The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 4

OPINIONS (ARE LIKE
BELLY BUTTONS)
(Lindsay continues from page 2)
year's Show. I thought his points about relationships and their
importance to the overall health of any successful customer/
supplier exchange were well taken; and I forwarded it to Jim
K. Little did I know that Jim K. felt very strongly that these
major vendors were simply making a sound business decision
on a number of levels including employee health and safety.
That set the stage for this point/counter-point discussion.
Jim sent me an outline of his points so I would understand
where he was coming from. He expanded the forum
to include his comments on the current issues surrounding
the PGA Tour and the new Saudi backed League concept,
along with whether this year's " boutique " Show would have
a lasting effect on the PGA of America. He also introduced
an analogy to the Neil Young/Spotify dust up that is showing
every indication of breaking into open warfare - and may be
the watershed event that finally shines a light on whether the
various " big tech " vendors are merely platforms or publishers.
Since Neil Young is a self-described " old hippie " , this discussion
is likely to be somewhat " karmic " - the philosophical
belief that all the actions within the universe are inter-related.
To start with, I am a paid subscriber to the Neil Young
Archives and one of my first bonding experiences with Tom
Abts was listening to a rare, live version of Cowgirl in the
Sand after a dinner at the PGA Show many years ago. That
rare version was provided by another good friend also in the
golf industry. Any Philosophy I may employ is, in part, due to
the teaching of Bob Simon, one of my professors in college.
His son, Marc Simon, runs the PGA Show for Reed Expo.
Further, I watched my second favorite golf event last
weekend - the AT&T Invitational at Pebble Beach. Neil
Young actually played in it in 2003. The rumor on the Neil
Young " RustList " community was that he was not invited
back because he refused to perform at the musical 19th Hole
Clambake. What struck me this year was the feeling that
the broadcast was " measured " - only veiled references to the
quality of the field and considerably less camera time for the
amateur celebrities. If there was a reference to the the concurrent
event in Saudi Arabia by name, I must have missed it.
Because of two funerals, I only got to watch the final round;
but still it seemed clear that the PGA Tour was trying to
downplay the absence of the Johnson/Gretzky team and any
extended discussion about other past champions not in attendance.
" There's something happening here, what it is ain't exactly
clear " (For What It's Worth, Buffalo Springfield, 1966).
For more karma as a backdrop, Mr. Young was in that
seminal band, playing the iconic harmonics at the start of
what would be their first hit. Songwriter Stephen Stills added
" there's battle lines being drawn, if nobody's right, then everybody's
wrong " . Professor Simon might have encouraged
me to turn that around - if everybody's right, then nobody's
wrong. Famed philosopher Bertrand Russell often described
himself as a walking contradiction - perhaps Neil Young
was channeling Lord Russell when he wrote " I'm a little bit
wrong, I'm a little bit right " in 1996 (Scattered). Unfortunately,
the chances of everybody
(Lindsay continues on page 5)
4 The Pellucid PersPecTive
(Koppenhaver continues from page 2)
own position on either side or somewhere in between. What
Stuart and I have in common, and we believe distinguishes
the followers of Pellucid's work, is that, in the end, our job is
to inform and educate and then intelligent people can decide
what path they ultimately will take. They don't need us telling
them to " go right, go left " , " do this " or " think that. "
Let's start with the one currently getting the most play
and higher profile of the two in the golf industry, the nascent
Asian Golf Tour fronted financially by the Saudi Public
Investment Fund (PIF) and LIV Investments which also
brings Greg Norman's face, voice and history with the PGA
TOUR (both playing and challenging on the business front)
into play. For those who haven't been following, here's the
background and storyline at a high level:
* PIF and LIV are " fronting " a 3rd world tour (not a 3rdworld
tour lest you be confused) which will compete with the
PGA TOUR and the European Tour. All of you will know
that the PGA and European Tours have over time managed
to collaborate to effectively divide world golf between them
geographically. Some believe that the World Golf Championship
events were those tours' collective defensive response
to Greg Norman's initial attempt long ago to create a larger-tent,
global golf entity and forum which is now the sole
collaborative venture of the various regional tours for a few
events each year. It seems like most of the WGC events are
played here in the States though so it's World in the respect
that all players can come here to play for a couple weeks vs. it
being hosted around the globe (which is more accommodating
for the players trying to squeeze those events into their
PGA or European schedules annually)
* Norman says he's in it to " grow the game and exposure to
golf " but it's much more nuanced than that. Yes, there are
eyeballs to be monetized and exposure to the game of golf to
be had in faraway places but the challenge is that you need
to attract a reasonable amount of star power for each event
and, in that respect, you're competing for a limited pool of
people. Managing an annual schedule of events among a
limited number of players who are trying to balance their career
interests (winning majors), their economic situation and
the wear-and-tear on their body is like threading a needle.
Hence, Norman talking about " growing the pie " and there
being room for everyone at a bigger table is, IMO, either
naive (which he's clearly proven in his business career & success
he is not) or less-than-transparent in that his slice of the
pie is all incremental and the PGA TOUR and European
tour gets marginal incrementality at best
* He is however talking about shaking up some of the traditions,
beliefs and the " power structure " of one very, and
several somewhat, lucrative business enterprises which isn't
going to happen easily. Trust me when I say that I've tilted
that industry windmill (on a much, much smaller scale)
for 20+ years and I've
(Koppenhaver continues on page 5)
February 2022

The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022

TOC
Jim & Stuart Square off over rival TOUR, PGA Show loyalties, Neil Young & Spotify By Jim Koppenhaver and Stuart Lindsay
14 Activities; Transactions followed by some sizeable “take outs”
January disappoints at -10%, challenging start to COVID Yr 3
December Utilization another double-digit decline, Year finishes above 60%!
Columbus OH at #12 in Latest Ranking; down-the-middle, average distance
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - TOC
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - Jim & Stuart Square off over rival TOUR, PGA Show loyalties, Neil Young & Spotify By Jim Koppenhaver and Stuart Lindsay
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 3
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 4
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 5
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 6
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 7
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 8
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 9
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 14 Activities; Transactions followed by some sizeable “take outs”
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 11
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - January disappoints at -10%, challenging start to COVID Yr 3
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 13
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - December Utilization another double-digit decline, Year finishes above 60%!
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 15
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - Columbus OH at #12 in Latest Ranking; down-the-middle, average distance
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 17
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