Friday, September 30, 2005
Chip Gets French Benefits
Chip Atkinson wrote an unfortunate post this week about the PGA TOUR. Let me restate that...Chip attempted to write about the PGA TOUR. Instead, he listed a series of misstatements and mistakenly directed them toward the PGA, an organization undeserving of Chip's scorn.
The PGA is made up primarily of club and teaching professionals. PGA pros work hard to promote the game to the public and are rarely compensated enough for their long hours. The PGA TOUR is made up of the best golfers in the world, who travel from city to city playing for large purses.
Let's put aside for the moment that Chip's barbs were misdirected and look closer at his criticisms.
Chip claims that the PGA TOUR stop in Greensboro was an exception to the rule that the TOUR "played almost exclusively at private clubs used only by the wealthy." But the PGA TOUR stop in Greensboro has been hosted by only three private clubs, Sedgefield, Starmount Forest, and Forest Oaks. It is also worth noting that the PGA TOUR has had stops at public access courses for decades.
Chip also claims that the GGO (the former tournament name) "was unique because it was run solely by volunteers." But that is another inaccurate statement. The Hartford Jaycees have run what is now known as the Buick Championship for over half a century, and other TOUR stops operate with a small professional staff that oversees a large volunteer effort, too.
Chip mistakenly says "For a long time the tournament was held 2 weeks before the Masters." In fact, the tournament held the spot immediately before the Masters for years.
It is a shame that Chip's post is full of errors, and he misidentified his target. It is also disappointing that a wider audience read his misinformation when the News & Record reprinted his post in their Mixing It Up section yesterday.
The PGA is made up primarily of club and teaching professionals. PGA pros work hard to promote the game to the public and are rarely compensated enough for their long hours. The PGA TOUR is made up of the best golfers in the world, who travel from city to city playing for large purses.
Let's put aside for the moment that Chip's barbs were misdirected and look closer at his criticisms.
Chip claims that the PGA TOUR stop in Greensboro was an exception to the rule that the TOUR "played almost exclusively at private clubs used only by the wealthy." But the PGA TOUR stop in Greensboro has been hosted by only three private clubs, Sedgefield, Starmount Forest, and Forest Oaks. It is also worth noting that the PGA TOUR has had stops at public access courses for decades.
Chip also claims that the GGO (the former tournament name) "was unique because it was run solely by volunteers." But that is another inaccurate statement. The Hartford Jaycees have run what is now known as the Buick Championship for over half a century, and other TOUR stops operate with a small professional staff that oversees a large volunteer effort, too.
Chip mistakenly says "For a long time the tournament was held 2 weeks before the Masters." In fact, the tournament held the spot immediately before the Masters for years.
It is a shame that Chip's post is full of errors, and he misidentified his target. It is also disappointing that a wider audience read his misinformation when the News & Record reprinted his post in their Mixing It Up section yesterday.
