Golf - The Players

This week, we have The Players tournament. This is considered a very important tournament; some call it 'the 5th Major.' That is how silly golf sometimes gets. The Major tournaments have lnog, long traditions behind them. The Players is an attempt, much like the Fed Ex Playoffs to create a tradition. That simply is not how tradition works.

The course, TPC Sawgrass is just weird. It is not overly long, but it has a lot of water, too much water and darn near everything slopes toward this hazards. The greens sit at odd, little angles and have slopes that make it difficult to access the pins. In fact, they sometimes make it hard to even keep the ball on the green. On top of all that, the greens are almost always very, very fast.

In good weather, with no wind, the course is hard, but playable. However, any one who has ever spent time in Florida, knows that good weather for 4 straight days is always a long shot. If it rains, the course gets slow and soft and becomes almost too easy. If it is hot and sunny, the course is hard, fast and almost unplayable. Then, there is the wind. If the wind gets up to 20 mph, common in Florida in May, just keeping the ball on dry land is a problem.

The Tournament used to be played in March when, in Florida, high winds were a given and the course was never more than borderline playable. That's why they moved it to May.

I will watch The Players because I am a golf addict and because I, here and there, love to see the pros have to struggle. After all, they get paid enough/ They should have a rough week here and there. However, I will never consider The Players a Major Tournament. The tradition is a made up thing, a hype to stir up interest. Traditions build organically. You just do not create something and declare it a tradition, especially when you are playing on such a bizarre course.