"I'm a firm believer that in the theory that people only do their best at things they truly enjoy. It is difficult to excel at something you don't enjoy."
Jack Nicklaus
Showing posts with label Jack Nicklaus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jack Nicklaus. Show all posts
Monday, 18 June 2018
Tuesday, 29 May 2018
OSM - The Fine Art of Sports Management
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| Getty Images |
If sports management was easy then everybody would be doing it. But with the legendary tale of that handshake between Arnold Palmer and Mark McCormack, founder of International Management Group [IMG] is so often quoted that people forget the many relationships that failed along the way. Or indeed ever since those halcyon days of the industry when management of brands and securing sponsors was a novelty game to everyone. As pioneers Palmer, McCormack and then Jack Nicklaus with Golden Bear, blazed a trail that founded the keystone to what golf is known as today. With most golfers on Tour these days living a lucrative playing - once they breakthrough - and enjoying all the spoils the sport can offer once the achievements are garnered along the way.
The arrival of Tiger Woods twenty years ago only enhanced the financial focus on the sport as his accumulation of titles opened new doors for IMG. And unbroken success which all of a sudden made the impossible possible and that the 18 Major titles record would be matched by Tiger even in Jack's lifetime. In the same way that Roger Federer in tennis has rewritten tennis history at Wimbledon – despite Bjorn Borg’s amazing achievements; or Lionel Messi in football eclipses in his wake the names of Pele, Maradona and Cruyff to a large degree, with every additional title he collects. Or Annika Sorenstam in ladies golf who with her own commitment and ability became an iconic sports personality that has yet to be equalled. With many other sports boasting their breakthrough characters also.
But in the times we live the media, sponsors, and the players are more advanced in understanding their brand, the value of sponsorship and indeed how best to promote themselves to a commercial audience. Twitter being a classic example. Making it more complex these days for any management company to do their job as simply as they would like. With even just the media demands now, print, broadcast, internet and social, all requiring quotes, interviews and sound bites. Then the sponsors naturally seeking to maximise their spend every time they put money down for an event and the ruling federations trying to maintain the codes intact as the pressures from all sides mount and mount. Battling to balance the extending season which now averages close to 12 months. Unless players take a break, as they are forced to in tennis.
Such commercial advances may bring more money. But they also bring more time demands for the talent which requires "real" management, control and understanding.
In many ways the money is easier to come by but the pressures are increased. Paling in contrast with the early days when Palmer and McCormack secured their first sponsors no doubt. It is perhaps this evolving world where talent now seek to manage themselves more, in order to protect and control image, and struggle with sports management companies in their current format. Which in reality have changed little since IMG became the dominant players in the sports management world and has seen everyone subsequently try to emulate them. The truth being now that young world class athletes are savvier, more self-aware and better informed about what they want. And don’t want. Also more acute too about money matters, which often are triggers for breaks ups or misunderstandings.
Whatever the reasons are for the rumoured rift of World number 2 Rory McIlroy from Horizon Sports, his management partners for the past eighteen months, it can only be a result of some sense of unease from the talent side. In this case the 24 year old from Holywood, County Down in Northern Ireland, holder of two major titles at the same as Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus did. A talented prodigy who has set his own standards thus far and may feel that the atypical management structure does not suit him any longer. Especially given that prior to Horizon he was part of International Sports Management, with whom he won his first major, the US Open at Congressional in 2011.
The chemistry of such relationships can hinge on a thread at times and test the genuine depth of the relationships, particularly when titles and wins dry up. After all, a percentage of the on-course income is a vital part of funding the support team for any golfer and a valuable delivery of annual income. Albeit the annual sponsorship commissions are normally too shabby either. However the lack of winning can cause much soul searching in a golfer and too often the caddie is the first casualty after a poor season. If not a swing or putting coach, with the management company usually the more extreme option. Or indeed even more drastic, a change of club suppliers. And having withstood the collapse at The Masters in 2011, McIlroy defended his caddie and was rewarded with the major at Congressional and then the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island.
