Monty criticises Masters invite criteria

[JaY_B]

Good reply, although the thread is about to go off topic again, it seems that some members on here blindly believe the PGA Tour is the only tour that holds any importance.

[Elsfan]

If people are going to resort to name calling and whatnot, the thread will close.

I would like to offer a sincere apology for helping to steer this thread off topic. I am sure people were enjoying it and it did get a little out of hand.

I was however attacked by a guy with the moniker Jay B who thinks he decides all that is wrong and right with the sand trap and resorts to name calling when a poster has a different view then him. I would also like to apologize to Jay B. Jay if I knew you had an anger management issue I would have never disagreed with you. For that I am sorry.

[JaY_B]

I would like to offer a sincere apology for helping to steer this thread off topic. I am sure people were enjoying it and it did get a little out of hand.

Hey Who What Where When

1 - I have done nothing but post my opinion 2 - I have not resorted to name calling 3 - The last paragraph of your post makes you sound like a 12 year old, when have I appeared angry?

[BASHERBAKER69]

I agree with what Ruari has been saying 100%!..i can't believe i dreamt up this thread- this is what forum blogging is all about.

[hawkeye]

I agree with Monty - the exclusivity of The Masters is pretty darn sickening sometimes. I guess that's what gives it it's aura too. Who stands up to the green jackets? Is it right that they decide who should play?

And as for the Euro/USA argument - get over it....

[Shindig]

Is it right that they decide who should play?

It is absolutely their right to decide who should play. It's their invitational.

[MGP]

It is absolutely their right to decide who should play. It's their invitational.

Not only that, every professional golfer in the world

knows at least a year ahead of time what it takes to qualify for an automatic invitation. Monty had plenty of time to prove that he belonged there, he just didn't play well enough. He's not the only one but he seems to be the one whining the most about it. The other players who get discretionary invites from the committee can be seen the same was as players that get sponsor's exemptions on regular tour events. There are no guarantees with these -- they are not necessarily the best players not in the field but the committe (or sponsors) want them in the field for whatever reason they like.

[tiger_who]

montys crap

[Ruari]

montys crap

I suspect that, this year's failure to qualify for the Masters notwithstanding, he has a better record than yours...so what does that make you?

Shindig - you're basically right: The Masters can invite whomsoever it wishes, within certain criteria. Monty's cheesed off because of his failure to qualify but, with any luck, that will spur him on to greater effort in the future. I hope so, because he's been outstanding for ages. But there's no reason why he should have an invite ahead of the 24 immediately above him in the OWGR.

[iacas]

The European Tour is growing at a faster rate than the PGA Tour, for example the new race to Dubai series in 2009 (I believe) which has something around a 10 million euro purse (I believe) something the PGA Tour can not match.

You seem to miss the fact that the better players play on the PGA Tour. Thank goodness the majors and the WGCs count for both tours or "your guys" would only play a few events per year.

Who cares how fast the prize money is growing? It doesn't change the fact that the big names play on the PGA Tour, not the European Tour.

Also many PGA Tour players have also played on the European Tour, ironically Tiger Woods was the leading money winner on the European Tour in 2007, although admittedly he was not in the order of merit, but does this mean that by your argument you can not count Tiger as a PGA Tour player because he has played on both tours?

No. It just shows how weak the "Order of Merit" list truly is when someone who doesn't even play enough events wins it. Granted, it IS TW, but still...

Any Pro that has played the British Open has played on the European Tour, so bang, you have just lost all of your top PGA Tour players, according to your theory that those who play both tours don't count in this argument.

Uhm, no... The players I'm thinking of play PRIMARILY on the PGA Tour.

Monty has spent little time in America, and in theory does not have the game for America, He plays what I would call true golf, as opposed to the target golf regularly played in America, Monty has been let down in America by mainly his lack of distance.

Oh bull. Corey Pavin won an event as recently as, what, last year? Monty is over-rated.

In the top 20 of the world you have Padraig Harrington, Henrik Stenson, Luke Donald, Angel Cabrera and Lee Westwood.

Almost all of whom play more PGA Tour events than Euro Tour events.

It's simple: the average OWGR of a PGA Tour field is much, much stronger than that of an average Euro Tour field. Do the math.

If he was playing the PGA Tour the last 15 or 20 years, he probably wouldn't have any money titles to his credit. And his lack of a major championship victory is a killer on the world golf scene.

Yup, and...

Comparing the PGA Tour and European Tour is crazy. There is no comparison. The PGA Tour is superior in every way.

Yup.

The majority of your arguments are based on biased assumptions that are not backed up by fact, all you are doing is filling this thread with ignorance and stupidity.

Untrue, and we're not calling people names in doing it.

