What if Tiger's Back?

[bscinstnct]

Short term it's great for the Tour and golf in general. Long term it hurts the Tour's development of its young stars who have like 10-15 prime years left. Even if Tiger is fully back physically, he's 42 and it's not like he has another decade of high level golf left in him. He just sucks all the oxygen out of the room and when he's finally done in the next few years, the Spieth's, Mcilory's, etc will still be where they're at currently in terms of capturing the public's imagination.

 

TW "sucked all the oxygen out of the room" this year because

 

He had his back to the wall, was thought to be a sad, has been that would embarrass himself. Instead, he by all measure, put his heart and soul into an amazing comeback that captured the imagination.

 

It's not like he came out, made a few cuts, played like a loser and there was all this hype and hoopla about it. If he sucked all year, he would have got the hype at first but then people would turn their heads to see something worth while.

 

TW delivered the goods. Gotta give him that.

 

Rory didn't deliver what he should be, neither did Spieth. But, a lot of other guys played high caliber and got the deserved attention.

[cdnglf]

Nobody outside of golf gives a sh1t about those guys nationally/internationally and they never will. There's no long term golf development to hurt, in relation to the guy that whines and tugs his towel all the time, or the guy that's Wayne Gretzky's son/poolboy/whatever, or even that nice polite guy who does all the commercials, or anyone else.

 

When Tiger is truly done playing, golf will return full time to the quiet backwaters of sports middle tiers.

 

Its a miracle golf survived the last 8 years.... RIP golf. born 1996-died 2009. Thanks for setting us straight

Where did I say pro golf is dead? It simply has a place - like a lot of other sports - further down the pecking order when vying for people's attention. And Tiger absolutely props it up when he's playing and no other golfer or collection of golfers is going that, regardless of 'development'.

You think otherwise I assume?

 

No Tiger, its a niche sport. With Tiger, still a niche sport.

It is a tiny business compared to the NHL, much less the NFL. The NHL pays out $2B+ in salaries per year. Total PGA Tour purse is maybe a quarter of that.

 

https://www.business...he-world-2018-5

 

Show me an NFL or NHL player on this list. Also be my guest to search out other lists. Duffer987 is 100% correct. Tiger brought (and still brings) the game to an altitude that it's never been able to achieve without him. My wife can't stand golf but if I'm not home and he's playing, she's watching and texting me updates.

 

Every sport regardless of size and payouts needs a star athlete that transcends the sport itself and that's what Tiger did and still does.

 

And for the record, JS, JT, DJ and the rest of them are NOT stars. They are exceptional golfers good enough to play on tour and win but they are not stars. Tiger is a star. Federer is a star. Ronaldo is a star. Why? Because they transcend, exceed expectations and make the exceptional look mediocre. They remind us that the impossible IS possible and that's what strikes a chord with everyone regardless if they're a fan of the sport or not.

 

P.S. Don't be afraid to look up the 10 most 'popular' sports in the world. Let me know where ice hockey and American football sits on the list. Surely a niche sport like golf couldn't possibly make such a list, could it?

 

Not sure what your point is. The discussion is about pro golf, not recreational golf. Are you saying the PGA Tour is a bigger business than the NHL?

 

BTW, non-star JS is 16th on your list.

[bladehunter]

Have to agree. Hockey ? Only in the cold climates where you cant go outside . Transplants watch in certain cities. But by and large people outside the snow belt can’t name 3 hockey teams much less players to save their lives.

[dciccoritti]

Not sure what your point is. The discussion is about pro golf, not recreational golf. Are you saying the PGA Tour is a bigger business than the NHL?

 

BTW, non-star JS is 16th on your list.

 

Right, the popularity of golf is represented by the PGA Tour and its financials. Apologies if I don't see the PGA Tour as being the only representative of pro and recreational golf. And as for JS, he wouldn't even be on that list if it wasn't for what Tiger did for the game worldwide. #elevation

[bscinstnct]

Not sure what your point is. The discussion is about pro golf, not recreational golf. Are you saying the PGA Tour is a bigger business than the NHL?

 

BTW, non-star JS is 16th on your list.

 

Right, the popularity of golf is represented by the PGA Tour and its financials. Apologies if I don't see the PGA Tour as being the only representative of pro and recreational golf. And as for JS, he wouldn't even be on that list if it wasn't for what Tiger did for the game worldwide. #elevation

 

This only ranks Americans but it underlines your point as far as TW taking golf to a new level of recognition.

