Posted on 10/11/2006 11:52:00 AM PDT by wagglebee
MADRID, Spain (AP) - Technology, money and Tiger Woods are hurting golf, according to two-time British Open winner Greg Norman.
The Australian, who is playing in this week's Spanish Senior Open, said Tuesday that golf will be in major trouble if the U.S. PGA Tour doesn't manage the sport more carefully. "With fewer and fewer people watching golf in America, the sport has become stagnant," Norman said.
Some U.S. tour events this year reportedly saw significant declines in American television viewership from 2005, such as a 56 percent drop for the Bob Hope Classic, a 50 percent decline for the season-opening Mercedes Championship and a 37.5 percent drop for the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.
Some analysts have said that Woods being in contention is a major factor in ratings, such as the 22 percent increase in August for the final round of his U.S. PGA Championship victory, but ratings when he successfully defended his title at Doral were still off by 16 percent.
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.foxsports.com ...
Good for both of them. They each have far more than I do but I doubt Tiger has a billion dollars.
What better indicator of your nature than the words you use either in public or private.
Thank you. Yes, she was. One of my heroes and her husband, too.
I'm cablinasian and have never watched golf ;-) LOL
It is obvious you don't follow the sport. I believe Tiger, who is roughly 1/3 through his carrier will shortly be the highest paid athlete in the world far surpassing Norman. The Shark by the way was maybe a couple of weeks if ever ranked number one in the world, Woods is and has been ranked #1 for years the best in the world.
I follow golf. Haven't played in 25 years. Watch golf on TV only if Tiger is on the tube, which is less and less these years. Watch ladies golf only if Sorenstam is on the leader board or Wie is playing. But, then, I like to watch curling, especially if the ladies are hurling the stones. Once had a sportswriters pass to LA Angles; only went when Nolan Ryan pitched at home. Watch any time the Dodgers are on, not Angles. Liked to watch Connors, Nasty and McEnroe play baseline tennis on TV; now only the ladies play watchable TV tennis. Only watch UCLA play football (the Rams are no longer in LA).
To each his own.
yitbos
Norman's wealth is based on business in the golf industry and outside of the industry. I have never contended that Norman's golf earnings or endorsements were equal to or superiors to Tiger's.
I think Tiger is well pasted the half way point of his golf career simply because he doesn't want it to be his entire life. If he plays past the age of 40 I would be surprised. Once he quits I think he will drop from view and enjoy married life and raising a family.
He's too smart to hang onto something as illusional as golf.
Oh for the days of Jabar and Walton. I loved the way Wooden ran the program.
Maybe the Shark pushed Bubba down those stairs.
I know it's off-topic but I really expect something more from someone who writes for a living. Maybe I should just be content it's not, "but there still not their."
The real problem is that the PGA has set up a comfortable, almost socialistic work place where anyone in the top 25 makes a fine living. In the "good old days", if you didn't win, you had money problems. Today, three top 10's a year will earn the player at least $750,000.
The PGA tour needs to be more open to European players and the young guns coming out of college. As it is, the top 125 on the money list are assured a handsome living, entry to all tournaments, etc. even though at least 50 have no realistic chance of winning a tournament that has half of the world top ten in the field. Lee Trevino suggested cutting the exemptions to the top 75 money winners to open the competition. That might be a very good first step!
yitbos
Tennis?
hmmmmmm....the shark jumping the tiger...strange
Doogle
What is noteworthy of his political donations is that they all came after the Bubba incident.
Perhaps Clinton's behavior that night made Norman a Republican for life?
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