“Showdown” is not just a money grab. It’s a statement and a gift

As the name suggests, our current era of “athlete empowerment” movement has been fruitful for athletes—especially in recent years. But for sports fans, that often comes with bad news. Players miss more games by prioritizing their own long-term prospects, while teams (and, indirectly, fans) are willing to pay more generous contracts, forcing organizations to tighten their budgets as everyone prioritizes star superstars. That’s not to say these players don’t deserve it, it’s just that most of these changes benefit those on the field sooner than those in the stands.

With all due respect, there is probably no sport that understands this imbalance better than men’s professional golf when it comes to college football. Players got bigger wallets, bigger bonuses, and even better courtesy cars (not to mention more John Doors on the field). But what does player empowerment bring? us?

It seems unlikely that next week’s Crypto.com showdown will answer this question, but at least it’s an interesting test case. “The Showdown” pits Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka against Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler, another A made-for-TV exhibition match played in front of a limited audience on our nation’s most expensive golf course in Las Vegas, with millions of dollars in cryptocurrency paid out to the winners. But before your eyes roll into the back of your head, know that this time should feel different. because of it yes Different. Fans got the core thing they swore they wanted most: unity.

It comes in minimal dosage and satisfies correctly too little, too late, Considering we’re on the one-year anniversary of the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia’s PIF failing to comply with the deadline agreement, this deadline is nothing more than a joke. But while golf fans have been waiting a long time, golf’s best-kept secret is that they will end up waiting even longer, at least until 2026, to see consistent unity. Angered? Rory McIlroy said, Welcome to my world.

Although McIlroy was one of LIV Golf’s biggest critics years ago, he has publicly expressed his belief that careers in the sport can take off if all the best players come together. It will likely spend a month in Western Europe and another month in East Asia and Australia. It can spend 60% of its time in the United States, which has the largest golf market, while also touring like an F1 driver, establishing Jordan, Justin and Xander as global sports stars, not just golf stars. That’s all McIlroy could talk about 11 months ago, and the idea hinges on other people Get on board. This made his pitching time ripe. Another wave of Tour loyalists left to play elsewhere, but TV producer Bryan Zuriff approached McIlroy in Dubai and sold him. LIV Best vs. PGA Tour Best first.

As expected, the four participants in the showdown come to an agreement just when their competitive paths stop crossing – just like summer camp buddies planning to reunite to keep up the good times. Part of the appeal stems from the ability of the foursome – McIlroy and DeChambeau put on their best battle of the season at the U.S. Open in June, to the delight of the TV ratings. But part of it is also rooted in what we all know is coming next. The two golfers haven’t been on the same golf course since July, unless you count a group Happy Gilmore 2. The showdown was officially announced six weeks after their last match, just as a brooding McIlroy began to suggest the PIF might consider moving funds elsewhere.

“I think with everything that’s happened, we’re essentially saying, you know what, we’re going to take this into our own hands,” he said this week. “We’re going to do basically what we’re doing before the tour. Something outside of that, to give back to the fans, you know, at least let them know that we’re trying to provide entertainment…the players want to play together more often.

As McIlroy made clear Wednesday, the generosity of this mentality comes from anxiety. He and Scheffler were asked whether agreeing to play a tournament with the other side of golf’s Cold War would only serve as a reminder of that war and do more harm than good.

“I’ll choose that one,” McIlroy said, jumping in front of Scheffler. “Because I think it’s a terrible question.”

He then admitted that, yes, golf as a sport was growing in popularity while professional golf on television was in decline. No player has been more vocal about this than McIlroy, who has spent countless hours in meetings over the past three years focused on improving products that address the problem (whether on television or otherwise) ).

Let’s go back to March and see what McIlroy had to say at The Players Championship. “I think what needs to happen is you need to create something for the fans, for the sponsors, for the media and then you have to sell it to the players. Tell them to come on board because if they come on board we are all part of the business now and if the business does If we get better, we will do better.

He sounded angry when he said this. Because he was annoyed by the divisions in the sport. He was annoyed by some of his reactions. He was annoyed because it would have taken more than two years to piece it back together if that had happened, and he was furious at the negative insinuations from reporters.

All of this brings us back to the idea of ​​this event. The game was originally scheduled to be played at Stanwich Club in Connecticut a few months ago, but was moved west as the schedule filled up and temperatures began to drop. Importantly, it landed in December, a week without any Tour events. Why next week instead of this week? McIlroy and Scheffler won’t have to request conflicting event release forms from the PGA Tour next week. The Tour often approves these requests — and it will no doubt grant one from two of its biggest stars — but player empowerment works best when you give it full permission and no concessions. Next week is one of those weeks on the calendar where Scheffler and McIlroy don’t have to make too many concessions to the tours to which they sign media rights.

“They have Very Support,” McIlroy said sarcastically. “You know, it took a few conversations before they realized this might be a good thing in the long run. It took a few conversations. It wasn’t always smooth sailing, but we got there in the end.

There At some point it could mean something bigger, perhaps something as grand as what Koepka and DeChambeau mentioned on Tuesday: a Ryder Cup-style event sometime next year. But for now, it’s simply four of the most compelling golfers on the planet competing against each other, a small Christmas gift from the players to their fans, acknowledging that as they keep getting more, we need some too thing.

” >