Do Bad Boys Hurt The Sport?

[1badbadger]

16 hours ago, Buckeyebowman said:

Yeah, but Tiger didn't do so openly, he tried like Hell to hide it! Why do you think his yacht was named "Privacy"!

"Hi! I'm Tiger Woods. I ran around on my gorgeous wife and 2 kids with about a dozen different women! Why? Because I'm rich and famous, and I felt 'entitled' to do so"!

Not to jump on Tiger too hard, but I heard some commentary from a guy who is a big golf fan, and has written several books about the subject, one of which contains the word "spoiled". He said that there's a whole lot of running around on Tour, and from some big names that we would all know. Both past and present!

Now, we don't have all the inside dope, so we have to allow for the possibility that some "arrangements" have been made. The wife is happy with the financial stability, the big house, and the platinum, emerald, molybdenum, or whatever card, and is willing to let some things slide. Maybe they have something going on the side as well.

I figure the percentages pretty much mirror the general population. OK, these guys play golf for a living. But, they're still people.

EDIT: And I'd remind you that Johnny Manziel came from money. He's just another spoiled brat!

The only thing I would debate is that the percentage of guys who run around mirrors the general population.  And to be clear, I'm not judging anyone or admonishing individuals who have been involved in extra-curricular activities...that's a personal choice and I'm not coming down on either side of that debate. There are plenty of single guys on Tour.  

I'm saying these guys are professional athletes who make a lot of money and many are, at least on a certain level, famous. Quite a few are young as well.  When you add that up, I think they have more "opportunities" or more temptations than the average Joe Blow.

But I agree Buckeye, it's a situation that has been kept on the down-low for a surprisingly long time.  Tour players have groupies just like rock stars.  If you're a 22 year old millionaire on the road for weeks on-end, with plenty of down-time and women asking your caddy to give you their phone number...well, like Buckeye said "they are just people".

But this goes back a long time.  Many don't know why Sam Snead was suddenly no longer invited to play the Colonial Invitational...he was caught in the coat room with a prominent member's daughter.  Or when a CBS cameraman recorded a couple who had snuck to a remote area of Colonial Country Club for a quickie. The couple?  Doug Sanders and a groupie.  The video?  Safely hidden in the private collection of Frank Chirkinian.

This article is spot on:

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2009/12/04/the-secret-world-of-golf-groupies.html

[BamaWade]

A couple of definitions:

---

Oxford English:

NOUN

informal 

• 1A man who does not conform to approved standards of behaviour, especially in a particular sphere of activity.

---

Merriam Webster:

NOUN

:  a person who flouts convention

---

So, while a "murderer" probably qualifies as a bad boy, using that in this argument is a logical extreme.

Given the two definitions here, I'd say John Daly most certainly fits the bill as a bad boy, qualifying both definitions -- possibly the poster-boy, IMO.  Who else?  I dunno...most of these guys can probably be said to "conform to the approved standards of behavior the the "sphere" that is professional golf.  So I'd look for those whose on-course antics have been met with disdain across their careers.  Mac O'Grady (from yesteryear)?  Sabbatini has a few instances out there.  Bubba, perhaps?  All debatable, I suppose.

So back OT, based on the above definitions: do they hurt the sport?  I'd say, solidly, "no".  Non-conformists, rebels, "bad boys"...whatever we want to call them, in many cases (not all) seem to generate interest in (and thus grow) their sport, IMO.  Ruth, Canseco, Strawberry? Boz, TO, Namath?  Rodman?  Agassi?  Those are random...but I'd say all fit the above definitions, and generated increased interest and passion in their respective sports.

For lots of the good reasons mentioned by others, above, golf probably has relatively few.  All IMHO.

BamaWade

Edited February 15, 2017 by BamaWade
formatting

[boogielicious]

16 hours ago, mcanadiens said:

Come on. Look at that friggin shirt. No other bad boy golfer comes even close.

The ultimate Bad Boy.

@1badbadger,

I think as times have changed, and instant media became the norm, the definition of Bad Boy has evolved. I've always thought of it as players who were on the edge both on and off the field. Players who cross the lines put the sport in a bad light. But players who stay on the edge, like Bobby Clarke above, brought fans to the sport.

I like your examples above, Snead etc., but the media didn't work the way it does now. It seems nowadays, as soon as you cross the line, it is DEFCON 5.

[mcanadiens]

1 hour ago, boogielicious said:

The ultimate Bad Boy.

@1badbadger,

Not sure I ever heard much about Bobby Clarke the golfer. I think it's safe to say, he'd qualify if he ever so much as touched a 7-iron. Valeri Kharlamov would surely agree.

[1badbadger]

10 hours ago, boogielicious said:

The ultimate Bad Boy.

@1badbadger,

I think as times have changed, and instant media became the norm, the definition of Bad Boy has evolved. I've always thought of it as players who were on the edge both on and off the field. Players who cross the lines put the sport in a bad light. But players who stay on the edge, like Bobby Clarke above, brought fans to the sport.

I like your examples above, Snead etc., but the media didn't work the way it does now. It seems nowadays, as soon as you cross the line, it is DEFCON 5.

I agree Boogie.  There are some guys like Daly who display textbook bad boy behavior (fines, suspensions, arrests, unpredictable behavior etc, but at one time people tuned in to watch a tournament on tv or attended the tournament in person to see him.  And everyone knew at any time they could see something brilliant or they might see a train wreck.  He is a bad boy, but not a villain.

I don't know how many bowlers we have here, but a perfect example is Pete Weber.  Pete has had a lot of the same issues as Daly, except he isn't as well liked.  He has a following of course, but more people don't like him than do like him.  And he happens to be one of the best players of all time.  In the late '90s, the PBA Tour pretty much went belly-up. ABC cancelled the telecasts, and it was a bad time for pro bowlers. Pete was serving a 6 month suspension issued by the previous commissioner who did not like Pete when 3 former Microsoft executives bought the PBA to re-vamp it.  They brought in Steve Miller formerly of Nike as the new CEO, and he saw the value in an edgy guy like Pete.  Rather than try to reign him in like the former commissioner did, Miller turned him loose and told him to do whatever he wanted on tv and he won't be fined.  Steve Miller told him "you can pretty much say 'f*ck off' on tv and I won't fine you".  Soon the ratings for bowling were higher than hockey, because even the Weber haters were doing something they never thought they'd do...watch bowling.  It's an interesting video, even if you don't bowl:

 

 

[iacas]

13 hours ago, boogielicious said:

I like your examples above, Snead etc., but the media didn't work the way it does now. It seems nowadays, as soon as you cross the line, it is DEFCON 5.

DEFCON 1 is the bad one.