Fans deprived with Open playoff format

SAN DIEGO – There is no winner yet of the 2008 U.S. Open, but there sure is one big loser, and it’s not Phil Mickelson.

The loser is the golf fan, and it easily could have been avoided. With Everyman (Rocco Mediate) trying to knock off Superman (Tiger Woods), fans in much of America were provided with a captivating prime-time show on NBC – and then the plug was pulled.

Just imagine if it were to happen in other sports, if the Lakers and Celtics, for example, were tied after four quarters, and the NBA decided to start overtime on Monday morning at 9 a.m. You can’t. That’s because it would never happen in other sports. It only happens in golf, which needs to join the 21st century, especially when it possesses the most charismatic commodity on any playing facility. (Memo to the USGA: Mr. Woods won’t be around forever.)

The Open, barring poor weather, must end on Sundays, not Monday afternoons when America is at work. It used to be the same way with the Masters and British Open, but the governing bodies running those tournaments eventually wised up and have staged some exciting sudden-death, or four-hole playoffs, since then. Has anyone complained?

Why doesn’t the USGA wise up? They cling to the idea of tradition, which this game always has valued greatly. There is nothing wrong with honoring tradition. In this case, however, the theory goes that the national Open should be decided in a duel over 18 holes, not by the vagaries of one hole or even four holes.

This theory, however, has its own holes.

What happens when the competitors are tied after another 18 holes, as Hale Irwin and Mike Donald were in 1990?

They play another hole, which means the USGA already acknowledges the fact that the title can be decided based on the outcome of one hole. (Irwin beat Donald on the 19th extra hole.) If the organization wants to be consistent, it would call for another 18 holes, which, in fact, is what happened up until the late 1940s.

Some will contend that the USGA should not bow down to the needs of almighty television. Except the organization already does that. The starting times on Sunday could be earlier, but everyone wants the tournament to end in the evening on the East Coast. (The USGA almost got burned in 2002 when a weather delay led to Woods finishing in near darkness at Bethpage Black on Long Island.)

Satisfying the public should be of paramount concern. Golf isn’t on the same planet as the NFL. The game needs as many fans as possible.

Three examples come to mind of the potential dramatic outcomes that have been lost.

In 1962, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus battled at Oakmont outside Pittsburgh, in Palmer country. Arnie’s Army often was not very kind to the chubby rookie from Ohio, and that’s putting it mildly. Yet Nicklaus kept his composure and forced a playoff. Nicklaus prevailed, but could even the game’s diehards recite the score? (For the record, it was 71 to 74.) Imagine if the two, such fascinating opposites, had squared off immediately in sudden death. The playoff still would be memorable today.

In 1966, Palmer squandered a seven-stroke lead over Billy Casper with nine holes to go. Everybody recalls the collapse, but few recall the 18-hole playoff, captured by Casper, 69 to 73. It would have been amazing to see how Palmer would have fared right after his historic debacle. We’ll never know.

In 2001, Retief Goosen missed a 2-foot putt for the victory, setting up a match on Monday with Mark Brooks. Goosen putted brilliantly in the playoff and won by two. Yet how would Goosen have putted if he and Brooks had gone to sudden death? You can be sure he would have been a little shaky over any short ones. Again, we’ll never know.

Of course, with Woods in the mix this time, fans somehow will find a way to follow the action, even if it results in less productivity in the office on Monday. That doesn’t mean it’s the proper way to finish an Open. Many still will not be able to see it live.

Sunday offered everything.

Superman proved that he could be mortal, at least for 17 holes. Then he put on his cape again.

Everyman proved he could handle the moment, throwing up a 71 on the final round of a U.S. Open when many figured he would be hard pressed to break 75.

Don’t forget Lee Westwood, who almost tied Woods and Mediate.

Sunday had everything.

Except closure.