2021 Waste Management Up In All Ratings For NBC And Golf Channel

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Showbuzzdaily.com with the ratings up all days and especially Sunday on NBC, filling in while CBS hosted the Super Bow. With a compelling leaderboard and pre-Super Bowl finish ultimately captured by Brooks Koepka the 2021 Waste Management delivered.

Streaming numbers are not made available but assuming you can get the balky NBC Sports app to work—they no longer support my cable subscription, so charming!—there might have been nice numbers there as well.

Last year’s Waste Management numbers on CBS and Golf Channel along with other sports that 2020 weekend. Webb Simpson prevailed last year over Tony Finau and Justin Thomas.

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Even With Aggressive Mask Enforcement Waste Management Open Is Success

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Why did I ever doubt the Thunderbirds?

The Arizona Republic’s Jose Romero on a successful return to sizeable galleries, a good test run that could have gone so wrong for other upcoming tournaments.

Despite the undoubtedly different feel to the 2021 Phoenix Open, it was still the most-attended PGA Tour event in almost a year, with several thousand fans allowed to on the course daily. 

"There's always silver linings in everything," Jenkins said. "This just made us better at running this tournament. We had to look at different ways of being creative and just look at our expenses. It's easy to deal with your partners when times are good.

"We really relied upon our partners, our vendors, as well as the (PGA) Tour and the city of Scottsdale."

For Jenkins, seeing fans pay attention to washing hands, wearing masks and watching their distance was what stood out. If there was any doubt, he said, it was whether fans and officials would abide by protocols, and if enforcing those would be problematic.

The prospect of 5000 at TPC Scottsdale—generally the type of people you fear will plop down next to you—seemed a disaster waiting to happen. But at least on television and based on the accounts of those on the ground, the Thunderbirds were aggressively enforcing mask wearing and a good time was still had by all. Hospitality areas looked well ventilated and other than the Mashed Potato types screaming out, the event felt good to watch. Helped that the golf was fascinating down the stretch, too.

No Pro-Am? AT&T Pebble Beach Field Even Weaker Than Normal

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With Dustin Johnson’s WD no top 10 players are making it to Pebble Beach this year.

Plenty of blame to go around for an elite schedule slot drawing a Fall field.

In no particular order, my guesses as to why the field for the 2021 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am (without a Pro-Am) is so weak despite a $7.5 million purse and only two courses: Pebble Beach and Spyglass Hill.

Matt Kuchar also WD’d to open a spot for Ricky Barnes, who is apparently still active as a player.

  • Saudi Arabia appearance fee money drew several top players last week

  • Waste Management Open drew a better field with players knowing that with only 5000 the baba-booeys crowd would be minimized

  • One-two punch of Riviera and free-money WGC are lurking the next few weeks

  • No pro-am, no fun. Yes, there really still are players who enjoy the networking and old pro-am vibe.

It would have been interesting to see if Pebble Beach picked up more big names had the WGC Mexico not been salvaged. Instead, one of America’s great resorts and courses featuring some of the biggest non-major ratings annually has failed to attract a stellar field.

On a separate note, sponsor AT&T now pays for two events that have been absolutely hammered by schedule changes and stronger competition. Given the corporation’s longtime devotion to golf and the millions they’ve paid out to PGA Tour pros, they deserve better.

Koepka: "There was a period maybe for about two months where I just questioned whether I was ever going to be the same"

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Incredible stuff from Brooks Koepka in winning his fourth PGA Tour event to go with four majors. The chip-in eagle from a tough angle (embed below) and this frank quote after the round from Adam Schupak’s Golfweek game story:

“It was a lot worse than I probably let on,” he said. “There was a period maybe for about two months where I just questioned whether I was ever going to be the same, whether I was even going to be somewhat remotely the same golfer that I ever was. Those dark places, a lot of tears, questioning yourself, and in dark places mentally. You’ve got to come out of that. … I’ll tell you what, it takes a lot of effort just do get out of those places.”

Thursday Chamblee: "Spieth is headed into oblivion. That’s hard to turn that ship around."

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Brandel Chamblee on Thursday, talking to Golfweek’s Adam Schupak.

Q: You just said Jordan is “on his way to oblivion.” I take that to mean you see him getting worse rather than better.

BC: If you go back and look at Ian Baker-Finch and David Duval’s ascent and descent in the game of golf, they track a similar path to Jordan Spieth. When they get to a point where they are really searching and they get desperate there’s not only the insecurity of whether or not you’re ever going to find it again, there’s also that psychological scar tissue. It’s like a physical wound and some of them will heal up and some of them will kill you.

