Sep 18

Where, oh where, can I find the John Q Hammons Hotel Classic?

Annika?s battling to keep the title of the John Q. Hammons Hotel Classic at Cedar Ridge Country Club in Tulsa, OK. She?s currently the leader at seven under. Breathing down her neck is birdie girl and recent Solheim Cup teammate Maria Hjorth; Paula Creamer?s still in the game at T3, four strokes off the lead.

It?s Sunday afternoon, time to watch some LPGA final-round action. Right? Wrong.

ESPN?s busy with billiards, ESPN2, to its credit, is actually showing a sporting event, soccer. And The Golf Channel, the LPGA?s last hope, the network contracted to air this thing, is tied up with the Champions Tour Constellation Energy Classic. TGC will, instead, air a few hours of today?s round tonight at 8.

I realize this is no British Open or anything, it?s just a run-of-the-mill smallish-purse event at the end of the season. But still, it?s got Annika. And Paula. It?d be nice to catch a live shot or two.

Will Annika be hefting another one of these today?

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6 comments

Comment from: Jerry Ishmael [Visitor]

It seems a shame that these women cannot get decent TV coverage for their tournaments. They are the worlds best women golf players and deserve better coverage than a high school football game. This may be an insignficant purse ($1,000,000) to some but that does not sound like pocket change to me. The PGA guys are good but I haven't seen them hitting the fairways like these women seem to do consistantly. Come on and give them coverage.

09/18/05 @ 18:48

Comment from: Candace Polski [Visitor]

You hit on the key point, albeit indirectly Jerry.

The purse size is a leading indicator of the commercial/marketable value of the tournament. A large purse means lots of people will pay to see the play. Smaller purse means the opposite. Size of audience drives TV coverage, of course. And so you see the connection.

Yet another reason that those who claim Wie "hurts" women's golf, like Frank DeFord in his article this summer, are missing the point. ANYTHING that drives viewership is a major plus on this circuit. And Wie does drive viewership...

All that said, still a sad state of affairs for those of us who like to watch quality golf, a.k.a. the LPGA events.

09/19/05 @ 01:29

Comment from: Bob [Visitor]

Perhaps Paula and Michelle need to learn more about winning by spending more time beating amateurs so they can WIN when they are at this level (Michelle Estil, that is... or make that Michele Redman;?)! I am a fan of Paula and Annika, but am not so blinded by fan loyalty that I cannot notice that 2 of the LPGA's superstars battling for the lead on Sunday do not rate above a billiards championship. These girls may rock, but they need help!

09/19/05 @ 11:55

Comment from: Shanks [Visitor]

Agreed. Would've been nice to watch Annika & Paula coming down the stretch head-to-head without knowing the result. I've got a feeling that the next tv contract will show some improvement in this area. The youth infusion already underway will tempt some other networks (USA, TNT, etc) to get more heavily involved. Especially if Wie turns pro as it is currently being reported to happen next month.

09/19/05 @ 11:57

Comment from: JoAnne Lusk [Visitor]

My hope is that with the new LPGA commissioner having an extensive media background and the infusion of younger, exciting players the media will show the women more. I was very disappointed that the US win on the Solheim Cup was somewwhere back in the sports page. So many events are on ESPN or Golf Channel. which provide good coverage, but are limited to cable subscribers. If we keep asking our local papers for results and write sponsors and make them aware we support those who support our LPGA, every thing helps.

09/19/05 @ 15:31

Comment from: Keith Hirshland [Visitor]

Jennifer et. al., The Golf Channel proudly televises 11 LPGA events this year including more than 30 live hours of coverage of the Solheim Cup. Air times are a factor of many things and I just wanted to set the record straight by saying the fact that John Q Hammons Hotel Classic was aired tape delyaed in prime time was a decision made BY the tournament NOT The Golf Channel. Their preference was to be in Prime Time forsaking live coverage.

09/23/05 @ 14:36

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