down from 0:09:41.240 --> 0:09:43.559 a field of sixteen. All right, the winner of the 0:09:43.640 --> 0:09:46.000 FedEx Cup, the winner of the Players, and the winner 0:09:46.040 --> 0:09:48.280 of the four Majors are given an auto spot into 0:09:48.320 --> 0:09:51.800 match play, so the other ten guys are playing for seeds. 0:09:52.320 --> 0:09:54.960 This way, we still get to start the tour in Hawaii. 0:09:55.400 --> 0:09:57.040 We only have thirty six guys there, so you can 0:09:57.040 --> 0:09:59.160 basically take winners from last year. You can sort of 0:09:59.240 --> 0:10:02.920 fit in that, and we get an element of match play. 0:10:03.400 --> 0:10:05.120 It's a little bit easier sort of begin to the 0:10:05.200 --> 0:10:08.079 grinding season. We don't have to worry about shooting thirty 0:10:08.160 --> 0:10:11.360 under at the Plantation Course. Anymore. We still get an 0:10:11.520 --> 0:10:14.840 iconic course that is part of the tour's recent history, 0:10:15.400 --> 0:10:17.880 but we get to have match play, and the likelihood 0:10:18.040 --> 0:10:21.920 of Scotty, of Rory or whoever making it to the 0:10:22.000 --> 0:10:25.480 finals is increased by the fact that they're basically getting 0:10:25.520 --> 0:10:28.000 a bid into already through the stroke play. I feel 0:10:28.000 --> 0:10:30.800 like this is a great way to look at this. 0:10:30.960 --> 0:10:33.880 The real season probably hasn't truly started yet, but it's 0:10:33.880 --> 0:10:37.040 still more of a relaxed atmosphere. You're not playing a 0:10:37.120 --> 0:10:39.520 full eighteen every day. I feel like this is a 0:10:39.559 --> 0:10:41.160 great way to hold on to a piece of the 0:10:41.200 --> 0:10:44.800 tour's history and maintain some element of match play before 0:10:44.880 --> 0:10:46.640 your actual stroke play season begins. 0:10:47.840 --> 0:10:49.120 I mean, I'm not a post to what I was 0:10:49.160 --> 0:10:51.040 going to lead with, so I guess we're just gonna 0:10:51.120 --> 0:10:54.040 start with the argument here. Please, you've already alluded to it. 0:10:54.240 --> 0:10:57.959 I think waste management has never made more sense to 0:10:58.080 --> 0:10:59.959 kick off the season, and I think they have done 0:11:01.120 --> 0:11:05.240 everything well save for the event getting a little out 0:11:05.240 --> 0:11:07.680 of hand a couple of years ago. But how well 0:11:07.800 --> 0:11:12.120 the waste management works with a strong field the party element, 0:11:12.360 --> 0:11:15.240 I think it works incredibly well in its current date 0:11:15.360 --> 0:11:18.760 of the Super Bowl, a star studded field with every 0:11:18.800 --> 0:11:21.400 top player on the PGA Tour at Waste Management, I 0:11:21.440 --> 0:11:24.000 think would be one of the biggest spectacles in sport, 0:11:24.360 --> 0:11:27.280 and to me feels like the clear starting point for 0:11:27.480 --> 0:11:31.319 the year. I don't reject entirely your idea, Kevin, like 0:11:31.400 --> 0:11:34.199 I think there are people who have valid critiques of 0:11:34.400 --> 0:11:39.800 match play from the owgr standpoint, from how compelling is Sunday, 0:11:39.960 --> 0:11:42.880 from all of the how do you assign FedEx's cut points, 0:11:42.920 --> 0:11:44.880 and that stuff shouldn't get in the way of putting 0:11:44.920 --> 0:11:47.400 on a great event. So I'm with you to an extent, 0:11:48.760 --> 0:11:50.520 but I would if I were a commissioner of the 0:11:50.600 --> 0:11:53.680 PGA Tour Waste Management Phoenix Open is starting the season, 0:11:53.720 --> 0:11:55.920 I think it would be truly one of the coolest 0:11:55.960 --> 0:11:56.920 events in all of golf. 0:11:57.720 --> 0:11:59.480 I don't disagree with that. I also just think that 0:11:59.600 --> 0:12:02.640 Hawaii could be kind of like a silly season kickoff. 