Blue Hill Country Club Retaliates Against Golf Writer And Member

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Veteran New England golf writer and publisher Tom Gorman was banned from Massachusetts’ Blue Hill Country Club where he was a member. It appears a fairly innocuous story in August covering a Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruling against Blue Hill for violating the “Tips Act” was the problem.

What’s most troubling: Gorman wrote about the decision and considered potential ramifications for all courses in the region. The club lost but apparently took issue with this:

The SJC decision could have wide-ranging ramifications on other private clubs, hotels and spas in Massachusetts that have engaged in the practice of clipping their help of hard-earned income, as Blue Hill CC has done. Also, of note, Holtzman said all the defendants are personally liable even though most no longer work at the club.

“This Supreme Judicial Court decision is important confirmation that Massachusetts law provides clear protection against workers having their tips taken from them,” said Holtzman in a telephone interview August 24. “This is a reaffirmation of the fundamental principle that workers are entitled to the proceeds from all service charges on events they’ve worked, including the frontline workers who’ve been continuing to deliver service throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.”

“It’s gratifying that this victory means these workers will now receive not only their back wages and tips, but also the mandatory treble damages designed to deter future violations. It is also an important reminder of the broad scope of the Tips Act protecting workers at hotels, spas, hair and nail salons, restaurants, catering halls and country clubs – anyone in an occupation in which employees customarily receive tips.”

Even though the club was found guilty, Gorman’s story was apparently too much for Concert Golf Partners, the owners of Blue Hill. As Gorman writes in this account of his membership termination, “hostile opinion” in the above story was the rationale for ending his membership.

In a 20-minute call on Friday Nov. 19 Mr. Straub informed me that I am not welcome back to Blue Hill CC for the 2022 season and that my $10,000 initiation is non-refundable.

“We have received 37 complaints from members of Blue Hill that are not happy with the way you presented the club in recent published articles,” said Straub, from his Concert Golf corporate office in Lake Mary, Florida. “Concert Golf has many options in deciding what’s best for the club. Based on the feedback of members and other criteria we made a decision that you are not welcome there and that we will not renew your membership for next year.”

So, I asked, “Is this retaliation?”

“We believe that your published article in August on the Massachusetts SJC decision against Blue Hill contained some inaccurate content, and reflected more as a hostile opinion piece,” added Straub. “That type of journalism should not be coming from a member. You can use your media platform to do whatever you want and I’ve already been informed you plan to make this issue public. That is not the way Concert Golf does business. We handle these matters confidentially for the benefit of both parties.”

It’s hard not to wonder if poor reading comprehension skills were an issue for General Manager Jason Adams, whose letter to Gorman is a hot mess of mistakes:

The actions of the club should not go unnoticed here. To lose the case in the state’s highest court over skimming tip money is a stain on Concert Golf Partners.

Tiger Talks About His Future, St Andrews, Featheries, Saudis And Refers Accident Questions To Sheriff's Report

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A day after an interview by his partners at Golf Digest/Discovery that saw Tiger Woods open up on several topics, he faced questions from assembled scribes in the Bahamas to kick off Hero World Challenge week. As is fairly typical of , Woods avoided any details of his car accident and referred everyone to the police report that was eventually posted by TMZ.

He was again clear about his ability to play at a high level being very much up in the air.

I'll put it to you this way: As far as playing at the Tour level, I don't know when that's going to happen. Now, I'll play a round here or there, a little hit and giggle, I can do something like that. I certainly like -- you know, the USGA suggested Play It Forward. I really like that idea now. I don't like the tees on the back. I like Play It Forward. Come on, let's move it up, let's move it up. To see some of my shots fall out of the sky a lot shorter than they used to is a little eye-opening, but at least I'm able to do it again. That's something that for a while there it didn't look like I was going to. Now I'm able to participate in the sport of golf, now to what level, I do not know that. I'll keep you abreast, all of you abreast as progress continues to go on, whether I'll be out here and at what level and when. 

Actually it was Tee it Forward and I believe that one’s ten years old and about 14 slogans ago. Excuse me, brand campaigns. But we get the point.

Q. Tiger, I'm wondering what you remember of the accident. Obviously we all saw the result and it looked so horrifying and scary, and I have a follow up to that. 

TIGER WOODS: Yeah, all those answers have been answered in the investigation, so you can read about all that there in the post report. 

Short and not very accountable. Would have been nice to say he’s just glad no one else was hurt.

