PGA Tour’s 'wealth accumulation' fuels reader’s wrath
Reader Dave Richner says I have a burr under my saddle toward the PGA Tour and its immensely profitable not-for-profit financial operations (“From the Morning Read inbox,” May 11). I completely agree with him.
Maybe I’d be less concerned about the PGA Tour’s wealth accumulation if the Tour would share that wealth in an effort to grow the game. But consider ...
1. Last weekend, Bryson DeChambeau earned $228,825 for a tie for ninth place at the Wells Fargo. Ariya Jutanugarn won an LPGA full-field, 72-hole event and won $240,000. Don’t try to argue that popularity and ratings are what matters; tell that to the NCAA and USA Soccer. That argument goes nowhere in today’s free world. Maybe the PGA Tour could use some of the European Tour alliance money or some of the $40 million bonus pool to subsidize the LPGA purses.
2. The Tour and its retail PGA Tour Superstore discount stores are killing the PGA of America club professionals. Maybe they think the club professional could go to work in one of their retail stores.
Maybe I’d be less concerned about their wealth accumulation if they didn’t act like the rich guy who moved into the neighborhood and tries to buy acceptance. The Tour “owns” none of professional golf’s biggest jewels: Masters, PGA, U.S. Open, British Open and Ryder Cup. But like the neighborhood guy, they throw their money around and try to buy their way in with the money-grab Tour Championship. And along the way, they stepped on places such as Firestone that played a big role in making the Tour what it is today.
Please don’t tell me about all their charitable work. I agree that the PGA Tour gives large sums to charity. But is it out of the goodness of the Tour’s heart or is it a way of getting exempt from federal income-tax status?
The Tour stopped being an association a long time ago. It’s a big and extremely lucrative business model.
Sorry, Dave, but I don’t have time to “take a nap.” I have to find a gas station that has fuel.
Charlie Jurgonis
Fairfax, Va.
A poor decision by NCAA officials
I just read about the NCAA Division I women’s regional that was scrapped and find it pretty abysmal that the powers-that-be could end so many players’ careers so easily.
To the ones who scraped and worked incessantly for years to be denied this opportunity is what I consider an injustice. If the golf course was too wet, was it not possible to move the site a few miles to a drier venue and hold the competition?
This is another poor decision by a group (read NCAA) that has lost its way.
Garen Eggleston
The Villages, Fla.
Morning Read invites reader comment. Write to editor Steve Harmon at steve@morningread.com. Please provide your name and city of residence. If your comment is selected for publication, Morning Read will contact you to verify the authenticity of the email and confirm your identity. We will not publish your email address. We reserve the right to edit for clarity and brevity.
Sign up to receive the Morning Read newsletter, along with Where To Golf Next and The Equipment Insider.