PGA needs to be given jewel in the crown status
THE European Tour may have to take drastic action to restore the BMW PGA Championship to the status it deserves.
I’m reluctant to tell players where they should play, but the Tour should consider making Wentworth a designated tournament.
It already has the biggest prize fund of the year – 5 million euros – of any regular European Tour event. However, even that can’t entice some of our top players and that is disappointing.
Chief Executive Keith Pelley caused some of the problems at the back end of last year when he stated that he didn’t consider the event as the Tour’s flagship.
That gave the players an excuse not to play. Before then, there was almost an unwritten obligation that they should turn up.
Now some were citing that they didn’t like the course. That is a poor excuse.
As a professional golfer, you have courses that don’t suit your eye or where you don’t play so well. But the task is to buckle down, try to make the cut and do your best.
That is the difference between when I was on Tour and today. The riches on offer mean the elite players can pick and choose their schedule. I did not have that option.
BMW are a wonderful sponsor for the European Tour. I just hope they are not having second thoughts – despite putting on another great tournament.
There is always an element of risk in staging an event in England in late May as it can be difficult to have the course at its absolute best because of our variable weather.
But the Tour like having it then because it effectively signals the start of the modern ‘European’ season. They are reluctant to change and find a new date.
Sadly, the absence of headline acts like Rory McIlroy, Henrik Stenson and Sergio Garcia caused a significant drop in the attendance figures and detracted from what went on at the course this year.
That is such a pity because Wentworth was in good condition, the spectators who were there loved it and the flowers were in full bloom.
None of this negativity will matter too much to ChrisWood, though. He grabbed his chance in fine style in the final round for what could prove to be a defining moment in his career.
He is now 22nd in the world, in all the big events, and has a great chance of making the Ryder Cup team.
It’s now Chris’ spot to lose and he would have to play very poorly this summer not to be on the plane to Hazeltine.
What’s more, skipper Darren Clarke will want the players who can cope on the big stage and Wood showed he could handle the pressure.
It’s a long time since he finished tied for fifth and low amateur at the 2008 Open but he has made big improvements in the last 12 months.
Suddenly, after winning at Wentworth, he’s emerged from the pack and this will give him a new status on the Tour.