Chipping In - Great drama, but who in the world was watching?

Chipping In is a weekly column by golf journalist Nick Bonfield 

Seamless victory for Marcel

The European Tour’s Final Series started with a bang as Marcel Siem defeated Alex Levy and Ross Fisher in a play-off at the BMW Masters following an error-strewn conclusion to regular play. The Frenchman – winner of the rain-affected Portugal Masters last month – was in control after a birdie at the par-4 11th but proceeded to drop five shots over the closing five holes at Lake Malaren. Siem also made four bogeyes over the final seven holes to complete the final round on 16-under-par. That total was matched by the impressive Fisher, who carded 67 – the best round of the day – in windy conditions in China. To put that round into perspective, the 78-strong field, containing some of the world’s best players, was only able to compile four rounds in the 60s. Gregarious Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez even carded a 13 on the par-4 9th en route to a final-round 88.

In the ensuing play-off, Siem provided one of the most dramatic moments of the season. With the other two players on the green, the feisty German holed a tough chip shot to claim his fourth European Tour title and pick up a cheque for $1,166,660 – by far the biggest of his career. Siem has made great strides over the past few years, transforming himself from a volatile journeyman to a player not far away from breaching the world’s top 50.

His talent and popularity have never been in question – he was a prolific amateur who turned professional off +5 and is one of the most-liked players on tour – but his temperament and commitment were somewhat lacking in his early days on Tour. Indeed, club throwing and late, alcohol-fuelled nights were a feature of his career during the noughties. But he’s turned his fortunes around admirably, and won a high-profile event in each of the last three seasons. He’s now 4th in the Race to Dubai standing and one of the few players with an outside chance of catching Rory McIlroy, who won’t return to action until the season-ending DP World Tour Championship.

Race to Dubai standings

As is stands, McIlroy is a massive 3,047,391 points ahead of Jamie Donaldson in the Race to Dubai rankings. That might seem like an unassailable lead, but the huge points on offer during the Finals Series, coupled with the Ulsterman’s absence until the season finale, mean it’s not quite dead and buried. Indeed, the winner of each Finals Series event earns 1,666,600 points. As such, back-to-back victories from Donaldson, Sergio Garcia, Siem, Justin Rose, Henrik Stenson or Levy at the WGC-HSBS Champions and Turkish Airlines Open would leave everything to play for in Dubai. Of course, that scenario is unlikely to materialise, but who knows? Even one win for the aforementioned players, plus a high finish in the other event, would keep things very much alive.

US representation

Once again, I was pleased to see a strong US showing in a European Tour event. With mediocre tournaments running concurrently to the Finals Series on the PGA Tour, I hope that we’ll see more Americans join the European ranks over the coming few seasons. Golfers are only required to play 12 events on the European Tour each season to qualify for membership – a figure that would be satisfied by taking part in the four majors, four WGCs and four Finals Series tournaments.

Kevin Stadler and Ryan Palmer both played in the BMW Masters and have competed in previous European Tour events this season. Brooks Koepka and Peter Uihlein look set to retain membership and fellow talented youngster Chris Kirk was in action in China. This young, intrepid breed of players – keen to play golf around the world and experience different cultures – could facilitate a paradigm switch, whereby the world’s best golfers taking up membership of both tours is commonplace.

Great drama… but bad viewership figures

The European Tour’s Finals Series undoubtedly has a lot of plus points, but timing simply isn’t one of them. As I found myself refreshing my phone at 5am on Sunday morning, I couldn’t help but wonder how much better the season-ending series could be if all events were staged at hospitable times for European viewers. We all understand the need to grow the sport in Asia, but surely television figures are taking a huge hit as a result. I’m a die-hard golf fan, but even I couldn’t bring myself to wake up at 5am on Saturday and Sunday morning.

The BMW Masters was arguably the most exiting event of the season, but it would have passed most people by. Next week, the WGC-HSBC Champions will be over by the time most people surface for breakfast. It’s a shame, really. If you include the ISPS Handa Perth International, the last regular-season event, three of the last five European Tour tournaments are being broadcast at times that alienate most European golf fans. What’s more, it’s no secret that China isn’t the most popular destination with a number of professionals.

Ryan wins once Moore

Ryan Moore became the first player since Tiger Woods (2012/14) to defend a PGA Tour title with his three-shot victory in the CIMB Classic. Moore, who narrowly missed out on a US Ryder Cup berth, birdied three of his final five holes to hold off Gary Woodland, Kevin Na and Sergio Garcia. It was a well-attended tournament and good to see an Asian event growing in stature as each year goes by. Malaysia is an intriguing destination for golfers who rarely get to play outside America and it comes at a sensible time in the context of the PGA Tour season. With its position before the WGC-HSBC Champions, I’m sure more high-profile names will commit to the tournament over the next few years, especially now that it’s part of the FedEx Cup.