0:12:02.760 --> 0:12:05.719 Have a skills challenge on Tuesday. There's only thirty six 0:12:05.800 --> 0:12:08.360 guys there, make it sort of light and fun. Everybody 0:12:08.440 --> 0:12:10.240 has to kind of participate in the media elements of 0:12:10.320 --> 0:12:13.240 it make there be like a you know, a fun 0:12:13.480 --> 0:12:14.959 kind of you know kind of what they did with 0:12:15.080 --> 0:12:18.000 this skills challenge of the Trump Course recently. Whatever the 0:12:18.520 --> 0:12:21.559 optim the Golf Games whatever, do that on like a 0:12:21.640 --> 0:12:24.640 Monday Tuesday. Then go into that and honestly, if you 0:12:24.640 --> 0:12:27.360 don't want to, like make it what the hero should be, 0:12:27.480 --> 0:12:30.959 which is like no OGBR points should be awarded. This 0:12:31.120 --> 0:12:34.040 is just a kind of a casual, fun kickoff to 0:12:34.240 --> 0:12:35.360 the tour's season. 0:12:36.679 --> 0:12:39.360 K I throw another idea out there with yours. I 0:12:39.679 --> 0:12:42.720 do like this event construct. I think it's really cool. 0:12:43.000 --> 0:12:45.400 It reminds me a little bit of they used to 0:12:45.520 --> 0:12:48.400 do the golf I think it was called the Grand 0:12:48.480 --> 0:12:51.000 Slam at the end of the year or it was 0:12:51.120 --> 0:12:53.640 like and it would be all the major winners would 0:12:53.679 --> 0:12:57.280 play effectively, Like I think that format was skins game 0:12:57.720 --> 0:13:01.400 or something like that. At course, I feel like it 0:13:01.480 --> 0:13:03.720 was in Hawaii at one point. I'm trying to recall 0:13:04.200 --> 0:13:09.240 childhood memories of watching that. What if this event occurred 0:13:09.960 --> 0:13:13.000 after the playoffs, like at the end of the year 0:13:13.360 --> 0:13:18.079 where it's the top thirty or whatever it's that, and 0:13:18.200 --> 0:13:21.839 what if that was like actually the closing event of 0:13:22.200 --> 0:13:25.280 the PGA Tour calendar where you get invited into this 0:13:26.120 --> 0:13:29.640 and there's a big Kittie. There's a skills competition and 0:13:29.760 --> 0:13:34.120 it's a coronation that being the closing event in August 0:13:34.480 --> 0:13:38.560 in Hawaii where you're then playing. You're able to set 0:13:38.640 --> 0:13:41.640 this TV this TV calendar, like you think about making 0:13:41.720 --> 0:13:46.680 a spectacle from television. You get your probably most most 0:13:46.720 --> 0:13:53.079 desirable television locale in terms of the setting, with like 0:13:53.240 --> 0:13:56.760 the greatest TV window. You could have this thing rocking 0:13:56.840 --> 0:14:02.280 and roll until eleven o'clock Eastern with no daylight concerns. 0:14:02.920 --> 0:14:04.680 And that's the way you set it up. You set 0:14:04.720 --> 0:14:07.880 it up at the back. Then you get this ability 0:14:07.960 --> 0:14:10.520 to start the season where you want to start it 0:14:10.960 --> 0:14:14.760 with with with with Scottsdale. I want to point out 0:14:14.840 --> 0:14:18.199 one thing I forgot to mention here with the schedule 0:14:18.320 --> 0:14:21.240 is like the way it would work from what I 0:14:21.360 --> 0:14:26.800 gather potentially is every event's worth the same. And if 0:14:26.840 --> 0:14:29.440 you're on this tour, you can set your schedule however 0:14:29.560 --> 0:14:32.640 you want. But if you skip, you get no points 0:14:32.680 --> 0:14:35.720 and there's no exemptions and there's no golden parachute. You know, 0:14:35.800 --> 0:14:40.080 it's set your schedule as you wish, but just know 0:14:40.720 --> 0:14:42.400 there's no coming back if you don't make it. 0:14:42.760 --> 0:14:46.320 You know, I don't hate that at all. I think 0:14:46.360 --> 0:14:48.720 that's why you have to choose. You know, you have 0:14:48.840 --> 0:14:52.120 to sort of strategize what you want, and sometimes guys 0:14:52.160 --> 0:14:54.320 are I mean, that's like the NFL playoffs. Every freaking 0:14:54.400 --> 0:14:57.080 game matters, doesn't matter if you get up for some 0:14:57.200 --> 0:14:59.240 games and down for others, Like it's it's a week 0:14:59.280 --> 0:15:02.000 to week. You gotta win all the things. So I 0:15:02.160 --> 0:15:04.120 like that idea. Make them make some of the stars 0:15:04.200 --> 0:15:06.920 go to courses where they think, you know, they could 0:15:06.920 --> 0:15:09.800 pick up points. Make some guys go to John Deere 0:15:09.840 --> 0:15:11.360 or whatever. If that's still gonna exist. 