Living Under Par Has Become Reality And Players Aren't Liking What They're Hearing

After losing a six-hole playoff, Bryson DeChambeau was on his way up the hill and presumably to a cold shower. ESPN.com’s Kevin Van Valkenburg explained what happened next:

A patron waited until DeChambeau had walked by, but was not out of earshot, then sneered from over the rope line, "Great job, Brooksie!" DeChambeau spun around in a rage and began briefly walking in his direction.

"You know what? Get the f--- out!" DeChambeau yelled. He had rage in his eyes.

But then, Van Valkenburg writes, crisis averted.

Thankfully, DeChambeau paused, angrily motioning for a police officer to handle the heckler, then continued his march up the hill. The entire exchange took less than 10 seconds. The PGA Tour declined comment when asked about the incident by ESPN. But we've been building to something like this all summer. And I don't know what the endgame is.

Oh I do!

We knew this day was coming when the PGA Tour went from These Guys Are Good to Live Under Par.

From a golf tour filled with supremely talented and generally good guys to being all about YOU! The fan.

The PGA Tour, ever desperate to lower the average viewer demographic from 65, became a wannabe lifestyle brand where you come, hold up your phones, get drunk and are as much a part of the action as the players.

In case you forgot since your bookmarks to LiveUnderPar.com no longer work, the rollout:

The slogan has been iced due to the pandemic and hopefully never returns. But the philosophy remains the same: do whatever we have to do to get younger, cooler, and less Villages-y and more TikToky.

Throw in once-secret incentive for players to make money for mentions—PIP!—and we get a little rivalry brewing that gives fans a side to take. Now, of course the ad geniuses and Commissioner Jay Monahan cannot be blamed for failing to anticipate fans returning from the pandemic with pent-up energy. But they still should have considered the ramifications of encouraging general obnoxiousness and making fans think they are as much a part of the product as players.

GolfChannel.com’s Brentley Romine talked to players about the DeChambeau heckling before the above incident was reported on by Van Valkenburg. The comments of Harry Higgs from Romine’s story were picked up by several outlets:

“I think it’s wildly inappropriate what goes on,” Higgs told GolfChannel.com on Saturday. “The he and Brooks thing, I don’t really understand it … and neither one of them has acted as they should at times, but you know, no one’s perfect, either. I watched Memphis and it affected Harris, it affected Bryson, and I don’t understand why someone who buys a ticket to an event thinks that they get to have a hand in how it plays out, and there’s starting to be a few too many people who are doing that, and then a lot of those people are following Bryson.

“It’s not in the spirit of the game, it’s not how any of us grew up, it’s not how any of us were ever told to act while at a golf course or competing.”

Except, it was the PGA Tour that told a lot of people to make noise. Live under par. They built an entire image around a campaign inspiring people to act loud and proud. Good luck reeling them in.