April 21, 2014--Fore!
Not only is Tiger Woods sitting out much of the golfing season but so are at least 5.0 million more. Those, the New York Times reports, who have stopped playing during the last decade.
And this has the golfing industry worried--golf courses and country clubs are suffering and so are the TV networks that broadcast golf: fewer players translates into smaller audiences which in turn translates into fewer advertising dollars. And that constitutes a big problem.
The networks are left to hope that Tiger miraculously returns to form (when he is doing well and is part of the final twosome during a tournament ratings double); but since golf courses have no equivalent silver bullet, many are turning to gimmicks to attract a younger population of duffers.
A favorite gimmick is to enlarge the physical hole form the current 4.25 inches to 15 inches, the size of a large pizza. Top-10 golfer Sergio Garcia likes the hole this size. Considering he has never come close to winning a Major, this could be considered special pleading or his endorsement the result of a handsome honorarium.
Sand traps are a special agony for the average golfer. Though the likes of Phil Michelson blast out of them without trouble, folks who hack their way around country clubs have been knows to take four or five strokes to extract themselves from a bunker and to break their sand wedges in frustration. So, a new rule would allow golfers to reach down, pick up their ball, and toss it onto the green. At least twice a round.
It's also OK on these souped-up courses to use juiced golf balls and clubs to make shots go further with less effort or skill.
If you remember when Bill Clinton was the First Duffer you recall he wasn't much good as a player and so, as Commander-in-Chief, he gave himself numerous mulligans--do over shots. If he hit his drive in the pond (he was especially adept at that), he'd allow himself a second or third attempt. All strictly against the PGA rules. But under the new rules being proposed to reattract golfers, especially younger ones, mulligans would be permitted and routine as would allowing golfers to place every shot on a tee, not just when driving.
TaylorMade-Adidas Golf in the process of redesigning 100 courses to make them more kid friendly because, as reported in the New York Times, youngsters are quitting the game after a few rounds because it's "too hard" to play courses as they are currently designed and with existing rules.
Parents are apparently upset that their little-ones are being frustrated. God forbid that any child should experience any frustration about anything. Including things that are hard to do. Which is half the point of golf--to try to excel at something difficult and learn to live with inevitable frustration and occasional bursts of excellence.
By the way, Sergio played in a tournament on a nine-hole nouveau course with anchovy-pizza-sized holes and shot a six under par. In truth, not that impressive.
And this has the golfing industry worried--golf courses and country clubs are suffering and so are the TV networks that broadcast golf: fewer players translates into smaller audiences which in turn translates into fewer advertising dollars. And that constitutes a big problem.
The networks are left to hope that Tiger miraculously returns to form (when he is doing well and is part of the final twosome during a tournament ratings double); but since golf courses have no equivalent silver bullet, many are turning to gimmicks to attract a younger population of duffers.
A favorite gimmick is to enlarge the physical hole form the current 4.25 inches to 15 inches, the size of a large pizza. Top-10 golfer Sergio Garcia likes the hole this size. Considering he has never come close to winning a Major, this could be considered special pleading or his endorsement the result of a handsome honorarium.
Sand traps are a special agony for the average golfer. Though the likes of Phil Michelson blast out of them without trouble, folks who hack their way around country clubs have been knows to take four or five strokes to extract themselves from a bunker and to break their sand wedges in frustration. So, a new rule would allow golfers to reach down, pick up their ball, and toss it onto the green. At least twice a round.
It's also OK on these souped-up courses to use juiced golf balls and clubs to make shots go further with less effort or skill.
If you remember when Bill Clinton was the First Duffer you recall he wasn't much good as a player and so, as Commander-in-Chief, he gave himself numerous mulligans--do over shots. If he hit his drive in the pond (he was especially adept at that), he'd allow himself a second or third attempt. All strictly against the PGA rules. But under the new rules being proposed to reattract golfers, especially younger ones, mulligans would be permitted and routine as would allowing golfers to place every shot on a tee, not just when driving.
TaylorMade-Adidas Golf in the process of redesigning 100 courses to make them more kid friendly because, as reported in the New York Times, youngsters are quitting the game after a few rounds because it's "too hard" to play courses as they are currently designed and with existing rules.
Parents are apparently upset that their little-ones are being frustrated. God forbid that any child should experience any frustration about anything. Including things that are hard to do. Which is half the point of golf--to try to excel at something difficult and learn to live with inevitable frustration and occasional bursts of excellence.
By the way, Sergio played in a tournament on a nine-hole nouveau course with anchovy-pizza-sized holes and shot a six under par. In truth, not that impressive.
Labels: Bill Clinton, Duffer-in-Chief, Duffers, Golf, Golf Courses, Mulligans, New York Times, Parenting
posted by Steven Zwerling at
5:27 AM
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