Masters.....

[Bravesfan]

Cuss all he wants, but this Masters belongs to the good guy and his family

Agreed! Glad to see Mickelson won this again for three reasons. First, he needed to get that U.S. Open disaster off his back, along with a close loss at Augusta last year. And second, considering all he has gone through this year, it's nice to see the guy catch a break for a change.

And third and probably most importantly, he is classy, stand-up guy who is very courteous to everyone, and more than willing to take the heat if he has a bad tournament.

Now I'm not bashing Tiger for saying his fourth place finish was a "failure". But I thought Lee Westwood was much more classy saying how he was proud of his performance despite being initially a bit disappointing. When you run those two sound bites side by side, Tiger doesn't really look all that good, though somewhat understandable considering how high his standards are.

[SFP]

Tiger has not changed, It's still all about Tiger!

[Out of Balance]

Tiger has not changed, It's still all about Tiger!

Agreed, think how it might have been/a class act, if Tiger would of been man enough waiting at the scorer hut for Phil to congratulate him on the win, knowledging/showing compassion to Phil for what he and his family has been though this past year

[ChewaBrave]

Mayhaps he didn't do any of that stuff, because well, its not Tiger. Part of the reason everyone was upset about his whole mess, was he was billed as something he wasn't and people seemed to be shocked that this strange thing called "marketing" existed. So in the end, maybe Tiger is just going to be Tiger now, and everyone else has to accept the fact, that the guy is a cut throat athlete that honestly doesn't care. And of course the coverage was of Tiger. The guy basically makes the game a consumer product. In all probability this Masters will never really be about who won, but rather the fact that it was the return of Tiger - but thats sports. What often times makes them compelling is story lines and drama. I'm not a golfing fan, but thats why I watched. it shouldn't be a huge surprise that Tiger was a massive portion of the coverage.

[Chico]

Mayhaps he didn't do any of that stuff, because well, its not Tiger. Part of the reason everyone was upset about his whole mess, was he was billed as something he wasn't and people seemed to be shocked that this strange thing called "marketing" existed. So in the end, maybe Tiger is just going to be Tiger now, and everyone else has to accept the fact, that the guy is a cut throat athlete that honestly doesn't care. And of course the coverage was of Tiger. The guy basically makes the game a consumer product. In all probability this Masters will never really be about who won, but rather the fact that it was the return of Tiger - but thats sports. What often times makes them compelling is story lines and drama. I'm not a golfing fan, but thats why I watched. it shouldn't be a huge surprise that Tiger was a massive portion of the coverage.

I know you're not a golfing fan, but a golf fan will watch golf because we like to watch the skill of all the players not just one guy. They can all make the same shots but most the time the networks make it sound like Tiger is the only one. I could see at the beginnng of the tournament to give him a little extra coverage, but they went way overboard. IMO they are making golfing fans root against him.

[Beninator]

Agreed, think how it might have been/a class act, if Tiger would of been man enough waiting at the scorer hut for Phil to congratulate him on the win, knowledging/showing compassion to Phil for what he and his family has been though this past year

Not sticking up for Tiger here and I feel for what Mickelson has been through, but Mickelson is one of the most hated golfers on the tour by his peers.

http://golf.about.com/b/2006/01/26/phil-mickelson-a-hated-man.htm

[ChewaBrave]

No I understand, and agree with you. I don't think the overload of tiger coverage was good for Golf as a sport, quite the contrary. But as for pulling in viewers and making advertising dollars - hes the golden goose more often than not.

[Out of Balance]

Not sticking up for Tiger here and I feel for what Mickelson has been through, but Mickelson is one of the most hated golfers on the tour by his peers.

http://golf.about.com/b/2006/01/26/p...-hated-man.htm

What Thats nothing but tabloid BS crape, that some writer put together to make money. Has no sports value whats so ever! Where was/is the voting poll results by all the players on tour that voted Phil the most hated SOB on the tour Wheres it at, friend, come on And how about the writer, where does he stand with all the great sports writers that have ever covered the game. If you read that crape Benni, then I know you read The Inquirer and all the other s*** that is pilled up at check out lanes in all the Super Markets Lets also remember and be fair here, that is it is lonely at the top, no matter what you do and that pro golfers, are the most prime-a-donna's in all sports So I could see one of them maybe making a off the cuff remark like that As for the remarks that Phil use's his family for anything but just family, that is just LOW LIFE BS, PERIOD IF anyone believes different, they missed yesterday's greeting after the win by his family Sorry but if ANYONE has Family issues it is the beloved, Tiger
Come on Man, I still love Ya

