We could regard this as a great opportunity to learn sports history over at ESPN if we chose to reframe it that way, I suppose. I keep going over there, like one of those pigeons pecking at the bar hoping for a pellet, but there's just not much happening.
I would think that golf and maybe tennis could both be done with social distancing and be darn similar for a TV audience. Somehow, that's not happening.
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Last night my wife had a rant about admin officials that should be setting an example who are not (e.g.: the crowded dias in the Brady Press Briefing Room) My defense of it was the need to have those experts and officials with authoritative answers available to the press should they choose to actually ask a substantive question, and the history of the creation and use of that room, but she was having none of it.
I think that the situation may be the same with Golf and Tennis - the game itself is fine, but travel to the match is the sort of thing that is highly frowned upon for us proles, so it wouldn't look good for the officiating body to be flouting the rules which apply to travel in many of the areas where the viewers/fans live. I heard that MLB Baseball was considering setting up shop with all teams in AZ for the duration, that would be somewhat more defensible, assuming that AZ allows the local travel that would be required.
On a walk a week ago, my wife asked "can we walk around the Golf Course?" to which I replied "well, it's officially closed by decree, but I don't suppose anyone would mind" More recently our Governor has lifted the decree, saying golf is OK, but our county still has a restriction that one can only drive for essential travel such as food shopping and medical appointments. So the golf-course is allowed to be open, but apparently only for those of us who can walk to it.
The local tennis courts have been padlocked. There is a sign on the gate saying that the USTA has recommended that no one participates in 'this great sport' during the pandemic. 100 yards away people are playing basketball and baseball. I will never watch or support professional tennis again.
@ cmarr - I wonder if there is a "Tennis is an upper-class, those others are lower class" dynamic going in that USTA sign? What's your reading on that?
I don't tend to think in those categories so I hadn't considered that possibility. However, the sign stated that people should instead play "at-home tennis activities." I have a decent house and yard, but in no way is there any chance to play at-home tennis in any fashion. I guess they are assuming that the majority of the players have some kind of....what? Large driveway with a wall, a half size court, a full sized court, a lawn comparable to a wimbledon court? I don't know.
Mostly it seems like nonsense all around, but it does seem apparent that the USTA feels like they have control of the total game, not just their organized leagues.
Love your blog. Be well.
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