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I don’t blog enough. That’s an obvious statement based on the sporadic nature of content on this site, which is, ironically, the root of the problem discussed below.
Earlier this year, I launched a podcast. If you’re one of the five people reading this blog, you probably know this. What you may not know is why I started it. The Perfect Number Podcast has become a place for stats and analytics professionals in golf to collaborate, learn and listen. It, I think, filled a tiny void in a massive world of golf podcast #content. Here’s the thing: I don’t know if I was the right voice for it.
I love stats, and I love numbers, but I am not an analyst. I don’t know how to create formulas or build decks. I am a simply a broadcaster with questions.
I created my podcast not to fill a void in golf, but in my professional life. I missed having an audience on a platform of my control. While I love calling games or tournaments, I really developed a love for the talk and conversation of radio. Without a regular show, a podcast made the most sense. But, with so many great ones out there, I didn’t want to reinvent the wheel. Hence, a podcast of something I was curious about.
Here’s the dilemma…
As I have studied the modest growth of the Perfect Number’s brand this past year, I analyzed the rise of so many others. What separates most of the best voices out there is autonomy – the power to independently create and speak. That is where sports media is splintered.
Governing bodies, conferences and leagues control the content you see and hear on television and radio. You can’t blame them. With the money on the line and various brands to protect, live event broadcasts are more controlled by those playing than ever before. Critical thought about those events now must take place outside of the “safe zone” that is the broadcast.
How do you straddle that line if you want to work on both sides? That’s the professional question I ask myself every day. It’s more complicated than writing “tweets are my own” in a bio.
When I was 13, I said I wanted to call sports for a living. Nothing about that has changed. It’s what I do for a living. What the past decade has given me is an additional love for wanting to talk about sports on a more critical level. What 2018 has given me is the start of a marriage of both, I hope.
The Perfect Number Podcast is safe because it has to be for me. I want the niche to expand and unite an audience, like me, who embraces the intersection of statistical analysis and sport. To everybody who helped the podcast grow in 2018, thank you! It’s just the beginning.
Will Haskett 