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Golfer blasts Nick Faldo for taking spot in PGA tournament

Faldo competes in the 2013 British Open. (USA TODAY Sports Images)

Faldo competes in the 2013 British Open. (USA TODAY Sports Images)

CBS golf announcer and six-time major champion Nick Faldo climbed down from the 18th tower this week to play in the RBC Heritage in Hilton Head. His return to the course honored the 30th anniversary of his first-ever PGA tour win, which came at the event in 1984. As expected, a rusty Faldo struggled in his opening round, shooting a six-over 77, which left him tied for last.

This poor play angered Web.com golfer Josh Broadaway, who went on Twitter to express his disgust with Faldo taking a tournament berth away from a player who needs it more.

In other tweets that replied to opposing views, Broadaway’s main point seemed to be that “wild card” invites are generally okay if they go to a current touring pro. (He used John Daly as an example.) He draws the line at giving one to a broadcaster such as Faldo who will happily miss the cut and get back into the booth over the weekend while “making millions.” Faldo, for what it’s worth, hasn’t made a PGA cut since 2006 and admitted before the tournament that he devoted 1% of the time to practicing as he usually does.

Who’s right? Who’s wrong? Neither side. This is a classic debate with shades of gray. Broadaway is right to be protective of his livelihood and that of his minor-league peers. A berth in the Heritage could a life-changer for a golfer.

(USA TODAY Sports Images)

(USA TODAY Sports Images)

The Heritage is right to use its invitations as it sees fit. Giving one to Faldo is a fine way to generate publicity. Web.com golfers don’t pay the bills. Names such as Faldo bring galleries to the course and eyeballs to the television.

And certainly don’t blame Faldo for accepting the invitation. If they’re going to offer, why turn them down?

Where Broadaway goes too far is in suggesting Faldo is keeping money out of other golfer’s pockets because he decided to tee it up. Golf is a meritocracy. Either you earn your way into a tournament that week or because you’ve done enough in the past. (Also, making fun of his score, as Broadaway did in the second tweet, was poor form. I don’t care that Faldo’s six majors all came more than 18 years ago. That’s a three-time Masters winner and World Golf Hall of Famer.)

One of the beauties of golf is that older players can still compete against the younger generation. Fans enjoy seeing Nick Faldo in the same field as Jordan Spieth. It’s something that can only happen in golf. Embrace that.

(USA TODAY Sports Images)

(USA TODAY Sports Images)

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