Comments that don't warrant a thread - Part 3

[Death From Above]

I don't like the idea of moving MITB because I see it as the thing that sets up this whole part of the year.

 

Royal Rumble ----> Wrestlemania

 

MITB ----> Summerslam

 

They can stick with this and it gives them some easy form for two thirds of the year. I'd rather they messed around with King of the Ring or Elimination Chamber.

[Jimmy Redman]

As an Australian and a Survivor Series fan, I do not like this in any way.

[jdw]

The funny thing is that when Bill was younger, fewer people gave a shit about the Open than the PGA. The TV push of it and folks waxing poetic about it is a more recent thing.

 

Not saying within the Golf Community, where Palmer winning in 61 & 62 and Jack *always* playing it from 1962 on and winning in 66 and 70 established it among US pros. But among casual golf viewing fans, which Bill isn't even at that level, the Open wasn't any bigger than the PGA until the last decade or so. I'd as Van de Velde's collapse was a turning point, but I doubt many casual fans could even tell you who won that year without looking it up.

 

I'm not a hardcore golf fan. But it does annoy me when people who are even more casual than I am (or worse: non-fans) have their great ideas on how to "fix" a sport. The worst are non-futbol fans going off on how to fix that boring soccer... but you get the same with people who don't follow baseball much having grand ideas to fix it, etc.

 

So... No, Bill... Golf doesn't need another 4th major. If you'd like to fix a sport, why don't you look at NASCAR when one race blends into another other than the First Race Of The Year. It's a sport that did have Crown Jewels, they got lost in time, and even something semi-cool like the Brickyard that felt majory has dropped to feeling like most other races. And this is coming from someone who has watched a lot of NASCAR going back to the 70s: even I am open to idea of how to get me to give a shit MORE about some of the races in a year, rather than not really feeling like I need to tune into ANY doing the year other than Daytona and maybe the 600.

[s1rweeze]

But among casual golf viewing fans, which Bill isn't even at that level, the Open wasn't any bigger than the PGA until the last decade or so.

Because it wasn't made part of the regular PGA Tour until the mid 90s or so. But even casuals were still well aware of it -- Jack vs. Watson at Turnberry alone towers over any PGA Championship moment past or present.

 

I'd as Van de Velde's collapse was a turning point, but I doubt many casual fans could even tell you who won that year without looking it up. smile.gif

Paul Lawrie (no name at the time but still a solid player) won in a playoff with Van de Velde and Justin Leonard. My girlfriend at the time fumed at me for a week for insisting on watching that spectacle instead of paying attention to her.

[jdw]

On the Aussie...

 

Bill is probably just a bit too young to remember that people skipped the Aussie and the French left and right in the 70s, and it really was Martina who put the Aussie back on the map (chasing Slams and Court), and to a degree the French. It's staggering to ponder Martina (11) and Chrissie (10) skipping loads of Aussie and French Opens from 1975-80. Borg played just one Aussie, none in his true prime. Connors never played the Aussie after going to back-to-back finals in 1974-75, and skipped five straight French Opens in his prime (and he wasn't a piker on clay). Mac played just two Aussies in his prime, late (1983 & 1985), and skipped a trio of French.

 

I get the feeling that the French really only got over with *current* casual fans with Roger's quest for it, coming off Pete's inability to win it. But let's be honest about the French: it's not like Chang's thrilling win in '89, or Mac's epic choke in '84, made casual tennis fans think, "I need to always watch this shit!"

[s1rweeze]

I get the feeling that the French really only got over with *current* casual fans with Roger's quest for it, coming off Pete's inability to win it. But let's be honest about the French: it's not like Chang's thrilling win in '89, or Mac's epic choke in '84, made casual tennis fans think, "I need to always watch this shit!"

Well, clay doesn't lend itself to a viewer friendly brand of tennis, it's grinding and ugly (hence why a buzzsaw like Nadal has been able to win it 8 times)

[s1rweeze]

I don't like the idea of moving MITB because I see it as the thing that sets up this whole part of the year.

 

Royal Rumble ----> Wrestlemania

 

MITB ----> Summerslam

 

They can stick with this and it gives them some easy form for two thirds of the year. I'd rather they messed around with King of the Ring or Elimination Chamber.

