Has Professional Golf Missed A Trick After Solheim Cup And Amgen Irish Open Scheduling Clash?
The Solheim Cup takes place every two years but, with the Amgen Irish Open possessing a star-studded field this week, it's taken some of the attention away from the team competition
'Inside The Ropes' is the chance for Golf Monthly's expert team to share its honest thoughts on the biggest subjects in the game. This time, it's all about golf's scheduling.
Professional golf is littered with hundreds of tournaments and, this weekend, we are treated to both team and individual golf, which many are calling a blessing and a curse...
The Solheim Cup is, arguably, the biggest event in women's golf, while the Amgen Irish Open is one of the jewels in the DP World Tour's calendar, bringing the likes of Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm to its field.
Many would rejoice in the fact that two high quality events are taking place but, with both being staged in Europe, it means a clash when it comes to timings.
At the halfway stage of the Irish Open, it's home-hero Shane Lowry who leads by three, with the Irishman searching for a first solo win in four years and a second title on home soil.
That being a storyline in itself is one thing, but add in a Solheim Cup where both USA and Europe are tied at 4-4 going into the second day, with the morning foursomes on Saturday going close once again, and fans are left with the difficult decision of having to decide on which tournament they'd like to watch on a hectic weekend.
Taking place every two years, the dates for the Solheim Cup are confirmed well in advance, so could, or should, the men's circuits take a back seat and let the team tournament have its own weekend? Or is it simply tough luck when it comes to scheduling?
A few Golf Monthly writers have given their thoughts on the matter, and you can let us know your views in the comments below...
The Solheim Cup isn't just a highlight of women's golf, it’s grown into one of the biggest events in the entire sport.
That’s why it’s so frustrating to see it forced to compete for the spotlight with the DP World Tour’s Irish Open, especially with home favorites Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry drawing massive eyes.
Look, scheduling a packed global calendar is tough, but given that this year's Solheim Cup was locked in two years ago, surely the powers-that-be could have avoided pitting an epic in the Netherlands directly against a star-studded field in Ireland.
Unfortunately, this isn't a one-off. The men's tours consistently ignore the bigger picture, regularly dropping PGA Tour Signature Events right on top of women’s Majors.
It inevitably robs the women's game of the undivided attention it has earned... Come on, guys. Do better!
For me, I think the issue is there's almost too much golf on our television screens.
Take the men's game, for example, the PGA Tour season finishes in mid-August and, from there, we're straight in to the busiest time of the year for the DP World Tour, where Rolex Series events are aplenty.
As Alison alluded to, there have been multiple times when the PGA Tour's big events fall on women's Major weeks and, although not a lot can be done about that, I think the Solheim Cup should be a weekend in itself, just like the Ryder Cup.
There's nothing better than team golf, as we saw at the Walker Cup, so surely there's scope to have the Solheim Cup as the main event for one weekend in 24 months.
The tournament is planned in advance, so the dates are set. If the circuits can communicate with each other then I believe it should be possible for them to come to the conclusion that the Solheim Cup is the showpiece event for three days of action.
In an ideal world, of course it would be great for the Solheim Cup to stand alone this weekend, but i just don't see that ever happening.
The dates for this need to be booked a couple of years in advance and the men's tours are unlikely to be fully set at that time. Plus, they might argue they have enough to consider as it is without thinking about the Solheim Cup.
In golf, as in life, too many people are only worried about themselves, so the chances of external consideration feels low to me.
What golf needs, more widely, is for tours to communicate far better than they currently do. I've said this before, but the game would be in an ever better place if different tours worked together for the good of the game.
Unfortunately, I don't see that happening any time soon.