Curling New Year's Resolution

Hello. With a new year in our midst (this is my last blog of 2006), it's time to say what I would wish for curling to become more successful.
The average fan, rightly or wrongly, is only interested in the Canadian Championships and the Olympics. The irony is these events pale in comparison to the Olympic Trials and Grand Slam of Curling for field quality. Great events are not being well-attended.
Why? Because any event not declaring a Canadian champion is seen for what it is - an exhibition. The only people who care about who wins the most money curling in a season are the curlers and their families. If you don't think that's true, do you know who won the most money in 2005-2006? Neither do I.
What I propose is these other events be used to determines who makes the provincial playdowns. Saskatchewan almost has this system now, except they made a big mistake in declaring 3 WCT (World Curling Tour) teams and 3 SCT (Saskatchewan Curling Tour) teams make the provincials. Instead, what I would do is award points based on teams reaching the semi-finals and finals, withWCT and provincial tour points weighted accordingly. In this way, the top 8 teams out of 10 would earn their way into the provincials. The other teams could play events similar to what is set up now to see who the other 2 teams are. To keep the incentive of playing well even after qualifying, hammer for all games could be given to the top team.
Will this happen in my lifetime? I hope so, but I'm not optimistic. However, it's one of my New Year's Resolutions. If one province did it, the rest would follow.
Happy holidays to everyone! See you in 2007!

Regards,
Steve

Tiger Ends 2006 With a Roar II

Hello. Just read Brian Hewitt's column on thegolfchannel.com re Tiger and his swearing on the course. Obviously he's been doing it for several years. Hewitt says he can't judge, because he's sworn on the course (and yes so have I). He feels Tiger will stop once he has kids.
The last time I checked, I had kids. The earliest I can remember my daughter hearing a swear word and knowing what it was was when she was 4. Does that mean Tiger gets a "free pass" for at least 5 years? Will it stop him from swearing even if he does have kids, since they may be at the course with him or in school instead of watching on TV?
Also, the last time I checked, PGA players got fined for swearing. I believe it was $1,500+. Is that still a rule? Does Tiger get fined? Or is it another "Tiger Rule" that keeps him from paying?
Obviously no fine will concern Tiger. And threatening him with a suspension won't help either, since it means he'd get more rest, and the PGA Tour would get less money.
What to do? One simple thing - get rid of the mikes up the player's nostrils. Sure, have a mike on the tee or near the ball when the player's hitting. Turn it off right after impact.
On-field mikes are a problem waiting to happen. I still remember Bobby Clarke uttering a profanity from the Philadelphia Flyers' bench many decades ago against Toronto. People tend to remember these things.
Give Tiger and the others less opportunities to have their profanities heard. And fine them (including Tiger) when they are heard.

Regards,
Steve

Tiger Ends 2006 With a Roar

Hello. Congrats yet again to Tiger Woods for winning the Target World Challenge, "his tournament" against 15 of the best of the world Sunday.
The big winer was the Tiger Woods Foundation, who received the winner's purse. Many of you may not think this is much of a gesture for Tiger, who probably earns more than that in interest daily. However, Tiger doesn't have to have a Tiger Woods Foundation. It was his choice, a la Ted Turner, Bill Gates, Andre Aggassi and Warren Buffet, to give money to a worthy cause. Ask yourself if you're planning to give an extra 1% to charity in 2007. I didn't think so.
What does 2007 hold for Tiger? As I mentioned shortly after his father passed away, Tiger may only play the minimum 15 tourneys in 2007. He was a no-show at the Mercedes Championships last year. I wouldn't bet on him coming this time either. What does he have to prove? At this point, nothing.
If Tiger wants to, he could just play about 10 times. However, he doesn't want to put the PGA Tour in an awkward position. They obviously have a set of "Tiger rules" that are unwritten. An unhappy Tiger is an unprofitable PGA Tour.
All the best in 2007 Tiger!

