19th Hole
Is Shane Ryan alone in rooting for Tiger Woods to fail?
Shane Ryan, author of the insightful, singular, and controversial Slaying the Tiger, is regarded as a polemicist by some and an opinionated, original thinker by others. Regardless of whether you’re a detractor of admirer of Ryan’s “break the mold” style of golf writing, I think we can all admit he’s an excellent writer.
So it is with Ryan’s latest work of contrarianism for Golf Digest: “Tiger Fatigue Syndrome, or why I want the comeback to fail”. Is the essay a mere assumption of an oppositional or extreme position in favor of #clicks and self promotion? Is this Ryan’s well-reasoned opinion arrived at after much deliberation and thoughtfully presented? Is it some combination of both?
In the piece, Ryan writes things like this
“What I didn’t realize then, and hadn’t realized in 2014, was that I suffered from a rare disorder called Tiger Fatigue Syndrome. It comes in stages—bafflement, anger, exhaustion. It only afflicts those odd ducks, like me, who are completely at peace with a golf landscape that doesn’t include Tiger in a starring role. We are beset with psychic pain each time a Tiger comeback stops the presses, and we suffer spiritual ache each time its failure renews the “done or not done?!” debate cycle. We feel rooted in history, stuck in the past, like the sons of a rich tyrant whose name we can never escape. It’s at its most acute on weeks like this—Tiger is playing his first official PGA Tour event in a year at this week’s Farmers Insurance Open, and the eyes of the sport can’t look away.”
“To sufferers of TFS, the preponderance of Tiger-mad journalists and fans are the crazy ones. The evidence feels overwhelming: Tiger was the greatest golfer of his time—and the greatest to ever live, in my opinion—but now his watch has ended. The ongoing fixation with a man who is clearly past his prime strikes us as bizarre and a little delusional. And the more time that passes, and the more quixotic his path to glory, the worse it gets.”
Bold words. And while its sacrilege in all facets of the golf industry to cop to “TFS,” it’s doubtful Ryan is alone in suffering from the malady. You’ll want to read his full essay for context.
Not surprisingly, GolfWRX members have plenty to say about the piece, starting with Jarlaxle, who authored the thread.
“I could go on and on about how terrible this article is but will leave that to the rest of you. But I would ask Mr. Ryan to ponder one thing (and I do hope he reads this). If he were to poll all those young, up and coming stars that he feels are being undermined by the never-ending Tiger Mania, what do you think they would say? Do THEY want Tiger to fail? I’d say based upon recent comments by two of the youngest and most “fascinating” young players, Justin Thomas and John Rahm, that nothing could be further from the truth.”
Usually, the practice is to excerpt additional standout replies to give you a feel for the thread and entice you to click through. That is a difficult practice with this piece, however, as all the replies are darn good and many are hundreds of words long.
Instead, I’ll just say, get your popcorn ready and check out this excellent thread.
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19th Hole
LET pro gives detailed financial breakdown of first week on tour…and the net result may shock you
On Friday morning, Ladies European Tour player, Hannah Gregg, took to social media to share her weekly expenses playing on the LET.
Expenses of my first week on Ladies European Tour:
Flights: $2600
Work Visa: $350
Food: $377
Caddie: $0 because I have an amazing Fiancé
Hotel: $0 because @GregChalmersPGA sorted me host housing for the week! ?
Rental Car: +0 because the Tour Tee guys GAVE me their car ??…— Hannah Gregg (@hannahbggg) April 26, 2024
“Expenses of my first week on Ladies European Tour: Flights: $2600 Work Visa: $350
- Food: $377
- Caddie: $0 because I have an amazing Fiancé
- Hotel: $0 because @GregChalmersPGA sorted me host housing for the week!
- Rental Car: +0 because the Tour Tee guys GAVE me their car
- Gas: $165
- Entry Fee: $130
- Lounge Pass for caddie: $50
- Gym: $0
- Yardage book: $0
- Total expenses: $3672
Made cut, finished 54th, total earned: $1244 Factor in 35% tax on earnings. To break even, needed to finish 24th. To make money, 21st. Guess we have our goals laid out for next event!”
When factoring in Gregg’s free housing, free caddie and free rental car, it’s evident that most LET players would have to finish well inside of the top-20 to make any money.
With ridiculous amounts of money being thrown around in professional golf these days, it’s important to remember the other side of the coin as well. There are countless professionals out there who struggle to get by on their golf salary.
More from the 19th Hole
- The wild reason why Mark Wahlberg was initially denied entry to an Australian golf club
- 2-time major champ announces shock retirement from the sport at age of 33
- Edoardo Molinari reveals the latest PGA Tour golfer to turn down ‘good offer’ from LIV Golf
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19th Hole
54-hole golf tour deemed eligible for OWGR points…but it’s not LIV
After a seventeen-month application process, a 54-hole golf tour was deemed eligible for OWGR points.
Unfortunately, for LIV Golf and their fans, it was the Clutch Pro Tour.
After the decision, which is effective immediately, OWGR chairman Peter Dawson issued a statement.
“This is a significant milestone for golf, and OWGR is deeply encouraged by the achievement and the continued efforts in developing the sport of golf in the United Kingdom.”
“We look forward to watching the progress of the Clutch Pro Tour as it continues to play a key role in the development of players from the region,” Dawson added.
OWGR Announcement
Read more here – https://t.co/7J4bFpawqv#OWGR#OfficialWorldGolfRanking pic.twitter.com/ZfBJWCFAm8— OWGR (@OWGRltd) April 25, 2024
The Clutch Pro Tour operates in the United Kingdom and features a 36-hole cut. It also has an open qualifying school.
More from the 19th Hole
- The wild reason why Mark Wahlberg was initially denied entry to an Australian golf club
- 2-time major champ announces shock retirement from the sport at age of 33
- Edoardo Molinari reveals the latest PGA Tour golfer to turn down ‘good offer’ from LIV Golf
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19th Hole
Charlie Woods attempting to qualify for spot at 2024 U.S. Open
As first reported by Bob Harig of Sports Illustrated, Charlie Woods will be attempting to qualify for this year’s U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2.
The first stage of qualifying for this year’s tournament will be an 18-hole local event on Thursday, April 25th, in Port St. Lucie, Florida.
There will be 84 players in the field, five of which will reach the 36-hole qualifier that will take place in June.
Earlier this season, Charlie attempted to qualify for the Cognizant Classic, and struggled, shooting an 86.
If the younger Woods is able to qualify, he will tee it up in the same field as his father in a few months at one of the more historic U.S. Open venues.
More from the 19th Hole
- The wild reason why Mark Wahlberg was initially denied entry to an Australian golf club
- 2-time major champ announces shock retirement from the sport at age of 33
- Edoardo Molinari reveals the latest PGA Tour golfer to turn down ‘good offer’ from LIV Golf
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