Spare a thought for Mel Pyatt this week during the Volvo Masters at Valderrama Golf Club in Spain, when Europe’s elite battle it out to determine the final spots on this year’s European Order of Merit.
Pyatt, president and CEO of Volvo event management, is the man behind Volvo’s golf sponsorship over the last 19 years. He got involved with the European Tour in 1988, beginning an association that would make European golfers considerably richer.
Volvo, under Pyatt’s leadership, has invested literally millions into the European game over the years. Every European Tour pro should say a huge thank you to Pyatt and Volvo for helping them earn a lucrative living from this royal & ancient game.
Pyatt, one of golf’s bonafide good guys, will be in his traditional place during the first round. He will be on the first tee shaking the hand of every European Tour pro in the field.
Unfortunately, Pyatt will miss shaking a few hands – which is why we should feel sorry for him.
Pyatt and Volvo should be profiting from the first installment of the FedEx Cup. With the Tour Championship now held in September, the Volvo Masters field should have benefited from having those players who in past years were in the United States contending for the PGA Tour’s finale. In other words, Pyatt would have expected all 60 exempt players to play in his event.
Instead, Pyatt turns up to celebrate the 20th Volvo Masters with huge holes in his field thanks to a clash with the Barclays Singapore Open on the Asian Tour. Nine players exempt into the European Tour’s season-ending championship won’t be in the field, most of them opting to play in Singapore instead.
Most of the focus this week is on the race between Ernie Els, Padraig Harrington and Justin Rose to see who wins this year’s European Order of Merit. It should be exciting, since Els leads Harrington by E217,295, and Rose by E217,952.
It would be even more exciting if Els was actually there.
He is one of the players competing in Asia. Els signed a contract with Barclays and is legally bound to play in their tournament. In other words, he is earning lots of appearance money to play in the event.
“At the end of the year you’ve got the wheelbarrow out,” Els admitted. “You want to cash in a little bit.”
To be fair to Els, he is honoring a long-standing commitment and could hardly tell Barclays to get lost. He is also unhappy about the clash.
“It’s a pity it’s the same week because I definitely would have played Valderrama.
“I’m as disappointed as the Tour and anyone else.”
I bet Els’ disappointment is nowhere near Mel Pyatt’s.
Angel Cabrera, Lee Westwood, Charl Schwartzel, Nick O’Hern, Michael Campbell, Anton Haig and Darren Clarke (Clarke was exempt into the Volvo Masters as a past winner) are also playing in Singapore this week. Meanwhile, Retief Goosen and Richard Green are exempt but are not playing in Spain.
There’s another reason besides appearance money why the above players prefer Singapore to Southern Spain. The 2008 European Tour begins November 8 with the HSBC Champions event in Shanghai, just four days after the 2007 season ends. (Surely no other organization has such a short off-season as the European Tour.)
In other words, it makes logistical sense to be in that part of the world, rather than taking a long haul flight from Spain.
The Volvo Masters deserves better, especially as it celebrates its 20th anniversary. The creme de la creme of European golf have picked up the Volvo Masters trophy. Nick Faldo, Sandy Lyle, Colin Montgomerie, Bernhard Langer, Westwood, Clarke, Harrington and Ian Poulter are among the past winners.
Moreover, Valderrama has been the scene of many compelling Order of Merit races. For example, Sam Torrance and Colin Montgomerie in 1995; Goosen and Harrington in 2001 and 2002; Clarke and Westwood in 2003; Montgomerie and Campbell in 2005, to name a few.
Els against Harrington and Rose would have added to that rich history.
“It’s actually quite crazy it’s the same week,” Els said of the tournament clash, before adding, “Hopefully it’s a lesson for everybody.”
The lesson for George O’Grady, the European Tour’s executive director, is that the lucrative PGA Tour isn’t the only threat to Europe’s status as the world’s second best Tour.
The lesson for Mel Pyatt is that long-term loyalty and investment isn’t worth much in today’s game. Sadly, Pyatt isn’t the first sponsor to learn this lesson. Nor will he be the last.
Posted: 10/29/2007
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