 

The Big Five: The 5 Most Recognizable Athletes in Sports History

 

 

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/82995-the-big-five-the-5-most-recognizable-athletes-in-sports-history

 

 

5. Jackie Robinson

4. Tiger Woods

3. Muhammad Ali

2. Michael Jordan

1. Babe Ruth

[cdnglf]

Not sure what your point is. The discussion is about pro golf, not recreational golf. Are you saying the PGA Tour is a bigger business than the NHL?

 

BTW, non-star JS is 16th on your list.

 

Right, the popularity of golf is represented by the PGA Tour and its financials. Apologies if I don't see the PGA Tour as being the only representative of pro and recreational golf. And as for JS, he wouldn't even be on that list if it wasn't for what Tiger did for the game worldwide. #elevation

 

The popularity of pro golf _is_ reflected by the PGA Tour and its financials. Include all the other tours if you want, and the total is still far less than hockey (which is a pretty small sport itself). Tiger's been around for 20 years, and pro golf is still comparatively small potatoes financially. Lots of people know who Tiger is, and many have a vague notion of what the Masters is, but so what? They don't care enough to actually watch it or go to tournaments.

 

The popularity of recreational golf is irrelevant, because the discussion is clearly about pro golf.

[bscinstnct]

Another.

 

Most dominant athletes in the world in the past 20 years across every continent and sport

 

Again, TW putting golf on the map (and included as a "real" sport) by being ranked

 

#1

 

 

http://www.espn.com/...s-last-20-years

[cdnglf]

Another.

 

Most dominant athletes in the world in the past 20 years across every continent and sport

 

Again, TW putting golf on the map (and included as a "real" sport) by being ranked

 

#1

 

 

http://www.espn.com/...s-last-20-years

 

Like NASCAR!

 

[bscinstnct]

Another.

 

Most dominant athletes in the world in the past 20 years across every continent and sport

 

Again, TW putting golf on the map (and included as a "real" sport) by being ranked

 

#1

 

 

http://www.espn.com/...s-last-20-years

 

Like NASCAR!

 

 

Ha!

 

I prolly the only person on the planet who hasn't seen that.

 

But I did see

 

 

[dciccoritti]

Not sure what your point is. The discussion is about pro golf, not recreational golf. Are you saying the PGA Tour is a bigger business than the NHL?

 

BTW, non-star JS is 16th on your list.

 

Right, the popularity of golf is represented by the PGA Tour and its financials. Apologies if I don't see the PGA Tour as being the only representative of pro and recreational golf. And as for JS, he wouldn't even be on that list if it wasn't for what Tiger did for the game worldwide. #elevation

 

The popularity of pro golf _is_ reflected by the PGA Tour and its financials. Include all the other tours if you want, and the total is still far less than hockey (which is a pretty small sport itself). Tiger's been around for 20 years, and pro golf is still comparatively small potatoes financially. Lots of people know who Tiger is, and many have a vague notion of what the Masters is, but so what? They don't care enough to actually watch it or go to tournaments.

 

The popularity of recreational golf is irrelevant, because the discussion is clearly about pro golf.

 

Nope, the conversation was about how Tiger dramatically elevated the game here and around the world. And that without Tiger, golf lacks its punch and presence among other sports because the other golfers on Tour can not even remotely generate the excitement he did. We saw football locker room interviews being interrupted because Tiger was playing and competing. You just don't and won't see that level of interest and excitement for other golfers on tour.

 

Point being it's NOT the same when he's playing and when he's not playing. It's dramatically different.

[payerasjl]

I'll bet money Cameron Champ wins his first before Tiger gets his 14th.

 

LOLz

[cdnglf]

Not sure what your point is. The discussion is about pro golf, not recreational golf. Are you saying the PGA Tour is a bigger business than the NHL?

 

BTW, non-star JS is 16th on your list.

 

Right, the popularity of golf is represented by the PGA Tour and its financials. Apologies if I don't see the PGA Tour as being the only representative of pro and recreational golf. And as for JS, he wouldn't even be on that list if it wasn't for what Tiger did for the game worldwide. #elevation

 

The popularity of pro golf _is_ reflected by the PGA Tour and its financials. Include all the other tours if you want, and the total is still far less than hockey (which is a pretty small sport itself). Tiger's been around for 20 years, and pro golf is still comparatively small potatoes financially. Lots of people know who Tiger is, and many have a vague notion of what the Masters is, but so what? They don't care enough to actually watch it or go to tournaments.

