The West Coast Swing

The PGA Tour has moved east. The Honda Classic, which begins on Thursday in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, signals the beginning of the run-up to the Masters. Much of the country hopes it also signals the run-up to spring.

Ratings and galleries aside, The West Coast Swing once again proved to be a compelling start to the season. With the Hawaii courses, Pebble, Monterey, and Riviera, the Tour has seen a handful of the most interesting venues it will visit this year, and the list of early season winners is a pleasant mix of the expecteds, the reasonables and the surprises. Every event has been compelling and, aside from the usual caveats, fun to watch. I for one have not missed Indefinite Leave even a little bit. He would have only played twice anyway (Torrey Pines and the Accenture) and both events had story lines aplenty. My vote is that Indefinite Leave takes the whole year off, but that's another issue.

But while on the subject, one hopes the Tour has learned its lesson. For more than a decade it has put all of its eggs in one basket, eggs that are now, at least for the time being, rotten. Meanwhile other members of the Tour who are deserving of recognition have been passed over. That a few of those personalities and stories have come to light over the last two months is a positive for the Tour and for the golf fan. There are many Tour members who are more deserving of attention than Indefinite Leave. One would hope the Tour has recognized that.

The West Coast Swing has also presented a stark illustration that the new groove rule will have little effect. From this viewers vantage point, there has been no discernible increase in strategery for the young guys. Balls are stopping plenty quick from all lies. The greens appear so soft (even when not dictated by weather) that any diminishing of spin rate has been neutralized. To this point, I'm sad to say, the rule change seems much ado about nothing.

So, onward to Florida.

And Daylight's Savings Time is only ten days away. It can't come quick enough.