0:15:12.440 --> 0:15:15.800 I'm going to uh, I'm I didn't think I was 0:15:15.880 --> 0:15:21.400 going to do this. A week ago, I would have said, 0:15:21.480 --> 0:15:25.800 dissolved this event. I do think that the Honda Classic 0:15:26.000 --> 0:15:31.840 WOW should exist. I think South Florida. Yeah, and you 0:15:31.920 --> 0:15:35.480 can rotate it between a variety of courses. But if 0:15:35.520 --> 0:15:39.600 you're talking about starting the season in February, you're and 0:15:39.680 --> 0:15:43.160 they're talking about ending the season in August, you need 0:15:43.200 --> 0:15:49.800 a lot of venues that could host events in February, March, April, 0:15:50.320 --> 0:15:53.920 and that that limits where you can host. And as 0:15:54.000 --> 0:15:58.040 we've laid out, you know, with New York Chicago likely 0:15:58.160 --> 0:16:02.120 getting likely gang event, and there is it seems like 0:16:02.280 --> 0:16:06.680 desire to move Pebble and Riviera to a date that's 0:16:06.800 --> 0:16:09.680 better for the you know, the golf courses and when 0:16:09.680 --> 0:16:15.760 you're showing them, you need a South Florida event. You know, 0:16:15.920 --> 0:16:18.880 maybe it's not the Miami Championship or whatever they're calling 0:16:18.960 --> 0:16:21.640 the one that's going to trump derail, but like one 0:16:21.840 --> 0:16:26.600 South Florida event I think played in February. February slash 0:16:26.760 --> 0:16:31.760 early March. That is an awesome event because you get 0:16:31.800 --> 0:16:35.359 to see these guys go down and play in tough conditions. 0:16:35.760 --> 0:16:39.040 You know, Scott steals a dome if you kept am 0:16:39.200 --> 0:16:41.320 a Palm Desert on the schedule, which you might have 0:16:41.520 --> 0:16:45.080 to to accommodate this structure that they're looking to do. 0:16:45.840 --> 0:16:50.120 That's mostly a dome. I think guys playing, especially with 0:16:50.240 --> 0:16:55.880 the modern equipment setup, guys playing in really harsh environments 0:16:56.080 --> 0:16:58.960 and in South Florida is delightful that time of year. 0:16:59.480 --> 0:17:01.960 But it's just that win can be just a beast 0:17:02.120 --> 0:17:05.080 and there's something about that wind. It's it's similar to 0:17:05.160 --> 0:17:08.920 when you play in in the UK. It's just a 0:17:09.040 --> 0:17:13.359 wind that's heavy. It impacts the ball more often and 0:17:13.520 --> 0:17:15.600 I didn't. I didn't know I was gonna get to here. 0:17:15.800 --> 0:17:19.879 But watching Shane Lowry just completely self destruct down the 0:17:19.960 --> 0:17:23.720 stretch of the bear Trap a moniker, I dislike a 0:17:23.840 --> 0:17:26.360 golf course I would never want to go play myself. 0:17:27.359 --> 0:17:32.359 There's something about water, litter, lited, littered golf courses with 0:17:33.000 --> 0:17:37.160 heavy winds that I've found myself fond of. That there's 0:17:37.359 --> 0:17:40.440 there's fear, and that that felt like for me the 0:17:40.560 --> 0:17:43.960 first time these guys have been really tested, uh in 0:17:44.359 --> 0:17:47.560 a while. In a while on the PGH tour schedules. 