Brandel Chamblee, a pundit and a popular name in the world of golf, often shares his opinions via social media, not shying away from speaking honestly about his views. His views are often critical and provocative, but reading and listening to them, you can sense a certain desire for the golf world to move in the right direction. The 62-year-old is frustrated with the happenings on the golf scene; he wants someone to raise his voice and finally start making changes.
In the last post on X, the experienced face of the golf world primarily referred to Jon Rahm’s defection to LIV. Although fans expected that it could be a pivotal moment for the world of golf and the beginning of big changes, not much has changed.
The Spaniard also admitted that his arrival at LIV was also motivated by the merger and agreement between PIF and the PGA Tour, which should have been finalized by now. Chamblee believes that the 31-year-old expected that the PGA Tour would be under pressure and agree to unify with LIV, but as we said, things remained the same.
“This past year, after Jon Rahm’s defection to LIV in late 2023, the dominos were supposed to fall, forcing the hand of the PGA Tour, a deal between the two tours was presumed to be imminent. Now as a golfer, Rahm has many talents but none seem to exceed his gift for self-delusion. Turns out he was not the impetus to change, although Trump’s election is likely to have more of an impact in that regard, than Rahm’s defection.”- he wrote on X.
Jon Rahm© TenGolf / Youtube Channel
The experienced commentator is frustrated because the negotiations have not moved from the deadlock. Although golf fans expected both sides to reach an agreement this year, it is clear that there are various obstacles in their way. Of course, it is hard to expect the leaders of both Tours to talk openly about what the main problems are during the negotiations, but fans have the feeling that each of the parties wants a bigger piece of the pie.
Chamblee isn’t sure that golf is in decline, at least judging by the ratings that have been shown. Nevertheless, Brandel criticizes such measurement systems, believing that this is a modern time, which probably implies some other measurement systems. In his words, you can feel the fear in which direction this will all go, especially because older golf fans have less and less faith in this sport, running away from it. On the other hand, the younger population runs away from sports in general, including golf.
“So, the year in professional golf comes to a close much as it began, in limbo, but with many of the critics still beating the same worn out drums.
A great many pundits in golf are intoxicated with the view that professional golf is in steep decline, primarily basing that assumption on the year-over-year TV ratings of 2024. Indeed, TV ratings give us a point of reference about how a sport is performing relative to years past but using antiquated systems of measurement— in-home-viewers of traditional linear TV—when the viewership and consumption habits have shifted so drastically, is in terms of illumination, more lightning bug than lightning bolt.”
The 62-year-old is not sure that golf ratings are in decline, believing that a more precise analysis is needed. He emphasizes the demographic characteristics of people and the way they consume PGA Tour content. At this moment, it is difficult to give the right answer as to whether these data are really valid.
Brandel is looking forward to next year, as new methods are being introduced, such as the Nielson rating, which will include streaming viewing data. Golf leaders will thus have more precise data and a clearer picture of the condition of their product. Chamblee points out that this method of measurement has shown that the viewership of the PGA Tour has increased in the last two years, with a trend that will continue to increase in the coming years.
The golf pundit did not fail to mention Jay Monahan, the PGA Tour commissioner and a controversial figure, believing that his optimism is well founded. At the end of the text, Chamblee wanted to emphasize that the majority wants to spoil the image of golf and create wrong impressions. He is not happy with the large number of critics, although he is aware that this sport certainly has room for criticism.
Do you think that the golf rating data is fake and that there has been an upward trend in the last two years? It is difficult to give a correct answer, but we have no doubt that next year they will have better mechanisms and methods that will ensure that we know in which direction golf is going.
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