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beefncheddar
Guest
Tiger's not actually leading the tournament.
Just so you know.
Just so you know.
sportschick
Active Member
Jason never let the facts get in the way of a good story, and Tiger is one back of some guy I've never heard of.
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shotglass
Guest
Good heavens ... I'd rather read about Tiger than who's in the lead ...
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beefncheddar
Guest
And that's fine. Write about Tiger all you want. But is it asking too much to make the guy actually winning the tournament the lede?
mustardbased said:
When it's not the biggest story -- the one everyone cares about -- yes, it is too much to ask.
It'd be different if this was Saturday. But being the leader of a major after 18 of 72 holes is not that big of a deal. At least, not as big of a deal as the greatest player of his generation -- a guy who's won the British Open before and who just about everyone else in the field is scared ****less of -- bouncing back from missing the cut in the U.S. Open to look like his old self again.
Leading with Graeme is what we call burying the lede.
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Dedo said:
Well put.
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shotglass
Guest
DOUG FERGUSON FOR KING OF ENGLAND!
buckweaver said:
Cracker!?! What's up with the racism?
;)
The Rules of Golf
Member
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- 825
Dedo said:
Leading with Graham is also misspelling Graeme.
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beefncheddar
Guest
Dedo said:
I disagree. I think it's lazy to just say "**** it, let's make this about Tiger." A guy nobody's ever heard of just went 6-under at the British Open. There's a story there. I'm not saying ignore Tiger. Hell, get to him quickly -- but don't ignore the guy actually leading the tournament who just played the round of his life.
Cosmo
Well-Known Member
Mustard, you're answering your own question here. When you look at that leaderboard, who is all of your readers going to be talking about? Tiger Woods. Especially after his struggles at the U.S. Open. Had Tiger shot 1-over, I'd agree with your premise. Ho-hum, Tiger's in the middle of the pack. But he's not. He's right there at the top a month after looking absolutely lost on the golf course. He's the story right now.
David B. Fay's Bow Tie said:
Good point. Fixed.
It's just that of all the vendettas on this board, the one against Ferguson -- whom I've never met -- has baffled me the most. I understand why people bash guys like Marriotti and Albom. But as far as I can tell, the biggest problem people have with Ferguson is that he writes too much about the best player on his beat and maybe the most popular athlete in the world.
There's a reason his galleries dwarf everyone else's at every event, there's a reason every company on Earth pays him millions of dollars to endorse their products, and there's a reason why the freaking AP golf writer includes him in every story he writes. Like it or not, the first question a majority of readers have when they look at a golf story is not, "Who's winning?" but rather "How's Tiger doing?"
To ignore that incredible interest -- even if we think those fans are mouth-breathing imbeciles for not caring more about whether Graeme McDowell used his gap or lob wedge on No. 17 -- is to do the readers a big disservice. Giving people what they want isn't always a bad thing.
Hank_Scorpio
Active Member
Dedo said:
But you still have to tell the story too. And in this case, Tiger is the story.
Look at it this way, mustard. Tiger hasn't contended in a tournament for what, two months now. And he's gone through a bad stretch in his personal life too. And here he is just a shot off the lead of the British Open.
For the first round, you could find many stories that would be great to lead with. And great reporters will do that. Graeme McDowell leading isn't bad, but Tiger overcoming adversity is a bigger story.
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shotglass
Guest
Actually, I'd been waiting for something OTHER than Dougie to come across for my main.
And the only thing off the "feature" wire was Ed Sherman from the Trib. And his MAIN was 25 inches, 24" of which were on Ernie Els.
I went with Ferguson, with the option of getting something else for later editions.
And the only thing off the "feature" wire was Ed Sherman from the Trib. And his MAIN was 25 inches, 24" of which were on Ernie Els.
I went with Ferguson, with the option of getting something else for later editions.
Tiger's the first-day story, and doug didn't dwell on him for long. He got to the rest of the day pretty quickly if you read the optional. The gem about mcdowell and the guy in the bar giving him a swing tip is priceless.
I thought the story was better than the first day art, BTW.
I thought the story was better than the first day art, BTW.
Songbird
Well-Known Member
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Dedo said:
How can golfers be scared of one another? They're not playing against Tiger Woods. They're playing against the course. Tiger has nothing to do with the way they swing the club, or chip onto the green, or make a putt from 15 feet over a ridge.
Songbird said:
They're not scared of him in a "Oh my God, I'm about to get run over by Ray Lewis" kind of way. But you can bet that anytime Tiger isn't in the field or misses a cut, like he did at the U.S. Open, the leaders sleep a lot easier on Friday and Saturday nights. Many of the top pros have been saying that for years...
Cosmo
Well-Known Member
Tiger being out of a major field changes the way you approach your game mentally, Xan. Think about it. If you're up five strokes and Brett Wetterich is the one chasing you, you play different than if Tiger is chasing you. Brett Wetterich, as good as he's been this year, doesn't have the major track record that Tiger does. (Actually, Tiger has no major track record of erasing a 54-hole deficit, but I digress.) That's all Dedo is saying. That's not weak. That's reality.