But this year, after a stellar year in 2012, when he reached the coveted number spot with frequency, McIlroy switched clubs with much hoopla and immersed himself one hundred percent in the Nike brand. Underestimating perhaps, through youthful exuberance - the potential pitfalls. All so well-articulated by Sir Nick Faldo at the time and based on his own bad personal career experiences. Something even Tiger did not do in his time and has seen Rory McIlroy pay a high price this season with a number of cuts missed and the now infamous walk out at The Honda Classic in April. In what appeared for all intents and purposes from the outside as a visible on course meltdown and very uncharacteristic for the normally bubbly young prodigy. But something was obviously wrong, and then went horribly wrong, with the post walk off press management almost amateurish as Horizon Sports scrambled to button down the rampant world media.
Which for a small Dublin based organisation - facing an international media crisis - just proved too much to handle at the time. And something that would be bread and butter for an IMG. In addition McIlroy has also found himself in the middle of an – unnecessary – but on-going debate about the 2016 Olympics and what country he will represent. Unnecessary because it is still three years away.
Or indeed who will he be allowed represent with a number of groups and organisations joining the discussion. Including Peter Dawson at the R&A, Lord Coe and a host of other peripheral organisations. In what is a matter of little relevance at this time and an unwarranted distraction for a man who is proud of his Northern Ireland roots. But cannot help that the politicisation and religious divide is a legacy that still carries unhealed wounds for many on the island still today. That the game of golf happens to be one that covers 32 counties i.e. the whole island – and is not specific to the Republic or Northern Ireland as is in the case of soccer for instance. The added complication being that golf in Ireland does not have a standalone Federation and is therefore managed across a number of agencies and bodies. Some of the purely designed for amateur sport and then the Government who dish out the money to support national events, such as the Irish Open.
With a romantic partner earning her keep at the top of women’s tennis, it has undoubtedly not escaped Caroline Wozniacki some of the shortcomings over recent months and perhaps that a young agency from Dublin who hit the big time so quickly, may have been out of their depth at times.
It has to be remembered too that the McDowell victory came after forty years of European drought at the US Open and 2010 became the year that the record was smashed by the golfer from Portrush since Tony Jacklin. Whether Horizon had the power to manage results is open to question. Especially when another Northern Ireland golfer reclaims the trophy within twelve months and then followed by Darren Clarke winning the Open Championship at Royal St George that same year. Or when Padraig Harrington broke the Fred Daly record at Carnoustie beating Sergio Garcia in a play-off in 2007. Then retaining it the following year at Royal Birkdale in more dramatic fashion.
Clearly when the golf gods smile it is a force beyond any sports management company.
But in the case of McIlroy the unrest has been evident since the start of the year where he has been at the end of more bad news stories than good. With the new clubs becoming part of the perceived problem – albeit $25 million more dollars more a year in his pocket – McIlroy is struggling to make the cut week in and week out. All a contrast with events of last year where Rory’s golf responded itself to every crisis with an end of season on the PGA Tour that saw him win some of the biggest events. Followed by a Ryder Cup at Medinah which he was mature beyond his years. Even though how he was allowed sleep in on the final day of the singles and nearly missed his tee time was very bizarre in itself
When faced with all this, and no doubt Rory’s own agonising, his father Gerry, who worked all the hours to get his son to the top, coach Michael Bannon and many others must have wondered what was going on and how best to regain control of this runaway train. In evaluating all the variables the conclusion must have been that Horizon Sports was perhaps the weakest link at this time, even if the money was rolling in all around thanks to their work
For Rory it’s never been about the money it seems. It is about winning. It seems losing is not something that sits well in his vocabulary given he is so competitive. So given all that it makes sense that he must seek a new balance with his back up team to ensure his talent can shine – and he chases the Woods records. As in some cases in sport, it is the winning that solves everything.
In this case Conor Ridge and Horizon Sports may be the variable that needs changing in order for the winning to return.
One hopes it can all be done and dusted between them with a handshake.
OSM 2013 - All rights reserved
Friday, 11 December 2015
Sports Quotes - Arnold Palmer
"I've always made a total effort, even when the odds seemed entirely against me. I never quit trying; I never felt that I didn’t have a chance to win."
