Why Golf’s Popularity Has Mushroomed
Golf’s popularity as a sport has more than mushroomed. Why has this come to pass? Is it because it is a day off from work? Is it because it is the sport of kings and the wealth? Is it because it is a good leisure activity? Is it because that it is a sport that can be very enjoyably watched on TV on the weekends. All of the above are true.
Golf is a sport that is played all year long, from the first week in January through to the second week in December. Golf on the television tune has grown proportionately from a few shows in the 1950’s to nonstop golf on TV and cable TV today even to standalone whole channels devoted solely to golf that are devoted to golf and golfing 24 hours a day. . “The Golf Channel” or “Golf Channels”. There is even pay per view golfing channels.
The places that Television takes you during the golf and golfing year are a vacationer’s dream. Every Saturday and Sunday, you can do the couch thing and watch the various tours played from every corner of the globe. The golf is good, but the pictures and scenery are stunning. The viewing audience and the PGA Tour start to prepare themselves in the Florida swing for the first major tournament of the year in early April, when Augusta and the Masters Tournament are in full bloom. The Tour settles to normalcy for a while, and then the golf and golfing players start to prepare for the for the heat and the long rough of the U.S. open in mid June.
The month of July is for the British Open and its storied past; plenty of plaid and windblown golf balls decorate the links and fairways. The last of the four majors, the professional golfers gear up to play is played in the month of August, as the fall season is on its way in the calendar year. These are the golf tournaments that all professional golfers gear up to play well to; they are the measure of a golf player’s worth and his quest. And they make for great viewing.
During the first part of the year, many celebrities play at the famous tournament held at Pebble Beach and the Bob Hope Classic. If viewing the stars is your thing, you can see these would be golfers hacking away at all their inhibitions during these Pro-Am tournaments. If Hollywood stars are not your idea of proper role models, for yourself or your children, maybe professional golfers can fill the void. You do not see much trash taking or foul play on the golf course. In fact golf may be the only game in which the players police themselves. Almost weekly there is an example of a player in the P.G.A, Tour penalizing himself for some inadvertent rules transgression.
This indeed is the beauty of the sport of golf and golfing. It is a clean enjoyable social game that can be played by yourself and friends during the season.
Off season you can watch golf – good golf in the privacy and luxury of your own living room. Year round. And nothing heats the scenery that you can watch on TV while watching the myriad of the professional golfing circuit.