Regards,
Steve

What Curling Clubs Need

Hello. Read some interesting articles re curling clubs. There are many that have either closed, or are facing extinction. Many of the closed ones are in Toronto.
Then there's the fact the CCA has suspended giving money to clubs for enhancements, because they don't have it. Turns out they've spend this decade saying they'd get it next year, so they didn't report it as an expense this year. The auditors thought it was less than funny.
Why is it that clubs have an issue raising needed money? Their costs do not factor in future expenses, only day-to-day costs. So if a compressor breaks down, or the building just gets old, there's no money to use. Since many clubs were built before 1970, there are a lot of buildings that will be in dire straits soon, if they're not already there.
What's the cure for this ailment? Raising fees is an idea, but if there are other clubs in the area, it could mean early closure.
What I'd like to see is more clubs getting revenue from alternative sources. Have things like garage sales, big dinner events, flea markets, etc during the off-season. Or open the bar to anyone off the street. Give non-curlers a reason to come in (alcohol comes to mind), and make them feel welcome.
Whatever it takes, the plan should be to do it now, before something major happens.

Regards,
Steve

How Gushue Would Make Curling More Popular

Hello. Listened to an interview of thestar.com between Randy Starkman of the Toronto Star and Olympic Gold Medalist Brad Gushue. It was rather enlightening. Brad mentioned how he's started an investment business with some partners. He also said he'd entertain the idea of running for office at any of the municipal, provincial or federal levels. Starkman and I agree he'd probably win anything within Newfoundland/Labrador. If he ran right now, he could probably even be premier.
When it came to curling, Starkman asked Gushue what it would take to increase its popularity. Here was our future premier's reply - better uniforms. Better Uniforms! That's all that's keeping curling from the big time? C'mon.
There is no way better uniforms are going to make people come out to see curling, or increase TV viewers significantly. To be honest, most of the time I'm watching the rocks. So are the cameras. If they aren't watching the rocks, they're trained on the player's faces. Not the unis!
So what would make the viewers come out in greater numbers? Why wasn't the Masters of Curling played in the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium, Air Canada Centre, or Rogers Centre? After all, the field is better than a Brier field.
The reason why is the viewer only cares about the Brier and the Olympics, with the World Championships a distant 3rd (which is why the men's championships weren't telecast, even though they were in the Boston area). The average fan doesn't care about the World Curling Tour, because to them it's meaningless. It's just to see who shares the pot on a given week.
How to solve that issue? Stay tuned for a future blog.

Regards,
Steve

Curling Innovation III

Hello. The third inovation announced at the Masters of Curling (which will be used in the next Grand Slam of Curling tournament) will be a change in the clocks used to time how long a team takes. Before Team A's clock started when Team B's rock stopped, and ran until Team A's rock stopped. Now, the time the teams "think" (which I assume is from when Team B's rock stops until Team A's rock starts) will only be timed.
How big a difference will this be? Plenty. What happened to teams that got behind was they had to start throwing draws with most of their shots. Meanwhile, the leading team threw mostly takeouts. The time gap then began to widen just because of the shot being played, not the strategy.
By timing the decision time only, the teams with the better strategy and team communication will be rewarded. And that's how it should be. As mentioned in an article last week, I learned from watching all these great rinks on the ice at the same time that the teams that took less time to discuss strategy were the most successful. They should not be penalized if they get behind.
One thing I've always tried to do is be ready to throw my shot when it's my turn. If nothing else, I want to be known as a fast player, even though we don't have time clocks. I saw firsthand this strategy is the way to go.
If your team is considering turning your team name into "The Turtles", you may want to reconsider your pace of play. It may produce more wins.

