BRING ON THE VUVUZELAS!

The World Cup 2010 is coming to an end and in a few hours’ time (at the time of this writing), Netherlands or Spain will be crowned world champions. The excitement and passion exhibited by the fans were breathtaking to say the least. I was in London when England was playing Germany in the round of 16. There was so much gusto from the pub-goers at the beginning of the match while they were singing “God Save the Queen”. It would have been louder and clearer, if not for the vuvuzelas blaring from the television. Well, at least that masked the silence after their team conceded the third goal.

Ah...the vuvuzela.  A lot of football fans voiced their hatred towards the plastic horn. It’s loud and it sure makes helluva buzz inside the stadium. It also led me to think: it must be difficult to concentrate while taking a penalty amidst the monotonous buzz and in front of 60,000 spectators no less. Statistically, that argument holds true. Only 9 out of 16 penalties awarded were converted in the 2010 World Cup.

In golf, the spectators are always made to be quiet during the game. Even the slightest sound can send a golfer into fits. Most famously, John Daly smashed a fan’s camera into smithereens at the Australian Open in 2009. World number 1 Tiger Woods commented that camera clicks halted his momentum at the WGC-CA Championship at Doral in 2008. He finished 5th.

Yes, everybody should behave perfectly during a tournament. You can talk, but between shots and preferably in whispers. You can clap, but do so politely please. You can cheer, only if the golfer made an impossible shot or as he is walking from the greens to the next tee off box. Hmm..come to think of it, spectator golf can be rather boring. Back then during the Malaysia cup days, I always look forward to going to the National Stadium. The atmosphere was electric and the friendly banter between fans always left me in stitches. Whereas in a golf tournament, correct me if I’m wrong, people are there simply to admire the skills of the professionals, to be seen, or just to enjoy a day out under the sun. Everybody goes about in their hoity-toity manner and seldom contribute to build up an exciting atmosphere. That’s what I felt as I walked through Serapong in the past few Singapore Opens. If professional basketball players can make crucial free throws even with visual and audio distractions, I’m sure golfers can make that fairway splitting drive with loud cheers (or jeers) from their fans (or foes) in the background. It’s all a matter of mental conditioning, isn’t it?

Well, here’s my suggestion: how about getting vuvuzelas into the Barclays Singapore Open? We can have them in the bank’s corporate colours, and have sponsors’ logos printed on them. That’s boost up the atmosphere and spirit of Sentosa Golf Club come tournament day. At the opening tee off box, instead of polite applause, there will be a rapturous blanket of vuvuzela noise as Lam Chih Bing tees off. What a scene it’ll be!

Then again, if this goes through, I’ll run naked from the 9th to the 18th green. Read: it’ll never happen!

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