There was a time when PGA Tour events were all about the names attached to them.
Not the players’ names.
The tournament hosts’ names.
Bob Hope. Bing Crosby. Dean Martin. Sammy Davis Jr. Jackie Gleason. Danny Thomas. Andy Williams. Glen Campbell.
OK, so they sound like the stars of Turner Classic Movies or hosts of their own television variety shows, if you’re old enough to remember such things.
That’s because they were.
There have been other celebs with their names on tournaments on various tours, Dinah Shore being the most notable – no offense to Justin Timberlake, Jamie Farr, Joe Garagiola, the Gatlin Brothers or Ed McMahon.
Perhaps the American Express, which this year had a stronger field than in recent years, can go back to what it was when Hope was hosting it and invite all the cool kids to tee it up.
The stars eventually were replaced by corporate sponsors for financial reasons and, to be honest, many of the celebrities, shall we say, aged out.
It comes to mind because the American Express last week in the Palm Springs area was long ago Bob Hope’s event. It had stardust sprinkled across it in much the same way that Bing Crosby’s clambake at Pebble Beach was more about the celebs than the golfers.
With what is now called the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am becoming a signature event and cutting its field in half (and reportedly boosting the amateurs’ buy-in to offset the lost revenue), it’s another step away from what used to be.
It’s a bummer if you’re one of the fortunate ones who had an annual invitation and could stroke the check, and it’s disappointing the tour is leaving behind a piece of its history.
Perhaps the American Express, which this year had a stronger field than in recent years, can go back to what it was when Hope was hosting it and invite all the cool kids to tee it up. There are worse places to be in January than the tony southern California desert.
It would get some attention.
And maybe they could bring back alpaca cardigans and vodka gimlets while they’re at it.
Ron Green Jr.
E-MAIL RON
Top: Bob Hope on the Walk of Stars in Palm Springs, California.
SCOTT MICHAUX, GGP