Regards,
Steve

Curling Innovation II

Hello. Another great innovation I saw at the Masters of Curling was the draw to the button to see who got last rock (or hammer) for the 1st end. This change is brilliant and, like most simple changes, very easy to implement.
What I like about this change is the complaints from teams have been eliminated. For years we've heard the last rock advantage to start the game determines the winner. I think the percentage is around 55%. Of course, the better the opposition, the more the complaining by the team without hammer.
By letting teams draw for hammer, instead of it being assigned by the tournament draw, the emphasis is on the team to achieve it, which eliminates all the criticism. And it can give that team a real moral boost by winning the hammer with their throw.
Personally, I like starting out without the hammer, because then I can make some mistakes and hopefully limit the opponent to two points, which then seems like I'm still in the game. If I have the hammer and give up two, then I feel I'm on the road to oblivion. Unfortunately I've travelled that road too often.
Another great idea guys!

Regards,
Steve

Curling Innovation

Hello. The Masters of Curling introduced some innovations which I thought were great. The first was going from a 10-end game to an 8-end game.
Now I'm a little biased because I've never played a 10-end game. I should say I've never played a scheduled 10-end game. With my abilities, I'm lucky to play an 8-end game. Usually our games only last 4 or 6 ends (we usually don't want to play 5 or 7 ends because it means pushing the rocks back down the ice).
As a player and a fan, I find this change is a great one. It keeps teams from blanking ends. The games are quicker. The shots become more important. And the teams are more aggressive.
I think the TV networks will find it better too, because it should cut half an hour from the telecasts. As a result, they will be able to sell fewer advertising spots for more money each. And it will be easier to fit it in with their other programming.
To the 'purists' who may be thinking the game is being tampered with, I'll remind them the Brier games used to be 12-end games, and you had to play all 12 ends, no matter how bad you were losing! The free guard zone makes it easier to generate offense, so the # of ends shouldn't be as big a factor.
Great innovation guys!

Regards,
Steve

One Easy Step To Make PGA Events Better

Hello. After watching the 2006 PGA season, I've concluded one change would improve the PGA Tour immensely - add the 54 hole cut in all events currently having a 36 hole cut

I feel it would have the following benefits:

1. Added Saturday drama. The LPGA ADT Championship was compelling TV because we waited to see who would be in the top 8 of the 16 players playing Saturday. Also, the PGA Q-School was also compelling because we wanted to see who would make the top 30 and ties for their PGA Tour card. In both cases the leaders were very comfortable in their position. If the focus would've been just on them, there would've been minimal drama.
2. The purses wouldn't have to increase, because fewer players would be splitting the pie. Therefore, a tournament like, say, the Canadian Open (which I picked at random (just kidding!)) could keep its relatively low purse of $5 million and give the winner through 35th place winner more money. In the Canadian Open's case this would be beneficial especially if they don't have a 2007 sponsor.
3. Players in the lower ranks would get the experience of challenging for Sunday playing privileges, instead of just coasting to get a check. This would enhance their careers long-term, as they would have to fight harder to get paid.
4. The gap between the haves and have nots would be greater. No more playing in 40 tournaments a year to earn $15,000 an event to get inside the top 125 with $600,000. Now the players will really have to work to get that kind of money.

This change is relatively simple to implement. Hopefully it will be considered. What do you think? Please let me know.

Regards,

Steve

What I Learned From The Masters of Curling

Hello. Well, this blog comes from the "do as I say, not as I do" point of view, since I blew a 4 point lead with 4 ends to go last night. However, here's what I learned from last week's MAsters of Curling in Waterloo:

1. Keep your shooter in play. The great teams always leave their shooter in the house on a takeout, especially when above the T-line. The give the opponents something to throw at and/or worry about. They make sure the opponent is scoring something when they have hammer, and usually it's one point. What I'm doing now is making sure my shooter rolls into the rings instead of out of the rings.
2. Make your decision ahead of time. Most shots the opponent will either make, or just slightly miss. Have a plan in advance for both. There are very few times when the house situation changes drastically after a shot. Once you see what your opponent is going to do, begin formulating your plan. I noticed the winning teams took much less thinking time than the losers on every type of shot.
3. Throw controlled takeout weight. It's obviously easier to do when you have fast arena ice, but the top players do not fire the rock. There main reason is 1. above. Also, the sweepers are able to get more involved in assisting the rock if it's slower.
4. Recover quickly mentally. The great teams can bounce back. The Bob Ursel team looked like it was gettting tortured out there.

