I'll bet you that when it comes to the subject of the FedExCup, there have probably been at least 25 negative commentaries in print, on the Web, and on TV for every one positive one. And that might be understating it.


Whenever I see something like this happening, my contrarian gland starts pumping skeptic hormone through my bloodstream, usually resulting in a string of maniacal rants against popular opinion. So far this season, however, I've been pretty measured in my comments to friends, on blogs, etc., on this matter, afraid of being branded an idiot for supporting what has been, until two weeks ago, little more than a cheesy marketing blitz.




And while I have my reservations on the matter, I'm ready to come out of the closet. The FedExCup is a good thing, with the potential to be much more.

Why, specifically, have I been afraid to support the FedExCup (let's call it the "FEC" for short)? Well, there have been many well-conceived, negative critiques of the thing, many by people for whom I have great respect. You probably know the criticisms. They include:

1. The point system is too complicated.
2. The point system doesn't reward the right things.
3. Nobody will watch a phony golf playoff over college and pro football.
4. It's just a big cash grab by the PGA Tour.
5. It is unfair to the tournaments it supplanted.
6. The players don't even care about it, so why should the fans?

There is some truth to all of these, and there is no doubt that the FEC, in its current form, is far from perfect. If it is to succeed at all long term, there will have to be changes. But to be honest, I'm not really interested in the specifics of it. I'm willing to set all of these matters aside as fixable issues or mere distractions that someone smarter than me can fix. What I'm interested in, my "issue," is the general subject of a season-ending playoff series for professional golf.


Many people are skeptical of this - it's probably the root of all of the objections to the FEC. I think it's a compelling idea.


One of the great mysteries of athletics is the subject of hot streaks and slumps. Even at the highest levels, where athletes often practice and prepare in a manner nothing short of obsessive-compulsive, one's level of athletic performance ebbs and flows over time, for reasons that are generally unknown to the athlete in question. Any golfer knows this. You have shot two or three shots below your handicap four rounds in a row, are on pace to break your personal scoring record for a round, and the next thing you know you forget how to swing and begin hitting it sideways.


In team sports, especially those with long seasons like baseball, basketball, and hockey, the peaks and valleys vary from player to player across the long season, generally smoothing them out, such that generally by the end of the year, you have a pretty good idea of the best and worst teams in the league. Playoff systems, especially those which invite more teams, can skew things a bit at times by giving us unlikely champions, but in general there is validity to the results.


This hasn't really been true in golf. Without "teammates" to pick them up, PGA Tour pros' streaks and slumps have profound effects on how their results for the season are viewed and rated, and often the golfers who play the best and most consistently for a season do not win the prestigious championships. It's all a matter of timing. Of course, many point to this aspect of the game as one of its charms, and players like Hogan, Nicklaus, and Woods have created an entire philosophy/religion on the subject of preparing for the big tournaments. But the fact that there are big tournaments doesn't mean the remaining events are trivial, or that one's performance in them counts for nothing.


A playoff system for golf addresses this issue. By rewarding play throughout the season and in the season ending championship series, something like the FEC gives the golfer a chance to demonstrate consistent, season long proficiency, as well as pressure performance, in a way that the single tournament major championships do not.


Up until now, there has been no such examination for golfers.


I think the early returns on the FEC series are showing us its potential for excitement. Tiger and Phil battling it out in Boston last weekend was about the best golf can offer today (outside of it occuring in a major), and the notion that it will all be over in just two short weeks (as opposed to waiting a month for the next major) is exciting for golf fans. Granted, the validity of this year's championship is no doubt tarnished by the absence of many of the stars in the four Cup events (as I said, I know it's far from perfect), but the potential for something special and unique for golf is there.


Sports fans are often traditionalists, loving the games they grew up with, and not exactly anxious to see things change. There's virtue in this, to be sure, but the most successful sports change and grow.


I think there's room in golf for the FEC. It compliments the majors, rather than competing with them. It's the golf season's mulligan. If you get unlucky and lose to Larry Mize on a chip in at the Masters, or run into Scott Hamilton or Jack Fleck on the week of their lives, or if you bounce a ball off a one-inch metal railing into the hay at the British, you still have a chance to win something big for the year. It's at the end of a long year, therefore rewarding the player with physical and mental stamina.


The Tour may have to paint over the canvas in a few places to get it just right, but the FEC can definitely work. It can't succeed without the support of the players, which has been iffy thus far. But weighed on its merits and potential, I think it's way too early to begin writing the obituary.


Originally Published at http://thesandtrap.com/columns/thrash_talk...ke_the_fedexcup.

well said!

agree well said, I am definitely watching the Fed on TV as though it was one of the majors. By this time of year I normally wouldn't even be tuning in. who cares if some of them choose to skip a week, its there life! Going into the last week we have the prospect of Tiger and Phil battling it out again, whilst quietly rooting for Stricker to keep the fairytale season going.

Not a bad start for a new fangled cheezy marketing blitz.

I think it's great. All the media and "golfers who talk golf" act like it is such a tank and that the players don't care, etc, etc....Well, if they would take a second to think about it...They are talking about golf in the fall. That used to never happen before, and now it's big news and people are tuning in. It's a success for the tour in every way, shape and form. Not only that, but it is exciting with the marquee groupings going head to head basically all four rounds...Sometimes the media blows my mind with how stupid they are. They're saying it's a tank while at the same time talking about how Phil outdueled Tiger and Tiger shot a 63 and is unbelievable....Kind of contradictory and ironic, don't you think?

I agree, I think it's been pretty successful. I know I've enjoyed watching. The golf has been great and compelling.

I also don't understand when people say the point system is too complicated. The better you do, the more points you get. Why is that so difficult to understand? Is it complicated because I don't know exactly how many points someone gets for finishing in 34th place? I know it's less than everyone ahead of him, and that's all that matters.

exactly. like i've said before, i could care less about the money, the points, blah blah. all i know is i turn on the tv, and Phil and/or Tiger are playing. why do we care about how bad the point system sucks, or if a player can skip a week? because evidently, it's popular to think that way. that stuff has no effect on us, only the players. does anybody really not think that basically the best 30 made it to Atlanta?