What are your opinions on golf’s most critical issues?

(Lack of) INNOVATION is one of golf's most critical issues. The traditions and rules of golf threaten to make golf anachronistic and out of step with the pace of today's society. My iphone has 30,000 applications available, Basking Robbins has 31 flavors, but golf only offers one flavor: the game controlled by the USGA and Royal and Ancient.

If, instead, we consider golf courses as valuable assets that need higher utilization, we realize they could be used for other, simpler and easier games attractive to youngsters, oldsters, and other beginners.

Consider: I took my kids bowling recently and noticed that all the lanes were in use and fully two-thirds of them were using bumpers to eliminate gutter balls. (But isn't that unfair, against the rules?) IMHO, we need a similar mindset to attract and retain more customers to our golf facilities.

Let's start with a clean slate and brainstorm on entry level games that can be played on a golf course, while preserving the atmosphere for those who play the traditional (frustrating but still great) game.

Some possible examples include much easier rules, "illegal" balls and clubs, much shorter tee placements, a larger hole; a new definition of par; several levels of player certification, standardized teaching for beginners; short game skill courses.

Let's have certain hours/days/holes reserved for Speed Golf or disc golf.

Let's think really outside the box and develop a "ball launcher" that gets aimed like a mortar and fired towards the hole! (Check out www.swinglessgolf.com)

In most businesses, the maxim "innovate or die" is widely embraced. Perhaps the time is now for the golf industry to do likewise.

The state of the game needs no changes, it was just over invested in when it had some popularity. There are too many golf courses for not enough players. Attendance is down at almost every club. Clubs are being purchased or going under. The days we knew are long gone and the game of golf is currently adjusting.
This game has survived World Wars and plenty of unstable economic times. To say that the game needs drastic changes is to say that any sporting hobby must change when there is a lull in participation. Let's have Polo at an OTB to pick up its popularity.
Our biggest problem is our generation's short attention span. Heaven forbid we concentrate over a putt. This world gets faster and faster with quality taking a back seat. Turn off the I phone, forget your internet speed, and take a long walk with the most introspective and challenging game of all time. As for our youth, it might not be a bad idea to teach them how to slow down, think the shot out, and putt to the same hole that their grandparents putted too. Only in this century has the word Tradition been perceived as a bad concept.

Put simply, we need more people playing golf.

Is "Golf Business" an oxymoron or just a regular moron in golfing attire? Common sense needs to once again reign. We, the "golf industry" have lost our minds somewhere along the way.

Where are our new golfers? Young and Not so Young. How do we encourage casual golfers to play more?

Remember when the Ski Industry faced these same problems and was all but dead. Snowboarding saved the day and brought young people out to the slopes. And then shaped skis made the skiing side quicker to learn and therefore more fun. They made winter sports cool again.

What is golf's version of the snowboard and shaped skis? Can we make golf cool?

The equipment manufacturers are confused in thinking that golfers care about how legal their equipment is. Golf course owners don't care if golfer's equipment passes any criteria, they just want them to show up and play. Golfers care about how well they play, how much fun they have, and how long it takes. Golf Equipment should be made to make the game easier for average and beginner golfers. We need them. Let the alphabet soup organizations worry about what the Pros play.

How do we get golf to become fun for young people and new golfers? If we can't get young people interested in Golf, then our sport and industry dies along with the rest of us Baby Boomers.

Golf courses need to be designed to provide recreation and good natured challenges not torture. As a golf course designer, with Suny Zokol Golf Design, I continue to be amazed at how most golf courses are designed from the back tees as opposed to the middle and forward tees where over 95% of the golfers will play. Back tees can be placed where they make sense after the people that pay the freight are taken care of. Golf courses can be designed and built inexpensively that are fun for average and beginning golfers but still immensely challenging for better golfers.

How do we keep golf affordable?

Foresight Golf Management, the company that I work with on the management side of the business has been successful providing exceptional value. Service oriented staffs and unparalleled golf course conditions at very competitive pricing has been a recipe for success in each market.

