Golf’s Super Major
Golf needs a little something to give it a little exciting kick.
I think I have a good idea to bring some more excitement to the game.
THE SUPER MAJOR!
How about making a 2-3 week golf extravaganza?
Forget the Player’s Championship as the “5th” Major. It really has not caught fire. Make the Heritage Classic the 5th major or move the Heritage to the FEDEX playoffs and start a new Major tournament at Sea Pines.
That’s right – back to back majors combining for the Super Major! The Masters followed by the new 5th major! It is all in the same area too. 1.5-2 weeks of vacation and one plane ticket and you get to attend 2 majors and maybe some of the parties that will undoubtedly happen with so many golf fans in the area. What an opportunity for golf fans! What a financial boom for those areas!
You start on Wednesday and use all 3 courses (varying the levels of difficulty) similar to the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am with the final 2 rounds at the main course. Imagine coming off a grueling Masters and having to tee it up again on Wednesday for the 5th major – a true golf endurance test.
You then combine the scores from both tournaments to get the Super Major champion! Maybe a green plaid jacket to the champ although I would love to see an orange plaid jacket (ROY G BIV…orange is in the middle of red and green and I’m not a big fan of yellow). Can anyone take the trifecta? Win the Masters and the 5th Major to become the first Super Major champion to sweep. Could Tiger sweep it at his age? Is this the challenge my former Cypress co-resident needs to drive him? Brooks looks like he just might be able to take it.
Is that enough? I don’t think so…not for a Super Major. I think there needs to be a little extra spice.
The Saturday “Weekend Golfer” round:
-
No Caddies
-
Use of Carts, GPS, Range Finders
-
Round must be completed in 3 hours or penalty stokes assessed
-
3 mulligans. 1 - Front 9, 1 - Back 9, and 1 wildcard to compensate for the change of routine and comfort level
This would be a new challenge worthy of the Super Major Champion (take them out of their comfort zone and maybe back to the fun days of youth golf) and provide a new exciting format for the TV viewer. It would be the only time I would record golf if I could not watch it live. It might just get the highest ratings of the year. The commentators would have a new topic on mulligan usage.
Who would excel at this format and who would not be able to adapt. The pros could show us how to play a 3 hour round. I would think that someone would be able to go out early, get into the “weekend golfer” groove and shoot a low number to get back into contention. The leaderboard could also show the mulligan status. I would love to see the pros managing their mulligans without the advice of their caddies and under a time constraint. Who would be left with mulligans in their pocket? I know it sounds a little wild for the golf purists but golf needs something to excite the younger crowd and this might be it. Children can begin to prepare for it and dream of winning it.
You could even make it a bigger event by including the LPGA tour.
The ladies could start at Sea Pines and then move over to Augusta to finally give us the Women’s Masters that is long overdue. The Augusta/Hilton Head corridor would be filled with golf fans and create an unmatched Golf Experience. Or the LPGA could start their Masters while the men start the 5th major and then move to Sea Pines after the men.
Possibly have a random drawing for a mixed doubles Super Major. The added pressure of not only playing for yourself but not wanting to let down your mixed doubles partner.