PGA Tour Players Need to Stop the Fatigue Complaints

Posted Sep 16, 2009 11:32AM By Shane Bacon (RSS feed)

Every sport has a period that's grueling. For college basketball it's March Madness. For baseball it's the last few weeks of the regular season coupled with the playoffs. In the NFL, it's the long-winded playoffs.

Now, with the FedEx Cup, the PGA Tour has been giving the opportunity to see who really wins survival of the fittest. It's four weeks of tour courses, even tougher fields and, even if it's golf, an absolute grind in the five week span. So why are some PGA Tour players complaining like they'd just been asked to run back-to-back Ironmans?

Tiger Woods talked about it last week, saying, "It's a lot of golf for me. I normally don't play this much ... You've got to alter your practice." Camilo Villegas went to his Twitter, complaining, "Home ... way too much golf in the last two months ... I still don't get it, every sport has an offseason but I guess we don't."

Hey Camilo, sure you do. You're an independent contractor. You work for yourself. Want an offseason? Call then next event and tell them you're a scratch.

My problem with all this complaining is it isn't anyone's decision except the player involved. If you don't want to play, you don't have to, and although you'd be giving up the chance to rake in oodles of money, you make your own decisions. That's the beauty of an individual sport -- you play when you want to play.

Also, it's a tad disheartening to hear the two most fit guys on the PGA Tour complaining about being tired. You work out and get in shape in golf for this type of stuff. You aren't in the weight room trying to look like Arnold is his heyday, you're trying to work on your core, stay as fit as possible in the areas that will help your golf swing and use your fitness to your advantage.

Hell, Camilo and Tiger should be ROOTING for more tournaments in a row, if they really are in as good a shape as they claim. I'm far from the type of golfer to think that the game isn't a grind, because it does mentally fatigue you, but that is the sport. It's supposed to be hard.

I just wish a few of the PGA Tour stars would understand that playing three straight weeks for the FedEx Cup isn't exactly swimming the English Channel. Be happy with the position you're in, because I'm sure there are hundreds of guys that missed out on the Cup that would switch places with you in a second.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

9-16-2009 @ 12:21PM

JJ said...

instead of stalking people on twitter to find something to blow out of proportion and then write about, why don't you write to Tiger and Camilo himself to complain and see what they think of your sage advice. have you ever played golf without power carts in your life? have you even played anything past putting edge or pga tour 2009 for the xbox? if you knew anything about the game you would immediately understand a large part of the fatigue is mental. sounds stupid, right? of course it does, you're mr. bacon.

now add this and your other comment about how michelle wie "never had a proper childhood". it seems to me that you think your perception of everything must be some universal truth. your columns disgust me.

9-16-2009 @ 12:58PM

aomertwin said...

JJ, apparently you didn't read the part of the post that states "I'm far from the type of golfer to think that the game isn't a grind, because it does mentally fatigue you, but that is the sport. It's supposed to be hard." Nice work.. douche

Also, it's Bacon's job as a journalist to follow the thoughts of PGA golfers. Somehow you feel the right to bash a perfectly reasonable perspective. If you think your perspective is so far superior why don't you start a blog or actually do something that adds value instead of posting a mindless tirade.

It's laugable that you say his writing digusts you, yet with your Wie comment, it's apparent that you continue to read most of his work.

9-16-2009 @ 1:11PM

Richard said...

Sounds like this article was written by Kanye Bacon.

9-16-2009 @ 1:23PM

I never said my opinion was better and I did not intend to imply it. My reaction was more to Mr. Bacon's tone. Probably why I missed that all-important part. My sincere apologies then.

Nevertheless, just because I was never a fan of his work doesn't mean I don't read it. Now THAT would be laughable. My disbelief was compounded by that other comment I mentioned in his other article which was a bit over the line.

9-16-2009 @ 2:09PM

rabitz6084 said...

For any of us who are competitve at the game and played intense weekend club tournament, weekend Ryder Cup format with 12-16 players, invest good money like the old Buick 4 person scramble, etc we know the grinding of the mind. Anyone with average IQ who knows about golf realizes it is a game of 10% physical ability and 90% mental. Funny how a writer who probaly has a 25 hdcp or maybe a putt - putt guru is able to throw these guys under a bus with his views.

9-16-2009 @ 2:39PM

On second thought, I'm not so sure Mr. Bacon is actually acknowledging the mental fatigue despite that small comment. Sounded like more of a side point. Most of the argument is a comparison to very physically demanding events (which actually also require a solid mental game). Perhaps that's why so many people don't consider golf a sport, because there is not much "physical prowess" involved. This game is 90% mental indeed, and that can tire you just as severely as swimming the English channel, in a different way. That's what I think the pros are "complaining" about, not walking a long way or using roughly 30 explosive movements a round. And yes, although technically players have a choice to play or not, it's also pretty much an obligation to play, isn't it? Other than Tiger, not many pros are notorious for being extremely selective of which tournaments they play.

9-16-2009 @ 4:49PM

johnnygnsvll said...

This article had to written by someone that has never played competitive anything especially golf...for it is quite demanding mentally and physically. Therefore, when one of the pros says he/she is tired just go with the flow.

9-16-2009 @ 7:56PM

bozallan said...

Shane, With the pro-ams the guys are playing 6 days a week for 7 straight weeks in some cases. They are walking or standing for 6 or 7 hours a day. They are not bionic robots; you try walking Kapalua and see what I mean. However, Tiger has better endurance. His closest rival Steve Stricker's radiator is overheating.

9-16-2009 @ 7:57PM

Don said...

Bacon is obviously too cluelss to be writing sports columns with his idiotic comments about mental fatigue. Anyone reasonably knowledgeable knows that mental fatigue is significantly more debilitating than physical fatigue.

His column is nothing more than another sports writer trying to create a name for himself by writing baseless nonsense.

9-16-2009 @ 10:04PM

give me a break said...

Man up Tigera Woods I bet the pot belly argentine isnt crying like a b---h. Damm what if you played a real sport?

9-17-2009 @ 12:07PM

Coprogirl said...

Does anyone know what happens if players tie in FedEx points after the Tour Championship? For example, If #8 Verplank won, #1 Woods came in 3rd, and #3 Furyk came in 2nd, each would have 3500 points. What would happen then? No info on PGATour.com regarding this possible outcome.

9-17-2009 @ 12:09PM

Oops, never mind. I just saw that there would be a playoff in the event of a tie. My bad.

9-17-2009 @ 3:01PM

George said...

I thought it was a good article albeit one mistake,Golf is not a sport,it is a game.

9-18-2009 @ 3:30PM

JL said...

I kind of feel that this is a futile discussion in that there's never going to be the right answer for everyone. Regardless of what sports one plays, they all complain at one point another. It's professional sports, it's supposed to be hard. Sure, it sounds like a valid argument to say that you can choose which events to play in individual sports, but does having that option truly lessen the amalgam of pressure that a professional golfer experiences throughout the season to a level that is less than professionals in team sports? Plus, just because you're not required to play doesn't mean you don't feel the need to play, this is a competitive sport after all and especially with the FedEx cup now, it does pay (to a certain degree) to play as many tournaments during the "regular" season. And you know what, Tiger and Camillo may have been just complaining without much meaning (we all whine like bitches sometimes)....it could've been like me saying, oh gosh, it sucked today cause I had to come into work on Saturday thanks to damn Lumburgh....wow, God forbid we have to work a little extra once in awhile....

9-21-2009 @ 12:57PM

Dumbass said...

Your use of the words "amalgum" and "sucked" in the same post was far more amusing than the article, which to me seemed like a last second ramble to fill a contractual writing obligation.