Twitter banter much better than bland on-air ramblings

GOLF: CADDIE'S ROLE:Judging by Rory McIlroy's defence of his man, JP Fitzgerald, Jay Townsend's criticism has strengthened their relationship

I TUNED into the Irish Open television coverage last Saturday in order to get a feel for some of the golfing action from Killarney. I don’t watch a whole lot of golf and if I do, I glance at it while reading the paper or, more inspirational, gaping out the window. I would assume this is how many armchair spectators view their golf.

After eight minutes of watching two tour referees deciding where Jeev Milkha Singh should drop his ball, it having been sniped hard left into a lateral water hazard on some hole on the back nine, I found myself gawking out my well-buffed lounge window (which I had cleaned the previous day). This didn’t bode well for an extensive viewing session for me. I dozed off and woke up to Jeev shaking hands with his playing partner on the 18th.

I was grateful our Open was being shown on national television but with one uninspiring session I couldn’t have cared less if they had paid me to watch it; apart from the odd panoramic shot across the scenic Lough Leane the coverage was not memorable.

Naturally I have been exposed to a lot of golf in my time but this doesn’t take away from the fact something is either engaging or not. There must have been another player on the Killeen course at Killarney on Saturday afternoon worth watching having a swat at his ball, rather than seeing Jeev Milkha figure out where to drop his ball. I was glad the windows were clean.

Judging from the generous gallery that had congregated in Killarney for the tournament it looked like it was a very pleasant event at which to be a spectator. There seemed to be plenty of families on staycation and making a holiday of the golf. What a beautiful place to ramble about, enjoy the scenery and to spectate.

Something would seem to be drawing the Irish crowd back to the golf course. Perhaps the lack of much other professional events in this country compared to the spoilt-for-choice era some five years ago where if you missed one men’s tournament the chances were you could catch another one in a different location a month later.

Like with so many aspects of our former boom lives in this country we suffered from overkill in golf. Without any other men’s professional events in the country the golf fans have redeveloped an appreciation for the Irish Open. Live television is doing live golf a big favour.

It seemed I had missed the most exciting interaction of the week in Killarney on Thursday; a Twitter attack on Rory McIlroy’s caddie. Such is our modern-day connection to everything in the world in a superficial throwaway manner that what would have been idle bar room banter a few years ago now spreads like an insidious virus around the globe. We can all partake in a global slagging match without ever possibly trying to solve the matter.

Jay Townsend had tweeted that the US Open champion’s bagman’s advice was less than helpful on one hole and was pretty reprehensible for an adviser to a top player. I would personally find it challenging to talk informatively about golf for half an hour during a laborious afternoon transmission, let alone half a day of speaking. I am sorry to say unless there is a close finish on the back nine on a Sunday it is difficult to get too engrossed in the weekly tournament transmissions.

The commentators, most of them “failed golfers” to some people, have an uphill battle making a slow-paced sport compelling. It is a little harsh suggesting that almost the entire commentary world consists of failed ex-golfers. The commentators are limited by the philosophy of the directors. If bland, unquestioning coverage is the order of the day, naturally an insightful and well-informed announcer like Townsend is going to be unsatisfied by his on-air banal ramblings (with a silencing muzzle on) and will project what he really wants to say on social networking sites.

I have no idea about the decision the McIlroy team made which led to Townsend’s criticism. But as an innocent bystander, I would suggest it is his job to observe, commentate, commend and question where appropriate. Working for top players puts the caddie in an exposed place. As caddies, we all make mistakes because there are many variables involved and judgments are made in constantly varying circumstances. We all have good and bad days, what a caddie is trying to do is limit the risks by having their homework done. Good decisions are based on good ground work, from understanding your player to knowing the course.

Such a dressing down of a top caddie is an indication of the value players put on a reliable bagman. I would take it as another step forward in a long, hard road to acceptance in the modern game. It also tests the relationship the criticised caddie has with his player. Judging by Rory’s immediate defence of his man, JP Fitzgerald, Townsend’s criticism has strengthened their relationship.

I commend Jay for his action and Rory for his reaction. It helps us all understand a little more of what it is that goes on between player and caddie. It is something that seems to be of little interest to television producers in a medium that is in danger of boring viewers away from the screen, at best back to the golf course, and at worst into superficial social networking banter.