The Fed Ex Cup fails to deliver for the PGA
Ho-hum. The Fed Ex Cup is over. Finally. It made Tiger Woods $10 million richer (in escrow), but did it make the PGA any richer? Probably not. The PGA hasn’t said much about an increase in ratings. And it’s easy to wonder if the PGA might go broke if the $10 million it has to keep shelling out each year turns out to be $30 million or more when fully vested.
So why did the Fed Ex Cup flop big-time? Here are a few reasons:
1. The Fed Ex Cup seemed no different than a regular tour event, even lesser in stature than the World Golf Championship events. It didn’t help that Tiger Woods wouldn’t ever acknowledge that the Cup meant anything more to him than winning a tournament. Let’s face it, the PGA is not NASCAR.
2. The scoring system was a mystery and left only 3 players in contention for the final tournament. Why not start the final 30 all from scratch for the final tourney?
3. The golf season is long enough, the Fed Ex Cup only made it longer — forcing the marquee players like Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, and Ernie Els have to skip a week to be with family (such as at the start of their kids’ school). The FedEx Cup could be reduced to 2 weeks, a complete shootout.
4. PGA Commissioner Tim Finchem didn’t consult with some of the top players enough for settling on the format. It doesn’t help when the marquee players are criticizing the Fed Ex Cup.
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