Columnist Peter Benton: Don’t blame the weather if Takefuji leaves town

Peter Benton

Wednesday, April 20, 2005 | 9:05 a.m.

Peter Benton's golf column appears Wednesday.

Glorious weather, a course in pristine shape, and a field containing most of the world's top female golfers made for a terrific show in last week's LPGA Takefuji Classic.

From winner Wendy Ward down to those who failed to make the cut for the final round, their graciousness in signing autographs and their genuine desire to interact with those in attendance knew no bounds -- a startling contrast to many previous professional golfing events this city has hosted.

No one yet knows if the Takefuji Classic will be back, as last week's tournament was the third of the three-year contract. Of course, if it leaves, who or what is to blame?

It certainly won't be the weather, as apart from some winds the first day it was idyllic. Although it appeared the crowds were the best of any previous Takefuji, it could be that they were still not sufficient enough for the sponsors.

As with many things in life (far too many I am sorry to say), it is often not until you lose someone or something and it has gone forever, that we finally fully appreciate exactly what we had.

I have stated previously that in my opinion Las Vegans in general are either too lazy to be inconvenienced by driving to a sporting event, would rather catch all the action on TV, take too much for granted and are not at all concerned about what our community has to offer, just do not care about anything but themselves, or all of the above.

Hopefully Takefuji will stay, and I will be proven wrong.

As in any event of the magnitude of the Takefuji Classic, the logistics are enormous and there is absolutely no possible way that such a tournament could be successful without the huge number of volunteers who are required and who give so freely of their time.

In many instances these people are taken for granted, but knowing personally the hours they put in and the thanklessness of many of their duties, I would like to thank them publicly for a job well done.