Tournament golf in Chicago is about to enter the great unknown.
For years, the Western Open was scheduled comfortably around the 4th of July. The school kids and the Bears were still on vacation. It was too early in the baseball season to get worked up about the pennant races.
The Western had the playing field to itself. Tiger Woods made a point of visiting Cog Hill in July, and the fans showed up in large numbers to see him and the other top pros. The event always averaged nearly 200,000 spectators for the week.
Now it is different. The Western name, dating to 1899, is gone from the title. And instead of Independence Day, the new BMW Championship will be held Labor Day week.
When the tournament kicks off Thursday at Cog Hill, most local fans’ attention will be on the Bears as they prepare for their opener. In fact, about the time the leaders make the turn in the final round Sunday, the Bears will be kicking off their season in San Diego.
The Cubs will be playing important September games, albeit on the road, Indy cars will be racing Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, there is a U.S. vs. Brazil soccer game scheduled for Sunday at Soldier Field and the White Sox play host to rival Minnesota at U.S. Cellular Field. The kids are back in class, and many parents will be preoccupied with activities that revolve around school.
Also, the BMW will be the third stop in the PGA Tour’s new season-ending FedEx Cup series, a concept that is struggling to capture fans’ imagination.
It all adds up to a lot of uncertainty for Western Golf Association officials who run the tournament.
“It’s all guesswork,” WGA Executive Director Don Johnson said. “We don’t know about tournament golf after Labor Day in Chicago. We don’t know how people will support it.”
Early signs
The BMW does have a couple of positive indicators. Tournament director John Kaczkowski says corporate sales are “way up.” The 4th of July was a tough date for corporate entertainment because people tended to be tied up with the holiday.
Also, Kaczkowski thought the tournament might struggle to attract volunteers since so many, especially school teachers, had the summer off. But to his surprise, the BMW will have a full force of 2,000 volunteers.
As for tickets, Kaczkowski says advance sales are up 10 percent. But that doesn’t mean much since the gate is usually at least 30 percent walk-ups.
“We think there is word-of-mouth interest,” Kaczkowski said. “But does it translate to people buying tickets? We’ll have to wait and see.”
Star attractions
The WGA hopes the strength of the field will compel fans to make the trip to Cog Hill, even if they don’t necessarily understand the nuances of the FedEx Cup format.
Besides Woods, the BMW is expected to feature Vijay Singh and Jim Furyk, Western regulars. In addition, the field will include Ernie Els, Sergio Garcia and Padraig Harrington, international players who rarely visited Cog Hill in July.
“This year we will have absolutely the best players in the world,” Johnson said.
The coverage
Of course, everything revolves around one player. Will fans come out to see Woods when they could be watching college football on Saturday and the adventures of Rex Grossman on Sunday?
“The Bears and Cubs will be the big story,” said Dan Roan of WGN-Ch. 9. “But we plan to devote a considerable amount of time to the BMW. It’s the biggest golf event in town. We’ll be out there every day.”
The BMW will face considerable competition for ratings, especially with most NFL teams opening Sunday. But if Woods is in the hunt, the remote could get a workout.
“There’s no question the NFL is the biggest thing going,” Kaczkowski said. “When Tiger Woods plays well, the ratings are pretty good too. I think we’ll hold our own with the most recognizable athlete in the world.”
Batting third
Kaczkowski says he prefers the BMW’s position in the FedEx Cup series, even if it means bumping up against football.
As the third tournament, the BMW will be pivotal in determining who is in the hunt going into the finale, the Tour Championship.
And there will be suspense as only 30 of the 70 players will move on from Cog Hill.
“We figured it would be a prime spot,” Kaczkowski said. “Hopefully, people will pick up interest between the first two events. Football is one of the downsides, but the date has a lot of positives too.”
Former Western Open tournament director Peter deYoung thinks the BMW will enjoy a successful week, assuming Woods is in contention.
“The crowds should be about the same [as the Western in July],” said deYoung, who runs his own event-management company. “I love the size of the field. It’s very manageable.
“Your golf fan ought to eat up the field. The field looks like Augusta.”
