Party atmosphere at tour events

[Patch]

5 hours ago, krupa said:

But the problem is that these people aren't watching them; they're taunting, heckling, insulting, etc.  Reportedly, someone yelled at Garcia that they hoped his marriage failed.  WTF is up with that?  It's one thing to cheer and boo as the players come by but the reason this is an issue is that more than one asshole has taken it too far.

I agree with you about the "assholes" but they can be removed by security. Folks just having a good time, enjoying the event, (on one hole) should not be a problem for the players. Play it as it lies. 

[jimmizu]

12 hours ago, Gator Hazard said:

Actually no, they should stay home or go to a bar where it is expected patrons are 21. I hate going to sporting events and sitting near loudmouth foul talking drunken assholes when I have my kids with me. I shouldn't have to put up with that at a sporting event, be it basketball, football, baseball, or other. 

Leave it where it is, one hole on a tourney. 

Well said, and the reason I voted #3. One hole, at one tourney.  If you'd ever had the chance to go to an Oakland Raiders game you'd feel exactly as Gator Hazard does. And once a venue starts down that road nothing can bring it back to being civilized. There is no shortage of drunken assholes.

[MuniGrit]

Just wait until these guys get a taste of lazer pens in Mexico this week.

[caniac6]

We stopped going to Carolina Hurricane games because of the behavior of some fans. I really don't understand when it became socially acceptable to yell things in public that you would not say at home. We had a group sit behind us that had clearly been tailgating. About every other word was the "f" word. If I were a pro golfer, I would not play in Phoenix. I would not want to be working hard, trying to make a living, hit a less than great shot, and have a bunch of drunks yelling at me.

[jkelley9]

I chose #1 but what I don't like is heckling and mid-swing jeers and such. But that's more out of respect for the athlete than defining if it's a "party atmosphere" or not. Players should be able to handle a general low-key roar of crowd noise from the course, I feel. 

So as long as they aren't immediately disturbing the player for a targeted jeer, shout, heckle, then I'm okay with all of it. 

I'm not a big drinker but the guys that go out there to have a good time, so long as they aren't in the players face and they're in the background somewhere or up in the stands, I have no problem with it.

I love the cheering aspect of a good golf shot. This whole "act like you've been there" mentality with the pros kind of irritates me. My father in law told me he hates when players celebrate after a touchdown because he thinks they should "act like they've been there." PFFFT. If I spent my whole life dedicated to MAKING TOUCHDOWNS I'm sure as hell going to celebrate the crap out of it and bring on the fans cheers!

[wolfpackguy]

I voted #3.  One of the things that make it special is the novelty of it.  If every event has one it will just become another norm and take away from the original one.  #16 at Scottsdale is already losing some of its luster for me.  Things like that are better in the beginning when they are organic and created by fans, and then Corporate gets a hold of it and immediately thinks "hey this is cool, how can we profit off of it?"  In Scottsdale, from what I understand they have stuffed as many luxury boxes around there as they can so corporations can entertain their big wigs and now its an expensive and tough ticket to get around 16. And this occurs across all sports and events in general.  Just look at the NFL, in the past few years the league has started suing small business owners of mom and pop type bars for advertising that they are having a "Super Bowl Party".  You can't use the term Super Bowl any more and have to refer to it with phrases like "The Big Game Party" to stay in legal compliance.  Nascar was seeing huge numbers and revenue growth in the 1990s and people outside of the south along with the white collar types were starting to follow the sport and attend events.  Nascar abandoned it's roots in small town southern states taking away dates from places like Darlington and closing tracks in places like North Wilkesboro and Rockingham in favor of venues in Kansas City, Chicago and the like in search of yet more growth and revenue, and since then their numbers have been in free fall. I think sometimes the "powers that be" just end up out thinking themselves instead of just enjoying their success.
 

[sirsteveo55]

Has anyone here been to this tournament and been in the stands at 16? Did you have a good time and enjoy yourself? 

That tournament is on my bucket list because it looks like so much fun. They set the record for attendance this year over 620,000 for the 4 days. So obviously people are enjoying themselves. I do enjoy going to a regular tournament but when you bring more alcohol and heckling I think it would just make it even more fun.

I think a lot of people are cry babies and to sensitive. Sticks and stones will break my bones but words will never hurt me. If someone told me they hoped I got divorced I wouldn't care. I am the person who controls my marriage if I get divorced it's my fault not the person who wished it upon me. If you can't take a little heckling than I wish the best for you in the real world. 

It's not like the players are in danger. No one is spitting on them pushing them throwing things at them or even in their face. They are not even close to the crowd.

We are in a forever changing world if golf does not flex a little to give its fans what it wants it's only going to push people away.

