Is the European Tour basically the Korn Ferry at this point?

[MtlJeff]

1 minute ago, smashdn said:

 

Live in Florida and play golf year round with no state income tax.  It has an appeal even for a person already living in the States.  I would imagine, unless you had a deep national pride keeping you there, it is even more appealing from a financial standpoint coming from a European country with typically higher taxes.

 

Haha, i live in Quebec. I don't need to hear from Europeans on what it's like to be taxed!!! 

[smashdn]

14 minutes ago, MtlJeff said:

 

Haha, i live in Quebec. I don't need to hear from Europeans on what it's like to be taxed!!! 

 

I'm not European.  Just pointing out that a comparison of taxes alongside the US purses is valid.

[OrangeGravy]

7 hours ago, Bubbtubbs said:

FWIW, I prefer the ET over the PGA most times. The coverage is better and the fans don't act like they were rounded up from a trailer park or Walmart. Plus, they don't take themselves as seriously so their YouTube channel has more entertaining content like club challenges. 

I do as well from a viewership standpoint when you're talking a regular tournament. 

[MtlJeff]

3 minutes ago, smashdn said:

 

I'm not European.  Just pointing out that a comparison of taxes alongside the US purses is valid.

 

I was just kidding, i didn't think you were European. Was just joking that we have euro like taxes here too . Definitely valid as i know people who have moved to the US , not pro athletes but other fields too

[2bGood]

7 hours ago, MillerLowLife said:

I tuned into coverage of the Euro event over the weekend. Not sure if coverage is like this every week or just because it was the Irish Open but it actually felt like I was watching golf coverage. I didn't care if I had no idea who the players were, I felt like I had a feel for player's rounds and really felt when they made a bad shot/decision. Definitely going to record the Scottish Open and check out more coverage. 

 I prefer the ET coverage / announcers. They show a much more complete picture of what is going on, the announcers also don't feel compelled to talk ALL the time - they often quietly watch after they give you the setup.

Edited September 30, 2020 by 2bGood

[OrangeGravy]

44 minutes ago, BIG STU said:

Naaw Orange ain't trolling I know him better than that

Not at all and I'll admit, We've been in this altered reality so long, I didn't even think about that as a possible reason why the fields were so unfamiliar to me. I enjoy the "calmness" of watching the ET as compared to the PGA Tour. Too much hype and over dramatization on our tour. It's fine for big tournaments, but it's hard to take for every tournament. I was watching the Irish Open and thinking, What happened here? When did this Tour change so much? The tournament in Spain that Catlin also won, had quite a few guys I knew of. Most were the older guard of ET like Clark and Westwood. 

[Bubbtubbs]

31 minutes ago, OrangeGravy said:

Not at all and I'll admit, We've been in this altered reality so long, I didn't even think about that as a possible reason why the fields were so unfamiliar to me. I enjoy the "calmness" of watching the ET as compared to the PGA Tour. Too much hype and over dramatization on our tour. It's fine for big tournaments, but it's hard to take for every tournament. I was watching the Irish Open and thinking, What happened here? When did this Tour change so much? The tournament in Spain that Catlin also won, had quite a few guys I knew of. Most were the older guard of ET like Clark and Westwood. 

I remember jumping in a few years ago when Koepka was winning his first US Open and shutting it off after a half hour or so. Even during other players' shots they mostly hyped BK. I have nothing against the guy and understand that the tournament leader is exciting, especially when he's fairly new, but the hype was way over the top. 

 

I mostly watch the major coverage on YouTube one day behind now. That way I can see the entire day's play in less than three hours with no commercials or interviews and I can skip ahead if the commentators are droning on.

[OrangeGravy]

29 minutes ago, Bubbtubbs said:

I remember jumping in a few years ago when Koepka was winning his first US Open and shutting it off after a half hour or so. Even during other players' shots they mostly hyped BK. I have nothing against the guy and understand that the tournament leader is exciting, especially when he's fairly new, but the hype was way over the top. 

 

I mostly watch the major coverage on YouTube one day behind now. That way I can see the entire day's play in less than three hours with no commercials or interviews and I can skip ahead if the commentators are droning on.

