Any dedicated golfer enjoys watching the pros. But, when I have to choose between the PGA and LPGA, I would rather watch the LPGA than the PGA. Don’t get me wrong. I will watch the PGA Tour, just not when the LPGA players are on television.
No Tiger
The best part about the LPGA: no Tiger. Tiger Woods is never to be found playing with the ladies, on the courses. Sure, he is the best golfer ever, and he makes astounding shots. Yet, I’ve had enough Tiger Woods. I enjoy not hearing the commentators ask who will win, “Tiger or the field?”
Close Competition
For close, exciting competition, fans should watch the LGPA. There certainly are exciting finishes, such as last year’s end to the Championship, on the PGA. The LPGA also has down-to-the-wire finishes, like Choi Na’s win over Yani Tseng at last year’s Malaysia title.
The difference between the LPGA’s and PGA’s competition is the field. In the PGA, there is Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, with few other players to watch. On the other hand, it seems like the LPGA Tour is anyone’s to win. The difference between the top 100 women on the LPGA Tour and the top 100 golfers on the Symetra Tour, a qualifying competition, is a single stroke. One stroke separates the pros from the amateurs.
Quicker Play
Admit it, you don’t really watch golf. When people claim they “watch” the PGA or LPGA, they mean an event is on the television, while they are doing other things. The PGA is just too slow to watch. I can barely sit through a single hole. The only thing worse than watching an entire PGA event is watching a baseball game. As Luck Donald, the 2011 PGA money title winner said, this slow play is “killing our sport.”
Thankfully, the LPGA is dealing with slow play. They are enforcing “Rule 6-7, Undue Delay;” it’s their new pet peeve. When a player takes too long, they are penalized with a fine or additional stroke. The LPGA, not the PGA, is doing something about slow play.
When I watch golf, I want to have fun. I’m looking for competition, excitement and action. For that, I turn to the LPGA, not the PGA.
More Reading: Yani Tseng, Chris DiMarco, Mogul Skiing
Source: LPGA Competition