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09/01/08 |
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I have decided to have my own column and I intend to 'spout off' about anything that takes my fancy, whether it be politics, sport, music or anything else that rattles my cage.
I have not got a problem with this at all. Sorenstam is without doubt the greatest lady golfer of her generation and is arguably the best female player ever. Her record is fantastic with 53 tour wins and 4 'majors' to her credit. She has won £8,000,000 on the ladies tour (a huge sum when you consider the lesser prize money compared to the men's tour) with a lot more to come. I am writing this article before a ball has been struck so I may end up looking a little silly but I am predicting that she will make 'the cut' in The Bank of America Colonial tournament starting today. Nick Price a past winner of this event has stated that her inclusion "smells of publicity". How daft a statement can you get in the world of professional sport, you only have to look at the ridiculous title of the event to see what publicity does for golf. I am prepared to guess that The Bank of America executives are willing Annika to make 'the cut' and play on Saturday and Sunday. The US TV company which transmits the golf will be oversubscribed with companies wanting to buy slots to advertise every product under the sun, thanks to the Swedish golfer. Also as a result of her participation I think the prize money and resulting fame will go down well with the winner of the golf tournament, who I can safely predict will not be Swedish and most certainly will not be female. As a further result of all of the extra publicity this brings to golf, a whole new generation of players will be encouraged to have a go at the sport. Annika is not some old fart nor is she some fat bloke with a beer belly sweating like a pig and smoking, looking like he is about to pass out on the putting green. She is definitely not typical of the lady golfers I come across most days out on the course, they tend to be of the blue rinse brigade, 60 years old at least and can't wait to get off the course to play bridge, they also jump about the course in a random sort of way that makes the need for holes to be numbered from 1 - 18 completely incidental. It is not a pencil most of them need to mark their scorecard with it's a compass, sextant and dividers that should be obligatory. On completion of the round and after handing in the scorecard they can then be presented with their Duke of Edinburgh Award by the non playing lady captain.
Back to Annika - I am pretty sure that this will not be a regular event on the men's tour, in fact I would think that there is a rule being drawn up as I type to prevent it happening again - she who looks like an athlete and is at the top of her game brings a brief but exciting weekend of golf to the attention of millions. Update after 2 rounds :- OK, I put my hands up and admit I am silly. The admirable Swede did not make the cut after finishing 5 over par. She wept a few tears after completing her second round and we all watched, didn't we? I have just read a report on 'teletext' that the Australasian tour may give a 'wild card' invite to world no. 3 Karrie Webb. My guess is that they have seen how much attention (therefore money) Annika Sorenstam's appearance has generated. What was it Nick Price said about publicity? QED.
Update (3rd June 2003) Annika played her first tournament back on the ladies circuit over the weekend and guess what happened? She won by 3 shots !!! Another update(10th June 2003) Annika played in the Women's McDonald's Championship this past weekend and guess what happened? She beat G.Park (Korea) in a play off to win yet another 'major', they were both 6 shots clear of the rest. Final update (17th June 2003) Annika finally lost a golf tournament. She lost at the first hole of a play off in the Giant Eagle Classic in Vienna - Ohio to R. Teska (Australia). Is there anybody out there? |
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