He is out playing golf more than we might have realized:

Q. Have you played golf holes, like a full hole or 18 holes? 

TIGER WOODS: Yeah, I play full holes, yeah, but not from my tee markers.

As for the pain…

Q. I don't want to get too personal, but what are you experiencing there at the moment, sitting there? 

TIGER WOODS: My back hurts and my leg hurts.

He was asked about The Open at St Andrews and gave perhaps my favorite answer regarding the Champions dinner:

TIGER WOODS: Yeah, I would love to play at St. Andrews, there's no doubt about it. It's my favorite golf course in the world. To be a two-time Open champion there, just being a part of the champions dinner is really neat. From my first one in '05 I got to attend a champions dinner, it was pretty neat to be a part of. Peter Thomson was still alive, and I sat right next to him and to hear him tell stories of when he came over and he played and shots he played and how he did it, that was awesome. Those are things like at the Masters, those dinners are priceless and those stories and listen to them talk about how they played, when they played it and what they did, it's just an honor to be a part of a room like that. Yes, I would love to be able to play that Open Championship, there's no doubt about it. 

Physically, hopefully I can. I've got to get there first. Tournament's not going to go anywhere, but I need to get there.

After mentioning the Par 3 at the Masters he was jokingly asked by AP’s Doug Ferguson about committing to the Par 3 when it returns.

Q. Did you just commit to the par 3?

TIGER WOODS: No. I committed to I can play courses of that length. Now, if the Tour wants to not have golf courses lengthened, they shorten up that much to make it more difficult, that's fine by me, I have no problem with that. If they want to go back to wooden shafts and feathery balls, okay, I'm cool.

Shorter courses and a retro event. What we’ve all wanted! Maybe Jay Monahan can work on that after Tiger gave him this answer to a question about the Greg Norman disruptor league and what players should do.

TIGER WOODS: It's going to be his decision, period. I've decided for myself that I'm supporting the PGA TOUR, that's where my legacy is. I've been fortunate enough to have 

won 82 events on this tour and 15 major championships and been a part of the World Golf Championships, the start of them and the end of them. So I have an allegiance to the PGA TOUR. 

And I understand that some of the comparisons is very similar to when Arnold and Jack broke off from the PGA of America to start the Tour. I don't see it that way. I think the Tour has done a fantastic job, Jay's done an unbelievable job during a very difficult time during the pandemic when there was ample opportunities for players to leave, but we were the first sporting tour to start. 

So with that, yes, did we have some protocol issues at times? Yes, we had to learn on the fly, but Jay and the staff had done an incredible job of that. I think the Tour is in great hands, they're doing fantastic, and prize money's going up. It's just not guaranteed money like most sports are. It's just like tennis, you have to go out there and earn it.

This answer pre-accident would have been huge news. But now that he’s on the Hogan schedule, at best participation in PGA Tour events will be very limited.

Woods also left out the thank you payment he’s receiving from the PIP pool or that he loathes Norman. But do note that he references the “end” of the WGC’s. Better not mention that in May’s WGHOF speech while Tim Finchem is saluted for creating them.

Moving along…more on where he’s at and where’s going. A far more revealing answer about his future:

TIGER WOODS: You made a great point. Am I going to put my family through it again, am I going to put myself out there again. We had a talk within the family, all of us sat down and said if this leg cooperates and I get to a point where I can play the Tour, is it okay with you guys if I try and do it. The consensus was yes. 

Now, internally, I haven't reached that point. I haven't proven it to myself that I can do it. I can show up here and I can host an event, I can play a par-3 course, I can hit a few shots, I can chip and putt, but we're talking about going out there and playing against the world's best on the most difficult golf courses under the most difficult conditions. I'm so far from that. 

Now, I have a long way to go to get to that point. Now, I haven't decided whether or not I want to get to that point. I've got to get my leg to a point where that decision can be made. And we'll see what happens when I get to that point, but I've got a long way to go with this leg.

This from Golf’s Dylan Dethier was another effort to ask about the accident:

Q. When it comes to the day of the crash, clearly that's something that you're hoping to keep private. Is that something that you feel is sort of your business and not the rest of ours, for lack of a better phrase? 

TIGER WOODS: Well, I kind of feel that way with most of my life. Doesn't really work out that way. I understand that it's -- I had friends that insulated me from a lot of the things that were said outside. I didn't have my phone, I didn't have access -- well, I did have access to a TV and I was just watching sports. But I refused to turn on the local channels and news and stuff like that, I didn't want to go down that road. I wasn't mentally ready for that road yet. A lot of things in my body hurt at that time and whether I was on medication or not, it still hurt. And just trying to imagine me coming off of that stuff, how much it was going to hurt, I didn't want to have my mind go there yet, it wasn't ready. 