Arnold Palmer
Saturday, 28 November 2015
Jones and Spieth in Final Duel
Matt Jones is relishing a final-round duel for the Stonehaven Cup with world No1 and defending champion Jordan Spieth after retaining control of the Australian Open. Not even a blistering back-nine charge from Spieth, highlighted by a spectacular eight-iron hole-out from 165 metres for an eagle two on the 17th, was enough to knock Jones off his perch on Saturday.
After a horror start in which he dropped three shots in the first four holes, Spieth blitzed his last 10 holes in seven under par to fire a day’s-best 67 to move to seven under for the championship. But Jones, a lifelong member of The Australian Golf Club, finished with his own flurry with back-to-back birdies in a 68 to surge to 10 under.
The two US PGA stars will go head-to-head in the final pairing but Jones vowed not to get bogged down in any Sunday shootout with the reigning Masters and US Open champion. “It’s not match play at all. It’s me sticking to a game plan, managing the course and just giving myself opportunities,” Jones said. “If I go out and shoot two or three under tomorrow, I’m going to be very tough to beat. So it’s in my hands.”
Spieth acknowledged as much but said ominously that he was peaking for the final round and would draw confidence from his course-record 63 he shot last year to run away with the Stonehaven Cup. “If he shoots something amazing like last year and beats me, that’s what I’ll have to deal with,” Jones said. “I’m very comfortable with where I am and I’m looking forward to it.”
"I’m just happy to be in the final group and leading the tournament with a chance to win. There’s no better player to beat on the final day and to have him in the group and to go up against the world No1 is going to be a lot of fun.”
Bidding to become the first international player since the legendary Jack Nicklaus in 1976 to win back-to-back Open crowns, Spieth at one point trailed Jones by eight shots before setting up what shapes as a grandstand finish to the 100th Open. Rhein Gibson (68) is five shots off the lead in outright third with Lincoln Tighe (70) and Aron Price (70) six back in equal fourth.
Former champion Geoff Ogilvy (71) is at three under, while Adam Scott is all but out of contention despite carding a 68 on Saturday. Scott eagled the last hole to join Brett Rumford (69), Northern Irishman Darren Clarke (70) and Todd Sinnott (74) at one under and among just 10 players in red figures.
Victorian Anthony Brown provided an early third-round highlight with a hole in one. His beautifully struck five iron on the 198-metre second hole lit up the Open on an otherwise gloomy morning at The Australian. But the 33-year-old’s sixth ace of his career failed to ignite his round as he finished with a three-over 74 to be seven over for the championship, a distant 17 shots behind Jones.
Wednesday, 21 October 2015
Tiger Not Out of Woods
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| Getty Images |
Tiger Woods does not expect to compete again soon after admitting he faces a "tedious and long" recovery from back surgery.
Woods had an operation on his back for a second time last month after a routine check discovered a fragmented disc pinching a nerve.
He last played at the Wyndham Championship on August 23, where he tied for 10th in what was his best finish on the PGA Tour for nearly two years.
His first surgery came just before the US Masters in 2014, when he was out of action for nearly three months, although he later admitted he returned too early.
"Rehab will be soon, and it will be tedious and long," he said. "The last one, it took me awhile to get back. Some players on tour have done the same procedure and to be back pain-free it took them over a year."
Woods, who turns 40 in December, has not won a major championship since the US Open in 2008 and remains on 14 majors, four short of Jack Nicklaus' record, but the world No 334 has not given up hope of catching 'The Golden Bear'.
Some players on tour have done the same procedure and to be back pain-free it took them over a year.
"It's important for me to have more than 18 majors when all is said and done," he said. "It took Jack his whole career to achieve it and mine is not done yet. I believe that I have a very good record for 20 years on the tour.
"The main thing is to get fit and to reach my 40s with good health to be as successful as Vijay, who won most of his tournaments at that age. It's something that I hope I will be able to do," he said. "I want to play at an elite level with the new kids for a long, long time."
Woods has not won since the 2013 Bridgestone Invitational for his 79th career win on the PGA Tour, just three short of the record held by Sam Snead.
"I need to be healthy again," he added. "This year I tried to play after the back surgery and it wasn't fun because all of the pain. Also after my last surgery, I was changing my swing and to be able to do that successfully you have to practice a lot, and I could not practice because I was doing the rehab.
