Two anomalies have long existed in the upper echelons of golf. Firstly, of the four “world” golf championships – placed just under majors in apparent significance – three are held in the United States. It is also curious that links golf, such a fundamental part of the sport and a skill surely necessary for any top player to master, is such a rarity.
Both issues seemed pertinent at last week's Irish Open. The event was kickstarted, rocket-fuelled even, by the involvement of Rory McIlroy. This tournament felt like an Open Championship in so many ways; it appealed to some of the best players in the world, with 107,000 people taking the time to come and watch at the wonderful venue of Royal County Down. As a television spectacle, the backdrop seemed well-nigh impossible to beat.
Media tycoon
It wasn’t only golfers who bought into the concept: Van Morrison played in front of just 150 people on behalf of McIlroy’s charity with the telecoms and media tycoon Denis O’Brien, reportedly worth €5.24 billion, part of the audience. Major players attracted major players.
Now, it has to be pointed out that a terrific Irish Open attendance figure is not novel. The broad support for this event routinely gains envious glances from elsewhere in Europe and the United States. But what do the public receive for that backing? Until McIlroy and Dubai Duty Free stepped forward, this was a tournament minus a sponsor and, essentially, direction. With joined-up thinking and a strong PR campaign, the narrative changed entirely.
If golf was properly alive to vibrant, knowledgeable markets, this scenario would strike a chord. Three WGC events – the Cadillac Championship, Cadillac Match Play Championship and Bridgestone Invitational – are hosted by the PGA Tour. The European Tour co-sanctions the competitions and has staff on site at all three but to all intents and purposes they give the impression of added stops on the PGA Tour. For the US, three majors and three WGC competitions isn't too bad at all. Or proportionate.
The final WGC event of the year takes place in China in November, which is fair enough. There is a desire to grow golf there. But where does Europe come in? And, specifically, why couldn’t Ireland be afforded the respect it deserves for packed galleries and top-class golf courses by being granted the hosting of such a tournament? Far from an act of benevolence, this would seem basic common sense. Much, it has to be said, like moving the European Tour’s flagship event at Wentworth from the calendar spot where greens are never even close to good enough.
There was a plan to host the last major of the year, the US PGA Championship, outside traditional home territory; Royal Portrush was mentioned as a possibility. That concept was ruled out last year in a missed opportunity. Portrush will recover by soon hosting an Open.
Abandoning of golf’s roots
The July extravaganza aside, players have to search long and hard for proper links tests. That seems curious, almost an abandoning of golf’s roots, which playing a WGC on the likes of Royal County Down would move a huge way towards solving.
British and Irish golfers, who would be links regulars for top amateur events, find themselves far removed from gusting winds and uneven bounces when taking up lucrative residence in Florida. Graeme McDowell admitted as much on Sunday.
“Playing the type of golf we do the last five, 10 years . . . I grew up in this stuff, and I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t know how to play this any more,” said the Northern Irishman. “You lose the creativity and the art form that is playing golf in the wind.
“It’s great to come out here and get punished for a few days and really play some raw golf and realise that you don’t have the skill set you used to have and you might want to get it back if you want to win some Open Championships.”
As WGC events seamlessly shift from Arizona to California to Texas, but the argument for Ireland was never made in stronger terms than last week. Guardian Service
