{"id":713,"date":"2005-05-17T10:18:33","date_gmt":"2005-05-17T15:18:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thesandtrap.com\/uncategorized\/what_is_vijay_thinking\/"},"modified":"2005-05-17T10:18:33","modified_gmt":"2005-05-17T15:18:33","slug":"what_is_vijay_thinking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesandtrap.com\/b\/thrash_talk\/what_is_vijay_thinking","title":{"rendered":"What is Vijay Thinking?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ThrashThe Battle at the Bridges<\/a> has been shown on television since 1999, when Tiger Woods defeated David Duval at Sherwood Country Club. In the past couple years, however, the contest has beed played in a two-on-two format instead of the original one-on-one variety. This year, the battle will be held July 25th at Rancho Santa Fe. Tiger Woods will be there as he always has been, and so will Phil Mickelson. That makes up half of the famed “Big Four” that has ruled golf headlines so far in 2005. So IMG, the sponsor of the Battle at the Bridges, thought they had something special going and tried to get the other two members of the “Big Four” to join Woods and Mickelson.
\n
\nThis idea would surely bring in great ratings and really give golf fans a treat on primetime television. The contract for this event is in its last year, and it is very possible it will not be renewed after 2005. The ratings have plunged since 2000, where Sergio Garcia defeated Tiger Woods. So pairing the members of the “Big Four” into two groups would surely gain a lot of worldwide exposure and possibly even save this event for years to come, right? Yes, the idea was great in my opinion, but there was only one problem: Vijay Singh declined the invitation to be a part of this. Even worse than that, he didn’t really give a reason for refusing the invitation.<\/p>\n

I would also like to add the fact that Ernie Els will not be taking part in the competition either, and his reasons for declining are unknown as well. The plans could have definitely changed once Singh turned down the offer, but if Els also turned down the offer, well, shame on you Ernie!<\/p>\n

All of this upsets me for many reasons. I know it won’t be a big deal to some people, and I know the PGA Tour will still flourish. But this provided a real chance for the big guns of the tour to make an impact on national television and market the great sport of golf to a primetime audience. And the question still remains as to why Vijay would even think of turning down this offer to really showcase his abilities next to the other members of the “elite” golf group right now. There was the “Big Three” back in the 1960s and 1970s with Nicklaus, Palmer, and Player. But golf has never had four guys playing this great at the same time.<\/p>\n

So why did Vijay turn it down? I have heard different possibilities, and I’m going to explore a few of them. The first reason is the fact that Vijay could be sick of all this “Big Four” talk. Maybe he just wants to go out and play golf and win every single week! That is a great way to think, but opportunities like this are rare on the PGA Tour. Vijay is an ambassador of the game of golf, whether he likes it or not. Golf fans tune into tournaments each week, and more often than not, Vijay is near the top of the leaderboard. He is one of few truly dominant faces of the game right now. He may not like the spotlight, but it comes with the territory. His golf game could quite possibly be second to nobody (although Woods is still number one in the world), but the PGA Tour is what markets that game. And he needs to realize that and give back to the golf world a little of what we want to see.<\/p>\n

Everyone seems to point out the fact that Vijay plays so much more than Tiger each year. And while this is true, it is misleading as well. Tiger is the number one face of golf and for great reason. He may not play in the John Deere Classic or the other small-market events, but the guy tees it up when it really counts the most. He plays the big-time golf tournaments, and he plays in events like the “Battle at the Bridges” because he knows it helps the game of golf grow. Earlier in the year, Woods played in the Tavistock Cup<\/a> because it was fun for him and helped grow the game of golf. That is why Tiger gets my respect all day long. I’m not his biggest fan, but I respect him for what he has done for golf. Tiger knows people think about him when they think of golf, and he definitely embraces that.<\/p>\n

\"VijayAnother reason Vijay may have turned down the offer is the fact that he doesn’t need the television exposure or the money. Both of those facts are obvious and beside the point in my opinion. He has won his fair share of money in the past three years or so, and his face is on television every single week. Those are just more reasons why I think he should be taking part in the “Battle at the Bridges.” He could easily give his winnings to charity if it’s not about the money, which is always a positive thing to do.<\/p>\n

The battle for the number one world ranking don’t get to Singh anymore according to what he says. But I also think that is untrue. I think he may be sick of talking about it, but any great golfer’s goal should center around being the best in the world. And according to rankings, Vijay is still not in that position as I write this article. Tiger Woods is, and I think that eats at Singh every single day. He has won 12 times since the beginning of 2004, and Tiger has won four times in that same period. I honestly believe this bothers Vijay much more than he lets on. Tiger wins the big ones though, and that’s why he is at the top looking down and not in second looking up.<\/p>\n

Final Thoughts<\/strong>
\nVijay Singh could change his mind and accept the invitation to play in this “made-for-television” event, and if he does, I will be the first to change my opinion. That still doesn’t change my opinions on the matter at hand. Vijay is letting the world rankings determine what he does a whole lot more than he lets on. He should take this opportunity to show the golf world he is indeed the most dominant golfer playing today whether he is ranked number one or number two. But instead, the great golf fans will tune in to watch Tiger and Phil do battle, and they will continue to be the fan favorites as always.<\/p>\n

Will the “Battle at the Bridges” still be fun to watch? I’ll watch. After all, Tiger Woods and John Daly will be doing battle with Phil Mickelson and Retief Goosen, and that’s entertaining. Goosen is arguably just as good as anyone besides Tiger, and he is known for being the “silent assassin” on tour. But he is still taking the opportunity to please the golf world and give back a little of what he has been given. He should be commended for this, as well as Daly. Everyone is fond of John Daly anyway, and the team of he and Tiger should be a treat to watch off the tees at the very least.<\/p>\n

So the matchup is set, and it should be a heck of a battle between four very talented golfers. But the question of “what might have been” will still loom in my mind. I am as much of a Retief Goosen fan as there is, but I would still like to see the top four golfers according to the world rankings on the same course playing at the same time. I believe in the growth of the game of golf, and this is one of the key ways to get that done in my opinion. The different sports are supposed to put their biggest names in the spotlight, and I respect IMG for trying that. It is just too bad Vijay had to do his own thing and spoil what might have been the best day of golf in quite some time for all of us fans. Shame on you Vijay!<\/p>\n

I honestly hope there are some strong opinions on this subject, and I’m sure I will get reactions going both ways. I know this isn’t a major tournament, but it shouldn’t be overlooked as much as it has been. If anyone has anything to add to this edition of Thrash Talk, please feel free to comment below or discuss it in our forum<\/a>. Thanks for reading and have a great week of golf!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Vijay Singh may have taken a step forward with his 12 wins in the last 17 months, but he took two steps back last week with his decision not to play in the “Battle at the Bridges.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-713","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-thrash_talk"],"yoast_head":"\nWhat is Vijay Thinking? 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