[Beninator]

What Thats nothing but tabloid BS crape, that some writer put together to make money. Has no sports value whats so ever! Where was/is the voting poll results by all the players on tour that voted Phil the most hated SOB on the tour Wheres it at, friend, come on And how about the writer, where does he stand with all the great sports writers that have ever covered the game. If you read that crape Benni, then I know you read The Inquirer and all the other s*** that is pilled up at check out lanes in all the Super Markets Lets also remember and be fair here, that is it is lonely at the top, no matter what you do and that pro golfers, are the most prime-a-donna's in all sports So I could see one of them maybe making a off the cuff remark like that As for the remarks that Phil use's his family for anything but just family, that is just LOW LIFE BS, PERIOD IF anyone believes different, they missed yesterday's greeting after the win by his family Sorry but if ANYONE has Family issues it is the beloved, Tiger
Come on Man, I still love Ya

Sorry OOB...not a Mickelson fan but I was surprised to see that he was on the list when I first read the article and other articles a few years ago.....
That being said, aside from the FIGJAM comment, there isn't really anything new in that article and the usual suspects (athletes) are on the top ten list. Mickelson did upset quite a few golfers when he chose to skip the PGA Tour Championship in 2005 while the PGA was negotiating a new television contract.

[Chico]

Sorry OOB...not a Mickelson fan but I was surprised to see that he was on the list when I first read the article and other articles a few years ago.....
That being said, aside from the FIGJAM comment, there isn't really anything new in that article and the usual suspects (athletes) are on the top ten list. Mickelson did upset quite a few golfers when he chose to skip the PGA Tour Championship in 2005 while the PGA was negotiating a new television contract.

Would hope he had a reason for skippng the PGA Tour Championship. I do know he is well liked in Arizona because he went to ASU. IMO, nothing matches Tiger's skipping a Buick Open when Buick was one of his biggest sponsors. Liked watching him 3 putt from 5 feet. Now he knows how I feel.

[Bravesfan]

Sorry OOB...not a Mickelson fan but I was surprised to see that he was on the list when I first read the article and other articles a few years ago.....
That being said, aside from the FIGJAM comment, there isn't really anything new in that article and the usual suspects (athletes) are on the top ten list. Mickelson did upset quite a few golfers when he chose to skip the PGA Tour Championship in 2005 while the PGA was negotiating a new television contract.

If you read a lot of the replies below the article, you can get the sense that the article is a bunch of rubbish. I think this writer amongst others in the media were upset by Mickelson's past comments against the "aura" of the "great" Tiger Woods! Plus I haven't seen any evidence that quite a few golfers were upset when he skipped the 2005 PGA Championship. Besides, there's no clause saying a golfer has to participate in every tournament.

I just don't get the problem some players "supposedly" have/had with Mickelson, but any doubts about his character were certainly erased this past weekend!

[Future Walk-On]

Do you guys not understand?

There is a reason why Tiger gets what he gets. He can do all this stupid stuff outside of golf....but NO ONE can even come close to matching his talent.

I love TW because I understand what he can do and how no one else can do it!

HE IS THE GREATEST GOLFER THERE IS AND MAY BE THE BEST THERE EVER WILL BE!

This is why you will forever see him hitting balls on the range....walking to his car in the parking lot....putting before a round....and 66 out of his 68 shots in a round.

That is really all the needs to be said.

[Future Walk-On]

Tiger won't change. The energetic, lively, tantrum throwing Tiger is it.

This is the reason he is what he is.

He showed kids and others that golf is pretty **** cool. It isn't skinny white guys hitting a ball around.

Tiger has done more for the game than anyone can ever match.

Why are people so critical of him calling losing a failure and being upset.
Wouldn't you if you knew you were much better than everyone else you were playing against.

TW is the man.

[Chico]

No one is saying TW isn't a great golfer. But all the guys are the tour are great golfers or else they wouldn't be there. Think what most posters are saying is that the media goes overboard on his coverage even when someone else is playing much better. Statements like "no one else in the field could have made that shot" are ridiculous. Just give credit where credit is due.

[Beninator]

No one is saying TW isn't a great golfer. But all the guys are the tour are great golfers or else they wouldn't be there. Think what most posters are saying is that the media goes overboard on his coverage even when someone else is playing much better. Statements like "no one else in the field could have made that shot" are ridiculous. Just give credit where credit is due.

I very much agree. IMO there may be some shots that only the elite golfers can make which separates them from other professionals, but the coverage certainly is over the top at times.