Ian Baker-Finch or David Duval, no disrespect to them, but the only reason I picked them out is they made the game look so easy for a period of time as did Jordan Spieth. Their descent is a reminder to all of us that it is ephemeral. You can lose it in the blink of an eye. He seems to be searching every single week, spending lots of practice swings, over the ball a long time.

Duval will be thrilled!

Now those of us used to Chamblee’s pivots on the distance issue will not be surprised to learn he had already forgotten the comments about his fellow Longhorn when Schupak returned for a follow up. This, after Spieth posted rounds of 67-67-61.

GW: Do you want to walk back any of your comments about Jordan since we talked the other day?

BC: What did I say? I can’t even remember. I wasn’t probably sanguine about his comeback.

He did something today I don’t think I’ve seen. I’ll go look it up. I can’t remember a person being in the lead position in a golf tournament being dead last in fairways hit and next-to-last in distance from the edge of the fairway. That’s unprecedented. I don’t know how you do that. I guess you can in a place like the desert where there is a lot of luck involved in the lies you get and then you hit your irons like a God. He still has the ability to stun us with his short game and putter.

As I chewed on it today, there are a handful of people who lost their edge. Sam Snead in 1947-48 he won only one time because he had the putting yips and then he won 17 times when he sorted that out the next two years in 1949-50.

From oblivion to losing his edge is definitely different.

As for that final round 72 and playing this week, Schupak also reported on Spieth’s post round remarks stating his pleasure at having decided to play the Waste Management. The T4 was his best finish since a T3 at the 2019 PGA Championship.

The commentary is as robust as ever even when the mic’s cut off on the live network show.

Golf.com’s Michael Bamberger listed the reasons so many were happy to see Spieth in contention again.

He set up an enjoyable read this way:

But the first sentence is the telling one. All of sports are loaded with I-don’t-know. Most athletes aren’t willing to admit it. Spieth is. How refreshing.

He’s a breath of fresh air and has been for years.

I was rooting for Spieth on Sunday at Phoenix. (Yes, sometimes we root.) Unless your name is Jena or Chase, I’m guessing you were, too.

Xander And Jordan: Waste Management Partying On Super Bowl Sunday Like It's 2017

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Put some fans back on the course—even whose life goal is to coin the next Baba Booey—mix in one of the most volatile finishing stretches on earth and put Jordan Spieth in the lead? It should add up to a stellar Waste Management Open final round.

It’s been a while since Spieth has had a chance to win but seeing his Saturday 61 reminded just about everyone that the sport is more fun to watch when he’s hovering around a leaderboard.

I’ll leave the rest of your Sunday preview to 15th Club’s Justin Ray who went on quite a Saturday evening Tweetstorm:

PGA Tour highlights from Spieth’s 61:

Flashback: How The Game Has Changed Files, Tiger Asks Trey Holland For Embedded Ball Relief Edition

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A week after Patrick Reed’s remarkable request, approval and endorsed embedded ball relief saga at Torrey Pines, it’s still the talk of 19th hole banter (at a safe distance). Playing it as it lies remains under assault on the PGA Tour. I’ve yet to hear from anyone who liked what they saw.

Then we added Wednesday word of a volunteer confessing to having accidentally stepped on Rory McIlroy’s ball. If true, it solidifies key differences between Reed and McIlroy’s situation on top of one other key point: McIlroy’s next lie was essentially no better than the first one.

It’s all pretty strange and was made otherword-bizarre when the rules community could not find one thing wrong wtih Reed’s actions.

It wasn’t always that way.

Thanks to reader E for sending in this gem from the Sports Illustrated when players were not bigger than the game.

Former USGA President Trey Holland wrote this guest piece for SI on Tiger Woods. It’s a fun read but best on the ruling part after Woods hit it some deep Pebble Beach rough:

"Then on the 3rd hole he hits his second shot short of the hole,
near a bunker. The ball sinks in the grass. He says to me, 'I
 think my ball is embedded.' If it's embedded, he gets a free
drop. There's an intensity in his voice. He knows how he wants 
this to come out.

"I say, 'Mark your ball, lift it and test the dirt with a finger.
 If the plane of the dirt--not the grass, but the dirt--is broken,
 it's embedded.'

