Alex H Lamport: Ruby, my dear friend, I have a confession to make.
Tyler Ruby: Go ahead, Alex. I'm all ears. I love Taxi Cab Confessions.
AHL: Well, I've been tuning in to some golf lately. There's a supposedly big tournament going on this weekend. All the big names will be there, except of course Tiger. And, correct me if this is golf heresy, but I think I'm happy he won't be there?
TR: You're correct. It's at Doral in Florida, and it's part of the WGC (World Golf Championships) tournaments. It's also owned by Trump, but I don't want to get into that part of it. Anyway, it's a course that Tiger has dominated in the past, winning 7 times. But why are you happy that Tiger won't be there? Is it because you aren't a fan, or is it something else?
AHL: Oh not at all, I love Tiger. When I was a kid, he was literally the only reason I would ever pay attention. But here and now, looking at the slate of golfers at Doral this weekend, I've turned a 180. Not only is practically every golfer in the field better than Tiger right now, but there are like ten guys who at this point are just flat out more compelling right?
TR: The WGC always has the players in the world, and that's just not for Doral, that's for all of them. I mean, with Tiger's injuries, I may be a better golfer than him right now... Okay maybe that's pushing it. But you get the idea.
Honestly, golf is at a healthy place right now. Don't get me wrong, Tiger at his peak was pure euphoria, but now there is just so much intrigue in every tournament. There's not just one massive superstar, but there are multiple stars. I guess it's whatever you prefer.
AHL: I guess what I'm wondering, and why you were the perfect guy to talk to about this, is trying to figure out how much a balanced collection of stars appeals to a casual fan (which I used to consider myself, by the way). The tour's new dynamic can't possibly be having the same effect on the average viewer, can it? How are ratings doing in Tiger's prolonged absence?
TR: The PGA Tour is not the same without Tiger. Nobody, and I mean nobody had the cultural mass appeal of Tiger. I can't imagine the numbers are great week to week. We've been in a constant search for the "Next Tiger." First it was Rory, now it's Spieth. Who could it be this year? Let me save them all some time. There isn't one.
Just looking at the ratings this year, they've been very up-and-down. And there have been some big tournaments. For example, the Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale drew record numbers of attendance, but didn't do great in overnight ratings. Pebble Beach ratings were ridiculously high, and that was because Phil Mickelson was in the mix. Riviera was down, but the ratings for the Honda last weekend were the third highest since 2005. Maybe that has something to do with the tournaments moving to Florida, or maybe it's something else. But take this from a Tiger perspective. Last year at the Wyndham Championship, a mid-level tournament drew a 3.9 overnight, which is the highest non-major tournament rating for CBS since 2012. The Tiger Woods effect.
AHL: It's undeniable. But I wonder how much that has to do with his actual golfing skills. Even in the past few years, any moment he's been on is appointment television. But this guy hasn't won a major tournament in eight freaking years! So what is it about him that still gets all those eyeballs?
TR: People get Tiger-drunk. And I put myself in that category. When people think about Tiger, they don't think about the Tiger of the past three years. They think of him revolutionizing the game. They think of his hole-in-one at the Phoenix Open, when some say they've never heard the place louder. They think of the unbelievable long drives allowing him to eat up Par 5s, they think of the most incredible chip I've ever seen at the 2005 Masters. They see the 2008 win at Torrey Pines on one leg. I was in a sports bar with my dad and his golfing buddies when he sunk that putt on 18 at Torrey Pines, and the place was deafening.
People tune in because we all just want that one last glimpse of greatness because he changed the game. He's the greatest player I've ever seen, and it'd be a shame to end his career like this. We want a Jack in '86 moment.
All that being said, avid golf fans have sort of moved on from Tiger, I feel. But no one will draw casual fans like him, which is why when he returns, ratings records will be broken.
AHL: Well before we worry about when he comes back, let's take a stroll down Nostalgia Lane. What's your favorite Tiger moment? Gotta pick one.
TR: There are so many... just one?
AHL: I have one. It's the chip in at Augusta. It's one of the five most ridiculous athletic accomplishments I've watched live. And yes, Stephen Curry's game-winner in OKC last weekend is also on there.
TR: Some will point to the two I mentioned above, and trust me, it's hard to go against them. Some will point to his dominating win at Pebble Beach by lapping the field, but for me, it's Tiger, months after his father died, winning the 2006 Open Championship at Hoylake. The guy hit one driver all week, thoroughly dominated the course. Nobody was stopping him those four days on his way to his 11th major.
AHL: So did you enjoy it more when he would use that mental toughness to just edge out the competition, or when he just totally blew everyone out of the water? Both had their unique pleasures.
TR: That's an interesting question, but for the sake of it, I loved the shots under pressure. There are times where I can look back to a shot or shots and be like damn, no other person could do that. People point to the final round of the US Open in 2008. I like to remember the third round where he had two eagles and finished birdie, eagle to put himself into position to win his 14th major. It's those shots under pressure that I'll remember the most. I loved to see Tiger be challenged because I knew it brought the best out of him.
