Tim Finchem should be worried

[MSchott]

European tour events are amateurish compared to the US PGA. Many of the courses are bland and boring and have been constructed on terrible sites. Also, the advertising at the tee boxes is incredibly second rate and makes the corporate sponsorship of the PGA look discreet if this is possible. Plus most of the names are completely unknown to most in the USA.

Last, interest in Tiger Woods has not diminished. There is always a huge spike in viewership when he is entered in a tournament.

[walk18]

I think both tours will be fine. I like watching both, and I certainly don't blame guys like McIlroy wanting to play near home. On a somewhat unrelated note, I wish the nationwide tour would swing by Chicago, I'd love to attend one of those events.

[Tiger Spuds]

Many of the courses are bland and boring and have been constructed on terrible sites.

Which courses are you referring to exactly? And what do you mean by 'terrible sites'? No offense but unless your profession is Landscaping, I don't think you have the knowledge to make that assessment. I think the European courses are at least on par with the PGA's. PGA courses tend be very similar across the board. Flat and straight. Many have no character whatsoever and seem to me to have a very artificial feel. That's just my observation from watching every round of almost every PGA tour event this year.

Plus most of the names are completely unknown to most in the USA.

I doubt anyone on the European Tour is too bothered by that, especially now. Hate to break it to you, but the States isn't the be all and end all.

[Valleygolfer]

Which courses are you referring to exactly? And what do you mean by 'terrible sites'? No offense but unless your profession is Landscaping, I don't think you have the knowledge to make that assessment. I think the European courses are at least on par with the PGA's. PGA courses tend be very similar across the board. Flat and straight. Many have no character whatsoever and seem to me to have a very artificial feel. That's just my observation from watching every round of almost every PGA tour event this year.

I have no problem with the Euro courses, if you follow the marquis players in tournaments you get a better perspect of the golf course. American courses are not all flat and it is difficult to display the beauty during the tournament. However, Euro coverage makes their courses less appetizing than PGA courses. Poor quality video and camera angles.....I don't know why the video sux because I thought you guys in Europe were ahead of us in cable quality. Just watching the players hit the ball doesn't give much of a spectrum of a GC.

[mjtoal]

European tour events are amateurish compared to the US PGA. Many of the courses are bland and boring and have been constructed on terrible sites. Also, the advertising at the tee boxes is incredibly second rate and makes the corporate sponsorship of the PGA look discreet if this is possible. Plus most of the names are completely unknown to most in the USA.

Bland and boring? I guess irony is not dead in America. The European Tour venues are much more diverse than the cookie cutter venues used for most US PGA Tour events.

Anyone that thinks Wentworth, Golf National de Paris, Valderrama, Emirates, Loch Lomond, Bro Hof Slott, Killarney, Crans sur Sierre, Hilversum, St Andrews are bland and boring is playing a different game from the one I know.

[sean_miller]

You guys assume Tim Finchem even knows or cares. He's probably been so heavily tranquilized since last November that he barely recognized himself in the mirror. At least that's what he seems like in interviews.

[iacas]

Which courses are you referring to exactly? And what do you mean by 'terrible sites'? No offense but unless your profession is Landscaping, I don't think you have the knowledge to make that assessment.

If that's the case, then I humbly suggest you leave the forum as - seeing as how you're not even a scratch golfer let alone a professional - you really have no qualifications to have any opinions on golf at all.

Please...

[Tiger Spuds]

If that's the case, then I humbly suggest you leave the forum as - seeing as how you're not even a scratch golfer let alone a professional - you really have no qualifications to have any opinions on golf at all.

Now now, no need to be so surly. I just want to know what he means by 'terrible sites' and what he's basing the remark on. I mean, is he talking about soil type, topography, geology of the area.? It's a senseless comment.

[Acropo]

I just want to know what he means by 'terrible sites' and what he's basing the remark on.

Seems fair enough to me.

[Tiger Spuds]

Seems fair enough to me.

You see you say that without referencing any particular courses or stating

why you agree with the comment. You may well be correct, but at least give reasons for the opinion.

[RichF]

It's ridiculous and factually incorrect to suggest the Euro Tour isn't played on varied types of golf courses every week. Some weeks they are hilly and contoured, others they are flat and long, some are parkland.
Flick on the TV to watch PGA, the courses have a definate 'look' about them - there is not a lot of variety in the design - and it's no wonder that the ability to shape shots on the PGA tour has decreased, because the golf courses reward one type of shot.

