Hand up, I definitely thought we were getting blessed with ten episodes of Full Swing, but I was wrong. This is now part three of the eight part blog series on Netflix’s Full Swing, a carbon copy of what they have done for Formula 1 in Drive to Survive.
In episode three, the crew is following Ian Poulter, who had been a lively staple on the PGA Tour for a number of years. Poulter is known for his crazy plaid pants, and wild hair styles, but now may be known more for leaving the PGA Tour.
SPOILERS BELOW.
Poulter is portrayed as a man that is aging out of the hyper elite portion of the PGA Tour, and into the more relaxed type of schedule. He’s in his mid 40’s and is understandably trying to spend more time with his family, but also continues to have the fire in his soul to compete, and win.
One of the talking heads throughout the series explained that Poulter had made around $33 million on the PGA Tour through his career. I believe that’s just his Tour earnings, and not his sponsorship money, but still a big chunk of money. The interviewers ask him a few times if he’s going to LIV Golf, or considering their offer.
He’s on the tail end of his career, and is clearly a strong candidate to be a Ryder Cup captain for team Europe in the near future. One of the stipulations of become a member of LIV Golf is that, as of right now, the player will no longer be able to participate in the Ryder Cup.
The conundrum of Ian Poulter is that he’s one of the best Ryder Cup European players of all time, and says in the episode that not getting the chance to become the captain would hurt. Ultimately, the appeal of a giant guaranteed paycheck, less tournaments to play in, and more time to spend with his family outweighed the honor of being a captain for Team Europe.
He reportedly doubled his career earnings and then some with the move to LIV Golf, and he still gets to be one of the more recognizable players in the game of golf. I can’t blame the guy.
Stay tuned for part four of this blog series. Netflix’s Full Swing episode three may have opened the eyes of LIV Golf haters and turned them into LIV Golf tolerators.
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