The Starter no.9

We’d rather be golfing. Did you see the theory that ChatGPT is depressed? The diagnosis is an ailment known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) which affects nearly 10 million Americans from mid fall through the early days of spring. Given its sensitivity to the change in season, we should all be thankful that GPT isn’t a golfer (yet!) or the opening scene of Terminator could’ve been a reality for Los Angeles this holiday season. T’s and P’s for a quick bounce back for everyone’s favorite new sidekick 🙏 .

Nice Work If You Can Get It

Even with his position leading the PGA Tour in limbo, commissioner Jay Monahan has at least 18.6 million reasons why he can sleep easy at night. On Wednesday, Sportico released details from the PGA Tour’s most recent tax filings which included the staggering compensation package in 2022 for its beleaguered leader. In addition to his $1.8 million base salary, the commissioner received $9.2 million in bonus and incentive compensation, as well as $7.4 million for non-cash benefits that he will receive after he retires. The $18.6 million haul marks a 34% increase from his 2021 compensation ($13.9 million) all while the league dolled out $20.7 million in legal expenses in its battle with LIV Golf.

Is Jay Monahan worth the $18.6 million he took home in 2022? Based solely off of compensation as a percentage of league revenue, when compared to his peers leading other major professional sports leagues in the U.S., the answer is an emphatic NO.

The PGA Tour’s commissioner earned $18.6 million on the $1.9 billion in revenue generated by the tour in 2022. For comparison, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman reportedly earned $9.6 million on $5.93 billion in league revenue. Even more damning, Monahan nearly doubled the annual compensation of NBA commissioner Adam Silver who took home an estimated $10 million on $10.58 in league revenue in 2022.

The commissioner of the embattled PGA Tour got paid $8.6 million more last year than the leader of the National Basketball Association, arguably the 2nd most popular league in the world.

Let that sink in. 🤯 

Reddit or Not, Here Come the Takes

Earlier this week, we posed the question “Is Jay Monahan the most overpaid leader in pro sports?” to the r/golf community on Reddit. We received nearly 150 user responses.

Here are some of our favorite (Rated PG) takes:

Rain, rain go away

Team Kuchar (-15) leads by 3 shots at a rain soaked PNC Championship in Orlando. Defending champions Team Singh (-12) are in a four-way tie for 2nd place alongside of Team Langer, Team Goosen, and Team Duval. Team Woods (-8) sit at T11.

💬 Friend of The Starter, Will McGee says..

“What makes the PNC Championship so special is the wide range of ages, and regardless of your age, you are treated the same as a tour player. It’s fun to play with family on such a big stage against legends of the game”

Louis Oosthuizen (-14) leads by one at the final stop of the DP World Tour season, the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open. Oosthuizen looks to go back-to-back following his thrilling win at the Alfred Dunhill Championship last week.

Harrison Endycott (-12) holds the lead heading into Sunday at the final stage of PGA Tour Q-School. The top five and ties after Sunday will earn 2024 PGA TOUR membership, with the next 40 and ties earning guaranteed starts on the Korn Ferry Tour. The next 20 and ties will earn guaranteed starts on PGA TOUR Americas. All players who tee it up at Final Stage receive conditional Korn Ferry Tour and PGA TOUR Americas status at minimum.

Around the Game

🏌️ Close to a Deal. Reports surfaced on Friday evening that the PGA Tour was in the final stages of securing a $3 billion infusion of capital from the Strategic Sports Group, the consortium of U.S. sport team owners led by Arthur Blank (Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta United) and John Henry (Fenway Sports Group). The potential deal with SSG comes as the PGA Tour nears the December 31 deadline to finalize the framework agreement with the Saudi Public Investment Fund as set forward in their joint announcement on June 6.

