Lupica: "Guys like Finchem forget that they’re supposed to be caretakers of a public trust."
Mike Lupica takes the PGA Tour to task for their handling of the Dustin Johnson situation and scores some valid points in a mess that's long been coming for a Commissioner who never wanted drug testing in the first place. And, who believes golfers as never breaking any kind of rules, laws or codes of conduct, when they are just as human as the rest of the population. 
In trying to cover up a rare situation with a golfer failing drug tests, Lupica says the tour has actually brought more bad publicity their way than had they handled this with more transparency.
He writes:
You know why they look like they’re hiding something? Because they are. Not in the interests of protecting Johnson or his reputation, but because they think that the truth about how everybody arrived at this moment is really, really bad for business. You can only imagine the hand-wringing from Finchem back in the day when they found out Tiger Woods had been treated by Dr. Anthony Galea.
These guys somehow think they can protect the Tour’s brand and image by acting this way. Only now they do the opposite. This is a sport that loves to talk, often incessantly, about its honor and its adherence to the rules, and how players routinely call penalties on themselves for infractions only they see.
How about Finchem does that to himself now?
Lupica took to the Sports Reporters to discuss this as well, but the video is not posted online.
Sunday, August 3, 2014 at 09:42 AM
Reader Comments (18)
With this (and other actions), they continue to prove that they are willing to compromise the 2nd role in favor of the first.
What "rules"?
Having watched The Sports Reporters for 25 years, yes, Lupica does come off as sanctimonious and not a little self important. Moreover, he is taking an appropriate and rather popular position, one I agree with. Hard-hitting Mike is not saying anything new or anything we haven't read or heard numerous times the past 72 hours. I see little need for this post.
"Move along, folks. Nothin' to see here."
But, his job is to promote the business of the tour to create
playing opportunities for the members of the tour.
You may not like it, and may consider yourself a "customer",
but the real customer is corporate America, and often times, they are satisfied.
The sanctimonious garbage from supposed golf "press" is more about whatever it takes to
get eyeballs. The National Enquireism of golf is represented by the numerous stories
of the train wrecks of Dustin and Tiger.
Look on the first page of this supposed good for the game blog.
Article after article on sensationalistic news, capitalizing on the worst things in society.
Pretty nice story about Sergio's 27 though
Wasn't there some court case happening where someone claimed there were different rules for different golfers?
Isn't this vaguely relevant to a certain player who has outperformed Mickelson this year but who only gets mentioned when he is ahead of Mickelson on an Olympics list?
You'll have to be (much) more specific. ;^)
I do find it ironic that the same CBS gush-fest going on for Rory after Firestone sounds eerily similar to the Rose "speak" two weeks ago after his two straight wins. The PGA is wide open despite so-called experts' anointing McIroy before the first shot is hit.
In the middle of the event, one of the golden haired steroid monsters went over to the handicapped section and, with great flourish, autographed a picture for a boy in a wheelchair who was holding a sign praising that wrestler. In that boy's world, the good guys were role models, protecting us all from the heels.
Everyone cheered, but most of the grown ups knew it was kinda ridiculous.
These days, there's not much difference between that wrestling spectacle and how throngs of people adore professional athletes and waste countless hours wrapped up in the activity of following professional sports because it somehow "matters" and presents the best of humanity. Remember "These Guys are Good"? Ironic.
If people stepped back and realized, "how we look at sports is silly," things might look very different in the world. People might actually spend time learning something useful, spending more time with the family, or playing golf.
But what would Mike Lupica do for a living? So many wealthy people and corporations make money off how sports distracts people from more important things.
All of this high wire act on how to present the Dustin Johnson affair is simply an effort to make the Tour look like a highly significant competition involving a bunch of great guys. Any honest Tour pro would tell you, however, that the guys on tour are no better or worse than a cross section of competitive people from similar economic backgrounds. There are good guys and there are not so good guys -- just like society.
Sure, pro golf is fun to watch from time to time, but "public trust"? Please.
The Romans before their empire fell used Bread&Circuses to appease the masses.
Modern day obsession with professional games is merely a modern version of an old system of controlling the masses with metal pablum.
(Oops...wrong meeting ;-))
Paul