Yeah, people are going to poke and prod and want to know more about my business, I understand that. Just as long as they don't go into -- they can poke and prod at me all they want, just stay away from my family. 

Considering the usual interruptions from journalists there to fill seats for the sponsor and the haphazard nature of such press conferences, it was fairly classic Woods session with a few good reveals if you look close enough. More telling may have been the clarity in his voice and eyes and cautious tone from someone who traditionally projects extreme confidence.

R.I.P. Lee Elder

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The Associated Press story on the passing of Lee Elder led this way:

Lee Elder, who broke down racial barriers as the first Black golfer to play in the Masters and paved the way for Tiger Woods and others to follow, has died at the age of 87.

Golfweek’s Adam Schupak notes that while Elder had been struggling with health issues, his passing was a surprise.

No immediate details were available about the cause of death but Elder had been experiencing respiratory difficulties. Arthur Johnson, a Jacksonville resident and a friend of Elder’s for more than 50 years, said Elder died Sunday during a visit with his wife Sharon to his step-daughter Dory’s home in San Diego.

“I talked to him on Thanksgiving and he sounded really strong, in good spirits,” Johnson said. “This is really difficult. He was like a big brother to me. … we were the best of friends.”

Richard Goldstein files the New York Times obituary and leads with the Masters.

But those performances did not persuade the Masters to bend its new rule and accord Elder a spot. Elder broke through after capturing the 1974 Monsanto Open at the Pensacola Country Club in Florida, where six years earlier he and other African American PGA Tour members playing there had been refused entrance to the clubhouse. They had to dress in a parking lot.

That victory finally brought the 1975 Masters invitation. In the run-up to the tournament Elder received death threats. He rented two houses near the Augusta National course and moved between them as a security measure.

GolfDigest.com’s Tod Leonard on how Elder will always be linked to the Masters for better or worse, from the battle to earn an invitation to last year’s stirring tribute by Chairman Fred Ridley.

Golf.com’s Michael Bamberger also looked at the meaning of Elder’s two Masters appearances and what they meant for the game. This was nice:

But the ultimate gift, stemming from Ridley’s invitation and Mr. Elder’s acceptance of it, was to us, to millions of us across the world, to get acquainted or reacquainted with Elder’s remarkable life and example. 

If professional golf has a Jackie Robinson, it is Charlie Sifford, for whom Elin and Tiger named their son. If the game has a Henry Aaron, it is Lee Elder.

No, Mr. Elder did not dominate professional golf as Henry Aaron did professional baseball. Not even close. But Henry and Lee, sons of the Jim Crow South in the years before and during World War II, both pursued their sports with quiet professionalism and little flash. 

Bill Fields in The Albatross on the influence Elder had on Tiger Woods.

The young man had been walking fast, en route to Butler Cabin at Augusta National Golf Club to be given a green jacket, the first man of color to slip into that unique shade. The older man, 22 years prior, had been the first African American to play in the Masters. He got a speeding ticket on his way to watch Tiger make history. The fine was worth it. Tiger Woods and Lee Elder hugged amid the tumult along a corridor of cheering spectators, the excitement of a new day in a golf that was a long time coming. 

For all the fantastic golf Woods played over those 72 holes, that moment with Elder when the tournament was over stands out as a marker of history and potential for change.

Trail opened, trail climbed.  

For those of us who didn’t see him in his prime when he won four PGA Tour events, Elder was a staple of the Senior Tour for several years where he won eight times during its heyday and took home $1.4 million in earnings.

And here is the best of Twitter regarding Elder’s passing. I’ll add more when some notables chime in who so far have not:

R.I.P. Neil Regan

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Christian Hafer/Golf.com

He set the gold standard when it came to club historians who picked up every nugget imaginable to better understand the Winged Foot story. And Neil Regan was always helpful to anyone pursuing the cause of golf history or architecture, forever shaping Winged Foot by documenting and sharing so much about the place. And he was just a super person who left us too soon on November 28, 2021.

You can hear Neil from last year discussing Winged Foot with The Fried Egg’s Andy Johnson and read about him in this lovely Tim Reilly story at Golf.com that included Christian Hafer images of the upstairs archive and Neil.

