As the many debates rage on about the merits of the Tee It Forward program the USGA has developed to improve the appeal of playing golf, the question I have been trying to figure out is..
Will it help Golf Grow?
The entire concept of what the Tee It Forward program is really designed to accomplish is clouded with suspicion. Sure, if every golfer played from the tee box matching their golf skill everyone would enjoy golf more, but aren’t their other solutions to getting golfers to enjoy playing golf?
Basing what tee a person should play from the distance they hit their driver is also questionable of really working to improve a golfer’s pleasure in golf or to speed up play. We all know dozen of people who can hit the ball over 300yds, but then they take 10 shots..not counting the penalty shots..to get the ball in the hole. I also know a large number of people who can’t drive the ball further than 200 yards, but they carry a scratch handicap.
It seems what the purpose of the Tee It Forward program is really wanting to happen is to get more people to pay a green fee. True, without golf courses there would not be golf, so supporting the operations of a golf course would keep golf courses open so people can play the game.
However, isn’t the USGA missing something here? The high costs to play golf has to reckon with to produce a greater interest by more people in playing Golf. This has to be the hardest problem to solve for which Tee It forward is not going to help. Golfers are not going to be overwhelmed in joy to pay inflated green fees to not be allowed to play the course they want to play it. It’s recommended that you take Skiing lessons before taking on the mountains, why not recommend lessons that shows people how to play so they can enjoy the full length of the golf course.
Given the fundamental problems of the weak golf economy are not total deterrents for many people to playing golf, isn’t the real problem golf has to overcome in the difficulty of learning to play golf. Wouldn’t it be a better approach to improving the appeal and pleasure of playing golf by having everyone who plays golf learn to play Golf before they PLAY Golf?
This is just one of the debates going on today in the world of golf. Dave Bisbee, Krista Hartman and I are going to discuss the Tee It Forward issue in the coming weeks on the Mr Business Golf Show . There is a strong feeling in the business golf community that the point of the problem golf is having with it sagging popularity is not from where a person tees the ball to play. Many of the problems golf is having with attracting more golfers could be outside of golf.
Make sure to stay tuned into the Mr Business Golf Show so you can find out more of what is really going on with the Tee It Forward program.
Let me know how I can help
