Would You Be More Interested In Round Two Of The Tour Championship...

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...if the field of 30 was getting cut to, say, the top 20 in FedExCup points after completion of second round play? Perhaps a playoff for those tied to get to Saturday would liven things up too?

I say this because I tried to watch much of The Tour Championship today and it's just not even the least bit compelling event for a concluding tournament to the "playoffs." The golf course doesn't exactly thrill with heroic shotmaking required, yet I can't help but think that the format is still the real killer.

Would some modified version of the LPGA's ADT Championship, which included a Friday and Saturday cut, add greater interest to the first two rounds at East Lake?

Throw in another cut Saturday to the final ten, and does this "playoff" and accompanying tournament become more interesting?

Nationwide Renewals, Decline In Opportunities

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The PGA Tour's desire to make the Nationwide Tour more attractive to a sponsor and to tie it into the regular tour's fall finish makes a little more sense when you see this noted in Sean Martin's Nationwide notes column:

The tour has 26 events this year, the fewest in its history, and a total purse of $16,075,000, the tour’s smallest since 2005. The tour peaked at 32 events in 2007. This year’s purse is $2.25 million less than last year’s and $2.9 million less than the tour’s peak of 2008, when $18,991,094 was up for grabs.

Geezer Has Shot At U.S. Mid-Am Title

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Ron Balicki reports on 54-year-old Randal Lewis's impressive run to the final match.

“I know it is so hard to get to a USGA final, and especially in something like this at my age,” Lewis said. “I realize this is probably my last chance. Heck, I’m anxious to turn 55 (May 2012) and start playing senior golf.”

With a victory Thursday, Lewis will have more to think about than what senior events he might be entering. He would have one where he would not only be taking on the young guys, but they would be the best in the world at the Masters.

“I learned from the last time (1996) to not start thinking about that,” he said. “What I need to do is concentrate on what I have to do in that match, stay patient, and keep playing like I’ve been playing all week. If I can do that, everything else will take care of itself.”