A few of the tributes, including a video of his signature putt from the fairway.

Tiger: "I’m just happy to be able to go out there and watch Charlie play, or go in the backyard...just hear the birds chirping."

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Golf Digest’s Henni Koyack was able to coax a lot of lovely stuff from Tiger Woods in his first interview since February’s car accident.

I summed up the best of at The Quadrilateral.

The standout remark regarding his golf:

“I think something that is realistic is playing the Tour one day—never full time, ever again—but pick and choose, just like Mr. (Ben) Hogan did. Pick and choose a few events a year and you play around that,” Woods said during a Zoom interview with Golf Digest’s Henni Koyack from his South Florida home. “You practice around that, and you gear yourself up for that. I think that’s how I’m going to have to play it from now on. It’s an unfortunate reality, but it’s my reality. And I understand it, and I accept it.”

Better than most realities given the injuries he sustained.

The full video here:

Saudi International Commit List Sporting Some Big Names And Under-40's

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The lure of testing the game out on storied Royal Greens can never be underestimated, but more germane to the topic du jour it seems the Saudi’s are offering attractive appearance fees for this year’s edition. Now co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour, the former European Tour stop will be February 3-6, 2022. The Saudi International is the same week as the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Barring some sort of threat to the independent contractors that changes minds, these players will be defying the PGA Tour and DP World Tour threats of fines by playing. The Tours have until 30 days prior to the event to agree to or deny a waiver to play. As reported last week by the Telegraph, the DP World Tour leadership can now fine players whatever they like for playing a competing event.

It does not appear to have scared away some big names based on the commit list updated at Golf Saudi’s website:

  • Abraham Ancer

  • Adri Arnaus

  • Rafael Cabrera Bello

  • Paul Casey

  • Bryson DeChambeau

  • Jason Dufner

  • Tommy Fleetwood

  • Sergio Garcia

  • Tyrrell Hatton

  • Dustin Johnson

  • Jason Kokrak

  • Shane Lowry

  • Graeme McDowell

  • Phil Mickelson

  • Kevin Na

  • Joaquin Niemann

  • Louis Oosthuizen

  • Ian Poulter

  • Xander Schauffele

  • Adam Scott

  • Henrik Stenson

  • Harold Varner III

  • Jhonattan Vegas

  • Bubba Watson

  • Lee Westwood

Biggest surprises? Xander Schauffele for sure. Maybe Shane Lowry, Bubba Watson and Joaquin Niemann, too.

Schauffele is schedule to meet with media Wednesday at the Hero World Challenge.

Chutzpah Alert! European Tour Chief To Punish Players Teeing Up In Saudi Event He Helped Create

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Keith Pelley and Yasir Othman Al-Rumayyan in happier times

It wasn’t long ago that Europe…DP World Tour Chief Keith Pelley was slobbering all over Saudi Arabia and it’s desire to host golf tournaments, defending the due diligence his Tour did in partnering with people who do awful things to other people on a fairly regular basis, and overall just perplexed anyone would question the decision to partner with the Kingdom even after a journalist was murdered and chopped into pieces.

But playing a competing tour? Now the hammer drops!

As James Corrigan reports, it seems the threat of Saudis poaching current European Tour members has Pelley going to the Chief Executive equivalent of a sharp sword. Those who want to play in the former European Tour event planned for March at Royal Greens—not that kind of Royal—will get treated very, very badly.

But Telegraph Sport understands that the Tour and its chief executive, Keith Pelley, are not willing to compromise and will sanction any member who decides to play regardless. Except, in a calculated move by the Tour, the type and the scale of the punishment will not be revealed to the rebels until after the event.

Cue the Frankenstein analogies!

Financial Times On "The Saudi-backed plan to shake up the sport"

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Samuel Agini of the Financial Times explores the Saudi efforts to start a golf league and does a nice job reviewing how we got to the point. In the way of original reporting, he gets some comments from Callaway’s Chip Brewer, the R&A’s Martin Slumbers and a strange “statement” from the PGA Tour’s Jay Monahan. So two of the three like the FT and felt it was worth the time to call back.

But I think what I enjoyed most is a reminder that we will get to hear Greg Norman act like he thought of things that are just totally stolen from the Premier Golf League concept. Like this on franchising:

But the structure of golf means teams cannot be bought and sold. Unlike in football and basketball, golfers are individual contractors. They work for themselves, while the tours run competitions, aggregate media rights and monetise the coverage. Despite the apparent independence of players, they typically require permission from their member tour if they are to play on rival circuits. Norman argues that this model is a missed financial opportunity. “You look at that value that’s been generated through other sports, for other players and other franchises,” he says. “Golf has never recognised that or had the ability to capture that market.”