You just laid it out right there -- put KOTR in the current MITB spot, winner of the tournament gets a title shot at Summerslam (didn't they do that a couple times? I seem to remember that's how Lesnar got his shot in '02), and MITB moves to November, Survivor Series gets the axe.

[jdw]

But among casual golf viewing fans, which Bill isn't even at that level, the Open wasn't any bigger than the PGA until the last decade or so.

Because it wasn't made part of the regular PGA Tour until the mid 90s or so. But even casuals were still well aware of it -- Jack vs. Watson at Turnberry alone towers over any PGA Championship moment past or present.

Being part of the PGA's "tour" really hasn't matter: casual fans don't grasp or care whether a Major is part of the tour or not. They don't even get that the Masters is off in its own little world that and everyone else puts up with it's kookiness because it's The Masters~!

 

I was watching golf in the 70s. I've got loads of memories all the way back to '73 with Miller's great year, his staggering 4th round at Oakmont, and for all the world looking like he was the heir to Jack.

 

At the time, Watson beating Jack at the British Open in '77 didn't resonate much with casual fans as you think, nor was the PGA as minor as you think

 

 

 

Granted, as someone who was also a baseball fan that summer, Carew chasing .400 was a HUGE story. That said, SI couldn't break out of their Carew story to put what Jenkins pimped as the greatest two rounds of golf ever on the cover. They also could pimp the PGA winner later in the year.

 

The Open was much more of a Hardcore thing at the time. Here in the US, things like Jack's PGA win in 1980 after the earlier US Open win, and Trevino's 1984 PGA win when a washed up 44, got more casual run.

 

 

I'd say Van de Velde's collapse was a turning point, but I doubt many casual fans could even tell you who won that year without looking it up. smile.gif

Paul Lawrie (no name at the time but still a solid player) won in a playoff with Van de Velde and Justin Leonard. My girlfriend at the time fumed at me for a week for insisting on watching that spectacle instead of paying attention to her.

It's quite possible that I watched it with my girlfriend, just as we did the Open this year when Phil won.

 

John

[jdw]

I get the feeling that the French really only got over with *current* casual fans with Roger's quest for it, coming off Pete's inability to win it. But let's be honest about the French: it's not like Chang's thrilling win in '89, or Mac's epic choke in '84, made casual tennis fans think, "I need to always watch this shit!"

Well, clay doesn't lend itself to a viewer friendly brand of tennis, it's grinding and ugly (hence why a buzzsaw like Nadal has been able to win it 8 times)

 

Take it up with Simmons - he's the one implying that the French is a Great Major~! since it's the Aussie is the one that needs to be killed off / replaced.

[ohtani's jacket]

Simmons always has terrible ideas about tennis. I don't know why he bothers commenting on it when he's clearly not a fan. They won't get rid of the Australian Open since the attendances are so high, but it would be better if it were in February.

[Death From Above]

Golf already has a fifth major. The PGA are the only people on earth that don't call The Player's Championship a major, and they never will because it involves revising a bunch of record books. Which is fine. It will be the "unofficial" 5th to the majority of golf fans (and clearly to a huge chunk of the golf media) for the foreseeable future.

[BrickHithouse]

Does anyone here play Filsinger Games "Legends of Wrestling" card game?

[JerryvonKramer]

I'm in no-way anything more than the lightest of casual fans of either tennis or golf, but my old school friends are pretty hardcore for both and all sports. And my uncle is a big golf guy who used to work on Shinnecock Hills. I have another mate who is so hardcore into golf he uses his annual leave to watch majors and has been known not to leave the house at all for 4 days. I also remember he left Facebook once when people gave him stick over Nadal beating Federer.

 

I fired off a couple of texts when I read this, but my immediate assumption is that the Australian and PGA are the respective 4ths. In golf, The Open is almost always presented as the most prestigious but you could see arguments for the US Masters, and I'd put it as a dead rubber with US Open pretty safely in at 3. I'd expect tennis to go 1. Wimbledon, 2. US, 3. French, 4. Australian.

