Replies

The public and the to some extent the press reflecting the public determined the majors.

If that's the criterion then The Masters is indeed a major. The public interest in the tournament (yours excepted) and the demand for tickets to get into the Augusta National is quite extraordinary. I doubt if there is a tournament anywhere which holds the public interest and has quite the same aura as the back nine at Augusta on Sunday and that includes the US and British Opens. Ben Crenshaw once said that you don't hear crowd noises like you hear on Sunday at Augusta, anywhere else in golf.

Amen Corner plus holes 15 and 16 are not only some of the most beautiful in golf they are also some of the most difficult and a true test of champions.

You undermine your case when you say that the players' opinions are irrelevant. Tell that to Jack and Arnie and Tiger. Players' interest in and opinions of a tournament don't determine whether it's a major but they reflect the public's opinion about that tournament and the esteem in which it's held. Winning a Green Jacket is held in mighty high esteem among the players for that very reason.

If anything, the Masters is more of a major now than it has been in the past. Previously it was a tournament where someone could go out and light up the place with a 31 on the back 9 and win the tournament. It had that sort of excitement. However now, since Tiger's first victory, the course has been lengthened to such an extent that it has become just a survival slog like the US Open. Gone are the days when someone would go on a birdie run and snatch the Green Jacket. It's now more of a grind.

I agree that the lifetime exemption rule for previous champions dilutes the occasion and it may be reviewed one day, I think. The National has, in the past, written to some previous champions and asked them not to compete. I remember Billy Casper a few years ago going something like 15 over par for the first 9 holes on Thursday before he quit. That's ridiculous.

If that's the criterion then The Masters is indeed a major. The public interest in the tournament (yours excepted) and the demand for tickets to get into the Augusta National is quite extraordinary. I doubt if there is a tournament anywhere which holds the public interest and has quite the same aura as the back nine at Augusta on Sunday and that includes the US and British Opens. Ben Crenshaw once said that you don't hear crowd noises like you hear on Sunday at Augusta, anywhere else in golf.

I would certainly put the TPC up against the NEGBJI in terms of crowd noise. And there is plenty of public interest and they don't artificially restrict tickets to make them appear harder to get than they should ala the old cranks of the NEGBJI.

And I am hardly the only person who thinks the NEGBJI played year in and year out on a course that favors certain types of golfer is a true test. Look up what Lee Trevino about it some time? Of course most golfer will never say anything because the NEGJBI cranks are tend toward fascism and the cranks might find some way to keep them out.

Amen Corner plus holes 15 and 16 are not only some of the most beautiful in golf they are also some of the most difficult and a true test of champions.

Actually no, 16, 17 and 18 at the TPC at Sawgrass include the single most well known hole in the world, a great par 5 and an even great par 4. They are among the most beautiful and testing finishing holes in golf. Your extended so called "amen corner" includes at least one short par five.

You undermine your case when you say that the players' opinions are irrelevant. Tell that to Jack and Arnie and Tiger. Players' interest in and opinions of a tournament don't determine whether it's a major but they reflect the public's opinion about that tournament and the esteem in which it's held. Winning a Green Jacket is held in mighty high esteem among the players for that very reason.

Sure those who have won the NEGBJI have an incentive to pretend it is a major. That is why majors are not determined by players. Majors are the championship of something.

the course has been lengthened to such an extent that it has become just a survival slog like the US Open. Gone are the days when someone would go on a birdie run and snatch the Green Jacket. It's now more of a grind.

I was watching a replay of Jack's '86 win last night on TGC. The roars were incredible as he birdied his way up the leaderboard - something like 7 under in 9 holes. That day is gone. The course is more gut-wrenching now and the days of the final-nine charge are gone. I would love to see it returned to some of its original design.