"It was a very complicated situation because of that."
Woods has not set a timetable on when he will start rehabilitation or a date for his likely return.
"I need to return with my explosiveness, and to do that, I need to practice for longer periods of time," he said. "It's going to take several months of hard work."
Thursday, 19 September 2013
Tiger Targets FedEx Jackpot
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| Getty Images |
Tiger Woods is hoping to secure his sixth title of the year and take home a $10m (£6.3m) bonus with victory at the Tour Championship starting on Thursday.
The world number one is one of five players who know a win in Atlanta would guarantee them the season-long FedEx Cup, while the remaining 25 players could also claim the bonus.
"Winning five times this year has been pretty good," said Woods.
"Like the other four guys in the top five we control our destiny."
He added: "I think I've had a good run here. I've won twice and finished second four times. That's not too bad over the course of my career here."
Henrik Stenson, Adam Scott, Zach Johnson and Matt Kuchar are the other players who know victory would secure them the cash bonus, while Woods could finish as low as 29th and still have a mathematical chance of winning.
For Open champion Phil Mickelson to win the jackpot, he needs to win the Tour Championship - which itself has a first prize of $1.4m - and for Woods to finish no higher than third.
England's US Open champion Justin Rose needs a similar scenario.
Rose's compatriot, former world number one Luke Donald, scraped into the event in 28th place by finishing fourth in the BMW Championshipon Sunday.
He needs a win and for Woods to finish no higher than 25th.
Tiger Woods (14) trails Jack Nicklaus (18) in the all-time list of major winners
While he has not added to his tally of 14 majors, Woods has otherwise enjoyed a fine year.
When asked whether he thought this had been one of his most consistent seasons, the 37-year-old said: "I think so. I won some big events this year - two World Golf Championships, a Players (Championship)and Jack (Nicklaus) and Arnold's (Palmer) tournament. I think that's been a pretty good year.
"I think that I'm excited the way I've put together my last couple of years and coming off the injuries, a lot of people thought I would never win again, and here we are with some more wins."
Thursday, 8 August 2013
McGinley Downplays Rory Struggles
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| Getty Images |
Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley believes Rory McIlroy's current struggles should be kept in perspective as the former world number one gets the defence of his US PGA Championship under way at Oak Hill.
McIlroy won five times last year, including his second major by eight shots at Kiawah Island, to finish top of the money list on both sides of the Atlantic.
But he has recorded only one top-five finish in a turbulent 2013 that saw him damage his reputation by walking off the course during his defence of the Honda Classic and bending one of his new clubs out of shape during the final round of the US Open.
In the majors he has managed just one round under 70 - a closing 69 in the US Masters - and is a collective 28 over par after missing the cut in the Open after rounds of 79 and 75.
That opening round at Muirfield led McIlroy to offer a withering assessment of his own performance, labelling it "brain dead," but McGinley is not overly concerned.
"We are all in the game of professional golf, we all know there's ups and downs. We've all experienced them," McGinley said.
"Tom Watson was in here earlier, and nobody can tell you more about the ups and downs in the game than he's had, and look at his career; Jack Nicklaus, something similar.
"Tiger Woods is on a high and this time a year ago or two years ago, he was on a real low. So we all know what it's like and I think Rory knows that as well, too.
"Everybody has got a public opinion about Rory and everybody wants to throw their weight in and say he needs to do this and he needs to do that. To be honest I don't want to add to that and say Rory needs to do this and needs to do that.
"He knows I'm supportive of him. I'm there if he wants to call. I don't want to get too much involved in what he's doing. It's his own private life and circle of friends and people around him.
"Just because I'm Ryder Cup captain I don't feel like it's my right or my duty to get involved in what he's doing in his life. I think he's got some good people around him. He's making some decisions. He's making some adjustments in his life.
"If you look over the spectrum of his career, we are talking about a small part of his career the last six or seven months. That will be a little bit insignificant.
"As things move on and time goes on, he will get his form back and he'll have his success again and we'll be thinking, 'Oh yeah, I remember when he was off his game'."
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