No place at the table?

“The leaders of five major golf organizations in the United States shared a refocused, collaborative approach to grow, protect and perpetuate the health of the game during a press conference at THE PLAYERS Championship in May. The LPGA, Masters Tournament, PGA of America, PGA TOUR and the United States Golf Association, as well as the World Golf Foundation and their allied golf industry leaders, attended and explained how they are working together on a number of initiatives aimed at bringing the game to young people and new golfers, as well as to tell the story of the positive impact of the sport.”

—Geoffshackelford.com

How interesting that the “five families” are getting together to fix golf. But notice who is conspicuously absent from this gathering? Where is Rhett Evans and the GCSAA? How can any “collaborative approach” to the game happen without the people most responsible for golf courses? Without the superintendents, none of the programs discussed would be possible.

So why aren’t we at the table?

Superintendents – both individually and collectively through the GCSAA – need to stand up and say, “look at us.” We should be shoulder-to-shoulder and aligned most closely with the PGA of America, the organization that along with us is most important to moving the game forward: Golf pros teach the game while we give the game somewhere to be played.

I’m getting tired of saying it’s our own fault for not being included. If we – again, both individually and through our organization – don’t fight for a position of importance in the golf hierarchy, then we are just being stupid. We bring a unique set of qualities to that “table,” including an understanding of science (agronomy, meteorology and biology at least), economics and human resources, plus numerous other disciplines unrepresented by the other organizations.

We should be at that table.

But we’re not included because we don’t promote ourselves and our organization, and we don’t take the initiative to show how we help grow the game. Again, who else is better positioned to bring out the best of golf than the people most responsible for its fields of play?

As individuals and a group, we need to do more to grow the game and make it better. The other organizations are discussing programs and initiatives designed to drive golfers to our courses; at the very least, we must be ready for these new and re-committed golfers and create the best possible experience for them. We need to ask ourselves how we can make a new golfer’s overall experience a positive one and encourage them to come back again and again.

Most of us are happy to fly under the radar, do our jobs, and not be seen or heard. But if we are going to assume our rightful place at the table, we can’t just think about turf. We have to commit to making someone else’s day better each and every day.

Here are a few “jobs” we should take on every day:

• Make the course a welcoming, non-intimidating environment;
• Be more visible. Interact with players and members. How hard is it to welcome a golfer and shake someone’s hand? Relying on social media is not enough: Make real, live, personal connections;
• Encourage current golfers to enjoy the game more, while looking for ways to attract new golfers, especially women, seniors and juniors;
• As the most knowledgeable person on property, use that advantage to become the “go to” staff member when golfers have questions. Welcome, rather than hide from, this responsibility, and use the interaction with golfers to educate and excite them;
• Tell the story of your golf course. Be able to tell golfers what to expect, what to look for, subtle nuances and hazards, and how to play them. But don’t get too technical: Keep it simple and related to their games; and
• Gauge the conditions, weather and types of players to set up the course appropriately. The vast majority of people playing golf aren’t really that good, so give them a break and let them have fun.
   

As superintendents, we also should be at the forefront of encouraging initiatives that support the game. Dozens of such programs are out there, competing for our time and resources. Here are a few I like.

• Drive, Chip and Putt. This joint initiative of the Masters Tournament [or is it Augusta National?], United States Golf Association and PGA of America puts real equipment into the hands of young golfers and focuses on the core skills of the game.
• The First Green is committed to introducing kids to golf courses as an environmental and learning location. Think science classes on the golf course. What could be more up our alley?
• LPGA-USGA Girls Golf, which introduces the game to girls up to 14 years old, has grown since its inception more than 20 years ago. Some 50,000 girls will go through the program this year.
• WE Golf, a new initiative in the New York Metropolitan area, is designed to introduce young professional women to the game through a series of events emphasizing fun and social/networking benefits. They had me at “fun”!
• Get Golf Ready offers adults five lessons for $99. In its six-year history, Get Golf Ready has attracted 358,000 students, 62 percent of them female. Best of all, after one year in the program, 82 percent of participants stick with the game.
   

These aren’t the only grow-the-game programs out there, but they are ones that are working. We should be getting behind initiatives like these that give the game a healthy future. At the same time, superintendents need to be thinking how else we can promote that future as well as our place in helping to shape it.

The more we do for the game, from the local level on up, the greater our chance of being included with those other organizations that have stepped up to set golf’s course. We should be at that table, but we have to prove that we belong – each and every one of us, each and every day.

Tim Moraghan, principal, ASPIRE Golf (tmoraghan@aspire-golf.com). Follow Tim’s blog, Golf Course Confidential at http://www.aspire-golf.com/buzz.html or on Twitter @TimMoraghan