I do the same on YouTube TV with all sporting events these days

[BIG STU]

52 minutes ago, OrangeGravy said:

I do the same on YouTube TV with all sporting events these days

Well I do a little different than other folks which is SOP for me---- When the announcers or talking heads get on my nerves I put the TV on mute and crank up the rock and roll or beach music and watch. I have been playing and watching this game long enough [ I can also see well too] to know what is going on

[iBanesto]

Well at least the European Tour owns the PGA Tour with their quality of the video content.

 

 

[llewol007]

I think a lot of it too has to be with whats going on you dont see a lot of the European players making the traveling needed to play the events. You are half correct that it is a feeder into the PGA. Ask the Euro players who eventually end up on US soil to play in the NBA. Contracts are bigger. Here exposure and advertising dollars means that your check is going to be bigger than if you are playing back home. But there are a lot of young talent you always hear of on the European tour and you wait to see if they have enough backing to play the events on US soil.

[Superbrit]

I've always been a big supporter of the ET but i do worry for the future of it, of course its always going to be there but you do have to think on what scale, there just isn't the sponsorship in Europe like there is in the US, never has been, but with the situation as it is you do wonder what the future lies for it.

 

Even the ET announcers have mentioned several times they cant believe the prize money on the PGA tour is virtually the same as it was before.

 

Players have shown many times that for the majority of them its all about money, and for the money on offer you cant really blame them.

[Naptime]

Easy way to settle the question.  Ryder Cup Lite between KF Tour players snd current European players.

[Creedo77]

Euro tour plays for more cash and OWGR points

[iBanesto]

12 hours ago, Naptime said:

Easy way to settle the question.  Ryder Cup Lite between KF Tour players snd current European players.

 

I assume you're talking about the current European Tour players whom are playing current playing on the tour during the pandemic, rather than the top European players e.g. McIlroy?

[cdnglf]

45 minutes ago, iBanesto said:

 

I assume you're talking about the current European Tour players whom are playing current playing on the tour during the pandemic, rather than the top European players e.g. McIlroy?

Doesn’t matter. The Euros could use the next 3 foursomes due off at Muirfield and they’d still win.

[ATLgopher]

On 9/29/2020 at 12:33 PM, Krt22 said:

lol, most of those yahoos are in fact country club snobs. It takes a certain level of entitlement to attend a PGA tour event in a pink polo, teal chubbies shorts, boat shoes, and proceed to hoot and holler after slamming back 20 $11 beers

love it when grown men take offense to what other men are wearing 

I like pink and getting s*** faced....what’s it to you

 

[Naptime]

1 hour ago, iBanesto said:

 

I assume you're talking about the current European Tour players whom are playing current playing on the tour during the pandemic, rather than the top European players e.g. McIlroy?

 

Yes that is what I meant.

[bscinstnct]

On 9/29/2020 at 1:26 PM, MillerLowLife said:

I tuned into coverage of the Euro event over the weekend. Not sure if coverage is like this every week or just because it was the Irish Open but it actually felt like I was watching golf coverage. I didn't care if I had no idea who the players were, I felt like I had a feel for player's rounds and really felt when they made a bad shot/decision. Definitely going to record the Scottish Open and check out more coverage. 

 

Thats because,

 

“the chief business of the American people is business.”

 

We are a nation of salespeople. We make sugar water into multi-billion dollar global enterprises. 
 

So, to us, a golf tournament is a marketing effort. Everything is sold in superlative fashion. Our announcers can’t shut their mouths for a second to let the pastoral ambiance and smooth, lazy, pace of golf be the star of the show. 
 

We got “linebackers” out there! “Gunslingers!”

We are “better than most!”

 

; )

 

[iBanesto]

 

 

[Ferguson]

Bangers and mash is an American dish.  

[golfortennis]

On 9/29/2020 at 5:36 PM, smashdn said:

 

Live in Florida and play golf year round with no state income tax.  It has an appeal even for a person already living in the States.  I would imagine, unless you had a deep national pride keeping you there, it is even more appealing from a financial standpoint coming from a European country with typically higher taxes.

 

European athletes are fiercely proud of their heritage and will remind you of that at every opportunity, provided you don't look too closely at the fact they list Monte Carlo as their residence.

