Sports "Officiating": The Art of the Fix

Whether you are a sports fan, player, casual spectator, or perhaps just an average “tax paying citizen,” you my friends, are in one way or another supporting a showcased event and making it possible to happen.

 
As we all know, sports on any level is a showcase of events which in turn offer those who buy into it, those who support it, or those who perform it, excitement and entertainment that sometimes cannot be equaled or found anywhere else.

Many years have gone by since my childhood days. Throughout those many years, thanks to officiating, I have become a privileged man. Privileged to see and sometimes experience both great and bad sporting event moments.

Sporting Event Moments, which for one reason or another have helped to change the very essence and complexion of the particular sport itself.

Sporting event moments made possible by those participate in and who make the official decisions governing the rules and by law regulations of the sport itself.

Ok folks, let us start with question #1: Which sport has the best officiating? Which sport has the worst?

In my humble opinion, the sport which has the least amount of Human Official Contact within and regulating its contest, turns out to have the best officiating.

For example, let us look at the sport of Golf or Bowling. I believe these two sports to have the best official representation within the world of sport.

Do you, a fan, a participant, or financial sponsor, ever hear of any play conflicts created within the art and performance of these two sporting events? Especially with the participants during a match game or series, by official's enhancing, interfering, or derailing the game of play and or its outcome?

My answer is No.

Very seldom have I ever read or heard of an on-field or lane official or even a professional player cheating or creating some type of improper score, which in turn could control the sports game outcome, within these two types of sporting events.

On the other hand folks, I believe a sport which has official human involvement with a capacity to influence the “flow” play of the sporting contest and game itself, is far more prone to have the worst officiating.

Reasoning behind my answer here is:
A) Human Error
B) Misjudgment,
C) Official calls created by outside controlling influences. Influences such as:
    1. the Owners,
    2. the Players,
    3. the Agents,
    4. the FIX “otherwise known as The Financial Idiom Xeno-Xenos”


Remember folks, it only takes a tenth of a second for a participating official (“referee, linesman or lineswoman, who in turn, view, regulate, the participating influences within the sporting game and or contest”) to make a call on a play which in turn could influence the outcome of the game and or sporting event itself.

Five sporting events and or contest, which come to mind within this category, are:

1. Baseball    
2. Basketball
3. Football
4. Hockey
5. Soccer

With NBA Basketball here in America, being the most controversial officiated sport of them all, I would call it the worst.

Over the many years, I have followed professional sports. Changes have been instituted and have been made within the rule books and official play calling of these five major sports.

Changes which, when applied, were done so in efforts to try and better the show and sporting event itself.

Changes from which the owners, the players, and the on-field officials participating, could reap more game play excitement, with higher scores and far more on-field antics, which in  turn would allow these five team sporting events to flourish.

Why were these rule and on field official play calling changes actually created you ask?

The answer is a very simple one, and more importantly a financial one. The answer is the bottom line. Money, a valued tool and commodity these days.

Money! A tool to help purchase a controlled emotional outburst of which is an entity every bit as valuable as excitement.

Money! A tool of which people can use to purchase a two-three hour sporting showcase escape from their every day trials and tribulations of reality.

Just a few hundred dollars will buy a family of four a seat for a few hours away from reality.

I do not see official rule changes within these five sporting shows and events again becoming a reality any time soon.

As for which sports are the easiest and hardest to officiate:
Easiest are Golf and Bowling.

Hardest to officiate, but easiest to make a bad play call upon are Baseball, Basketball, Foofball, Hockey, Soccer.
 
In which sport do officials the greatest role in determining the outcome of the game? Again, Basketball, Football, Baseball, Hockey, Soccer

Who are the best and the worst officials in the sports I am talking about? They're all good and they're all bad.

For sporting events are a showcased spectacle of excitement and controlled entertainment.

Question 1

Has the professional sporting event you favor, because of officiating, become a fixed and or a controlled event

Question 2

Do league officials who police, each and every game or match event, you favor, require the field of play officials to be held accountable for there play calls, regardless if the play call is correct or not?

Question 3

Do all the plays, specially plays which are called and or decided upon within the on field officials capacity, called correctly according to the rules governing the game or sporting event itself?

I believe these three questions present the major problems facing the sporting and entertainment fields of play within the five major sporting events I have mentioned and outlined within this writing.

So what do you the reader think of this old curmudgeon's two cents worth now?

If you were to ask me, I think we all have been Hornswoggled.

Remember folks DT once said that any adult involved in sports is an idiot.

This is it, “the old curmudgeon” jtynoble wishing all of you an exciting night out.