 

The popularity of recreational golf is irrelevant, because the discussion is clearly about pro golf.

 

Nope, the conversation was about how Tiger dramatically elevated the game here and around the world. And that without Tiger, golf lacks its punch and presence among other sports because the other golfers on Tour can not even remotely generate the excitement he did. We saw football locker room interviews being interrupted because Tiger was playing and competing. You just don't and won't see that level of interest and excitement for other golfers on tour.

 

Point being it's NOT the same when he's playing and when he's not playing. It's dramatically different.

 

Without Tiger:

 

With Tiger:

[dciccoritti]

Not sure what your point is. The discussion is about pro golf, not recreational golf. Are you saying the PGA Tour is a bigger business than the NHL?

 

BTW, non-star JS is 16th on your list.

 

Right, the popularity of golf is represented by the PGA Tour and its financials. Apologies if I don't see the PGA Tour as being the only representative of pro and recreational golf. And as for JS, he wouldn't even be on that list if it wasn't for what Tiger did for the game worldwide. #elevation

 

The popularity of pro golf _is_ reflected by the PGA Tour and its financials. Include all the other tours if you want, and the total is still far less than hockey (which is a pretty small sport itself). Tiger's been around for 20 years, and pro golf is still comparatively small potatoes financially. Lots of people know who Tiger is, and many have a vague notion of what the Masters is, but so what? They don't care enough to actually watch it or go to tournaments.

 

The popularity of recreational golf is irrelevant, because the discussion is clearly about pro golf.

 

Nope, the conversation was about how Tiger dramatically elevated the game here and around the world. And that without Tiger, golf lacks its punch and presence among other sports because the other golfers on Tour can not even remotely generate the excitement he did. We saw football locker room interviews being interrupted because Tiger was playing and competing. You just don't and won't see that level of interest and excitement for other golfers on tour.

 

Point being it's NOT the same when he's playing and when he's not playing. It's dramatically different.

 

Without Tiger:

 

With Tiger:

 

Ok you made me laugh...lol :-)

[bscinstnct]

Not sure what your point is. The discussion is about pro golf, not recreational golf. Are you saying the PGA Tour is a bigger business than the NHL?

 

BTW, non-star JS is 16th on your list.

 

Right, the popularity of golf is represented by the PGA Tour and its financials. Apologies if I don't see the PGA Tour as being the only representative of pro and recreational golf. And as for JS, he wouldn't even be on that list if it wasn't for what Tiger did for the game worldwide. #elevation

 

The popularity of pro golf _is_ reflected by the PGA Tour and its financials. Include all the other tours if you want, and the total is still far less than hockey (which is a pretty small sport itself). Tiger's been around for 20 years, and pro golf is still comparatively small potatoes financially. Lots of people know who Tiger is, and many have a vague notion of what the Masters is, but so what? They don't care enough to actually watch it or go to tournaments.

 

The popularity of recreational golf is irrelevant, because the discussion is clearly about pro golf.

 

Nope, the conversation was about how Tiger dramatically elevated the game here and around the world. And that without Tiger, golf lacks its punch and presence among other sports because the other golfers on Tour can not even remotely generate the excitement he did. We saw football locker room interviews being interrupted because Tiger was playing and competing. You just don't and won't see that level of interest and excitement for other golfers on tour.

 

Point being it's NOT the same when he's playing and when he's not playing. It's dramatically different.

 

Without Tiger:

 

 

With Tiger:

 

 

No Tiger

 

 

 

With Tiger

 

[Darth Putter]

[leezer99]

It's going to be very different...

 

[Johnnypenso]

 

This only ranks Americans but it underlines your point as far as TW taking golf to a new level of recognition.

 

The Big Five: The 5 Most Recognizable Athletes in Sports History

 

 

https://bleacherrepo...-sports-history

 

 

5. Jackie Robinson

4. Tiger Woods

3. Muhammad Ali

2. Michael Jordan

1. Babe Ruth

Jackie Robinson is one of the 5 most "recognizable" athletes in America? Somehow I think the list is grossly misnamed. I'd be shocked if 1/100 people under the age of 50 would recognize Robinson's face.