 

I'll report back what my mates say, but I'd expect them to produce list pretty much exactly along those lines. I am interested though. Actually I might has well whack this in a facebook message and see what happens. May cause a few arguments!

[JerryvonKramer]

Wow, that was quick. Range of answers are by no means unanimous.

 

(hardcore fan)

Personally, these would be mine but everyone is different though! And there is no true answer, a lot comes down to where you are from.

 

Golf:

1. Masters

2. Open

3. US Open

4. PGA

 

Tennis

1. Wimbledon

2. French

3. US

4. Australian

(uncle)

British is no 1 in both

- not opinion

- fact

most prestigious

(tennis fan)

Tennis:

Wimbledon. US. Australian. French.

 

Not sure about golf, but I guess an easy way of ranking would be to look at prize money

(fairly hardcore)

Tennis would be Wimbledon, US, French, and Oz last. Golf would be masters, open, US open, and PGA. Just my opinion.

(two more casual fans)

1. Wimbledon. 2. French. 3. US. 4. Australian.

1. Masters. 2. Open. 3. US Open. 4. PGA. But I'm no expert on this.

Tennis: Wimbledon, US, Australian, French, because it's niche. Golf: The Open, Masters, The PGA and US (shamed to say I don't know for sure what the 4th one is for golf)

Still not got an answer from the most hardcore of my friends, but it's safe to say that there's no real consensus here. Really surprised to see the variation on the French.

[Blehschmidt]

Does anyone here play Filsinger Games "Legends of Wrestling" card game?

I have played this a few times.

[Death From Above]

There is no way the British is more prestigious in golf than the US. Half the players on the tour (and I'd note, personally I think quite wrongly) despise links golf.

 

Wimbledon is literally the only thing in tennis that matters though.

 

Having said that if you ask English people anything you will get ENGLAND NUMBER ONE as an answer every time. I think the reason they have such a love/hate relationship with the USA is that they see so much of themselves in the other.

[vikingsfan73]

Does anyone here play Filsinger Games "Legends of Wrestling" card game?

Yes, and I create many of the card stats for the LOW series.

[Log]

There is no way the British is more prestigious in golf than the US. Half the players on the tour (and I'd note, personally I think quite wrongly) despise links golf.

 

Wimbledon is literally the only thing in tennis that matters though.

 

Having said that if you ask English people anything you will get ENGLAND NUMBER ONE as an answer every time. I think the reason they have such a love/hate relationship with the USA is that they see so much of themselves in the other.

Not to mention the obnoxious thing of calling the British Open, "The Open".

[Loss]

Why are we talking about golf and tennis?

[Death From Above]

If not Tiger Woods, then who?

 

Ok, I'll stop now.

[BrickHithouse]

Does anyone here play Filsinger Games "Legends of Wrestling" card game?

Yes, and I create many of the card stats for the LOW series.

 

Cool. I try to play the game whenever possible as a way to get away from computer monitors and TV.

 

I was going somewhere with this when posting the question and have totally forgotten where I was going with it

[goodhelmet]

Why are we talking about golf and tennis?

Agreed. We have a Pro Wrestling Mostly forum for this type of crap.

[Matt D]

I think Survivor Series can matter, but it's harder in a day and age where you have more big tag matches on the weekly shows, to the point where it's basically it's own Teddy Long meme. Traditionally, it was always a great way to build a feud without giving away another singles match (when such things, televised, were rare) and to transition one feud into another while protecting a lot of guys and their finishes.

 

I think it'd probably work best now if they had feuds dovetail into each other and highlighted the personalities on the various teams and how they interact with one another, but that'd probably involve some semblance of build I'm not sure WWE is capable of anymore.

[vikingsfan73]

I was going somewhere with this when posting the question and have totally forgotten where I was going with it

Holler when you think of it!

[Kevin Ridge]

I don't like the idea of WWE getting rid of Survivor Series. I feel like this has come up before about them moving on from this show. As a traditionalist, I would like them to always have this show but they haven't been following the gimmick as much since the mid 90's. I think the problem with MITB is that it's the PPV just before Summerslam which is still a major show. You end up with a big gap until the next big show as far as treatment in Royal Rumble.