Local Links: Betting On The Future Of Golf

By Robert Durkin

Plenty of darkness has reared its ugly head here in America over the past four weeks, and much, if not all of it, is of far greater import than the small incident that occurred on the 10th hole at Torrey Pines on Saturday afternoon.

How small was this incident? About the diameter of a golf ball. But like a stone tossed into a pond, the ripple effect of Patrick Reed’s golf ball impacting the rough at a rain softened Torrey Pines, is being felt throughout the golf world, and, because this is 2021 in America, at least slightly beyond the confines of a 72-hole golf tournament.

Briefly, Reed, and for purposes of our considerations here, the character, and the character of that character, will recede in importance like a pulled tee shot disappearing in the rough, lifted a ball, for reasons known only to Reed, subsequent to having asked a volunteer (and it is worth noting here that event volunteers have no official status with regards to rules at Tour events) if his (Reed’s) ball had bounced.

The volunteer replied that (she) did not see it bounce. With that in mind, Reed took said ball in hand, and, ball in hand called for a rules official to advise on and approve of how he was to next proceed.

It is important to understand that nothing that has occurred to this point is in violation of the PGA Tour’s rules.

Reed then communicated to the Tour official his belief (reinforced by the volunteer’s statement) that the ball he stuck had flown directly into the location from which he had only moments prior, moved (lifted) it.

Worth noting here is the atmosphere under which the events, to this point, have taken place.

The Farmers Insurance Open is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour. It has a near 60-year history, offers a $7.5 million purse, and is televised nationally by both NBC’s Golf Channel and the CBS network. This year, it was being contested over the Torrey Pines Golf Course, one of the nation’s most recognizable and highly regarded municipal courses.

Situated adjacent to the Pacific Ocean in La Jolla, California, the course affords challenging play, spectacular scenery, and unpredictable weather, which was very much in evidence on the second day of play which saw in the course of a day: sunshine, clouds, no breezes, light breezes, high winds, light rain followed by driving rain, and finally, a hail storm.

With wet conditions present prior to Thursday’s first round, Tour officials instituted the “Lift, Clean and Place” rule, know in some golfing circles as “lift, clean, and cheat.”

Which brings us back to Mr. Reed and the 10th hole at Torrey Pines on Saturday.

That Patrick Reed has a reputation for, and a history of, deliberate infringement of the rules of golf is both a regrettable and an incontrovertible fact. The fact that he has the equally regrettable nickname “Captain America” may be one of golf’s sadder instances.

Neither of these facts are, however, the single most alarming aspect of Saturday’s rules incident (a generous if reasonably accurate description of what others have described in somewhat harsher terms). And it is not Patrick Reed’s motivations, but rather those of the “incensed and outraged,” that should be of concern to all who purport to love the game of golf.

Much of the rancor directed at Reed has come from that (growing?) sliver of the small pie of golf spectators who choose to enhance their viewing experience by placing a wager on the possible outcome. Welcome, my friend to the brave new world of legalized, legitimized, online and live sports wagering.

And it is into this pond of rather murky waters that the PGA Tour, and it’s network partners have chosen not to dip their toes, but rather heedlessly plunge head first, taking not only themselves , but the game of golf and is centuries-old traditions of honor and integrity with it.

“In the past year, the TOUR has signed with four separate ‘official betting operators,’ incorporated betting odds within much of its self-produced content,” said Jason Sobel (actionnetwork.com/golf/patrick-reed-rules-controversy-pga-tour-farmers-insurance-open-picks).

Sobel goes on to “warn” the Tour that if it fails to satisfy the bettors’ conviction that they are getting a fair deal, they will take their “hard earned” (gambling) dollars elsewhere.

Not only is history (c.f. horse racing, documented PED usage in virtual every major sport, etc.) likely to prove him to be wrong in this conclusion, the greater concern is the fact that the PGA Tour, NBC, and the gambling industry will now be weighing in on the future of the greatest game. This is, without doubt, a watershed moment in the history of golf.

Golf affords many blessings to those who pursue it regularly, and its perseveration as a sport, a passion, and, in some cases, an obsession is a testimony to its intrinsic value. And certain values have long been at the very heart of the game. Among them are an honesty and sportsmanship that exceeds the boundaries of not merely other games, but more importantly the “rules of life” as they are applied outside the 18-hole kingdom of the open links.

Much has been justifiably made of how golf is the only game in which a player calls a penalty on oneself, conduct virtually unheard of in most any endeavor. But it is the violation of that spirit of conduct prior to such and admission that Patrick Reed is, if anything, most guilty of.

Under circumstances similar to those that Reed encountered, how many recreational amateurs, playing in a match with friends, would not have called an opponent over to examine the questionable lie prior to lifting the ball in question? I should think, at the least, most. It’s as simple as that.

And now for the question of legalized gambling, including “live” player odds being flashed on the screen during network broadcasts of PGA events: There will be, I am afraid, no going back. Gambling is, and has been, a part of golf, and most all contested affairs, since the time when first feathery was struck. And who would want it otherwise?

What is, however, unfortunate, and definitely at risk not only for golf culture, but culture in general, is the loss of the spirit of the game to the sole interest of its outcome.

In his gambling site sponsored opinion piece, Sobel likens the disgruntled golf punter (in a somewhat twisted analogy) to the honorably outraged “little guy” investors who were recently abused by Wall Street institutional investor regulators.

His concerns are both inherently self-centered (writing about gambling as a means of producing an income, they cannot be otherwise) and they’re misguided. As of Monday morning, we can all be assured that on computer screens and basement sofas across America, small time investors will be pounding away at keyboards in search of the next Game Stop opportunity.

And come Thursday morning, there will be a steady flow of money coming in on Rory (+1100) to clean up at the Waste Management Open, which, given the fact that it is being held in a desert, will likely mean that they will be playing the ball down. As it should be.

Let’s just hope no large stones need to be moved.

Robert Durkin is both a golfer and a writer, who frequently discovers a considerable overlapping of these two passions. He may be reached at par4golf@mac.com