As for quotes, the R&A’s Slumbers tried to distinguish between investment and blowing up the current structure, though he doesn’t make a case for why the current structure is that special.

He distinguishes between LIV proposals for breakaway golf leagues and initiatives such as oil company Saudi Aramco’s sponsorship of the Ladies European Tour, the women’s golf group of which Slumbers is a board member. “I think there is a difference between wanting to invest and support within the current structure and wanting to be a disrupter,” he says.

The writer only got this from Jay Monahan…

“The PGA Tour is stronger than at any time in our history and the game of golf has unprecedented momentum,” Monahan said in an emailed statement. “We are positioned to grow faster in the next 10 years than at any other point in our existence.”

I don’t even think that’s a non-denial, denial. More like a non-answer, answer.

It’s a bold strategy to only pump money to purses and bonus pools without investing fans in an exciting new future that makes them sentimental for the current model. I realize that would require caring about the fans above all else.

Did Lee Westwood Pass Up Ryder Cup Captaincy For The Saudis?

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I didn’t think too much about Lee Westwood announcing he was withdrawing from consideration for the 2023 Ryder Cup captaincy. The Telegraph’s James Corrigan had that story.

But then the Daily Mail’s Derek Lawrenson suggested this may mean more than simply Westwood having high hopes for his game over the next two years and I think he’s right. Therefore…

A full Quadrilateral analysis of what this might mean.

PIP: “What they should have done is taken all $40 [million] of it and sent it to Tiger and say, thank you"

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Rex Hoggard looks at the PGA Tour’s Player Impact Program as the exciting, unpredictable season-long race for Meltwater Mentions nears its secretive conclusion. He quotes several players who either do not understand it or care for the program’s secrecy.

“No idea,” Herman laughed when asked to explain how the PIP list is created. “I wish we had a list. I wish we knew, so if a guy is on the list and he’s close and had an idea of what they needed to do to crack the top 10. That’s the hardest part for the rest of us. They are throwing a lot of money out there without a real good understanding of how you can crack the top 10. We feel like it’s a popularity contest.”

According to various sources, the Tour will not show the entire list to players but will tell each player where they are on the list, which only seems to fuel the confusion over how the list is compiled.

And these fellows cut right to the chase:

“It’s a way for Tiger Woods to be rewarded even more for what he’s done for the game of golf,” Chesson Hadley said.

But while every player agrees with Hadley that Woods will be atop the PIP list, it remains unclear how his single-vehicle crash in February and the ensuing media coverage of the accident should be factored into his index score.

Monahan explained at East Lake that the point of the program is to get “players to engage in our game, help grow our Tour, and help grow their own respective brands.” But where exposure ends and controversy begins, is anyone’s guess.

“What they should have done is taken all $40 [million] of it and sent it to Tiger and say, thank you,” Scott Stallings said. “We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him. When he posted that picture of himself on crutches it outperformed the last four tournament winners [on social media]. If he even tried it’s over.”

"$64K question: Did exclusive Charlotte golf club dupe pro baseball player into joining?"

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The Charlotte Observers Michael Gordon with the bizarre story of San Diego Padre Wil Myers getting sued by Charlotte’s Carmel Country Club and then countersuing in what can only be called the First World at its Finest.

The short version: Myers joined the club, the pandemic hit and tee times became tough to get. Hardly a news story to any golfer. But the story gets strange given that Myers will make $22.5 million next year and is being sued for non-payment after resigning due to the lack of availability.

According to Myers’ counter-claim, all of this came as an unpleasant surprise. He said he joined the club after being assured that there were ample tee times available on both of Carmel’s courses. Instead, according to his court filing, Myers “found it almost impossible to find a tee time and frequently could not even use the driving range.” He and Margaret resigned their membership in December, telling the club that they had been duped into paying for golf privileges that they couldn’t enjoy. The club responded by citing the provisions of the Myerses’ membership contract and billing them for the $64,000 initiation balance, with a due date of Dec. 31, 2020, and some $785 in outstanding golf shop purchases and overdue charges. Carmel sued last March.

Myers fired back in June, claiming in his countersuit that he and his wife had been victimized by Carmel’s “knowing misrepresentations and omissions” which his complaint described as “immoral, unethical and unscrupulous.”

