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THE DIGEST EXCHANGE

The Exchange
Ive got this great idea, said the US PGA Tour strategist. We all know that tournament golf is suffering in the TV ratings. Well, heres how well fix it. Well get, say, a selection of the 30 wealthiest guys on tour and wait for it give one of them another $10 million dollars for winning a golf tournament! Its

The FedEx Cup prizemoney should go to the winners nominated charity

yes

rarely succeeds in doing anything other than make it worse. So what better way to bring some positive attention to the event and to professional golf in general than by having the winner donate his cheque to charity? The guy in question walks away with a halo, a lifetime of positive PR and a massive tax credit. At the same time, both the sponsor and the tour align themselves with an action of compassion and benevolence. The symbolism inherent to this gesture, and the subsequent publicity it incites, will ensure that everyone with a stake in it ends up as a winner. Grant Dodd

In a world seemingly obsessed with money and material wealth, its in our nature to sneer derisively at those who achieve success and have the trappings to show for it. Thats not a positive trait. Were too quick to lambast the rich and successful for what they have. When a top-line

no

in on the 72nd hole for their moment of glory is merely the tip of professional golfs considerable iceberg. What we dont see as TV viewers and tournament gallery members is the work a player has put in away from the spotlight the hours spent grinding away on the practice fairway and on the putting and chipping greens, honing a game that might one day elevate them to the sports elite. The US PGA Tours FedEx Cup offers a $US10 million carrot at the end of the season. Yes, its the tours attempt to ignite interest in non-major tournaments for the whole season and money is the prime motivator, yet the bonus money is reward for not just the best or most consistent performer but a career spent toiling away. Consider two of the FedEx Cup winners: Vijay Singh and Jim Furyk. Neither has recaptured their cup-winning form since, but both are workaholics known for their relentless practice regime. Their bounties were payback for decades of dedication. These guys earned their prizemoney. If they choose to pass on their winnings to charity then thats a wonderful, magnanimous gesture, but not one that should be an obligation. Steve Keipert

brilliant! And its the solution to our woes, because in times of financial austerity theres nothing that struggle street likes more than knowing that someone as rich as Croesus is becoming even more obscenely wealthy. Four years past its genesis, it is little surprise that from such a flawed premise the FedEx Cup has barely ignited a flicker of interest among the wider golf public. The main problem is that even the few who have heard of this celebration of excess dont care. Add the convoluted nature of the month-long elimination process to this initial disconnect with the target audience, and you have a recipe for disinterest from everyone but the members with a vested interest in its involvement. In the process, the US Tour and its deep-pocketed sponsor have badly misjudged the temper of the times while also failing to observe the wellworn adage that throwing money at a problem

Grant Dodd is a columnist for Australian Golf Digest. He makes benevolent gestures at every given opportunity.

professional wins a tournament and the seven-figure prizemoney that comes with it, more than once Ive heard the comment, What will he do with that? Just throw it on the pile of money he already has? When is enough, enough? Its a reasonable question to ask when someone has just won more money in a week for hitting a little white ball into a hole than most people earn in a decade working proper jobs. But its an argument thats superficially plausible yet actually wide of the mark. Remember, what were witnessing as a player taps

The trophy looks great, but where should the dough go?

KEVIN C. COX/GETTY IMAGES

Steve Keipert is the editor of Australian Golf Digest. He almost always loses money on a golf course rather than making any.

What do you think, yes or no? To lodge your vote and to explain why e-mail us at golfdig@newsmagazines.com.au

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