Tim Finchem's Appeal Has So Far Fallen Upon Deaf Ears

Two weeks ago, PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem took the unprecedented step of sending out a video to each and every tour player and their agents appealing for them to do their part in helping out the tour during this tough economic time by attending more events.

Over the past decade, the PGA Tour has experienced a marked increase in popularity.

As is true of any business or form of entertainment that is experiencing a prolonged period of success, the money has been quick to follow.

The prize money available on the PGA Tour during the 2008 season was 300 percent more than that available ten years ago.

As we all know, the top golfers in the world are earning considerably more money off the course as a result of their extremely lucrative sponsorship deals. 

In 2007, Forbes reported that Tiger Woods earned around $111 million, of which only $11 million actually came from his PGA Tour winnings.

That indicates that only 9 percent of Tiger Woods’ yearly income is coming from his earnings on the course.

Phil Mickelson was reported to have made around $65 million in 2007, of which just $7.37 million came from his PGA Tour earnings. 

The massive increase in the popularity of the PGA Tour over the past decade has without question been good for the game of golf.

However, the result of this increase in popularity, and the money that has followed has been little incentive for the world’s top players to play in any event other than the majors, the World Golf Championship series and possibly a few other events they must attended due to sponsorship requirements.

Why would the likes of Phil Mickelson or Tiger Woods go out of their way to attend the Shell Houston Open? Sure, the winner of the event takes home more than a million dollars, which is a draw dropping figure for 99 percent of the country. But, Woods and Mickelson are earning a combined $157 million off of the golf course. The possibility of earning an extra $1 million does not really provide them with much incentive to go out of their way to attend an event they ordinarily would not attend.

Tim Finchem is not concerned about the tour’s financial health in 2009 or even in 2010, but he is gravely concerned about the tour’s financial health in 2011 and beyond. 

You don’t need to be a psychic or have a magical crystal ball to realize that the PGA Tour will be looking for new sponsors for almost all of the nearly 50 percent of tour events that are currently sponsored by companies within either the auto or financial services industries. 

It will be hard to believe that a company within the auto or financial services industry, who are poised to be demolished by this deep recession, will be able to justify using some of a government handout to sponsor a PGA Tour event.

Finchem’s appeal to the players to attend more events in 2009 is an effort to give the current sponsors a better bang for their buck while also creating an additional selling point to present to new potential title sponsors for the 2011 season and beyond. 

So far it looks as if Finchem’s appeal has fallen upon deaf ears.

The top four players in the world will not be attending next week’s PGA Tour season opener in Hawaii. 

Tiger Woods’ absence is quite understandable as he is still in the midst of recovering from a reconstructive knee surgery.

However, Sergio Garcia, Phil Mickelson and Padraig Harrington have all decided to simply skip the event. 

Granted, it is the holiday season and Hawaii is not the easiest place to get to.

However, the Mercedes Benz Championship is a very exclusive event with a field of just 37 players who comprised solely of those who won a PGA Tour event during the 2008 season.

As the 2009 season progresses, it will be interesting to see whether or not the PGA Tour’s biggest stars respond to Finchem’s appeal to attend more events.

One thing is for certain though, if Finchem’s appeal continues to fall upon deaf ears, we are likely to see a vastly different PGA Tour in 2011, which will comprise of far fewer events, which, in turn, could negatively affect the game’s popularity.

Just as the massive increase in golf’s popularity has padded player’s bank accounts over the past decade, a decrease in the game’s popularity will have the exact opposite effect.

Will players take it upon themselves to do their part in helping the tour through this difficult economic climate? 

We shall see in 2009.