As I watched JJ Spaun make a remarkable closing-hole birdie to win his maiden Major Championship at the US Open, I reflected on how different I’d have felt about his victory a couple of years ago.
Spaun is very much in the Scottie Scheffler mould – he’s not brash, extravagant or flamboyant. He doesn’t get too high or too low. If we’re being honest, he’s not the most riveting player to watch.
In the past, I’ve tended to root for the likes of Bryson DeChambeau over the slightly robotic professionals such as Spaun, Scheffler and Xander Schauffele. But, given the wider context of men’s professional golf, I’ve pivoted somewhat.
I’m now happy to support those who behave with dignity and retain a sense of perspective, because plenty of other professional golfers have gone the other way. I suppose if people keep throwing money at you, eventually you’re going to develop a superiority complex.
LIV Golf has a lot to answer for in this regard. Many who went over to the Saudi-backed circuit tried to justify their decision with ignorant statements or by biting the hands that had previously fed them, which left a sour taste in the mouth.
Dustin Johnson was one of the only players whose reputation didn’t really take a hit, because he admitted he’d made the move to earn more money and play less golf. Whatever you make of that, at least he was honest.
Meanwhile, plenty of those who stayed on the PGA Tour felt they deserved a bigger slice of the pie, which led to constant – and tone-deaf – rhetoric about money and the introduction of things like signature events and a Player Equity Programme, none of which have made professional golf any more compelling for the people who actually matter: the fans.
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan with PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan
(Image credit: Getty Images)
A bizarre turn of events
Modern professional golf has never been laden with gregarious, larger-than-life characters and mavericks who go against the grain, but most of the players have traditionally been fairly likeable. Each week that goes by, I seem to re-evaluate that viewpoint.
I used to crave exciting, swashbuckling golfers who got me off my seat, but now I’ll settle for those who don’t make me angry by being self-absorbed, petulant or both.
One of…
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