🏌️ The U. PGA Tour University, the initiative that allowed rising star Ludvig Aberg to transition from Texas Tech directly on to the tour, has expanded its performance benefits offering ahead of the 2024 season. As detailed on the official PGA Tour website, beginning with the Class of 2024, five more players – now a total of 25 – will earn performance benefits based on their finish in the PGA Tour University Ranking. Players who finish 11th-25th (previously 11th-20th) will earn exempt membership on PGA TOUR Americas for the remainder of the current season, and they will be exempt into Second Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry.

Additionally, starting in 2024, a junior or senior who wins the D-II Jack Nicklaus Award (National Player of the Year) will earn the same benefits as players who finish 11th-25th in the PGA TOUR University Ranking. This player may accept his performance benefits upon the conclusion of his collegiate career, meaning a junior who wins the D-II Jack Nicklaus Award may accept his performance benefits after his senior season.

🏌️ Another LIVely Week. Jon Rahm made more waves this week during a visit to La Sociedad Bilbaina near his hometown. Reportedly dismayed over attending a gathering which he expected to be an “intimate” affair, Rahm remarked to the media in attendance “I am under very strict instruction not to do public events, which I have imposed on myself a little bit for myself, and for the change I have given to the world of golf in the last week. There will be nothing until February. I’m not allowed to.” This sparked conversation on whether LIV is muzzling their newly acquired top player.

Meanwhile, last year’s individual champion Taylor Gooch hinted that Rahm’s move to LIV could lead to eventual changes to the current 54 hole, no cut format. Rahm was vocal critic of the format prior to his shocking move to the league. The transition to a more traditional tournament format could be in the cards for the league after the OWGR recently denied LIV’s bid for world ranking points on the basis of it’s unconventional format.

🏌️ Next in the Booth. Sports Business Journal reported on Friday that 4x PGA Tour Winner and 2x Presidents Cup vice-captain Geoff Ogilvy is in the mix to take Paul Azinger’s spot on NBC golf broadcasts. SBJ indicates the NBC will be making the announcement "within the next week" and that the broadcaster "could end up splitting the lead analyst role between two people, with Ogilvy handling some of the network’s bigger golf events."

Worth the Follow: Every Ball Has A Story

Life is short, book the golf trip. This is the motto of a group of friends who are on a journey to capture and tell the stories of players around the world by tracking the golf balls that they are playing. Their IG is full of original videos and memes that are relatable, authentic, and best of all, you don’t feel the need to have to cover your phone to watch them in public. The real fun can be found on their website where they detail their methodology to connect golfers via a simple four digit code on their golf ball. The group has logged 995 golf balls to date. Will you log 996? Every Ball Has A Story is Worth The Follow!

ICYMI

🍺 Daly Bites. The Tiger v. John Daly content is top-notch leading into this weekend’s PNC Championship. You want a good laugh? Check out this clip highlighting the disparity between their warm-up routines.

👨‍🍳 Cooking on Tour. Min Woo Lee gets in front of any LIV speculation with this superb hype video for his commitment to playing on the PGA Tour in 2024.

❤️ Love to see it. RSM and the RSM Classic donate $250,000 on the behalf of Luke List to the Children’s Hospital of Georgia to support the expansion of the hospital’s pediatric intensive care unit.

🍾 OVO Par. Drake joins the guys at Eastside Golf for a day out on the links.

Golf Scramble

Can you correctly unscramble these golf terms? Hint: They were all host sites of a major championship.

1. EMRLDFIIFR

2. RYNBRUTRE

3. TWISCERKP

4. IACERTSNOU

5. HUMGRSUSLEB

Name that Golfer

Three clues. Can you name this player?

• 4x winner on the LPGA Tour.

• Member of the 2018 Arnold Palmer Cup and USA World Amateur Teams.

• Ranks first on the all-time career victory list at UCLA.

Issue no. 8 Answers

U.S. Open Trivia: 1. The Olympic Club 2. Shinnecock Hills GC 3. Baltusrol GC 4. Merion GC 5. Bellerive CC

Name that Golfer: John Daly