I watched Tiger's press conference at the JBWere Masters and he said that some of Melbourne's golf courses are better than the USA because the par 3's aren't designed to be difficult through length and the par 4's and par 5's don't just require you to hit driver all the time but actually position the ball.

The PGA Tour has just gotten boring in terms of courses because all they want the players to do is hit 330 yard drivers and hit wedges into greens. Hence, the origin of the term 'Bomb-and-Gouge'....no variety.

[Bigtank]

Yep Augusta, is so similar to Congressional, Cherry Hills, Pebble Beach, Whistling Straits, Harbour Town, Sea Island.....I don't know how anyone tells them a part.

Give me a break, If you step foot onto any of these courses you would see that they are "hilly" and "contoured". Dont mistake TV production for course layout. Both Tours play just as many cookie cutter courses. Just because a few of the top players in the world are on the Euro tour, doesnt mean the PGA tour is crashing. Just because the USA ties England in the World Cup, does not mean that European Football is going down the toliet.

Historically there have always been a few Europeans that are very competitive in the PGA. Nick Price, Faldo, Seve, Jose...I think other than Sergio for a while, we have been missing that and we are just returning to normalcy. Every year they search for that Euro player that will compete; Appleby, Allenby, Stenson, Westwood for years...they are just finally coming to fruition (yes, I know Stuart and Robert are not European). As far as Westwood turning down his membership in the PGA, everytime I "flick" on the tele, Lee is over here golfing it up, so as long as the purses and endorsements are flowing like milk and honey...the bees will be here.

The PGA tour is fine, and as strong as ever!

[RichF]

I don't think any player is going to refuse tournaments that are paying out US$8-10 million purses...just like Tiger isn't going to refuse a guaranteed US$3,000,000 fee for playing in a tournament that pays out half that amount overall .

[soloredd]

I enjoy watching the Euro Tour also but I doubt the PGA is in some kind of trouble. Why, because Rory McIlroy is home sick? Please. I said it in another thread, he's a rare player who is out more for the fun than the career. Which is fine, nobody should hate him for that. But if you want the career, you want to be the best in the world, the PGA is where you have to be.

I do agree on course design, however. Yes, we have Augusta, Pebble, and a few other selects but for the most part the courses are tree lined with little danger. I want to see these guys play week after week in 3 foot fescue. Force them to make a fairway!!

[sean_miller]

Yep Augusta, is so similar to Congressional, Cherry Hills, Pebble Beach, Whistling Straits, Harbour Town, Sea Island.....I don't know how anyone tells them a part.

Nick Price is probably my favourite European golfer.

[Acropo]

You see you say that without referencing any particular courses or stating

I posted that in response to Tiger Spuds comment and query - it seemed a fair question and observation to make.

fwiw, I don't see how anyone can suggest that the European Tour courses are bland and/or samey/cookie cutter. They vary enormously, from the English parklands to the Scottish links and Spanish resorts; the Mid-East resorts are different again, as are the courses in the Far East and Australia. The French courses offer challenges that are varied from germany or Italy. And the scenery changes a whole lot - can anyone suggest that Crans-sur-Sierre looks the same as Valderrama. or it is a carbon-copy of Gleneagles? Is Wentworth a facsimile of Le Golf National or Golf Club Munchen; are any of them the same as Jumeirah? Or Penha Longa in Portugal? And so on and so forth. That is not to say they are all great course; they aren't - Crans-sur-Sierre is spectacular and offers challenging shots but it isn't really long enough, for example. But the greens vary, the layouts vary, it isn;t all bomb-and-gouge. I am not saying, either, that all PGA Tour courses are the same - there are some gems, including Dub's Dread, which I have played and rather enjoy. That course at Phoenix is a bit something else, too - although it may be the crowd that makes it so. But a lot of the regular Tour venues look very much the same and are played in the same way. (Rather liked the look of Hilton Head this year and hope its status rises)

[Acropo]

nick price is probably my favourite european golfer.

lol!

:d

[Bigtank]

Nick Price is probably my favourite European golfer.

That was in reference to golfers coming from the European and other tours. I'm aware he is from Zimbabwe .........probably my "favourite" too.