"He tests it. He says, 'I think it is.' I say, 'Let me have a look.' I put my finger down there. I say, 'It's not.' He doesn't say a word. Replaces his ball. Hacks it out. Makes a triple

bogey.

"On Sunday we're back on the 1st tee. He says hi. Doesn't say anything about the ruling. He does his two-minute stare again, plays his final round, wins the U.S. Open. I congratulate him, and he says, 'Thanks, that means a lot. But I sure would have liked to have gotten that drop yesterday on 3.' Twenty-eight hours later and after winning the Open by 15 shots, he was still thinking about it. I was under the clear impression that he wanted to win by 18."

Headline Writers Seize on Rory Slamming USGA/R&A Report, Less Impressed With His Endorsement Of Local Rule

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Rory McIlroy spoke at Wednesday’s Waste Management Open press center and made an inconsistent set of comments about the distance issue.

Headline writers loved his comments slamming the USGA and R&A distance report proposals for consideration, but the real takeaway should have been McIlroy’s endorsement (again) of bifurcation and the local rule concept floated as a result of the study. A position also inconsistent with the views of his partners at Taylormade.

Which is why you do such a study so that such companies see the decision was made on data and research, not opinions.

From Adam Schupak at Golfweek:

Asked if he would be in favor of a local rule or different rules for the pros, McIlroy said: “I would be all for that. If they want to try to make the game more difficult for us or more – try to incorporate more skill to the game, yeah, I would be all for that, because I think it only benefits the better play, which I feel like I am.

The waste of money remarks from Ryan Lavner at GolfChannel.com:

“So I think the authorities, the R&A and USGA, are looking at the game through such a tiny little lens, that what they're trying to do is change something that pertains to 0.1 percent of the golfing community, while 99.9 percent of the people play this game play for enjoyment, for entertainment,” McIlroy said. “

Of course, the manufacturers have the option to make anything they’d like to help people enjoy the game. Following the USGA/R&A rules are 100% optional.

For those keeping score at home, that’s a huge endorsement for a local rule picked up by the governing bodies.

Ratings: 2021 Farmers With Reed Controversy Off Slightly On CBS, Golf Channel Ratings Take Hit Without Tiger

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Not much year-to-year change for CBS at the season-opening (for them) Farmers Insurance Open according to ShowBuzzDaily. The PGA Tour moving to CBS and the NFL taking the week off meant golf won the sports week.

The 2021 final round on CBS dropped slightly from a 2.14 averaging 3.24 million in 2020 to a 1.95/3.1 million in 2021. Coverage last year include Tiger Woods within striking range and coverage impacted by news of Kobe Bryant’s death.

Embedded in the numbers are some signs of the Woods effect and Golf Channel’s ratings rough patch.

Weekend lead-in coverage numbers were down significantly from 2020 when Woods was in contention. Friday afternoon’s coverage essentially cut in half without the legend around.

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Would Things Have Been Different For Patrick Reed Under The Old Rules Of Golf?

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That would be the pre-January 1, 2019 rules.

Alistair Tait believes so in recoiling at the soft glove treatment Reed received thanks to a change in language.

Reed called for a rules official because he believed his ball was embedded. Ninety-nine percent of players would have waited for the official to arrive on the scene. Not Reed. He lifted the ball and moved it.

The current rules give Reed the benefit of the doubt that he acted reasonably. Here’s an excerpt from the new rule book that helps exonerate Reed:

“The player’s reasonable judgement will be accepted even if, after the stroke is made, the determination is shown to be wrong by video evidence or other information.”

The professional golf tours must have celebrated when that line was written, when the new rules came into effect. In most instances now they can just accept a player’s word and move on. No need to hand out too many pesky penalties.

By receiving no punishment for his crime of rushing to his ball and lifting it from underneath that huge lip, Reed used both the rules and the fear of modern players to his advantage. You have to tip your cap. But when these things keep following him around and he’s seen as having gotten away with something, the new rules ultimately let him and the game down.

CBS Golf Enjoys A Strong Start To 2021

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Live drone shot over the 2021 Farmers Insurance Open

Live drone shot over the 2021 Farmers Insurance Open

You know how the old saying goes: one man’s suspicious embedded ball relief is another man’s gain.

The 2021 Farmers Insurance Open breathed some much needed life into the PGA Tour schedule by returning to scenic Torrey Pines with a strong leaderboard, multiple (compelling) storylines and a well-produced broadcast. But it was CBS’s strong production and announcing effort that sustained the shows much needed drama until Reed’s lead became insurmountable.

