This weekend the FBR Open is being played in Scottsdale AZ. If you were thinking about trying some tournament watching, this would be a good one to start with. First off, it is on CBS so it is the David Feherty/Nick Faldo + others announcer team. And let me say that the rest of the commentators on the team are also top notch, particularly Jim Nantz. But if you are not a regular tournament watcher you will not appreciate this at first. It is Feherty and Faldo who keep it entertaining, and will keep you from falling asleep. More on Feherty/Faldo in another post. For now just know that they both played on the tour, so they do know what they're talking about.
The other thing about this tournament is the venue. It is played on a TPC course. TPC is Tournament Players Club. TPC courses are designed especially to host tournaments. There are many great courses in this country that can't host tournaments. In fact the course that is regularly rated as the best course in America - Pine Valley in New Jersey - has never hosted a tournament. This is because they can't handle the tens of thousands of people who show up to watch a tournament. There has to be parking, and space between the fairways and around the greens for the galleries( i.e. the fans. In golf the fans are referred to as 'the patrons' and 'the gallery' ) to stand and to walk. And there also has to be room for the TV trailers to set up. Most courses, especially the other ones, just can't handle all of that. TPC courses are newer courses ( the first one, and the most famous Sawgrass in Florida, opened in 1980 ) that are designed especially TO handle all of that. Around the greens they either have stands 'built in' with mounds of grass, or space to put bleachers.
In addition to being played on a TPC course this tournament has one other thing going for it. Scottsdale is next ot Phoenix. Arizona State University is in Phoenix. ASU has traditionally had a strong golf team. Scottsdale is also close to Sun City. Home of the large concentration of golfing retirees in the country. This tournament has by far the highest attendance of any tournament on tour. And the highest percentage of people under the age of 30 in it's gallery. And when watching a sporting event, ANY sporting event, college students tend to be more, shall we say 'exuberant', than other fans. Particularly if there is beer available. So, you have a large crowd, which consists of a great many young people who take full advantage of the beverage options, on a course designed specifically to make it easy for said crowd to enjoy watching the tournament.
The most popular hole on the course is 16. This is a short, relatively easy ( by PGA standards ) par 3. Bleachers are placed around the hole. Enough to hold about 20,000 people. Yes, you read that right. 20,000 people around a golf hole. And it is an active crowd. There are always college students in the crowd who make sure they know the college fight songs and national anthems for the all players, and they serenade them as they walk to the green. A bad shot gets loudly booed. Booed! This behavior is absolutely NOT permitted at other tournaments. Patrons would be forcibly removed from the course for singing or booing. And of course good shots are cheered. Loudly. The crowd went berserk when Tiger got a hole in one in 1997.
In short, a good time is had by all. Including the players and the commentators. It is a fun tournament to watch.
And yes I know there is another sport having a big event in Phoenix this weekend. Everyone who is there for that party, but doesn't actually have tickets to the game, will end up at the tournament. They are expecting the biggest galleries ever.
Huge crowds. Lots of college students. Lots of beer. Feherty and Faldo. Yup. Definitly a good start to tournament watching.
You and I have a different mindset, but I like the post nonetheless.
Posted by: Goods | January 31, 2009 at 11:07 AM