BOSSES SHOULD ACT FAST
JAY MONAHAN is the most powerful man in golf. He also claims to have a genuine talent for maths.
So here’s a couple of numbers the Commissioner of the Professional Golf Association has to consider.
At the recent Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in San Diego, it took an experienced Tour star more than four minutes to take a single shot, while at the same tournament it was taking some groups more than six hours to complete 18 holes.
The four-minute offender was JB Holmes, who has been blasted for taking so long to hit the ball on the 18th hole in the final round. He deserves all the criticism he gets.
Perhaps Mark Twain could see well into the future when he claimed ‘golf is a good walk spoiled’ – because Holmes is ruining it.
His actions put off playing partner Alex Noren, who had a chance to win the tournament. But Holmes is just one of dozens of serial offenders.
Imagine it taking the same time for a footballer to strike a free-kick, Roger Federer to serve or Owen Farrell to kick a conversion?
But the finger of blame should be pointing at Monahan, too. You can boil an egg in four minutes. You can almost fly from the UK to New York in six hours. But if Holmes and the others are allowed to get away with slow play, they will.
Yet if Monahan is as clever as he claims to be, Holmes could turn out to be the unsuspecting pioneer who persuaded golf ’s governors to finally stamp out the issue that is killing the sport.
Golf has more rules than Louis van Gaal imposed on his squad when he was Manchester United boss.
But the one still missing appears to be the most important one of all. How about officials penalising players one shot on the course if they take longer than two minutes to play?
The European Tour has protocols to keep fields moving, but across The Pond the game remains a contradiction.
When he succeeded Tim Finchem as PGA boss 12 months ago Monahan (right) puffed out his chest and vowed to tackle the ‘challenges’ facing the game. Weeks later he gave an interview insisting he didn’t have a problem with slow play.
His pet peeve wasn’t millionaire slowcoaches ruining rounds and TV viewing figures, it was ‘gimmes’ in the amateur game (the act when one player concedes a short-length putt to another).
Monahan said: “I don’t see a problem with rounds on our Tour taking four hours, 45 minutes, because it’s been consistent around that number for a long time. “Am I going to push for faster rounds? As it stands, no. I’m just not a believer of gimmes in golf. Or in life.” Here’s a ‘gimme’ he should believe in. When the selfish acts of someone are affecting his fellow competitors and so much is at stake, instant penalties are needed and fast – if your pardon the pun. We should all feel excited about what the game of golf has in store for us in 2018. There is the prospect of Tiger Woods finally being fit again and competing in all four Majors, starting with the Masters in April. Rory McIlroy is back in form, while the likes of Dustin Johnson, Jordan Speith, Jason Day and Justin Thomas will also compete to be world No 1. There’s another Ryder Cup on European soil, too, when Thomas Bjorn’s men will attempt to regain the trophy from America in Paris at the end of September. It all adds up to a potentially heady mix of thrilling theatre. But unless Monahan tackles an issue smacking him flush on the nose week after week, people will continue to be turned off the game.