That seems a tad excessive.

Askernish: "This was and is golf in its purest form. Raw and wild."

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Much has been written of Old Tom Morris’ recaptured links at Askernish, but it was still nice to see it captured in this BBC episode of Scotland From The Sky. Golf architect Gordon Irvine is interviewed about his role in resurrecting the links and the pesticide-free maintenance approach.

You can watch via the BBC media player or in the Tweet below:

Major(s) News And Notes: November 25th, 2021

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2022 PGA Tour Broadcast Schedule: CBS Goes International, NBC Gets The Playoffs, ESPN+ To Have Four Daily Live Streams

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No major surprises on the 2022 broadcast schedule that commences a new television contract and with it, hopefully noticeable improvements on the streaming side now that a majority of production is to be under one umbrella. CBS has 20 events to NBC’s 12, with ESPN+ taking over from NBC Sports.

Details remain at a premium but we did get confirmation of four daily streams fed to ESPN+ starting with the American Express in La Quinta.

For Immediate Release:

PGA TOUR announces broadcast schedule for media partners NBC Sports, CBS Sports and ESPN+ for 2022

  • CBS Sports to feature 20 events and kicks off 2022 network coverage with the Farmers Insurance Open featuring the first scheduled Saturday finish on the PGA TOUR since 1996

  • NBC to televise all three FedExCup Playoffs events in August of 2022

  • ESPN+ to take over distribution of PGA TOUR LIVE and increase live coverage to four streaming channels

 PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FLORIDA – The PGA TOUR announced today the network and cable schedule for the 2022 portion of the 2021-22 PGA TOUR Schedule, with CBS Sports (20 events) and NBC (12 events) maintaining weekend coverage for the majority of FedExCup tournaments. 

Under the new, nine-year domestic media rights agreements with ViacomCBS and Comcast NBCUniversal that begins in 2022, one network will televise all three FedExCup Playoffs events each year, starting with NBC in 2022, creating powerful, three-week coverage of the conclusion of the race for the FedExCup. CBS Sports will carry all three FedExCup Playoffs events in 2023. 

CBS Sports kicks off 2022 network coverage at the Farmers Insurance Open, January 28 and 29, on the CBS Television Network and streaming live on Paramount+. With a crowded sports weekend, the event features the first scheduled Saturday final round since 1996 that will have Friday and Saturday evening viewing on the East Coast with the broadcast ending at 8 p.m. ET both days.                    

NBC Sports will continue as the TOUR’s cable partner, with GOLF Channel providing early-round coverage and lead-in weekend coverage of every FedExCup event. GOLF Channel will also carry four-round coverage for six events.

PGA TOUR LIVE – the PGA TOUR’s subscription video service that was launched in 2015 – will make its 2022 debut with new over-the-top streaming (OTT) partner ESPN+ at the Sentry Tournament of Champions (January 6-9). Thirty-five PGA TOUR tournaments will be available via ESPN+ in 2022 featuring more than 4,300 hours of live coverage, including four daily live streams starting at The American Express (January 20-23). Additional details on content and scheduling will be available in the near future.  

“We are thrilled to announce our 2022 domestic coverage schedule for the PGA TOUR, as the lineup we have in place will ultimately be a significant win for our fans as we expand and innovate our content and its delivery going forward,” said Rick Anderson, PGA TOUR chief media officer. “Our existing partners CBS Sports and NBC Sports share our vision for the future and we are equally excited to be teaming with Disney and ESPN+ for what we see as an unparalleled opportunity to grow and diversify our fan base.”

I believe this will be CBS’s first foray outside North America…

'21 RSM Classic Does Not Draw An Audience, LPGA Finale Matches 2019 Numbers

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The 2019 RSM Classic did not draw a rating of any kind, “surged” in 2020 with a barely discernible audience and reverted to anonymous status in 2021, failing to draw a rating for any day. Whether this is concerning to anyone at the Tours or ponying up the cash, I have no idea. But next time someone is moaning about Ray Romano getting too much air time at the Crosby, or just a golf pro who thinks he’s reinvented the game, just remember that IFC’s reruns of Everyone Loves Raymond are trouncing live PGA Tour golf. The show ended production in 2005.

ShowBuzzDaily.com with the 2019-2021 numbers or, lack thereof. Here are the 2020 numbers

The LPGA’s CME Group finale essentially matched its 2019 final round rating on NBC in its traditional time window, drawing a .27/384,000 average viewers this year compared to a .30/395,000 in 2019