Letters to the editor

Planning ahead
I compliment Roger Stanley on his article about career planning (“Your next job” on page 34 of the April issue). It was accurate and inspiring. I’ve been a superintendent for 30 years in the Chicago area and now in New Jersey. Bruce Williams (certified golf course superintendent at the Los Angeles Country Club) is a good friend of mine, and I have been teaching Golf Course Superintendents Association of America seminars about various management topics with him for more than 20 years. Williams refers to his conversations with Jim McLoughlin (former executive director of the GCSAA) about topics such as career planning and management issues from time to time during our seminars, and we find McLoughlin’s expertise most useful.
Roger A. Stewart Jr.
Certified golf course superintendent
Tournament Players Club at Jasna Polana
Princeton, N.J.

Instruction needed
I read Jim McLoughlin’s piece, “Why they quit the game,” on page 30 in the June issue, and I couldn’t agree with him more. I’m amazed at how unplayable and penal many new courses are and wonder if the designers are on the same planet as the rest of us. Beyond design, he hits it on the head with instruction. This is a difficult game that desperately needs people who can teach the game to beginners at an affordable price. The instruction should include a heavy dose of the history of the game and the etiquette that’s needed for everyone on the course to have an enjoyable experience. I don’t know who will lead the renaissance, but his thoughts are a good start.
Chip Powell
President
Powell Golf Design Co.
Bradenton, Fla.

Where the fault lies
I agree instruction in the golf industry is lacking (Jim McLoughlin’s column, “Why they quit the game,” on page 30 in the June issue). That fault lies with the Professional Golfers Association of America, (PGA), which is improving teaching through its educational evolution. Even the best instructions can’t account for practice time and continuing education.
Even with the best instructions, there will continue to be different levels of play in the golf industry and different levels of instruction being given by PGA professionals. A golfer’s best bet would be to seek the help of a PGA professional that specializes in instruction. There are a few other minor details that would have to be taken care of, too. One would have to convince every golf club manufacturer to stop making clubs from a model and start making clubs that are custom fit to the individual. This is where most of the problem lies when learning the game. Even with instructions, the best electronic evaluation equipment and videos, nobody will ever reach his potential or desired level of play, playing with equipment that isn’t designed to fit their swing model.
McLoughlin should to stick to giving advice in his field of expertise, or at least research the subject matter of which he’s giving an opinion before faulting the people that are working hard to help each golfer play a better game.
Jerry C. Morrison
PGA Professional
Ponta Creek Golf Course
Meridian, Miss.

Editor’s note: McLoughlin’s response follows.

Thank you for your sincere comments, but I believe you’re misinterpreting my comments. For example:
• I wasn’t faulting or discrediting the people who teach golf, rather the system. You seem to agree with this premise when you admit instruction in the golf industry is lacking and blame the PGA.
• I’m not saying there are no good teachers of golf, just too few, and these too few generally migrate to teaching the better players, leaving the masses generally without solid teaching. For example, more than 30,000 less-than-fully-qualified golf instructors throughout the country are left teaching many millions of golfers needing quality instruction. This doesn’t work, and golf suffers accordingly.
• Judging the quality of golf professionals and their teaching capabilities is a key element within my profession. My opinions are based on having interviewed about 200 professionals and assistants and witnessed a similar number of golf lessons and clinics through the years – always looking to find more effective ways to engage golf professionals for my clients.
• While custom fitting can help fine tune a player’s game, it isn’t essential to establishing a basic swing through solid golf instruction.
It seems we’re saying the same thing basically from two different perspectives.
Jim McLoughlin