The golf world needs more match play

All week it seems that people have complained about this week's match-play tournament. Golfers say it's gimmicky. Fans can't believe it's formatted the way it is. Americans are mad that there aren't more Americans in the field.

But why all the negativity? This event is great and there needs to be more match-play events throughout the year, since that is the best format in golf.

Quick question: When you play money games against your buddies, do you normally do stroke or match? I'm going to assume match, because it gives both players a better chance to compete. Don't have your best stuff that day? No problem, with match play, you just lose a hole with a big number and not the whole day. The same goes for the PGA Tour, and the best 64 players in the world. With match play, we get to see the best in the world playing, literally, for an opportunity to tee it up tomorrow.

Padraig Harrington told the AP's Doug Ferguson this week that professional golf (read: stroke-play events) has made it tougher for him to "enjoy" match play because it isn't as free-wheeling. You are brainwashed into being worried about mistakes, so you fire away from any pin tucked near a bunker, miss tee shots away from trouble, and take your par when you might have been able to take a chance.

This isn't like that. This week, you are FORCED to go after golf shots. You are busting your butt on every hole to make a birdie, or an eagle, and hope that your partner doesn't match it. You know that the only thing, the ONLY thing, that you can control is the current hole you're playing, and that birdie you missed on the last hole or the one you'll have in the next few holes doesn't matter.

Don't think match play is that important? Well, it used to be the format of the PGA Championship until 1958, and if it wasn't for television rights and such, it would probably still be around.

It's different, and as we've seen in the past, professional golfers do not like different, but it's fun, and I love that one of the biggest non-majors of the year is decided over match play.

It probably will never be extending past this week in Marana, Ariz., but one can dream. How great would it be to see the FedEx Cup, or the Race to Dubai, decided over a year-ending match-play tournament? It would at least give our final taste of golf each season a little flavor. 

Genelle Frenoy Shania Twain Gwen Stefani Sunny Mabrey Karolína Kurková