Merry Christmas and here are ten more Fagan opinions in your stocking!<\/p>\n
31.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Being a sportswriter, and a golf writer in particular, is one of the best gigs going, providing you have another source of income and can afford it.<\/p>\n
32.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The expert players should play only a \u201ctournament ball\u201d that flies 10-15 percent shorter than the current ones.\u00a0 Having 8,400-yard courses and 400-yard drives is absurd.<\/p>\n
33.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Europeans \u201cget golf\u201d better than we do.\u00a0 They play quicker, on firm turf, with match play more often.\u00a0 Their handicapping system tends to root out sandbaggers better, and they seem to enjoy the simple pleasures of the game in all conditions more.\u00a0 Finally, their courses are more sustainable.<\/p>\n
34.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The PGA TOUR and LPGA TOUR should start penalizing slow play NOW!<\/p>\n
35.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Augusta National USED to be a great golf course.\u00a0 It\u2019s still a great golf experience, a gorgeous property, and a fantastic tournament, but it is not a great golf course.\u00a0 It has too many bad or ordinary holes, few options of attack, and it is not a sustainable model.<\/p>\n
36.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 How can a lush, soft green golf course with riding carts be described as a \u201clinks\u201d and also be the best Modern Course in America?\u00a0 Ballyneal or Pacific Dunes get my vote now over Sand Hills, but I love all three!<\/p>\n
37.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Jack Nicklaus for all his attributes is \u201cThe Father of Slow Play.\u201d\u00a0 He wasn\u2019t the first, but he was the one everyone copied.<\/p>\n
38.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The pension program of today\u2019s PGA TOUR player is the biggest untold story in golf.\u00a0 Journeymen players who make a lot of cuts over the years reportedly will have pension nest eggs in the tens of millions by the time they are eligible for the Champions Tour.<\/p>\n
39.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 While there are no bad golf courses, there can be bad golf holes.<\/p>\n
40.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Tiger Woods has helped golf viewership, but has not affected long-term participation in America.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"