It seems to me that a major tournament has to be the championship of something. The USGA has the U.S. Open. The R&A has The Open Championship. The PGA has, you could guess, the PGA Championship. Three major governing bodies in golf each have their championship and it’s a major. Makes sense to me.

Then there’s the Masters. It’s a tournament held by a single golf club, albeit one that runs a fabulous golf course. But still, it’s the championship of nothing. There’s a lot of tradition, they’re real good at self-promotion, and its exclusive nature and the way its run give it an air of it being a privilege to even play there and walk around the grounds. But that doesn’t make it a major. It has a weak field, top to bottom. And did I say it’s the championship of nothing?

Maybe I’m put off because it’s run by a bunch of stuffed shirts and marshaled by thugs. Jeff Rude, a prominent golf writer, was standing on a golf cart to get a better view of the 18th green one year when he was pulled down and told he would be escorted from the course if he did that again. Stuffed shirts. Thugs. This is a tournament that is famous for being famous. But it’s not a major.

The fourth major really is The Players, the final round of which is being played today. It has a strong field, probably the strongest of the three real majors. And it’s the championship of something – the PGA Tour. It’s a tournament the Tour players want to win, want to have on their resume.

The Masters is a local golf tournament that has sold the public on itself. But The Players is not the fifth, but the fourth major.