AHL: We've left out one of the most important things Tiger brought to the game of golf: big, heaping wads of cash. There's so much more money in the game now that it's virtually unrecognizable from what my grandpa grew up watching (my dad is sane and isn't a fan). So once Tiger is gone, and I mean for good, what happens? Does the PGA ecnomy stagnate? Or even regress? And how quickly does it happen?
TR: I really don't believe it does change. Sponsors like Nike, Under Armour, Adidas have waaaayyy too much money invested in the tour for it to stop being a money-maker. It's a young man's game, and guys like Spieth, Day, Rory are all under 30. Tiger made golf cool, and these guys, along with Rickie Fowler, Dustin Johnson and so on are only continuing that trend.
There are more and more young kids picking up the game every day. I say that because you know just as much as I do that America's most popular game is going through a bit of a crisis with head injuries. And since golf is normally played in the fall in high school, and I've never heard anyone getting CTE from swinging a golf club, golf is becoming a popular alternative to football. Athletes can play golf too. Tiger changed that and we see it every week.
AHL: That's an interesting point, but it doesn't jibe with the much lower ratings when el Tigre isn't around. I agree all the Spieths, Bubbas, and Rorys are very cool. But they're not getting the same audience. To put it delicately, how much of Tiger's appeal has/had to do with him not looking like anyone else on tour? And yes, I mean that very literally.
TR: You mean black? You can say it. I'm not going to sit here and say that it didn't have anything to do with it because that'd be naive. Historically it's not a black sport. The biggest tournament of the year is held at a place where they didn't allow African Americans for the longest time and women until recently. It's not a kind sport, so to see a black man dominate an historically white sport for years, probably had a lot to do with ratings as well. I don't know the demographics of the ratings, so I can't really speak to that aspect. But here's the thing, there are less black golfers now than there were before Tiger was on tour. So the fandom and influence he had may not be so clear-cut. All I know is that he's a transcendent figure who took a stuffy game and made it exciting.
AHL: All about that Tony Finau! In all seriousness, it's really interesting how little Tiger did to change the demographics of golf. I learned from The People v. O.J. Simpson (baller show) that a lot of people referred to Juice as "The Mayor of Brentwood." It was a half-insult implying that he had abandoned his inner city upbringing. But the key thing about Tiger is he didn't grow up like that at all. He was making chip shots and driving off the tee box by the time he was two. So a lot of fans were shoehorning him into a role he didn't fit. At the end of the day, Tiger's origin story isn't all that different from Mickelson's, Palmer's, or Nicklaus's, is it?
TR: Nobody was really bred for glory like Tiger. I also feel that he never really embraced being black. The only time I remember him saying anything related to that was when he was the first black player to ever win the Masters. This is pure speculation on my part, but I do know that this is a guy who was very conscious of what he said or did. Everything was calculated.
Maybe that's why white people liked him so much. And if you want an example of what I mean, ask yourself this: How did people respond to Cam Newton and the way he acted and played in a sport made up by a majority of black athletes? How do you think the PGA Tour would've responded if Tiger behaved like Cam? For the record, I have zero problem with the way Cam is, but plenty of people do. Well, this got deep, huh?
AHL: In the broad scheme of things I don't really mind how either one of them does their thing. In general we put too much social responsibility on these guys who only really want to focus on throwing their balls or swinging their clubs. You're right though, whenever Tiger showed any angry fire the media shit themselves. Remember the time he flipped out at a camera guy when he obstructed his swing? ESPN didn't shut up about it for weeks!
TR: He had the ability to manipulate the media like few others have. Also, that's why I don't watch ESPN's golf coverage.
AHL: They're too busy covering the 40 time of some kicker at the stupid as fuck NFL combine. But I think we have to end this with the question that everyone asks. It's been "when will Tiger win another major" for a while. But at this point, do you think he ever even contends for another over the rest of his career?
TR: I really want to say yes. I want to believe that there is some magic left, but I don't know if his body can hold up. But because of my eternal optimism (debatable), I'm going to say that he contends one or two more times, probably at the Masters, and brings back the Tiger of old for a few rounds.
AHL: Let's say it does happen, and he's going up against the likes of Spieth or Jay Day, who in the past few years have built up fan bases up their own. Does the crowd just suddenly get behind Tiger like it used to? I have a feeling the gallery might be a split decision, because for a lot of fans, golf has already passed him by.
TR: I think it's split because of the generational gap there. People who've experienced Tiger will get behind him. But the younger fans, who have grown up with Spieth, Fowler, Rory, etc. will be drawn toward them. Which I think is fantastic for golf, by the way. It's happened all throughout golf's history.
AHL: And I think that's where we really are with Tiger. He's started to recede from his bigger than golf itself status, and those of us who can look ahead a bit can see where he sits in the sport's history. And damn, he's cemented himself a pretty nice legacy.
TR: At his highest level, there has never been a player as dominant as Tiger. He may not have the most majors, but to me, he's the best player ever. And I know that won't go over well with the previous generation, but I don't really care.
AHL: I don't know. I think he still has a long way to go. Talk to me once he invents his own drink.
TR: How can you put sleepless nights and tears from his opponents into a drink?
AHL: I think that already exists. It's called Four Loko.
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