Regards,

Steve

Q-School Gets An "A+"

Hello. Well, what drama on Monday in the 6th round of the PGA Q-School. So many stories of guys who either made or missed getting their cards by the narrowest of margins.
First, hats off to Jonathan Kaye, Kyle Reifers, Brian Bateman and Joca Van Zyl. They were all facing long putts for -8 on their last hole when -9 looked like it would be the number. I'm not sure if they all knew where they stood, but those who did were rewarded for grinding out their putts. All of them made it, and qualified as -8 ended up being the magic number.
Other guys such as Mark Wilson, Steve Allan and Bob May (yes, that Bob May, part of the greatest playoff I ever saw, the 2000 PGA) had shots to get to -9 that just missed, settled for pars that gave them -8, then found out it was good enough.
And then there were those guys such as Tom Byrum, Bryn Parry and Mario Tiziano, who bogeyed the last hole to finish -7 and miss by a shot. What a heartbreaker! If they weren't suicidal after that, they have a better makeup than most.
Finally, Michael Bradley looked like the Titanic out there, losing shot after shot. He seemed to almost want to miss getting his card, but his final putt for -8 was very clutch.
There are now 40 players from Q-School joining the 25 Nationwide Tour grads, 125 exempt PGA Tour players, and some former PGA champs who don't qualify in any other category (think Duffy Waldorf and Lee Janzen among others) who are going to be fighting it out on the 2007 PGA Tour season. The question is, how will these guys get enough starts to retain their cards? They will have to be patient when signing up for tournaments and playing in the ones they do get into. Otherwise, they'll have to experience all of the pain of Q-School again next year.
Good luck to all players as they get ready! It will be quite a holiday season for them.

Regards,
Steve

"Ice Day" Kept Me Away

Hello. My apologies for not writing Thursday. However, Thursday was "Ice Day" for me. And what a day it turned out to be.
It started with my son and I skating in the morning. We've done this every Tuesday and Thursday now since October 30th. What a thrill it is! He's really enjoying it, which is the main thing. I've also skated with my son and daughter a few times too, including yesterday. It must be helping me in the exercise department, as both of them are so much better than they used to be.
After skating and lunch, my friend Don and I went to the Masters of Curling event (part of the Grand Slam of Curling, a World Curling Tour presentation) in Waterloo. We got to watch 18 of the best curling teams in the world curl against each other. And the shots were phenomenal! It's hard to believe people can curl that well. This field was better than any Brier field can ever be, because the powerhouse provinces like Ontario, Alberta and Manitoba have multiple teams entered.
When the second draw of the day was completed, we ran into Barry, another friend, who is originally from Winnipeg. He mentioned he went to high school with Jeff Stoughton, and indirectly knew Kerry Burtnyk. I told him I went to the University of Waterloo with Glenn Howard (who won Sunday! Congrats!) and golfed regularly with Peter Corner at Brampton. The third draw had all 4 of these gentlemen playing. Since it wasn't crowded, we went to where the players exit. I then introduced Barry to Corner and Howard, and he did the same for me to Stoughton and Burtnyk. When I told my wife I shook Stoughton's hand (who she considers a "major hottie"), she was very impressed.
When we got back home, I then went to our curling recreational league 9pm draw, and our team beat a team we'd never come close to beating before. Maybe watching two draws of the best in the world and shaking some hands did the trick! Actually, I'll share my lessons learned Wednesday.
Thanks to all who made "Ice Day" a great one!

Regards,
Steve