Braivo

I’m in. Definitely In: @iacas @billchao @boogielicious @Hardspoon @Divot Master @RJohn23 - I'll bow out if you get to 12 more regular members and I'm #13. @saevel25 @georgep @Braivo Definitely Out: @klineka @ejm1994 Not Sure Yet: x @ChetlovesMer @RFKFREAK @Carl3 @Slice of Life x

I haven't commented on this thread in months. You trying to stir things up? lol There is no mask requirement where I live. I don't wear one. My kids aren't required to wear them at school or while playing sports. I hardly see them anywhere. If I am asked to wear one, I comply without complaint. Other than that I am busy living my life and give little thought to Covid. FWIW I got the vax and I also had a bout with Covid in Sept. I don't feel personally at risk right now so I live my life accordingly.

Had a great time as always. @georgep @Hardspoon @saevel25despite our differences (Buckeye vs Wolverine), nothing unites a team quite like battle, and those first 11 holes were a battle. It was an honor to claim victory with you. Thanks @iacasfor another great outing. See everyone next year.

I'm about 50 pages into this so far. Really enjoying how he weaves the stories and history into his journey. I'm learning a lot about the history of golf.

This weeks Euro event is a "Mixed" event where men and women are competing against each other. Four rounds of stroke play, from different sets of tees. It'll be interesting to see how it goes.

Our mask mandate in Michigan, for vaccinated residents, was lifted two weeks ago. I haven't been asked to wear a mask since. Though I do still see >50% of people wearing them. I was out to dinner this weekend and a maskless couple sat next to us and complained that the server wasn't wearing a mask. Was a tense situation for a bit. The kids had an outdoor band concert and were required to wear masks (with slits cut in it for their instrument lol). Even though they were outdoors and spaced out, they were asked to wear masks. Current state and CDC guidelines say masks are not necessary in such a situation. Meanwhile there were 20,000 maskless spectators in Boston last night at the hockey game, but the coaches on the bench were wearing masks. I am seeing lots of odd, contradictory situations like that lately. Hopefully it all clears up July 1 when all restrictions end.

This was easier with the mask mandates because there were only a few people walking in without masks. Now with a high percentage of people walking into places without a mask on, having someone at the door enforcing it becomes much more burdensome. I watched some local businesses give up after a few days and just stop enforcing it. They said there were simply too many people coming in without them to keep up. Some big chains like Kroger even changed course after a few days of trying to enforce. I respect your opinion. Personally, I hate masks and will be glad to see them go. I am fully vaccinated and carry a mask in my pocket. I will put it on if asked (so far I have not been asked even once in almost two weeks).

I am happy that everything is trending in the right direction. Virus going down, restrictions easing, etc. Seems we are headed for an "all clear" around July 1. In the meantime, things are a bit all over the place. The "vaccine or mask" rule is largely unenforceable and creates a headache for businesses. School and kids activities (at least in Michigan) are still a mess of confusion. We can feel the light at the end of the tunnel, but it doesn't feel like anyone is really breathing a sigh of relief yet.

Updated. I will be there. Confirmed @iacas @billchao @boogielicious @Slim_Pivot @Hardspoon @saevel25 @Carl3 @ChetlovesMer @Divot Master @RFKFREAK @Braivo open Considering Things @BradSomrak @georgep

Correct. There is zero point in debating this topic anymore. Everyone has made up their minds and the more we debate the more certain they are that they are correct. Waste of time. So how do you correct for this? Ever increasing levels of rules and restrictions? More mandates? Careful, there's a lot of stupid out there.

It is healthy to question authority. Maybe they are right. If so, great! Their argument is only strengthened by our questions. Blindly trusting leaders has never worked out well in the long run. If testing and masking youth recreational soccer players was so effective, wouldn't everyone be doing it? Wouldn't states without such a rule be seeing more cases and deaths? Is there scientific evidence that testing and masking soccer players reduces spread? Of course not. It's arbitrary. You can go to a casino in Michigan, right now, and order a beer, sit at a slot machine, and remove your mask to drink you beer. But you can't play outdoor soccer without a mask. It's arbitrary and political. Casinos bring revenue to the state, so of course they get to be open. Youth soccer? Not profitable. We could prevent many drunk driving deaths if we required breathalyzers to start the car. Who is in favor of that? At some point the tradeoffs between freedom and safety must be considered. We could eliminate almost all traffic deaths if vehicles were restricted to 25mph max. Would you favor that? I have never said we should do NOTHING about Covid. Wear a mask indoors. Get a vax. But the measures are more effective and get more compliance when they seem to make sense and some consideration is given to getting the most benefit from the fewest number of restrictions. Questioning the masking of youth athletes during intense sporting events is not "Leon Letting" the situation. There are some estimates that 2-3 million kids have not attended a single day of school (online or in person) this last year. Their schools closed and they didn't have the access of the home life structure to attend online. What is the cost of that? And I will repeat this, when ANY questioning of authority places you in the extreme anti-vax covid hoax bucket then we are done here. There is zero point in discussing this topic any further. If the only way to participate in this discussion is in agreement with the mainstream and the moderators, then it is futile. Thunderous applause for people who agree, and a swarm of criticism for those who do not.

Good for fans attending the Saturday sessions. The purists won't like it, but I think experimentation is good.