 

[DaveP043]

21 hours ago, sirsteveo55 said:

We are in a forever changing world if golf does not flex a little to give its fans what it wants it's only going to push people away.

I guess the question is, what do the golf fans want?  This website probably isn't totally representative, I think we skew towards more avid golfers, and there are lot of casual fans out there.  But based on the survey, our group would prefer to limit the drunken shenanigans to that one tournament.  Should the pro tours cater to the non-golfers and very casual golfers (who won't be reading this website), to those who want a drunken party?  I'd prefer that they don't.

The question can be extended, would golf in general be better off if we encouraged players to act the way the fans at Scottsdale do?  Would it draw more people to play, or push more current golfers away?  I don't have an answer to that one, but I prefer to play with an overall atmosphere of civility and respect.  Yeah, I trash talk sometimes, and occasionally we have club events with bigger crowds and jeering and hooting, but we all still quiet down for each shot.  We might laugh at a player's bad shot, but we never hope that he has one.  I don't want my golf games to be conducted like pick-up basketball games, that would push me away from the game.  I LOVE that golf is different from every other game out there.

[sirsteveo55]

2 hours ago, DaveP043 said:

I guess the question is, what do the golf fans want?  This website probably isn't totally representative, I think we skew towards more avid golfers, and there are lot of casual fans out there.  But based on the survey, our group would prefer to limit the drunken shenanigans to that one tournament.  Should the pro tours cater to the non-golfers and very casual golfers (who won't be reading this website), to those who want a drunken party?  I'd prefer that they don't.

The question can be extended, would golf in general be better off if we encouraged players to act the way the fans at Scottsdale do?  Would it draw more people to play, or push more current golfers away?  I don't have an answer to that one, but I prefer to play with an overall atmosphere of civility and respect.  Yeah, I trash talk sometimes, and occasionally we have club events with bigger crowds and jeering and hooting, but we all still quiet down for each shot.  We might laugh at a player's bad shot, but we never hope that he has one.  I don't want my golf games to be conducted like pick-up basketball games, that would push me away from the game.  I LOVE that golf is different from every other game out there.

I feel the numbers answers this question. The WM Phoenix open has set attendance records 3 years in a row. Each year they have broke their own record that they hold. 2017 there was 655,434 total attendance for the week. They also set the single day record at 204,906 on Saturday. In 2016 total attendance was 618,365 so they basically destroyed their 2016 record. I feel because they are setting such big records every year this tournament is trending upward. This shows that this is what the fans want. Its hard to deny the numbers. 

Professional golfers can not act the way the fans act there. That is why before the word golfer is the word professional. I do not believe I saw players acting any differently (as in smoking, drinking, cussing, yelling like the fans are acting) this tournament than in the past. If anything I feel I see the golfers having more fun and they are enjoying themselves more, instead of being over focused and looking intense. Even thought they were not as focused I still think we saw a very high caliber of golf. The aspect of fun and enjoyment in the game goes a lot further for the game of golf. Its just every person has a different definition of fun. 

 

[Scotsclaff]

There is a great balance at the moment,love the 16th at Phoenix but let's not turn golf into something else.

[dave s]

I'm always sitting on the fence with regard to public behavior at PGA tour events.  Here are a few personal observations:

1. PGA tour players have everything literally PERFECT for them at events.  From golf course conditions, (and weather for the most part) to hospitality, (food and drink) and amenities in terms of how they are taken care of during events.

2.  If everything ELSE is perfect for a tour player, how a little noise can affect them so severely is beyond my comprehension.  Sure, screaming during a downswing is completely unacceptable and a patron should be asked to leave every time in that case.  But for guys to look back in a crowd 20 yards from their playing position to glare at someone using an iPhone to take a picture has got to go.  It didn't affect your perceived bad shot.

Other observations:

1. If I had a dime for every time Justin Thomas drops his head, and puts that look of 'what a crappy shot' on his face, I'd have enough to follow the tour around the country already.  This kind of negativity on tour has to stop.  The 'spoiled brat' persona is a big negative, IMO.

2. Generally speaking, if tour players looked like they are having fun ONCE IN A WHILE while during a competitive round, golf would become much more popular among casual fans.

I love golf, attend the WGC at Firestone CC in Akron every year and watch on TV.  There are so many likeable tour players who are smart, well-spoken and represent the PGA tour in fine fashion.  How about acting like you have a great job and ENJOY what you do a little bit?  Not too much to ask.

Fans who act a 'darned fool' during events should be tossed immediately.  If you're being a detriment to the game, the NFL happens on Sundays.  Go there, please.

dave    

[tristanhilton85]

I chose the third option. It doesn't really bother me where it is right now, but I don't want to see it all over the place.