Pantone 279
Pantone 1545
record as saying, “Golf in the
Olympics could grow the game
worldwide, particularly in places
where it’s not that big.
"Take countries like Croatia
or Russia. In order to jump-start
interest and support of the sport
in these countries you need
money. The best way to do that
is through two sources: national
government or the national
Olympic Committee. For these
countries, there’s no substitute
for it being an Olympic sport.”
reconcile both parts of that
particular sentence?
Would the millions
of dollars Moscow
spent failing to get
the 2012 Olympics
not have been more
practically spent
in “growing” the
sport in Russia than
tossing it down the
drain in a Dutch
auction?
If that’s the case and it’s gov- ernment money that’s needed
to grow golf in developing countries, why not use the millions
of dollars wasted on ‘bidding’
for the Olympics every time it
comes up for auction? The cost
of securing the Olympic bid
for London next summer was a
staggering $25.5 million.
Would the millions of dollars
Moscow spent failing to get the
But, when the time comes, no doubt, Tiger, despite his
obvious coolness for Olympic
competition, and the rest of the
Tour’s multi-million dollar su-
perstars from around the world,
will make all the right noises and
mount the rostrum to be adorned
with wreaths and medals.