That's exactly how it works because that's how it's actually happening. That's reality. All of the other stuff exists in some other realm, because right now the governor of Michigan has refused to institute new restrictions because the people have demanded it to be that way. Right or wrong, that is fact. I agree with your two bullet points, seems unnecessary to curse at me over it. Like my point above, no matter what the governor or the CDC says, people will behave according to their own risk tolerances. For example, they basically turned our local prom into an outdoor kids carnival. Many families have decided to hold their own "private" prom unaffiliated with the school. Those families that attend are making their own decisions based on their own risk tolerance. Some will choose to stay home. Fine either way. I know people who have been visiting freely with their parents and grandparents for a year, and others who are just now seeing them, with masks on, despite being fully vaccinated. People are doing their own thing. So people are too stupid to think for themselves? Your tone is quite condescending towards the average person. You are quite naïve if you think politicians and "leaders" aren't susceptible to the same biases.

It's over when the citizens of any given state demand that it's over. The governor of Michigan declined to add new restrictions despite having one of the worst outbreaks in the world. Why? The pressure from the citizens of Michigan was immense. Polling showed about 70% were against any further lockdowns or restrictions. It would have been a terribly unpopular move, and she didn't make it. Agree or disagree, that's what happened. (For reference she instituted very strict measures late last year when they were popular and well received, despite a far smaller outbreak.) People in many places (FL, TX, MS, AL, WV, etc) are already "done" with it. Vaccines are available to anyone over age 16, and supply is plentiful in most places. People can make their own risk decisions from this point forward. I take issue with this type of argument. You take any critique of lockdowns or other restrictions and immediately lump me in with the uneducated anti-vax "don't tell me what to do" crowd. There's room for nuance and discussion but most people won't hear it.

Correct. Local orgs. State rules. It’s a disorganized mess. I can drive 20 minutes into Ohio and they haven’t required a single athlete to get tested all year. They play without masks. Does Covid stop at the border? Anyway, get the vax. Let’s be done with all of this.

No. I’ve always been of the opinion we should vaccinate as fast as possible and avoid needless risks. My issue is with the arbitrary rules that have made things difficult for my teens. For example, there were 15,000 unmasked people at the UFC event in Florida on Saturday. Meanwhile, my 13yo daughter has been quarantined for the third time since January and has to get a weekly Covid test to play 7v7 outdoor rec soccer (with a mask on). But that’s me as a father speaking. Obviously biased because I hate seeing my kids struggle.

I have been reading reports out of India. It is really bad. Only 2% of the population vaccinated and variants running wild. 300,000+ cases a day. Cautionary tales. I had two Michigan friends in their 40s, both healthy, spend six days each in the hospital recently. Getting my second Pfizer shot tomorrow.

It's been back to normal here since May of last year. Well, they finally removed the pool noodles from the holes last month, so now it's 100% back to normal.

There were two front page NYT articles today on outdoor masking. They must read TST 😆 Do We Still Need to Keep Wearing Masks Outdoors? - The New York Times Science shows that the risk of viral transmission outside is very low. The “two-out-of-three rule” can help you decide whether to mask up. They even included this handy graphic to decide when masks are necessary. And this newsletter that makes the scientific case that masks our largely unnecessary outdoors. The Morning: Are outdoor masks necessary? Anyway, it seems this is the first push towards helping people ease their fears and drop some masking. As the earlier article stated, it's an "off ramp" for the pandemic. If we start to ease up on protocols where it makes sense, we can start to return to normal. Very optimistic.

I believe this program is a response to the Premier Golf League (Saudi funded) wanting to poach top players by offering guaranteed money to appear on their tour. The PGA Tour had to offer some incentive to the big names to keep them from considering that offer. Think about it, if you're Rickie Fowler and earning close to no prize money right now, you'd be awfully tempted to take a guaranteed $2-$5 million to play a year in the PGL.

I'm not saying Spieth should make what Trout makes, but Trout gets paid whether he performs or not. Spieth doesn't. If Trout goes out with an injury for the next year, guess what? Still gets paid. Spieth? Nope. Athletes like Trout are paid, in part, based on the amount of revenue they help generate. On the PGA Tour they are paid strictly based on performance. Does Billy Horschel generate revenue? Not really, but he has made more money than Spieth over the last 3 seasons.

I am sure this will require tweaking over time, but I like it. Like @iacas said, the top athletes in other sports make more than pro golfers, and their pay isn't dependent on performance once the contract is signed. For example, Jordan Spieth. He is arguably the most popular player on tour when Tiger is not playing. Ratings jump when Spieth is in the hunt. His CAREER earnings are $45 million. He made less than $3 million per year from 2018-2020. Compare that to Mike Trout who makes $35 million a season and has a $426 million guaranteed contract, which means he can suck for a few years and still get paid big. Jordan had an off year last year and barely earned $1 million. Also, many of the top players on tour are largely forgettable. This will incentivize them to show more personality and be more open with social media, etc. Good for the game of golf all around.

Some good news out of Michigan. Cases are dropping again. FWIW the governor did not impose any new restrictions. Perhaps this is all vaccine driven as we approach 50% of the state getting at lease one shot. It's interesting that this wave seems to have hit the same ceiling as the previous one. Anyway, perhaps we are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

The original article posted by @iacas and the subsequent one I posted both made the point that requiring masks in situations that don't warrant their use leads to less compliance in situations where they matter. The only evidence of outdoor transmission occurred with CLOSE, SUSTAINED contact. 10-15 feet apart, intermittently screaming, does not constitute close or sustained contact. On another note, my local high school is holding prom, but it's outside and no dancing is permitted. They've replaced it with lawn games like cornhole. Guess what's happening? People are hosting their own private "Prom" at homes, which is far more likely to be indoors, unmasked, etc. In other words, the public policies sometimes have unintended negative consequences.