0:17:48.440 --> 0:17:51.040 One thing you're kind of hitting on that I'm fascinated 0:17:51.080 --> 0:17:55.639 by that is the least of the tours. There's no 0:17:55.880 --> 0:17:57.959 chance Brian roll out. This is a priority for him. 0:17:58.000 --> 0:18:01.480 But as the schedule changes, like are the players who 0:18:01.560 --> 0:18:05.400 succeed on the PGA Tour going to change? Like for example, 0:18:05.480 --> 0:18:07.160 And I don't know that they're actually moving the West 0:18:07.240 --> 0:18:10.440 Coast to the playoffs, as that's sort of been rumored, 0:18:10.520 --> 0:18:12.200 Like I don't know how realistic it is to move 0:18:12.280 --> 0:18:15.480 Riviera Toy, but let's just say the West Coast swing 0:18:15.640 --> 0:18:18.480 kind of got moved towards the playoffs or later in 0:18:18.520 --> 0:18:21.520 the season. Only the top players ended up making it there, 0:18:21.560 --> 0:18:24.080 Like would you remove some of those guys who rely 0:18:24.240 --> 0:18:26.560 on the West coast, like the really good POA hutters. 0:18:26.800 --> 0:18:29.480 They're sort of fringe PGA Tour players, but that's where 0:18:29.520 --> 0:18:33.160 they get their points. Like, more broadly, to your point, 0:18:33.280 --> 0:18:36.200 I think the schedule should reflect a diversity of skill 0:18:36.280 --> 0:18:38.760 set and if you're gonna play in a dome in Phoenix, 0:18:39.160 --> 0:18:43.040 having a water littered test in South Florida also makes 0:18:43.119 --> 0:18:44.800 some sense. And then balance it out. You're gonna have 0:18:45.160 --> 0:18:47.160 other big tournaments. I'm sure we'll get to some of them, 0:18:47.200 --> 0:18:49.879 but it should be a variety of golf courses. And 0:18:49.920 --> 0:18:53.359 if they just go with their premier events and sacrifice 0:18:53.359 --> 0:18:55.960 a little bit of variety, it could have a small 0:18:56.040 --> 0:18:58.800 impact on which players maintain their status on the PGA Tour. 0:18:58.840 --> 0:19:00.960 I don't want to overstate it huge impact, but it's 0:19:01.000 --> 0:19:02.320 just an interesting thing to keep an eye on. 0:19:02.800 --> 0:19:05.960 Listen, I think you're you're hitting off something. The margins 0:19:06.080 --> 0:19:11.600 in golf are so so slim you're talking about, you know, 0:19:11.840 --> 0:19:16.520 especially especially for the fringe players. You know, your your Rory's, 0:19:16.600 --> 0:19:20.240 your Scottie's, your standards. They're gonna you tee it up 0:19:20.280 --> 0:19:23.000 at any golf course they're going to get through. But 0:19:23.119 --> 0:19:25.840 I do think you're you're spot on with like certain 0:19:25.920 --> 0:19:27.920 golf courses, like this is a good you know, the 0:19:28.200 --> 0:19:30.960 week of this podcast is bay Hill. Bay Hill, you 0:19:31.080 --> 0:19:35.240 hit like six or seven two hundred plus yard approach shots. 0:19:36.200 --> 0:19:40.720 It's the most heavy long iron course and on the 0:19:40.800 --> 0:19:45.240 PGA Tour calendar, and thus this week illuminates a skill 0:19:45.320 --> 0:19:49.800 that's not often illuminated at most PGA Tour courses. That's good. 0:19:49.960 --> 0:19:53.320 I would think about this, you know, in terms of 0:19:53.480 --> 0:19:56.920 golf courses, and I don't, you know, personally, and this is, 0:19:57.320 --> 0:20:00.040 you know, very much a personal opinion. I don't. I 0:20:00.040 --> 0:20:04.440 don't think the PGA Tour has people that really understand 0:20:04.600 --> 0:20:06.760 golf courses at a deep level. I think there are 0:20:06.840 --> 0:20:08.720 a lot of people that have worked their way up 0:20:09.119 --> 0:20:13.800 corporate ranks, and you know, I think the the overall 0:20:13.920 --> 0:20:18.080 golf IQ and the people that make the decisions about 0:20:18.160 --> 0:20:21.320 golf at the PGA Tour HQ is is very low 0:20:21.440 --> 0:20:26.159 and frighteningly low. But something they should be contemplating is 0:20:26.440 --> 0:20:33.280 how does our venue selection impact what skills thrive and 0:20:33.400 --> 0:20:37.240 what players thrive. And I think there's some courses everybody 0:20:37.359 --> 0:20:40.760 always points to