SAY GOODBYE TO THE RYDER CUP

Say goodbye to the Ryder Cup.

There will be a Ryder Cup in 2018. From that it will be 50-50 chance for 2020. At best. Maybe. But it will not last much longer than that.

Why? The Ryder Cup is descending into a circus. The irony is that those who made it a circus are complaining it is a circus.

Jack Nicklaus was interviewed live on NBC on Day 2 (Saturday) and was asked if he had ever seen a more boisterous crowd at a Ryder Cup and could he believe how boisterous it has become – or something to that effect. Now pay attention to Mr. Nicklaus’ answer – paraphrased – “ it was never like this when he played,  not here, but it was rowdy over there”. Mr. Golf himself has identified the genesis of a rowdy spectator crowd.

Now that, in and of itself, is not a surprise given the behavior of soccer fans in the UK since forever. The lads added a new dimension to being a golf spectator. The impetus may have been that the big, bad US teams were dominating during the earlier years of the event and they were sick of getting thrashed. Or maybe a cultural thing. Regardless, it does not matter. All of it began in the UK.

Enter Ian Poulter.

This despicable scumbag decided that it was a great thing to pump up the crowd into a frenzy to cheer for him to satisfy some self-esteem deficiencies. Poulter single handedly created this climate of a golf event becoming a soccer match. Excuses galore were forthcoming about his actions/motives. All were bullshit. This was nothing more than an insecure asshole seeking notoriety. Nothing more and nothing less. When there was an opening to stoke up the crowd, Poulter obliged. Anything to intimidate the opposition and cause them some discomfort. For them and their families and supporters at the event. All of this within the broad definition of gamesmanship. In golf gamesmanship has, historically, been subtle and not in your face since golf manners form part of the foundation of the sport. Sportsmanship is the rule of the day that supports the tradition of the game and the people who have played. It is how golf sells itself to new generations of golfers to learn about the important qualities and virtues of being a person of integrity and honour. Not so with Poulter.

So what do the holier than thou European team do – they make the prick Poulter a vice-captain!!!. The creator of the bullshit. The cowardly dickhead now helps run the team. What were they thinking? And he acted as a bodyguard for Danny Willett? Please, the guy is a phony coward. It’s is too bad someone did not confront the asshole and beat the shit out of him.

And a new dynamic emerged. American spectators – sick of both the losses incurred and the verbal beatings being inflicted – decided to fight fire with fire. If a war was desired, they would oblige. Golf etiquette out the window – fine – we’ll have a soccer match or a football game. This new dynamic then became flammable with the US players taking the same action. As younger players made the team, they strapped on the pads. And it has now become an all out Italian soccer league game without – so far – the fatalities. For now.

This conflagration is place squarely on the shoulders of the idiot Poulter and millennial team members of the European team that replace him. The new standard bearer is Rory McIlroy. While Poulter was just a pro golfer, McIlroy is a golf prodigy and wunderkind. He burst on the scene with big expectations and has not disappointed on those expectations. McIlroy has determined that he must be the new Poulter to carry on the tradition of keeping this event as a soccer game instead of the event as known by icons Nicklaus, Palmer, Faldo, O’Connor, ET. Al. Golf icons and strong individuals and certainly not shrinking violets. Fierce competitors that knew the game and honoured it.

McIlroy did not get the memo. And in the irony of ironies when interviewed over the weekend on the recent passing of the irreplaceable Mr. Arnold Palmer, McIlroy spoke of the qualities of Mr. Palmer and that if “everyone were a bit like Arnold, it would be a good thing”. One thing that Mr. Palmer was not was an asshole on the course. He revered the game and what it gave him and one would be hard pressed to find a fiercer competitor who came to play every round. Off the course, Mr. Palmer was adored by the everyday man and he treated all the same. That was the magic of Arnold Palmer. Not an ounce of pretentiousness. McIlroy did not get that memo either.

With McIlroy now the new Poulter he was happy enough to pump the crowd up into an unbridled frenzy as long as his team was winning. He had no issue with the slagging of the US team by spectators and okay with being stupidly vocal on the course. He did not mind being an asshole. It got him attention and the attention magnified with wins by the European team.

The notion – really now a millennial thing – that an athlete needs the energy of the crowd to bring out the best in his ability is so much bullshit. This is an invention of the millennial athlete spawned by a culture of instant gratification, over the top visual and special effects, and total lack of respect for sport. As well it is the utter lack of achievement and knowledge that defines millennials. They lack everything but hubris and they talk the talk but could never walk the walk. These are the video warriors living in their parents’ basement who have less intestinal fortitude of all preceding generations. The millennial girls are promiscuous tarts and the millennial boys are as far from a real man as one could be. They could not grow a pair if their lives depended upon it. They need video games to express their absent manhood and they need any type of in your face violence that might project into them as testosterone. They have to live vicariously because they cannot accomplish these things themselves. They are all sizzle and no steak. That is why they love this type of bullshit. Can’t do it and could never strap on the pads but are eager spectators. Too bad they weren’t born when the Roman Coliseum was in full bloom so they could cheer on the lions. They think this is great sport and the thought of honour and integrity never enter their mind because they have none.

