Shut up, Monty!

As possibly America's foremost Colin Montgomerie fan (small club, I know), it pains me to write this.

Shut your whining mouth, Monty. Wealthy, middle-aged men in the decline of their career should not be begging for charity. And griping about the opportunity of others is unseemly.

Monty is miffed that he won't be getting a get-out-of-oblivion-free card otherwise known as a special international exemption into the Masters Tournament field. He's ranked 75th in the world (and falling) and doesn't appreciate that his presence at Augusta National won't greatly enhance the TV ratings in Scotland next week.

At least not as much as the presence of India's Jeev Milkha Singh (No. 80), Thailand's Prayad Marksaeng (93rd) or China's Liang Wen-hong (111th) will in their native lands. They all got the coveted "special" invitations this winter. 

"There has been no call from Augusta and I am not expecting one," Monty told reporters in Munich at a promotional event for June's BMW International Open. "Now, if I were the only person in the country, à la China, I might get in. It is a strange way to make up a field for a major championship – television rights. They are quite open about why. They were when I missed out last time in 2005 when they picked Shingo Katayama who was 67th in the world and I was 51st. They picked him over me for the Japanese rights. And they have done the same with Thailand and China this time.

"I am not the only one who feels that way and not just because I am not in. In or not I'd be saying the same thing. It is a strange criterion to pick a major field.

"The Masters is the only one you can get invited to. At the Open, the U.S. Open and the U.S. PGA you have to qualify. But the Masters have their own rules so we will leave them to it. It would be easier to swallow if no one was invited and it was done on sporting and not commercial criteria."

Hey, Mrs. Doubtfire. First of all, the other Opens have options to offer a special exemption or two as well, and occasionally exercise that right. Secondly, the Masters has qualification standards, too, and you failed to qualify.

Granted, I can't stand the Masters special exemption either, but not for the same reasons as Monty. I think the option should be available to ANY golfer in the world, and not just those born outside the United States. Now that the Masters invites more international players than Americans on an annual basis, the need for the international back door isn't necessary.

But what in the world is Monty's beef this time? He had his chances to qualify and failed miserably. (Don't choke at Winged Foot and you wouldn't need to beg). He's done little of merit this year, yet he's complaining about three Asian golfers who have shamed him on the course this year.

Singh has decisively beaten Monty in the last three events they both played in (Doral, Johnnie Walker and Dubai) and finished second in the Korean event Monty jilted last month so he could come to Bay Hill and miss the cut.

Marksaeng finished finished ninth in the Johnnie Walker where Monty missed the cut, their only common stage. Wen-Chong drubbed Monty in both the Johnnie Walker and HSBC Champions, though to be fair Monty did edge the Chinese golfer by one stroke at Doral.

Wen-Chong, incidentally, has cashed a check in three PGA Tour events this year - two of which required making cuts. Monty has cashed only guaranteed checks.

I was all for Monty receiving a a special invite three years ago when he was ranked 51st in the world at the deadline. (see here http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/032705/mic_3737036.shtml ) Monty had weathered a rough patch in his life and career and turned things around with a strong push toward qualifying for the Masters. I thought he deserved a break.

This time he deserves nothing. He's played like a dog outside of a couple good rounds in the Match Play (sadly for Monty, the majors count all of his strokes) and now he's howling like a dog because he feels he deserves special treatment for all the top 10s (1 in 15 tries) he's had at Augusta.

I don't hear Japan's Ryuji Imada (one of the hottest playes in the world right now) complaining. Or Welshman Bradley Dredge, or Irishman Graeme McDowell, or South African Louis Oosthuzien, or Australians Rod Pampling and Brendan Jones, or New Zealander Mark Jones, or Indian Jyoti Randhawa or Swede Peter Hanson. They're all ranked ahead of Monty and none of them are coming to Augusta.

And let's not forget Davis Love III, Chris DiMarco or Chad Campbell, three Americans who have actually threatened to win the Masters but don't even have the option of receiving special dispensation from the club.

So Monty should shut up and work on his game to try to EARN an invitation next year. (It's the only way he'll ever get back).

If he'd like to head up to his homeland in Scotland to watch it on TV, he can at least be thankful Sandy Lyle's got that demographic covered.