Harbortown as a course that's you know, 0:20:40.960 --> 0:20:44.440 atypical than the PGA Tour set up. But they should 0:20:44.520 --> 0:20:48.760 be building a calendar and they should be branding courses 0:20:48.960 --> 0:20:51.720 with like I mean, there should be such a more 0:20:51.960 --> 0:20:55.880 robust discussion on the on the front end of events 0:20:55.920 --> 0:21:00.119 about how they are setting up the golf course, how 0:21:00.240 --> 0:21:03.920 the golf course sets up for different types of players 0:21:04.080 --> 0:21:06.760 and thinking about it. I think that like F one 0:21:07.200 --> 0:21:09.800 is a good example of you know, there's a lot 0:21:09.880 --> 0:21:14.320 of discussion about what the track will do and what 0:21:14.520 --> 0:21:18.320 type of drivers and skills are rewarded. And I think 0:21:18.359 --> 0:21:22.200 it exists in the gambling community with golf. But the 0:21:22.560 --> 0:21:26.960 PGA Tour should you set up as this huge thing 0:21:27.080 --> 0:21:29.480 and you know right now you know the I think 0:21:29.560 --> 0:21:34.440 the PGA Tour setup can be characterized as they want 0:21:34.560 --> 0:21:37.560 every every event to feel like a Marriott. And what 0:21:37.680 --> 0:21:40.359 I mean by that is when you check in at 0:21:40.400 --> 0:21:44.080 a Marriott, you know exactly what you're getting and it's 0:21:44.200 --> 0:21:48.240 like a comfy place for the players because they know, Hey, 0:21:48.960 --> 0:21:54.000 I just left Phoenix, I'm going to Pebble. You know, 0:21:54.240 --> 0:21:56.960 I know what I'm gonna For the most part, expect 0:21:57.320 --> 0:21:59.359 this week the green speeds are going to be X. 0:22:00.080 --> 0:22:02.159 The type of sand at the golf course is this 0:22:02.520 --> 0:22:05.240 is the same. You know, the te locations. They aren't 0:22:05.240 --> 0:22:08.359 going to move these te's around very much throughout the event. 0:22:08.440 --> 0:22:10.480 Where they put them, that's where they're going to be 0:22:10.560 --> 0:22:15.720 all week. Course set up, the ideology behind course setup 0:22:16.160 --> 0:22:18.960 should be so much more because at the end of 0:22:19.040 --> 0:22:23.640 the day, course setup is the defense. That is the defense, 0:22:23.800 --> 0:22:27.360 that is the foil to great play. And right now 0:22:27.520 --> 0:22:31.080 it's not even a part of the storylines of a 0:22:31.160 --> 0:22:37.159 PGA Tour event. In fact, the ideology at the PGA 0:22:37.280 --> 0:22:40.280 Tours that course setup should never be a discussion point 0:22:40.800 --> 0:22:44.080 an event. They've failed a course setup. If the course 0:22:44.280 --> 0:22:48.080 ever becomes a storyline at a PGA Tour event, and that, 0:22:48.840 --> 0:22:51.600 I mean, that is just flat out like ass backwards. 0:22:53.200 --> 0:22:55.800 So I think that gets into one of my next 0:22:55.840 --> 0:22:59.240 points is I think that they should stop putting the 0:23:00.080 --> 0:23:03.280 bad not the bad tournaments, the lesser tournaments in front 0:23:03.320 --> 0:23:06.879 of majors. You don't control the majors. That's an understandable 0:23:06.920 --> 0:23:10.240 part of the PGA Tour. But like for example, I 0:23:10.280 --> 0:23:13.200 think heritage should be in front of the masters instead 0:23:13.200 --> 0:23:15.399 of behind it, like heritage is one of your I 0:23:15.440 --> 0:23:17.520 don't care about, like it doesn't suit it. The same thing, 0:23:17.600 --> 0:23:20.120 Oh you can't hit drivers there or whatever, tough shit 0:23:20.600 --> 0:23:23.920 like part of Like that's a good course that tests people. 0:23:24.280 --> 0:23:26.440 You should want to like build interests and so it's 0:23:26.480 --> 0:23:29.240 peaking into majors. That's only going to benefit your product 0:23:29.680 --> 0:23:33.080 even more if people come out of your event being excited. 0:23:33.200 --> 0:23:35.399