[bscinstnct]

This only ranks Americans but it underlines your point as far as TW taking golf to a new level of recognition.

 

The Big Five: The 5 Most Recognizable Athletes in Sports History

 

 

https://bleacherrepo...-sports-history

 

 

5. Jackie Robinson

4. Tiger Woods

3. Muhammad Ali

2. Michael Jordan

1. Babe Ruth

Jackie Robinson is one of the 5 most "recognizable" athletes in America? Somehow I think the list is grossly misnamed. I'd be shocked if 1/100 people under the age of 50 would recognize Robinson's face.

 

Ok, so who would you say are the 5 most recognizable athletes in American history?

 

Just had an impromptu poll here. Asked 4 people. One is 46, one is 25, and two are 30.

 

Interestingly, all said

 

Babe Ruth first

Then Jordan

Then Ali

Then Tiger

Then it was a toss up of different baseball, football, tennis players.

 

There was one 25 year old woman. She said,

 

Bruce Jenner and Dennis Rodman, lol

[ChristopherMcDonald]

This only ranks Americans but it underlines your point as far as TW taking golf to a new level of recognition.

 

The Big Five: The 5 Most Recognizable Athletes in Sports History

 

 

https://bleacherrepo...-sports-history

 

 

5. Jackie Robinson

4. Tiger Woods

3. Muhammad Ali

2. Michael Jordan

1. Babe Ruth

Jackie Robinson is one of the 5 most "recognizable" athletes in America? Somehow I think the list is grossly misnamed. I'd be shocked if 1/100 people under the age of 50 would recognize Robinson's face.

 

maybe solely off name recognition? No dog in this race lol

[RobertBaron]

Recognizable is kind of a silly metric since it’s going to be weighted more towards present day as media saturation and the international stardom of athletes has grown dramatically. I’d guess if you showed 100 people in Times Square a picture of Jackie and Lebron, something like 80-90% would easily identify Lebron. I can’t see nearly that many being able to identify Jackie.

[Johnnypenso]

This only ranks Americans but it underlines your point as far as TW taking golf to a new level of recognition.

 

The Big Five: The 5 Most Recognizable Athletes in Sports History

 

 

https://bleacherrepo...-sports-history

 

 

5. Jackie Robinson

4. Tiger Woods

3. Muhammad Ali

2. Michael Jordan

1. Babe Ruth

Jackie Robinson is one of the 5 most "recognizable" athletes in America? Somehow I think the list is grossly misnamed. I'd be shocked if 1/100 people under the age of 50 would recognize Robinson's face.

 

Ok, so who would you say are the 5 most recognizable athletes in American history?

 

Just had an impromptu poll here. Asked 4 people. One is 46, one is 25, and two are 30.

 

Interestingly, all said

 

Babe Ruth first

Then Jordan

Then Ali

Then Tiger

Then it was a toss up of different baseball, football, tennis players.

 

There was one 25 year old woman. She said,

 

Bruce Jenner and Dennis Rodman, lol

It's all a meaningless opinion based exercise. All depends on the definition of "recognizable", how old one is, what sports they favour etc.

[bscinstnct]

This only ranks Americans but it underlines your point as far as TW taking golf to a new level of recognition.

 

The Big Five: The 5 Most Recognizable Athletes in Sports History

 

 

https://bleacherrepo...-sports-history

 

 

5. Jackie Robinson

4. Tiger Woods

3. Muhammad Ali

2. Michael Jordan

1. Babe Ruth

Jackie Robinson is one of the 5 most "recognizable" athletes in America? Somehow I think the list is grossly misnamed. I'd be shocked if 1/100 people under the age of 50 would recognize Robinson's face.

 

Ok, so who would you say are the 5 most recognizable athletes in American history?

 

Just had an impromptu poll here. Asked 4 people. One is 46, one is 25, and two are 30.

 

Interestingly, all said

 

Babe Ruth first

Then Jordan

Then Ali

Then Tiger

Then it was a toss up of different baseball, football, tennis players.

 

There was one 25 year old woman. She said,

 

Bruce Jenner and Dennis Rodman, lol

It's all a meaningless opinion based exercise. All depends on the definition of "recognizable", how old one is, what sports they favour etc.

 

So..you going to answer the question?

 

; )

 

"Ok, so who would you say are the 5 most recognizable athletes in American history?"