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19th Hole

“Old Man Golf Media”? Barstool Sports and some of golf’s leading journalists involved in bitter online feud

Published

4 years ago

on

@foreplaypod

Over the weekend, Patrick Reed’s caddie altercation ironically led to another dispute, this time on Twitter between Barstool Sports and some of the sport’s leading writers – with the former branding the established journalists as being part of “old man golf media”.

The feud began when Barstool, home to one of the most popular golf podcasts “Fore Play” which boasts over 140k followers on Twitter, took issue that ESPN’s Bob Harig hadn’t credited the outlet for a statement obtained from Reed’s caddie in the wake of his exclusion from the Presidents Cup.

ESPN writers, Harig and Michael Collins, hit back at Barstool’s Sam “Riggs” Bozoian, claiming that they had obtained the statement first.

Ultimately it appears that Kessler Kerain gave similar (if not the exact same) statement to both outlets, but the conflict was far from being finished.

A feisty battle between new-school Barstool and the older guard of golf journalism was brewing, and it was a strangely innocuous video of Tiger Woods fist-bumping Riggs down in Royal Melbourne which would instigate the row.

After Barstool shared the video with their followers and rejoiced in the experience, Harig branded Riggs a “fan boy” as well as an embarrassment, claiming his behavior was unbefitting of someone with a media credential at the event.

Harig’s reaction prompted Riggs to tell the ESPN writer, in his opinion, exactly how the two men do things differently.

Things then escalated when another Barstool member, Frankie Borelli, tweeted that he wanted “Ancer to quit the game of golf when Tiger is done with him today.” during Sunday’s singles action.

Golf Digest’s John Huggan blasted the take…

…before Borelli hit back at the journalist for being a part of “old man golf media”.

Also chiming in was Golf Channel’s Matt Ginella, who launched this stinging attack on Huggan, claiming that he “epitomizes the bitterness and negative attitude that gives the game a bad name.”

Before all settled down, Geoff Shackelford, senior writer at GolfWeek, echoed Harig’s original sentiment, cryptically describing the guys over at Barstool as “fanboys granted a media pass” in his Presidents Cup article on his website. Shackelford expanded on that view on social media late Sunday night in a series of tweets, once again referring to the video of the fist-bump with Woods.

This particular exchange ended in the invitation and acceptance of Shackelford to appear on Barstool’s podcast to discuss the difference of opinion.

The war of words has subsided for now, but it would appear to portray the seismic gap between those on the side of a new form of golf media content and those on the side of a more classical approach.

Can the two co-exist?

We’d love to hear your thoughts on the dispute and see where you stand WRXers!

 

 

 

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Gianni is the Managing Editor at GolfWRX. He can be contacted at [email protected].

19th Hole

LET pro gives detailed financial breakdown of first week on tour…and the net result may shock you

Published

6 hours ago

on

Apr 26, 2024

By

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  
  • 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.

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19th Hole

54-hole golf tour deemed eligible for OWGR points…but it’s not LIV

Published

1 day ago

on

Apr 25, 2024

By

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.

The Clutch Pro Tour operates in the United Kingdom and features a 36-hole cut. It also has an open qualifying school.

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19th Hole

Charlie Woods attempting to qualify for spot at 2024 U.S. Open

Published

1 day ago

on

Apr 25, 2024

By

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.

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