Simultaneous hosting of PGA and LPGA tournaments

I notice Ian Carter thinks the WGC matchplay could be combined with an LPGA event, another limited field event the HSBC champions in Singapore and played at the same venue on the same week. I assume somewhere that has at least a 36 hole complex.

To me it is not clear what difference this would make as in theory a PGA tour and LPGA event happen at the same time every week they both hold an event. I get his point about filling gaps in TV coverage but is that all that is wrong with the matchlpay and would one station have the rights to show both sides of the event? It is still not clear why they need to be combined to fill gaps in tv coverage, as the broadcaster could flick between events no matter where each of them is held around the world?

Would it would increase the attendance either, as presumably anyone who was willing to go to a golf event within a given area already attends? Meaning you have at best 50% of the spectators on one course watching one event and the rest on the other. So attendance for both events is down 50%. Or worse, 90% want a glimpse of tiger and Yani Tseng is mastering a course with only 3 people watching.

Or, have I missed something and actually people can see advantages to combining a male and female event.

Carter is whistling in the wind. If the idea had any commercial viability, wouldn't you think the BBC would do something to encourage it?
Fact is, the BBC has abdicated its responsibility to provide meaningful golf coverage and the on-line effort is symptomatic of that.

The old JC Penney tournament seemed to do quite well; shame no-one picked it up when JC Penney dropped it.

"If the idea had any commercial viability, wouldn't you think the BBC would do something to encourage it?"

I am a little confused kwini, why would the bbc push an idea for a golf whether or not it was commercially viable?



In any case I suspect Carter just threw out the idea through having a lack of substance to include in his blog. As I pointed out above it is hard to see the idea stack up to reasoning. I do wonder if the bbc have anyone with the capability of editing his work?

This should not be a bbc bashing thread but it is a little sad that such a great organisation does not have one person who can look over and check the validity and accuracy of a simple golf blog. Carter seems to have a license to write whatever he wants whether it is relevant and interesting or not.

I'm sure that, if the Beeb put about the word that they'd pay to televise a mixed-Tour event, potential sponsors would come out of the woodwork. Obviously doesn't apply to the PGA/LPGA Tours but they could do it in Europe if they felt it was viable. Which it's probably not!

crookedken was always right, especially about Carter!

I actually think in terms of Matchplay it would work really well. There is virtually no golf to watch on the last few days of a Matchplay tournament if you had the women playing as well at least you'd have 4 matches out on finals day and 4 on semi day as well. Least there would be more shots to watch rather than just watching golfers walk between holes and having to listen to even more tedious filler commentary than we already get shoved down our throats.

Diggers

What is stopping you flicking the channel to whatever womens event is on this weekend?

Would it make sense for any tournament committee or broadcaster to combine the two?

How would I know who was taking which shot when Mac. Much more likely Id get better viewing of the golf taking place if it was covered by the one broadcaster.
Im only suggesting it for this one matchplay week.

Unless you can provide some reasoning to dispute the points I set out in the OP then I am not sure I get where you are coming from?

My only reasoning is that I find the last few days of Matchplay to be utterly dull and very poor TV viewing as there is so little golf. So for me having more matches on the final days would lessen that dullness as you'd get to see more golf. What part of that simple explanation are you struggling with ?

This part as outlined in the OP

"It is still not clear why they need to be combined to fill gaps in tv coverage, as the broadcaster could flick between events no matter where each of them is held around the world?"

The point being a broadcaster could combine the coverage without having a combined event. why do they not choose to do this at the moment?

Why does Wimbledon mens and womens tournaments, in fact all the tennis grand slams and a lot of the Masters events, take place at the same time and place ?

I dont know diggers, that was sort of the point in starting the article to get people to put forward arguments for such a thing to happen in golf.

We know it is possible to show joint coverage without combining the event so what further reasons are there for actually holding a joint event like in tennis. It may just be for something different or as a way to increase the media coverage, what can you think of?

Would it not make sense to look at incorporating a womens matchplay event, They could have it on the same course or simply on another course at the same resort (admittedly this would mean playing it at a multiple course resort as originally outlined). That way as Diggers points out the coverage wouldn't need to be watching pro's walk 300yards. They could simply changed to the other course to pick up the womens matchplay much like they do at Pebble Beach when playing over 3 courses or as they do at Wimbledon to a different court.

If people then don't wish to watch the womens game or (ladies don't want to watch mens) then they can do what the bbc do with the tennis and give you the red button option to watch exlcusively what you want. To say simply flick channels is imo a nonsense idea as you would lose track of where people are in their rounds what shot they are on etc, now I know that commentators and onscreen scoreboards are to help cover this but the time it can take to get back to some matches you would lose track of how someone maybe went from 1 up to 1down quite quickly