What's the score? Stats don't lie--paying for play isn't always a winner.

• Author: Campbell, Spencer
• Position: Up Front

During a recent golf trip to Southern Pines, I fatted an approach shot into a fairway bunker 15 yards in front of me. Seconds later, the offending club helicoptered over the sand trap, landing in the middle of the fairway. It was a childish thing to do. I'm an OK golfer, playing to about a 10 handicap. I should expect the occasional flub. But I'm passionate about golf and, therefore, lack perspective.

A few weeks after my 7-iron took flight, the men's and women's U.S. Opens descended upon nearby Pinehurst Resort & Country Club. Though the men's event was a yawner--Martin Kaymer demolished the field--the renovated course won rave reviews, and Sandhills businesses braced for about 400,000 visitors. A study by N.C. State University and the local convention and visitors bureau projected nearly $170 million of economic impact statewide from the tourneys. Though such reports should be taken with a truckload of salt, anyone who passed through Moore County June 9-22 knows the Opens bolstered the local economy.

About the time Kaymer began assailing Pinehurst No. 2, Brazilian authorities were firing tear gas and stun grenades into crowds of demonstrators in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. "I'm totally against the [World] Cup," a student protestor told CBS News. Why did the world's most-watched sporting event, one expected to inject $11.1 billion into the economy, get such a rude reception in the country that loves the "beautiful game" more than any other? Moody's Investors Services forecast that the World Cup would have a negligible effect on Brazil because its estimated economic impact is only 0.5% of annual gross domestic product. Though $11 billion sounds big, it's trifling to a $2.2 trillion economy.

Sports have become a popular tool for local politicians. The trend is especially prevalent in our largest city, where Charlotte and Mecklenburg County together shelled out $16 million toward a $54 million minor-league ballpark. Last year, the city agreed to spend $87.5 million for renovations at...