With Sellers Shy taking over for Lance Barrow, we knew several innovations and tweaks were coming. Other changes were more evident in adding zip to the normally dreary task of broadcasting golf. Random observations from the weekend:

—The new lower right scoreboard will be a fantastic addition. It may take some getting used to for viewers and camera operators. During Sunday’s show it was already apparent the camera operators were trying to better incorporate it into the frame. The new feature was helped by a close tournament and it cleverly keeps the leader displayed at all times, adding just a bit more understanding and even urgency to the proceedings.

New lower right scoreboard

New lower right scoreboard

—Shy Shows Less Standing Around. Many times CBS came right up to player as they were pulling the club back. This meant more live shots but also a little less time seeing players addressing the ball, mashing down rough with their club or conversing with caddies. That also may have been intentional for another reason…

—Sound seemed less prevalent overall. Almost as if they are worried about picking up less-than-savory player comments? This was a setback from 2020’s focus on sound to make up for the lack of crowds. And remember my motto: the least interesting player-caddy conversation is almost always more informative than anything an announcer can add.

—The drone shots were (even more?) spectacular. Maybe the Kaze Aerial team upgraded the camera or the soft light helped, but the shots seemed even sharper and more mesmerizing. Make sure to thank Torrey Pines in your Emmy acceptance speeches.

—The Goodyear Blimp still has its role. We’re spoiled on CBS shows with both the blimp showing a shot from above while the drone provides birdseye scenics. Without fan energy, these extras help make a slow sport more visually attractive on modern televisions. And note to beancounters: breathtaking views are appreciated by all demos.

—Quick departure to Eye On The Course. Too much of our time has been wasted hearing music and a slow toss to an Eye On The Course break. That ended this weekend where the split screen of a commercial and golf happened abruptly. The pivot was jarring at first, but was soon welcomed in moving the telecast along. So was the addition of Eye on the Course as the on-tape CEO interview played. Let’s keep shrinking that CEO box to the size of the leaderboard and expanding the live action, please. Pretty please?

—College Basketball ate into the telecast again and this year, perhaps because of the breaking news or a return to old form, CBS did not start on Golf Channel as they did during last year’s West Coast Swing to great acclaim.

—Nantz in Monterey. The remote effort worked well. There was no detectable delay. Given how little Jim Nantz can roam around under CBS COVID protocols, he may be doing more events from there. You know Sean how I love Memphis in July and the people at FedEx, but I see there’s been a tiny outbreak near Southwind and you know, just to be safe…thinking of my carbon footprint too. What do you think?

—Smartcart graphics. The new hole graphic showing ShotLink scatter charts akin to technology Fox and Turner have tried, was used sparingly. It has great potential and just looks cool on screen. Let’s face it, anything that demonstrates an effort to stay current will help golf broadcasts. Another plus: host Amanda Balionis and others could see it well, Tony Finau who said he liked the new “cool technology”.

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—Painful FanDuel integration. At least Frank Nobilo pounced on Nick Faldo’s bold selection of west coast native Xander Schauffele likely excelling in the coming weeks at west coast venues. The banter helped save some otherwise stilted and painful sponcon that made the announcers uncomfortable.

—Sunday’s opening segment recapping Reed’s situation ate into vital tournament storytelling time, but it was the national buzz and a recap proved both necessary and compelling. As I noted in The Quadrilateral analyzing the various responses to the ruling, the announce team’s willingness to explain why this was just not normal behavior came through loud and clear. The Tour may not have liked it but as sports television the conversation was compelling. The only thing lacking? Perhaps a segment on tape with one of the team members explaining how most elite would have approached the situation and what they would have done to avoid the reaction Reed got. But this would have contradicted the rules official’s claim Reed did everything right and highlights my final point…

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—The in-booth rules official role must go independent. This was the reaction I had when CBS announced the new plan and within a half hour it was apparent the experiment, while forward-thinking, will not work as long as the official is also paid by the players he’s commenting on. Ken Tackett was thrown into the fire immediately, as Jim Nantz said Sunday in a follow-up chat regarding the Reed situation. Having a rules expert will be huge given how much CBS leaned on Tackett over the weekend. But the role will need to be someone independent similar to network NFL rules experts. As a paid employee of the Tour, Tackett and other officials in the planned rotation will not be able to analyze or educate, something the Reed situation should have allowed for.