 

Not blaming them in any way, I would as well if I could.  But these guys are not about "competing against the best competition."  They are about making money, and keeping as much of it as they can. There is nothing wrong with that, and it so happens that the money right now is bigger on the PGA Tour.  What no one has ever been able to explain to me is if ET events and everything are set up as charitable organizations like the 501(c)3 stuff the PGA Tour has.  People conveniently forget how much an impact that can have on the money involved.

[Sixcat]

It's funny how time changes perspective.  Prior to Tiger Woods, the European Tour and the PGA Tour played for virtually the same purses and generated similar revenue for decades.  Due in large part, to the Seve factor.  Tiger grew the PGA Tour exponentially at a time when Seve was aging and fading into non-relevance from a competitive standpoint.  As Tiger ages and fades into retirement, where will the next great global superstar come from?  Whoever this person is, if he chooses to remain primarily in Europe, this trend Tiger created could easily shift.

 

Much more detail can be heard on the McKeller Golf Podcast Episode #45.

[smashdn]

1 hour ago, Bluefan75 said:

 

Not blaming them in any way, I would as well if I could.  But these guys are not about "competing against the best competition."  They are about making money, and keeping as much of it as they can. There is nothing wrong with that, and it so happens that the money right now is bigger on the PGA Tour.  What no one has ever been able to explain to me is if ET events and everything are set up as charitable organizations like the 501(c)3 stuff the PGA Tour has.  People conveniently forget how much an impact that can have on the money involved.

 

Me either.  I failed to take into account Monte Carlo but that is the same principle as Florida I suppose.  I live not far from Nashville, TN.  Whenever one of the pro sports teams there is attempting to attract a high-profile free-agent the talking heads on radio always bring up that TN has no state income tax as a good reason for so-and-so to sign since they will keep more of their money earned.

[golfortennis]

4 hours ago, smashdn said:

 

Me either.  I failed to take into account Monte Carlo but that is the same principle as Florida I suppose.  I live not far from Nashville, TN.  Whenever one of the pro sports teams there is attempting to attract a high-profile free-agent the talking heads on radio always bring up that TN has no state income tax as a good reason for so-and-so to sign since they will keep more of their money earned.

 

Has TN removed the visiting athlete tax?  I recall it was a flat $7,500 per game, with NFL exempted of course.  It was actually such that an NHL player making the minimum salary lost money playing a game at Nashville. 

[smashdn]

Don't know about that.

[mahonie]

By its nature, playing on the Euro Tour is much more difficult than playing on the PGA Tour. Much more travel across different borders, different cultures, language barriers, food, different courses every week.

 

By comparison, the PGA Tour is easy money...as a young, single golfer why wouldn’t you?

[Titleist99]

18 minutes ago, mahonie said:

By its nature, playing on the Euro Tour is much more difficult than playing on the PGA Tour. Much more travel across different borders, different cultures, language barriers, food, different courses every week.

 

By comparison, the PGA Tour is easy money...as a young, single golfer why wouldn’t you?

Absolutely.....The tour Championship gets you $395K for last place. Every kid in the world should start practicing right now....LOL! Win one or two tournaments and your pretty much set.

[dlygrisse]

It’s time they create a world tour, there are only a few events in the Euro tour that even the top tier Euro players care about.  They need to merge with the PGA tour and consolidate events.  You could throw in an event or two from Asia, Australia and South Africa and be done with it.  I’d include the Open from several countries including Canada, Australia, etc.  

 

the Euro tour is only a couple of top tier players from defecting from being the Korn Ferry, minus the Open Championship and the Euro Masters.  

[golfortennis]

21 minutes ago, dlygrisse said:

It’s time they create a world tour, there are only a few events in the Euro tour that even the top tier Euro players care about.  They need to merge with the PGA tour and consolidate events.  You could throw in an event or two from Asia, Australia and South Africa and be done with it.  I’d include the Open from several countries including Canada, Australia, etc.  

 

the Euro tour is only a couple of top tier players from defecting from being the Korn Ferry, minus the Open Championship and the Euro Masters.  

 

Why?  There is a ton of travel involved with that.  And for what benefit?  The WGCs tried to be outside the US, but really didn't get much traction.

 

Go look at how many events used to be played in the UK 2 decades vs a couple years ago(this year doesn't count), and see if you can figure out why the number declined like it did.  Then see if the rest of Europe has anything in common.