Finchem and PGA golfers rightfully grumbling about Woods and Mickelson's departure from Tour Championship

I don’t blame Commissioner Tim Finchem for being upset that Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are AWOL from this week’s Tour Championship. He is the head of the organization in which both men have risen to the top of their respective games. He is also the pinnacle of the food chain when it comes to “heads rolling” if the PGA Tour doesn’t receive enough viewership.

Without golf’s two biggest stars, how many people are really watching?

When I heard that both Woods and Mickelson were kicking back instead of heading out to work, it ticked me off. I don’t get the luxury of deciding when to leave my job, telling my cohorts, “see you next spring, guys, cover for me". I don’t think these two should have that right either.

Fans of the sport have been steadily increasing since Tiger Woods’ debut, waiting for tournaments that he has agreed to play in so it is up to him to live up to his commitments. Mickelson should also, if only to show all those out there that money doesn’t necessarily make you a spoiled brat. There is a responsibility to the fans and to the other players on tour that goes beyond money. Dedication to your craft and the ability to shake off a bad season, Phil, should come before your petty crying game.

Finchem is also receiving flak from other Tour players. Tom Pernice mentioned in the locker room on Thursday, “I think it’s a disgrace. It’s a slap in the face to [presenting sponsor] Coca-Cola and the tour. He [Tiger] would not make the money he makes if it wasn’t for the PGA Tour. At some point there is a credibility factor as to what’s inside you as a person. There is a responsibility and an obligation to the people who helped make you who you are".

I couldn’t have said it better! Although, on the flip side, if it wasn’t for Woods’ “star power", as Geoff Ogilvy admitted, “we’d be playing for $2 million this weekend instead of $6.5 million".

The decision to abstain from the Tour Championship has also made Ogilvy think that he, too, may one day be in a posiiton where he can dodge a tournament. What if all the other golfers decided, at the last minute, that it wasn’t in their best interest to attend or they were too tired, or they just had enough? There could be anarchy on the PGA Tour!

Perhaps sanctions should be made against golfers who fail to keep their end of the bargain. The only problem with this idea, secretly mentioned by several other golfers, is that money isn’t important to guys like Woods and Mickelson, whereas if a guy like Pernice misses an event, not only would his pocketbook suffer but would anybody even notice?

I’m not watching the first two rounds of the Tour Championship and I’m actually glad that Finchem and the powers-that-be are moving up next year’s event to September creating more excitement by using a points system instead of the current money list as incentive.

This Sunday my arm might be twisted if Davis Love III remains afloat after a first round score of 82 or if Ernie Els makes a comeback however I must admit to being more than a little miffed that my two favorite golfers have decided that fans like myself weren’t important enough to motivate themselves just one more time.