Posted by Jason Sobel
This e-mail just arrived in my inbox. If I said it was a surprise, I'd be lying.
FROM: pgatour_public_relations
SUBJECT: PGA Tour Announces Modification to Playoff Field Sizes
I'll spare you the word-for-word replication -- replete with full caps for "PGA TOUR" and spin control from the commish -- but here's the Cliffs Notes version: Originally, the first three tournaments of the 2007 FedEx Cup playoffs were to include field sizes of 144 players before finally being reduced to the top 30 for the season-ending Tour Championship. Now there will be cutbacks at each progressive level; 144 players begin the playoffs at the Barclays Classic, then 120 advance to the Deutsche Bank Championship and 70 more go on to the BMW Championship before the remaining top 30 earn their way to East Lake.
So why isn't this a surprise? Well, basically because everybody and their uncle has been calling for these changes ever since the original format was introduced at the end of June. It was a hot topic of conversation during the Tour Championship two weeks ago, as almost every single player either said outright that reducing the field sizes would be beneficial or alluded to the fact that the issue at least needed a second look.
Granted, unless your name is, say, Omar Uresti or Patrick Sheehan, this news probably won't have a major effect on your life. You, Mr. and Mrs. Joe Golf Fan, will still have four opportunities to watch the top stars compete in the playoffs. Barring some strange happenings, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jim Furyk and all the favorites will be in it to win it come Tour Championship time.
What this announcement does is give more credibility to the tour's insistence that this will be a true playoff format, just like other major professional sports leagues. Tim Finchem has been making this analogy for over a year now, but with no reductions in field sizes over the first three events, it was tough to take him for his word. After all, once the New York Yankees are eliminated from Major League Baseball's playoffs, they don't get to hang around and play games for a few more weeks until the World Series starts.
In short, it's a good move by the tour, which actually listened to its players -- not to mention so many pundits and fans -- and made the correct decision by overturning its original rule. Better late than never, right?
