ABC Out in 2007

ABC has balked at Tim Finchem’s asking price and has apparently left the table in negotiations for television coverage in 2007 (and beyond).

ABC LogoGolf Digest and USA Today (via the AP) are reporting that television network ABC has walked out of negotiations with the PGA Tour for carrying tournament coverage beginning in 2007. This leaves only CBS and NBC at the table with Tour Commish Tim Finchem.

The current PGA Tour contract runs through the 2006 season. In 2007, the PGA Tour will feature a revamped schedule, a playoff system, the “FedEx Cup,” and a “Fall Finish”. Apparently, the ol’ Finchy is still asking for too much money, and ABC simply decided they’d heard enough. Despite having found success with Paul Azinger and Nick Faldo in the announcing booth, both players may need to hone their game for the Champions Tour come 2007 if they’d like at least a semi-regular paycheck.

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Volume Forty

Here’s the first installment of the 2006 Hittin’ the Links column.

Hittin' the LinksHello everyone, I’m back. I hope everyone had a great holiday and that santa was good to you all. Can you believe the PGA Tour is getting ready to open the 2006 season? Me either.

I don’t have a lot to say, but look for some good links in the upcoming year.

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Thanks for the Memories

We wish Cody a fond (and hopefully short!) farewell and call out for someone to take his place at the same time! The nerve! 🙂

Thrash TalkThis is Erik J. Barzeski, Editor in Chief of The Sand Trap. Cody Thrasher, long-time columnist here at The Sand Trap, has had to resign his position due to some increasing demands on the homefront. His parting is peaceful and, should he be able to get some free time once again, temporary.

Cody is still going to participate on our forum, but his (again, possibly temporary) departure does mean one thing: we have space on our staff for someone interested in picking up where Cody left off – with a weekly “Thrash Talk” column.

Interested parties should email erik@ this domain with the subject “Thrash Talk” or they can post in the forum in this thread. Interested? We require at least a little computer skill (not much) and some writing skill (again, not much – that’s what editors are for). We do, however, absolutely require that you have a passion and a love of the game (golf, silly!).

We look forward to hearing from you and wish Cody all the best.

Taking A (Full) Swing Into 2006

The best and most popular golf simulator is made by Full Swing Golf, and the company has a fun new wrinkle ready for 2006.

Bag DropHappy New Year from The Bag Drop, where the arrival of 2006 means the PGA Merchandise Show is only a few weeks away. We’ll hit on some minor news on the Show front, but first let’s look at a cool new development on the golf simulator front.

Full Swing Golf has come a long way in the last decade. 10 years ago the California company debuted its high-end golf simulators at the PGA Merchandise Show. The initial reaction from folks in the industry was that the simulators were a curiosity, but not a significant business opportunity.

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‘Tis a New Season for the LPGA Tour

A new season of golf has finally begun. The ladies of the LPGA are slowly returning to their practice routines ready for another exciting year on tour. The rookies will also be in the mix and anything can happen in 2006.

LPGA logoWelcome back to my section at The Sand Trap. I hope everyone has had a nice, relaxing holiday season fortified by the company of good friends, shared family traditions and hearty food.

Frankly it’s nice to be back! I don’t know about you but I’m tired of watching Big Break IV reruns, Tiger’s amateur flashbacks and skills challenges on television. Thank goodness the New Year and a new golf season has finally begun!

I’m especially excited about the 2006 LPGA season and the eclectic mix of both older and rookie players who will surely make this a year to remember. Let’s meet some of the new kids on the block and recall a few interesting moments from some of the more established players.

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Champions Tour Wins Wendy’s 3-Tour Challenge

The seniors still have what it takes to beat the other two tour teams. The LPGA and PGA Tours just couldn’t stand up to the challenge and were soundly defeated.

Wendy's 3-Tour Challenge WinnersThis final “hurrah” of the season couldn’t have been any more fun for both the golfers and true fans of the sport.

The Champions Tour team took control of the second nine holes of the two-day television tournament from Lake Las Vegas and never gave an inch. Craig Stadler made everything look easy, but how couldn’t he? Stadler was shooting from the whites! Kind of unfair, don’t you think? Why would the post-season 3-Tour Challenge allow guys like Stadler, Irwin and Haas (who can crush their drives as easily as guys on the PGA Tour) to step forward? Why would the Seniors even want to play the whites?

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Episode 007

The golf season may not be in full swing, but we’ve still got a lot to talk about: one-irons, Retief Goosen and Ben Hogan, the LPGA leaving a mark on the general public, and much, much more.

PodcastWe’re back and three strong once again as Everardo once again joins Jeff and Erik for the “James Bond” (007) episode of “Golf Talk Podcast.” You can subscribe to the RSS feed for our podcasts here or download Episode 007 as an MP3 file. For those who want to subscribe to us in iTunes, click here.

This week, and though even the silly season is taking a few weeks off before the PGA Tour cranks back up in January, we still have plenty to talk about. For this week’s Show Notes – links to articles we discuss in the show and additional information – just read on.

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Titleist Forged 735.CM Irons Review

Titleist’s 735.CM irons were some of the most eagerly awaited products of 2005. Do they stack up?

TitleistRarely are a set of irons so lusted after as Titleist’s Forged 735.CM irons. The 735s – Titleist’s first foray into “combo” or cavity-to-muscle “progressive” irons – were a rumor in March, reality in August, and had already earned a place in my bag by the time the Newport Cup rolled around in October.

Titleist 735.CM Spread OutIf you don’t read past the first two paragraphs, take one thing away from this review: these clubs were worth the wait. It takes a lot to knock a set of irons out of my bag, but these irons effectively replaced the irons I was playing (Titleist’s Forged 680) by the turn the first time I played with them. The 680s are a forged, muscleback club with a great amount of feel and feedback, which I had always deemed important to improving my golf game. I never thought a cavity-back club could replicate the feel of a finely crafted muscleback. Until I tried the 735s. They felt so good, I came up with a phrase that I’d rather not repeat here… (but you could find it in the forum quite easily).

They’re that good.

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Troy Matteson

Setting a new Nationwide Tour earnings mark is Troy Matteson. He and a handful of his peers are about to embark on a year in the PGA Tour.

ProFilesThe 2005 season on the Nationwide Tour will probably be remembered for Jason Gore’s battlefield promotion to the PGA Tour following his U.S. Open performance, but no one earned more money on the Nationwide Tour than Troy Matteson. He made the cut in 25 of 27 events, had 10 top-10 finishes and thus played his way onto the PGA Tour for 2006.

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