Double Secret Probation
Posted May 9, 2006, 10:47 AM ET

The PGA Tour breezed through Charlotte last week and left quite an impression.

If I had mentioned that a professional sporting event produced claims of multi-million dollar gambling debts, public urination, DWI arrests and plummeting television ratings you probably would have thought about the "gangsta" NBA...but this time I was referring to the silver-spooned, prima donnas from the world of golf.

There is no question that the PGA Tour has had better weeks than what transpired in Charlotte. And despite the actions of a few at Quail Hollow, the tournament was a huge success locally. The local organizers work their tails off to produce a big-time event and they deserved better treatment from the players that make small fortunes driving free cars and making birdies.

But thank goodness for the Tour-guys for giving us enough fodder to last a month worth of rainy Sundays. Plus, the spoiled brats delivered nearly every day of the week.

It started early when John Daly went public about his newly released book which details his life of hard-living...drinking booze, getting drunk, chasing and sleeping with women...and oh yeah....losing upwards to 60 million bucks while gambling.

This was not what Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem was looking for to uphold the "values" of being a professional golfer on the PGA Tour. Somebody needs to remind Finchem that John Daly is probably the most popular golfer this side of Tiger and Lefty. And unlike the unapproachable superstars of the Tour, Daly represents the "common man", and Big John has no problem sucking down a few Buds, eating some wings at Hooters and telling you everything you want to know about being on Tour.

To make matters worse for the PGA Tour, one of their well-mannered, nice-guys, Joe Ogilvie was arrested on a DWI charge on the morning of his first round tee-time. Ogilvie is a Duke graduate and smart guy...unfortunately his use of common sense came into question by driving around his free Mercedes going 59 in a 35 and blowing over the legal limit at 2 o'clock in the morning on the streets of Charlotte.

The good news for Ogilvie is that he stole the headlines away from his Lacrosse-playing alma mater, and he also made the cut....now he can pay for his court costs and legal fees.

The weekend at Quail Hollow also brought some classic moves by the Tour dweebs. On Monday's radio show, I was hounded by some listeners that described numerous players urinating on private property during their round. I called BS on the first couple of calls...but after dozens of emails and countless accounts from the patrons of the Wachovia, it became obvious that the PGA Tour players put on some kind of show at Quail Hollow.

The final blow from the Quail experience is when the network television ratings were released. The Wachovia Championship's ratings were down 28% on Saturday's third round and a whopping 39% on Sunday's final round. Maybe some of the local media will readdress their position that Tiger Woods' Charlotte no-show might have an affect on the big picture. Believe it or not, some of them thought a Wachovia tournament without his presence was a non-issue. Right?

That's too bad...I guess Jim Furyk's playoff win didn't keep America tuned in for the drama? Maybe a reality show of all the events surrounding this year's tournament could have been included to keep our interest?

I guarantee you America would have turned into a show that featured gambling, women-chasing, DWIs and public displays during the round...forget the golf, show me real action of the PGA Tour.

One thing I can agree on with Tim Finchem and the PGA Tour...."These Guys Are Good".