Ten Questions As We Wind Down

It’s the big talk and it really isn’t slowing down. Just where is the PGA Tour headed in 2007? Who stands to gain the most? Who stands to call themselves a loser in the game that has become “schedule roulette?” Most of us are trying to sift through the facts and analyze the possible outcomes as the world of professional golf readies for a whole new landscape in the coming years.
 
So go ahead, talk amongst yourselves, think about it on your own, or fire back at me with some brief answers to 10 important questions that might just affect more than just the way you look at the PGA Tour .
 
Here we go:
 
1. With big change coming, how much risk/danger is there for PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem as a leader?
 
Some say – a lot. Many argue that the PGA Tour wasn’t “broken” to begin with and shouldn’t undergo a massive facelift.

2. Is the proposed new schedule about Tiger Woods and the top players or is it about football?
 
Finishing early avoids extra pressure for the big guns to compete on someone else’s terms. Or is it just that finishing early avoids competition against NFL and NCAA?

3. Are the new schedule changes about the slate of PGA Tour events as a whole or about positioning the PGA Tour’s two showcase events – Players Championship and Tour Championship?
 
Greg Norman brought it up. I wonder if he’s on to something.

4. Speaking of Woods, will we ever see him at the Funai Classic at Walt Disney World Resort after 2006?
 
Better question – Will we ever see the Funai Classic in the future as a late season event?

5. If the PGA Tour all but provides its top draws with a “jumping off point” around Labor Day, when do Annika, Paula Creamer and other LPGA stars fight for similar perks?
 
The LPGA doesn’t have the purses (as in money) that the PGA Tour has, so the more tournaments the merrier – you would think.
 
6. Could it possibly be the European Tour that gains the most by a new PGA Tour schedule?
 
Think about it…. European events will be standing in line to have their events show up on the schedule AFTER Labor Day.

7. What do you do if you are the Tournament Director at Chyrsler Classic of Greensboro?
 
Vijay might play anyway, but is there any chance at all you can lure Tiger, Phil, Retief or Ernie? Or are we fishing without a whole lot of bait to put on the hook?

8. Will you watch the proposed “Quest for the Card” series – the seven or so events after the Tour Championship where the non Top 30 fight for their cards?
 
It seems to me that there’s a story out there for everyone. But who’s subsidizing the purses that those guys are playing for if the drawing cards are just “stories” and not “stars?”

9. It’ll be a bidding war, but if you could divide the PGA Tour tournament “pie” among the networks, which one gets the greatest number of events, and which one gets the least number of events.
 
My feelings won’t be hurt.

10. Who’s going to win next year’s Masters?
 
Never too early to start thinking about it. And just imagine if and when the PGA Tour season basically ends in September!

Good luck. And you might have better questions. I’ve come to expect that from a very educated group of readers.
 
Email your thoughts to Kraig Kann