The twitter universe is no place to use as thoughtful insight, from educated and well respected experts, however it has been alive with condemnation of Sunday's finale of the Dell Technologies World Match Play from fans and players and media alike.
Sunday's, Tiger (3 wins) aside, at the Match Play have been undistinguished since it all began in 1999.
Billy Horschel holds his trophy
Yet match play golf provides us with 3 of the best day's in all of sports at the bi-annual Ryder Cup. However it is a team event with the fuel of national pride driving each and every shot, every putt made and missed. There is love and dislike in abundance, there is a continuing history.
That will never happen at this WGC event, however can be compelling, for the first 3 days.... but so often a flop long before the final curtain comes down...
My Opinion:
In every great story, whether it be a movie/play/book all the action builds to a climax as it goes on. The problem for the TV production of this WGC Dell Match Play is that all the action happens in the first 3 days when all 62 are in play in the 16 Groups. On Friday evening 8 of the 16 needed sudden death playoffs before we knew who was progressing, drama galore !, big names, rooting interests from around the world.
By Saturday morning there are 16 guys left, so some of the drama has gone. but the knockout round of 16 still gives the TV producers lots of action and storylines unfolding on course, Mac Hughes taking one of the world's great match players, Sergio Garcia to the 17th green, with Sergio at his artistic best is an example.
However by Sunday we already know the story, most of the stars are often gone and once again we have four good guys who all fully earned their way during the week, but unless you had a rooting interest (eg. Scheffler played at University in Texas) like a family member, or a fellow countryman (eg Perez from France), there is no interest. Nobody would stop what they were doing to watch any of them for 5 hours.
So unless it's Tiger, Phil, Bryson and DJ in the final four, it's a flop to most viewers.
Here are some of the finals in this event. Tiger won it in 03, 04, 08 and was 2nd in 2000 to Darren Clarke. So Tiger aside, because whether he shoots 84 or 64 TV ratings will be good. Tell me how many of these finals were a must see for you. (edited)
1999 Jeff Maggert beat Andrew Magee
2001 Steve Stricker beat Pierre Fulke
2002 Kevin Sutherland beat Scott McCarron
2005 David Toms beat Chris DiMarco
2006 Geoff Ogilvy beat Davis Love
2007 Henrik Stenson beat Geoff Ogilvy
2013 Matt Kuchar beat Hunter Mahan
2014 Jason Day beat Victor Dubuisson
2019 Kevin Kisner beat Matt Kuchar
In 1999 and 2000 the event was a straight knockout at La Costa in Southern California in February. After a sponsor change and a disastrous move to the Metropolitan GC in Melbourne in January 2001 when 40 top players refused to make the trip, it returned to La Costa until 2006.
In 2007 it moved to Arizona until 2014, still a straight knock out. Tiger won it 3 times, however Geoff Ogilvy also won it twice and was runner up once. Also the weather was down right cold in the mornings, in fact was delayed by snow a couple of times. More importantly galleries were small, guys were quietly critical of the courses and as you can see Sunday's were a flop.
So the format we have today was instituted in 2015 at Harding Park San Francisco in April, then with Texas based Dell as the sponsor it moved to the Austin CC in 2016.
So I think the first part of the equation is right, Group play was exciting, there was drama, intrigue, David vs Goliath (eg Robert MacIntyre vs Dustin Johnson, a draw), sudden death playoffs and half of the field are either Europeans or Internationals, and that's what WGC's are supposed to be, not American Golf Championships.....
What do we do with the rest.
The European Tour has been successful with innovations like Golf Sixes but it's based on 2 man teams so won't work here.
My solution: First about the broadcast. I would get one QB (Nantz etc) in studio to do the ins and outs and make the throws to on course staff. Nick Faldo, Paul Azinger put their golf shoes on and join Ken Brown, Wayne Riley, Roger Maltbie, Alison Whitaker and get out where they belong, following groups and giving us their expertise with LIVE insights. Golf commentary as it is in the USA has too many spoiled guys in suits watching telly like we are and it's worse than boring, it's annoying.
Second, the format: allow 2 players from each group advance to Saturday (32) then let them play 36 holes of stroke play for the title. That will keep some of the star power names in play instead of at home. and will have a new story to tell, with new opportunities for drama, lots of action to cover on TV to keep viewers interested.
Finally cancel Sunday all together, the week is long enough for the players as it is.
Let's face it. It can't get worse and with Tiger out of the picture it has to get better.
Bryan Angus
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