The Future of Golf

[bluewolf]

Golf was always in my mind as something to play partly because when I was a kid I was allowed to walk the course with my dad and grandad when they played. This is going back to the 1970's when my dad and grandad would play a 2 ball round Beaconsfield and my brother and I would walk around with them. Not quite so sure that many clubs or, indeed, golfers would be willing to accept well behaved kids walking around the course but it was this sort of access to the sport which gave me an initial interest in playing in later life. It also solved the problem of parents not having time to play due to children.

My 10 year old son will quite often walk the course with me. He absolutely loves it, but he has no intention of playing golf. He thinks it's boring.. What he likes is finding golf balls and eating a burger and chips after the round..

I'm not overly worried about it though. He trains twice a weeks and plays twice a week for our local football team. He also goes to the Wigan Youth Zone gym every week for circuit training.. Maybe he'll think about golf when he's older, but I'm not holding my breath..

 

[Hacker Khan]

My 10 year old son will quite often walk the course with me. He absolutely loves it, but he has no intention of playing golf. He thinks it's boring.. What he likes is finding golf balls and eating a burger and chips after the round..

I'm not overly worried about it though. He trains twice a weeks and plays twice a week for our local football team. He also goes to the Wigan Youth Zone gym every week for circuit training.. Maybe he'll think about golf when he's older, but I'm not holding my breath..

Have you asked him what he finds boring about it?

 

[bluewolf]

Have you asked him what he finds boring about it?

He thinks it's too slow, with not enough immediate excitement. The appreciation for a good shot is usually quite reserved on the course. There are very few "explosive" moments that make you hold your breath.

 

[Tongo]

One of the conundrums that golf will face is knitting together the professional and amateur (i.e the hoi polloi of club players) so that everything is heading in the same direction. As has been outlined, too many involved with golf in this country are living in a cocooned past. However, if that cocooned past maintains a club to a certain standard, why are they going to change?

Also, golf at the highest level probably isnt too worried about participation levels dropping the in the UK. For instance, the European Tour is out to provide as much prize money as possible to its members. If that means playing sections of the season in China or the Middle East, so be it. And of course the pros will go where there is the most money.

So, for me, the top pros have a chance redress the balance and partly dictate some of golf's future. Look at how the fortunes of the Irish Open have changed dramatically now that Rory and Rickie are confirmed to play this year. The sport's best players have the power to potentially make or break certain tournaments by their decision to turn up or play elsewhere. Because they are the pied pipers of the game; where the best players go, the ranking points and the sponsors will follow and hopefully the fans. It is something of a vicious circle but if the top pros are truly concerned with the future of the game then they are the ones who can make some genuine differences.

For instance, just imagine what would happen to the Spanish Open (arguably another struggling tournament) if Rickie, Rory and Phil Mick decided they wanted to play.