2007 earnings - over $2 million - But, of course, that was from the European Tour (25 events, so not his brightest season)

Exactly... against a weaker Tour. Whoopty doo.

Bottom Line: Monty stinks and has stunk for quite some time. He had to cheat, some allege, to get into the Masters the last time. This time, he won't get in regardless. Good. Let's move on.

[tiger_who]

I suspect that, this year's failure to qualify for the Masters notwithstanding, he has a better record than yours...so what does that make you?

it makes me a great golfer im the most respeted jr at my club, everyone loves me i dont winn about things i get along with all the members i improved the most out of all the jr's im playing the best golf ever iv won my last 2 tournys wich both had over 180 people.

if you can show me were i said i was any better than monty that would b great. also i was stating that he is crap look at the pros on tour compared to him hes had his time now hes finished get your facts right be for you try to shoot some one down

[michaeljames92]

didn't meet criteria. obviously means he isn't good enough. enough said?

[Ruari]

it makes me a great golfer im the most respeted jr at my club, everyone loves me i dont winn about things i get along with all the members i improved the most out of all the jr's im playing the best golf ever iv won my last 2 tournys wich both had over 180 people.

Once I'd picked my way through the...um...challenging construction I think I understand where you are.

You're a junior, who's getting better (congratulations) and has won two events involving people not from your own club. As many as 180 participants, yes? Well done - keep it up. When you have won nine Order of Merit titles, 42 tournaments against world-ranked opposition (and I mean in the top flight of the world ranking, not some people from the lower hundreds who play on the Challenge or Nationwide tours), have played in nine Ryder Cups (or President's Cups, in your case) without ever losing a singles match, then I am sure you will be able to say, with justification, that you're better than Monty. Assuming he hasn't added to his total by then, of course. To call a player with his record 'crap' reveals more about the name-caller than the target. What I said is that Monty's record was probably better than yours, so if he's crap, where does that leave you? Your record of improvement could stand to be extended to your knowledge of the game, courtesy and maybe understanding of meaning in written language, too.

[RichF]

I'm not and never have been a big fan of Monty's. He's probably a really nice guy but it appears he comes across too abrasive and controversial on a consistent-basis....issues with Faldo, issue with Els (I mean, how can you have a ding-dong with Els??!) and now this.

But his results speak for themselves:
MAJORS:
The Masters - 8th is the best finish, littered with six missed-cuts
US Open - 2nd twice, 3rd once
The Open - 2nd and 8th, once each with again...seven missed-cuts
PGA - 2nd and 6th with six missed-cuts

That's a pretty poor return, career-wise.

And as Tiger Woods said last week (or week before), "You can win every tournament for the entire year, but if you go 0 for 4 in the year in the major championships, it's just...you don't really get remembered for number of wins in a career. It's the number of wins in major championships. Those are the biggest events. If you win one major a year, it turns a good year into a great year. That's one of the reasons why I think we as players put so much emphasis on those major championships. They mean so much, and not only to us but in the historical sense."

[michaeljames92]

i agree that he is over rated. although i wouldv'e that he would excel in majors with its deep rough etc which stops people going long all of the time, this would in thoery bring everyone back down to his level. everyone knows monty is not a big hitter and is a shot maker. this is why he plays well on euro type courses.

[BASHERBAKER69]

Monty in his prime was as long as most people on either tour. I agree that his best days are gone, but my original point was that he deserves a place at the Masters as an invitee, instead of falling down the pecking order to an asian player who has not achieved what Monty has achieved in his career.

Id like to more about the situation last year where he was meant to have bent the rules to qualify for the Masters. That is pure conjecture i would say, and if so, how come the officials didnt DQ him?

I get the feeling that on the whole Monty is not very popular in the States, and therefore is not being given a fair crack but some posters?

[BASHERBAKER69]

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/03/stor...0357282200.htm
http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/more/2...9520-20371187/
http://www.inthenews.co.uk/sports/golf/autocodes/countries/india/montgomerie-slams-commercial-decision-behind-masters-snub-$1216687.htm

Monty definitley has a point in my view..look at the ranking of the players that have had invites and then look at his ranking and his career highlights....this is a commercial decision, not a golfing one.

[extremeld]

didnt read all the posts but i think this.


he is a rich golfer who has one zero majors - that is a lot to do with sponsors.

golf is not a european game or an american game it is a global one and players outwith europe and the USA should be given the opportunity to represent there part of the world.

he is pissed because sponsors have dictated a few places - WHY SHOULDNT THEY?!


he seems to believe that he has a god given right to get in - he doesnt and i am all for invites being handed out elsewhere.

if you dont like it - QUALIFY!