DEAD SOLID PERFECT: Classic staring at unsettling future

LITTLE ROCK — I’ve watched a lot of golf in the past couple of weeks.

A practice round and four days at the PGA Tour’s St.

Jude Classic in Memphis was followed by a practice round and four days at the Nationwide Tour’s Fort Smith Classic.

Here’s some of what I learned:

I don’t have any insight as to whether the Fort Smith Classic will survive.

Tournament officials have said it will go away if it doesn’t find a title sponsor for the tournament, which is the only PGA Tour stop in Arkansas. Dardanelle’s John Daly lent a hand last week, playing in the Fort Smith Classic and trying to promote it whenever he could.

But except for the hole Daly happened to be playing at that time, the crowds weren’t good.

I’m not sure how they’ll figure up attendance for the tournament. For the first time in the years I’ve been covering it, media were required to wear a media credential and a grounds ticket. Do those count in attendance?

Officials will spend the next couple of weeks paying bills and getting the books up to date. After that, it’s anybody’s guess.

It’s not just a Fort Smith problem. The PGA Tour’s St. Jude Classic is also on the search for a title sponsor.

One problem in Fort Smith appears to be a lack of coverage by The Golf Channel.

You might or might not like Dardanelle’s John Daly (Arkansas Razorbacks), but one thing you will never be able to criticize him for is slow play.

I thought a lot about Daly’s pace of play when I was roasting at the U.S. Junior Girls qualifying Tuesday at Hot Springs Country Club.

When it’s Daly’s turn to hit, he’s already selected a club. Within seconds, he’s addressed the ball and sent it flying down the fairway.

That’s the pace of play everyone should be striving to keep.

While driving home from Fort Smith on Sunday night, I had an opportunity to listen to the U.S. Open live on ESPN Radio.

The good was that I was able to get a feel for the final round and how everyone seemed to struggle, but the bad came in ESPN Radio’s coverage. When you watch on television, there is constantly a graphic showing where the player stands. ESPN Radio frequently failed to relay that information.

It made it nearly impossible to determine who stood where most of the time.

I guess the United States Golf Association got what it wanted out of the 2010 U.S. Open - a winner with a score of par.

I’m all for a tough golf course, but I also want to see the great players in contention for the championship making birdies as they try to chase the leaders down. Instead, what we got Sunday was leaders trying not to make too many bogeys.

Sunday’s Fort Smith Classic was much more enjoyable. They eased up the golf course a bit Sunday, forcing the leaders to make birdies to stay in contention. Chris Kirk shot a 6-under-par 64 on Sunday and won by only one stroke.

That was fun.

I feel for the competitors at today’s USGA Public Links qualifier and at Tuesday’s U.S. Junior Amateur qualifier. In both cases, the players will have to walk 36 holes in extreme heat.

I love the idea of these players having to go 36 holes, but perhaps its time we move this thing back a month. It’s far too hot right now.