As a golf traditionalist, its difficult for me to say this but the rules of golf should be reviewed to determine if they are in golf's best interest.

Consider the treatment of balls within hazards as an example of a rule that may not be good for golf. Should bunkers be considered hazards for average golfers? The average player should be able to play their ball anywhere it can be found as "through the green" and be able to ground the club and even take a practice swing. What is the purpose of this rule for average golfers? If they are in one of these "hazards" aren't they already penalized enough? Why compound it?

This correction in the golf market, painful as it is, will ultimately lead to a healthier golf business from a facilities/demand standpoint. What remains in question is the ability of the golf industry to grow the sport.

My sites:

http://foresightgolfmanagement.com/

http://anarchistsguidetogolfcoursearchitecture.com/Golf_course_architect...

One of the most critical issues is getting the younger generation interest in the game.

I think one of the biggest challenges facing golf today is demographics. As the U.S. population ages, they are becoming less active. Okay so the boomers are going to Canada for drugs and only playing 9 holes here and there. How do you reach and retain Generation X (hey I’m one of those 50 million) and Gen Yers’ (63 million here). Golf has seemingly been behind the business curve since Hogan carried a one iron (it butter knife with a straight face before we had hybrids).

The consumer of today/tomorrow is more sophisticated that ever before. They are connected to information 24-7. They have real time access to national, local, and social news on their mobile devices. Hey my alarm clock gives me facebook updates and puts on my Pandora internet radio station to wake me up. Okay so you get the picture here; the customer is changing but are the golf (or country) clubs?

No way to get around it. Golf has a great deal of competition for the time and dollars of consumers. The competitive report needs to include the big picture. It can include other courses if you want but needs to include substitutes (activities golfers might do instead of hitting the links). Understanding substitutes clubs can create value model that will be provide a marketable product.

In order for the business of golf to improve, it needs to reach a younger audience. Most young adults simply don't have the time and money to play golf on a regular basis. They are either working, (sometimes 2 or 3 jobs to pay the rent) on the internet, or glued to the TV (trying to recover from working a 60 hour week). The group of young adults that is active can often be found in the gym getting a 45 minute workout, not on the course walking 18 holes in 4 hours. How do we reach these young adults? How do we make golf more "hip"? How do we make it more affordable (without going out of business)? How do we reduce the amount of time it takes to enjoy a round of golf? How do we make golf more fun for the beginner? And how do we get players who typically play once a summer to come out once a week? We have to find ways to make the game more fun, more social, and more affordable.

A "Critical Issue" is the discounting of golf. If we as owner/operators are forced to discount much deeper, as the market is driving us, then we will not be able to supply the quality golf course or service that the consumer is demanding. It is a vicious cycle and one that the customer must partner with us by joining the club as opposed to just "hit and run" golf. They want all the benefits, but none of the responsibilities of upkeep. If clubs had more members, then the monthly dues could be more affordable for more segments of the golfing community.

We are www.splashie.com - a social networking / golf tournament for golfers of all skill levels. We're currently in a soft beta test for golfers that are California residents. We employ a simple to use, yet powerful scoring and ranking system that allows golfers to compete, network, and "Be the Pro". Think of it as facebook meets American Idol....for golfers. Our goal is to make golf more fun, more social, less intimidating and we're just the mechanism to get golfers to "show up and play".

Many owners and managers will tell you they have a good understand their members expectations. The problem is they don't have a mechanism in place to make it easy and convenient for members to communicate with them directly. Many of the issues they should know about never get past front line staff. Decisions are then made on what they assume to be true. GolferInsight.com is a solution that takes care of this problem.

Many owners and managers will tell you they have a good understand of their members expectations. The problem is they don't have a mechanism in place to make it easy and convenient for members to communicate with them directly. Many of the issues they should know about never get past front line staff. Decisions are then made on what they assume to be true. GolferInsight.com is a solution that takes care of this problem.

You got me at countless networking opportunities, the Golf Inc. Conference must be quite an event, count me in.