It may be an unrealistic notion, but it would be refreshing if we can get through the next two weeks of professional golf tournaments without talking about the politics and business of the game and focus instead on what should matter: The golf itself.
Walt Disney said, “If you can dream it, you can do it.”
That’s a nice thought anyway.
On Thursday, the Genesis Scottish Open begins at the Renaissance Club, a modern-day addition to a collection of classic links that run along the A198 in Scotland, connecting Gullane, Muirfield and North Berwick, among others.
It’s at Renaissance (it’s pronounced Ren-AY-sance in the U.K.) that 14 of the top 15 players in the current world ranking will tee it up in the first tournament co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour.
Once the final putt falls Sunday afternoon, the 150th Open Championship at the Old Course goes on the clock, bringing what may feel like the entirety of the global golf community together in the ancient village to celebrate the game.
These two weeks – including the bejeweled J.P. McManus Pro-Am at Adare Manor in Ireland earlier this week – are exactly what professional golf needs. These events won’t heal the fracture in the pro game, but they can remind us why we care about watching the best players in the world.
Golf shouldn’t be about taking sides, but that’s what it feels like these days with LIV Golf on one side and the game’s traditional structure on the other.
Pick a word: Anger. Worry. Money. Change. Concept. Alliance. Lawsuit.
They all fit the game at the moment.
These next two weeks can change that.
It can be about: Scotland. Tiger. Wind. Ghosts. Glory.
Golf is, at its core, aspirational, and so is such a thought.
For these two weeks – even if lawsuits intrude – it’s about the golf, about the setting, about the players. It’s about the two biggest tours in the game coming together in an event that deserves to be special.
As the best players deal with the hillocks and blind spots, the sod-faced bunkers and double greens over these next two weeks, there’s sure to be talk about the value of growing the game. It’s a catch-all phrase, golf’s version of supporting the troops and, like that phrase, it exists for good and true purposes.
Both phrases can serve as guideposts to live by, but these next two weeks don’t have to be about growing the game. They should be about celebrating the game.
It’s like winning. If you do that, pretty much everything else comes along as a result.
Last weekend, there were photos and videos of Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas and Rickie Fowler drinking Guinness before a friendly round at Tralee in Ireland. There was Scottie Scheffler, the world No. 1, teeing it up at Ballybunion’s Old Course, a majestic links that can fill a golfer’s soul.
Aside from the random fans who walked with them, they were like the rest of us, on a golf trip, playing places that aren’t like any other places, feeling the Irish chill and reveling in the warmth the game can provide regardless of the weather.
Some of their friends have split, taking the LIV Golf money being offered, driving a wedge in the sport. LIV Golf doesn’t offer a better way, just a different one, built not so much on the game’s inherent meritocracy but on consumer convenience and competitive cash collecting.
Those players want it both ways, taking the LIV money while being allowed to continue to play on the tours where they built their careers, double-dipping even as they undercut the PGA and DP World tours. For the moment, a judge has sided with Ian Poulter, Justin Harding and Adrian Otaegui, allowing them to play at Renaissance this week.
But enough about that for an extended moment.
For these two weeks – even if lawsuits intrude – it’s about the golf, about the setting, about the players. It’s about the two biggest tours in the game coming together in an event that deserves to be special.
National opens matter. Just ask Matt Fitzpatrick. Winning the Scottish national championship should be something special, and though it always has mattered, it matters more this week.
As much as any time in recent memory, the game needs to return to its roots, if nothing more than to remind everyone of how it got to where it is today.
In the distance, there stands the Old Course, dressed for weeks with massive bleachers bearing the 150th championship logo, framed by the old gray town and the spirits that live in the thick, salty air with the squawking seagulls.
Tens of thousands are coming to St. Andrews next week just to be there, to see it, to feel it, to be part of something that’s bigger than them and, in many ways, bigger than golf itself.
The people may have trouble finding a table for dinner or getting a beer as quickly as they might like, but they’ll be there, walking the flat land near West Sands beach, looking up at the yellow scoreboards and being a part of the Open Championship.
They may see Rory make a birdie or two, catch Jon Rahm out near the loop, or see Tiger play the Road Hole. If the temperatures run cool and the wind blows, they will huddle in their pullovers. If it’s warm and nice, there will be lines at the ice cream stands around the Old Course.
As much as any time in recent memory, the game needs to return to its roots, if nothing more than to remind everyone of how it got to where it is today.
It’s come to the right place at just the right time.