Real athletes compete for the sake of the sport and for personal development. And for achievement. Not for recognition. Real athletes would compete in an empty gym or stadium. They don’t need crowds to get up for the game or event. No real athlete needs any external device to get them mentally and physically prepared for a game and event. Anyone who says otherwise is an idiot or a liar. If you think you need a loud crowd to succeed, you better think of a new career

And so it is with McIlroy – a true millennial. He thinks this is the way things should be. And so he is okay with it. But – there is always a but – you cannot suck and blow at the same time. This new bullshit is a dual edge sword as it cuts both ways. You cannot make the crowd part of the event then complain that they are part of the event. So in the 2016 Ryder Cup, McIlroy is okay to taunt the crowd but not okay when they strike back. This smacks of both being a hypocrite and a crybaby.

McIlroy taunted the crowd on several occasions and had many chances to like a Nicklaus or Palmer – let his golf do the talking and keep his pie hole shut – but he could not do it. The slagging tossed at him was never so egregious that it warranted paying any attention to. The kid has thin skin. Is it because he is 5 foot 4 or is it because he is crybaby? Having rabbit ears as an athlete is not a good thing. It is a distraction and responding to hit is a losing proposition. By responding means that the slagger has succeeded.

All golfers are aware of when someone crosses the line in slagging someone and in all cases the opponent will quiet the crowd or confront the individual to end the bullshit. That happened for McIlroy. But he could not control himself. He felt he had to answer back. Lacking any kind of self control, he made a tense situation – CAUSED BY POULTER AND CARRIED ON BY HIM – and made it ridiculous. A real man would do one of two things – ignore the drunks or go over and drill him in the chops. Unfortunately McIlroy is a millennial so all he could do is complain to the officials. If he could have sent a penetrating tweet, he probably would have done that instead. Millennials don’t do physical confrontations.

 The table for the 2016 Ryder Cup was set by UK player Danny Willett’s brother who used the poisonous twitter to insult American spectators. This caused Willett to publically rebuke his brother and captain Darren Clarke to apologize profusely. While Willett was caught in a mess he did not create, he did not fully understand what had happened. Clarke knew exactly what was going to happen and – classy guy that he has always been – spent an inordinate amount of time apologizing. However, the die was cast and McIlroy ensured the inevitable would happen. And it did.

But it gets worse. After losing the event both McIlroy spoke about the ill mannered American slobs. McIlroy decided to show himself among the US players after the event in an attempt to seem statesmanlike. PSR doesn’t buy that at all. It was a phony photo op. Willett was even more obtuse. He said in a tweet that his brother was right about Americans – “Unfortunately some american fans showed that @ P_J_Willett was in fact correct.” Say what? ‘Some American fans’ showed that all American fans are “pudgy, unwashed cretins” as well as “fat, greedy and classless”. Is Danny Willett that stupid? Apparently he is. He claims that his family was hassled at the event – geez wonder why? And he had to have Poulter as a bodyguard. What a laugh having that wanker as a bodyguard. The guy is a cowardly dickhead.

And it gets worse still. Both McIlroy and Willett urged European fans not to retaliate. That’s rich. The guys who started the fight now want it to stop. They said – “we wouldn’t encourage any sort of retaliation. That’s just not who we are. That’s not what we do.” What? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!!! That is exactly who you are and that is exactly what you do. This is exactly what you have done you hypocritical idiot. Do you think for one second that the European crowd in the next Ryder Cup won’t be out for blood and that you yourself will continue to be a complete asshole on the course? You can be your ass the crowd will be spoiling for a scrap and you will continue to act like a classless asshole on the track.

This will now lead to the inevitable. In 2 years at the next Ryder Cup some nasty things will happen for certain. A soccer game will break out and there is will be lots of physical violence. It is inevitable. That is the European culture at sporting events. It will happen for certain. And – again – the irony will be that those who stoked the flames of this violence – Ian Poulter and Rory McIlroy – will come out unscathed. In fact McIlroy will suddenly become a statesman and denounce the violence. And most likely he will not cast the blame where it lies. Both he and Willett could have ended this madness by saying something like this – “well, like back home, there are idiots in the crowd. Hopefully those idiots here and at home won’t detract from the event and not attend”. There ya go. Diffused. But no, they make no mention of the yobs back home.  Now the stage is set.

The next event will have physical violence and injuries. The severity of the violence will impact the decision to end the event. The greater the violence, the greater the likelihood of the event coming to an end. And that will happen. Thanks to Ian Poulter. They will not be getting this genie back in the bottle as it is out for good.

If all sports had a “cooler” – the game’s policeman – to keep people from thinking they are bigger than the game to maintain the tradition of the game, the better all sports would be. In the case of golf, if golf’s ‘cooler’ had confronted Ian Poulter and threatened to kick the shit out him if he acted out on the course, none of this would have happened. And if Poulter did not comply, the ‘cooler’ would be the shit out of him. It’s too bad it did not happen.

And it’s too bad the Ryder Cup is doomed. You know who to blame.

PSR Commentary – October 4, 2016