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EUROSCEPTIC
TENDENCIES
Novelty value - Shot Clock Masters aimed at reversing slow play .’ Pic courtesy of Pieters Productions
Back in Belgium European Tour returns to Belgium for first time in 20 years s the UK and the rest of the European Union wrestle with the complexities of Brexit , the European Tour , the most international of all golf ’ s professional circuits is looking embattled as it seeks to develop and strengthen its grip on the game in the face of a plethora of problems , from a proposed world tour to replacing a raft of high-value events , sponsors and players seeing their best interests lying elsewhere . These are perplexing days down Wentworth way ; it ’ s more than three years since �amboyant Canadian Keith Pelley - he of the coloured spectacles - was parachuted in to replace the incumbent , Tour-lifer George O ’ Grady , who it is understood , did not want to go .
Soon , other Wentworth veterans were on their way out of the door , �rst Mark Lichtenhein , in charge of IT and broadcasting , then , acrimoniously - ending in a messy Industrial Tribunal - long-serving marketing director Scott Kelly followed suit , the progenitor of many of the Tour ’ s long-running sponsorships , including the multi-year , multimillion-dollar Rolex deal , the Scot ordered by all accounts by Pelley not to attend future events but use arti�cial intelligence and algorithms rather than personal relationships to drum-up future business .
Since Pelley ’ s arrival with a change agenda , little of a material nature has changed at all , arguably a case of activity over achievement , the conversion of eight existing big-budget events upgraded under the banner of a new concept , the ‘ Rolex Series ,’ a loose collection of premium events , apparently unlinked by way of any connective tissue such as a mini-money-list and potentially compromising brand ambassadors for other luxury watch brands . To date , Spanish ace Sergio Garcia , an Omega ambassador , the arch rival to Rolex has played only one Rolex Series event , last year ’ s season-ending showpiece , the DP World Championship in Dubai , whilst Rory McIlroy , another marquee name in the Olympic timekeeper ’ s stable is hosting an event , the Irish Open , the fourth of eight Rolex Series events to date this season .
Much has been made of Pelley ’ s , ‘ Innovations ,’ which , whilst the endless grind of 72-hole strokeplay events had to be changed for the bene�t of all concerned , players , spectators , TV viewers , sponsors and the Tour itself , offering sponsors and business partners essentially the same bene�ts - proam places , corporate hospitality , exhibition space , programme advertising , editorial and static ‘ A-frame ’ advertising boards – when the majority of other sports went digital years ago – as throughout its 45-year history . True , online and Social Media has been embraced by the Tour itself , although signi�cantly less than half of the 51 European Tour events have a dedicated website , whilst , if English Premier League pay-per-view ( PPV ) audiences on Sky Sports in the UK are falling by 14 % year-onyear , heaven only knows what ’ s going on with the channel ’ s golf ratings . None of this helps when considering more than half the European Tour ’ s events are outside of Europe , creating time-zone TV challenges , not that quality only just outstrips quantity with 29 events crossing the € 1.5m prize fund threshold . Aside of the four ‘ Majors ,’ three of which are PGA TOURled and four WGC events , of which none are in Europe , and the eight Rolex Series events which are all upgrades of existing events , the opportunities available to the rank-and-�le European Tour membership are limited , only 12 ‘ Regular ’ events offering € 2m or more in prize money .
Compare that to the PGA TOUR , where 30 , ‘ Regular ,’ events outside the ‘ Majors ,’ WGC and four FedEx Finals events offer US $ 6m or more , all but two of them in the USA . Much has been said and written about Pelley ’ s innovative approach , and , yes , some minor tinkering has taken place around the
32 G o l f P l u s JULY 2018