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Reed Mess Highlights The PGA Tour's Complicated Relationship With Golf

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So many forces and so many strange things happened down at Torrey Pines this weekend. There were winners, losers and warning signs.

I tried to put them together and what this means for the game, the rules and the rulemakers (who also run majors…The Quadrilateral’s focus).

This one is for paid subscribers only.

But the membership committee is not opposed to new subscribers.

"He's protected by the Tour and that's all that matters, I guess.”

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It was the final line in Xander Schauffele’s post-round 2021 Farmer’s Insurance Open press conference but it should also set off alarm bells in the Global Home.

Q.  Did you have a chance to see what happened with Patrick Reed yesterday?

XANDER SCHAUFFELE:  Not ‑‑ I didn't search for the videos, I just have heard talk amongst the boys out here.

Q.  Have you ever ran into a situation like that on the golf course?

XANDER SCHAUFFELE:  I would not put myself and create a situation like that. That's kind of ‑‑ I wouldn't. If my ball's embedded, I usually will wait and call someone and kind of wait until everyone's on the same page, wait to look at video. So I try to avoid situations like that just for that reason.

Q.  Just to be clear, you wouldn't have picked the ball up?

XANDER SCHAUFFELE:  No. I would wait for an official. You can put a tee in the ground and check your ball. I mean, he did everything by the book according to the official and everyone stood by there. Obviously the talk amongst the boys isn't great, I guess, but he's protected by the Tour and that's all that matters, I guess. 

Oh boy.

Protected by the Tour is not a good perception to have players sense about a player, particularly one with a less than stellar body of work.

Well Xander, say hi to Ross Berlin for all of us. Loves the ponies and has great stories to tell along with taking excellent notes for the folks back at the Global Home.

Farmers: PointsBet Refunds All Pre-Tournament Outright Win Bets Not On Patrick Reed

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PointsBet Sportsbook, NBC and the PGA Tour’s top preferred gaming partner, announced a refund after Patrick Reed’s Farmers Insurance Open win for those who bet pre-tournament on an outright winner other than Reed.

Given the nefarious drop excused by on site officials but widely panned by most everyone else, including his peers, the result was tainted even with Reed ultimately securing a five stroke win. It’s a brilliant ploy by PointsBet for publicity and setting the tone of doing the right thing as gambling enters American wagering.

The dollar amounts were likely miniscule at this point, making the gesture a brand-building play as much as anything. Still, it’s not a glowing endorsement of the Tour’s handling of Reed while setting a bold precedent.

That said, this also highlights the issues golf will face when perceived cheating, questionable rulings, undisclosed injuries or even course setup gaffes could lead the betting public to feel the “product” is untrustworthy.

Will Gray explains at PointsBet where the announcement even came with a graphic.

Patrick Reed Singles Out Rory McIlroy To Defend His Latest Rules Run-In

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This one warrants more investigation given the source and only a brief CBS showing of Rory McIlroy’s third shot on 18 at the Farmers. But in defending his latest rules run-in, Patrick Reed took to Twitter and suggested McIlroy took embedded ball relief at the 18th without calling an official. Beyond suggesting his situation was in the clear, it is not evident what the inference is beyond suggesting Reed is being unfairly targeted.

An account since deleted called YumYum Ravioli started this notion picked up by Reed.

Yes I just typed that.

The traditional Reed family burner account has also been pushing the McIlroy story in manic fashion after Saturday’s Farmers Insurance Open happenings.

A sampling of replies, of which there were way too many to link and post:

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McIlroy discussed the Torrey Pines rough after his round but made no mention of any situation on 18.

However, Golf Channel’s Rich Lerner took to Twitter to validate Reed and YumYumRavioli’s claim based on reporting by Todd Lewis.

When I find video evidence or Golf Channel shows that incident, I’ll post it. But the suggestion is that the McIlroy behavior was questionable and hopefully the network will produce the goods Sunday.

**Staff, reporting from San Diego for PGATour.com has more on the McIlroy situation after tape surfaced Sunday and was aired on GolfChannel. McIlroy was cleared.

On the surface, the situation looks similar in the way the ball lands and supposedly “embeds”. However, what we don’t see is how McIlroy approached the ball or how quickly he put his hands on it. I find it hard to imagine it was anywhere near Reed’s search for a better lie.

It should be noted McIlroy had an equally horrible lie after his drop:

McIlroy discussed after the round: