USGA membership revenue must be in the tank

USGA Executive Director Mike Davis, today at the PGA annual meeting in NY:

(commenting about the proposed anchoring ban fiasco with the PGA back in 2013)

“I will say going back three, four years ago it was a moment in time where our two organizations got sideways with one another. When I looked back, I think both sides have learned a lot of things. Regardless of where you sat on that issue, we all learned from it. I will give you to the extent that we erred as an organization, I apologize to this group. Things got public that should have never gotten public and it didn’t make the game look good."

Reading between the lines: "We really goofed up when we asked your organization's opinion on the matter, because we already had our minds made up and nothing you could've said would've changed it. But out of respect, we at least wanted to portray the appearance that we were openminded and would consider alternative viewpoints despite that. But you guys just had to go and screw that all to hell, talking about how this could impact interest, how this could drive amateurs out of the game, and all of this other bullshit. So my apology today ain't for you all as much as it's for my fellow USGA colleagues who warned me ahead of time that inviting your input wasn't a good idea. And they were right. This got very messy and made us look like the tyrannical organization we've always been. Thanks a lot, PGA."

Davis also commented on the new changes coming soon to the rulebook, changes in wording that make the application of the rules easier and simpler to understand.

"We are assessing how we can make the Rules of Golf easier, plain English, easier to apply. Some of the rules right now are simply too difficult."

Reading between the lines: "It is official - our education system has failed us so badly that we now have to print rules so a 4th grader can understand them. I mean, really... Do you have any idea how much that will cost us? We already have 5 million copies of the 2017 rules in print and ready to ship, but nah - we gotta rewrite these damned words so little Johnny can figure out how he's supposed to mark his damned ball on the green. Why? All because you idiots slept through grammar school. But we're gonna do this, we're gonna suck this up and make it happen because we want every last one of you to believe that we're totally invested in making the game more simple and more enjoyable, and in return you're gonna renew those memberships for $10 so we can send you those goddamned hats made from Vietnam that we paid 2 bucks for."

And last but not least, Davis even made it a point to comment about the Dustin Johnson rules gaffe back in the US Open at Oakmont in July.

"As for the Dustin Johnson ruling, Rule 18-2, that God-forsaken rule, that is going to be getting attention in the near future. We listen and we learn."

Between the lines: "What a load of horse shit. This guy hits the ball 400 yards, and people forget that we gave him a free drop an hour earlier because of a stupid tower that is only in play for guys who hit the ball 400 yards. He could've just as easily hit a damned wedge over it onto the green, but noooo. "Sniffle Sniffle - my ball is sitting down in this tall grass, sniffle sniffle, I can't hit this and hold the green, sniffle sniffle, I need a ruling asap, sniffle sniffle..." Puhlease... so you cause the ball to move because of the wind coming off of your putter during your practice stroke, and now you don't like the consequences? And then made it look like we had it out for you, that we didn't want you to win because you were making our setup look silly? Yeah, we're gonna change that God forsaken rule, you can bet your sweet ass we will. If that ball moves on the green after you replace it, it better be because you intentionally putted it. Otherwise it's a penalty, this situational bullshit is no longer up for debate!"

It's all about the money. They have really pissed off a lot of golfers over the past several years, and that's something they couldn't afford to do with the game in decline. They want those membership renewals, they want those annual bonuses back up there like they were in the mid-2000s.

They can kiss my ass.

I think the way it works is that golf facilities pay a nominal usage fee to the USGA for use of their handicap service. In turn, the club then charges the golfer a fee to obtain/maintain an official USGA handicap through their club. It's roughly $15-$20 per season here locally. Some clubs, both public and private, will occasionally include a complimentary USGA handicap service for those who join their club.

But just because one might be a USGA member doesn't automatically entitle that person complimentary use of their handicap service. On the flip side, just because you have an official USGA handicap doesn't mean you're a USGA member.

mcavoy

The USGA's overall mission differs significantly from the PGA, and this is where the disconnect has always been. The PGA has a much better grasp of the overall health of the game, which obviously hasn't exactly been good for several years now. When they see the governing body making decisions that have every potential to impact overall interest, especially when those decisions are becoming more and more centered around equipment standards based on the most elite professional tour level of the game, the PGA has every reason to be concerned.

When you look at just about every change that the USGA has made over the past decade, they have come as a result of them seeing the challenges of the game from the professional side of things becoming incredibly out of balance. What they've done during this time is treat the symptoms and not the disease.

Back in 2000 (give or take a few years) is when the disease entered the picture, which was the unveiling of the multi-layered golf ball. Although the difference early on wasn't earth shattering, it didn't take too many years after that before the golf ball manufacturers essentially started perfecting the newfound sciences of multi-layer technology. Suddenly even the most average hitters on tour were enjoying longer, straighter drives. When Tiger won the 1997 Masters, Augusta National was played from tournament length of 6925 yards. When Danny Willet won earlier this year, the players played the layout at 7435 yards.

But the USGA didn't react. And there could be underlying reasons for that, for all we know. Maybe a few of these manufacturers were making considerable donations to the USGA coffers? Or maybe they don't want to admit that they goofed early on with not being able to foresee just how much the golf ball would change the game at that level? Who knows. What we do know however is that the USGA has been very hesitant to even discuss regulating the golf ball.

So with the genie safely out of the bottle and the USGA (for whatever reasons) unwilling to recognize this as the biggest issue, they made an attempt to make up for it in other areas. Long before they implemented the anchoring ban, you will recall that they forced all of the equipment manufacturers to change the grooves in the irons and wedges. The USGA extended an olive branch of sorts to the club-level amateur players with allowing them to continue using their old square-groove irons for an extended period, but the next set of irons or wedges they purchased the following year would meet the same exact standards as that of the players playing at the highest level.

To be completely honest, the impact of the groove change has pretty much gone unnoticed at either level. It hasn't added anymore challenge to the game for us weekend hackers, and it sure as hell hasn't forced the longer hitters on tour to throttle back in an effort to avoid the rough. But just the mere thought of forcing amateurs to potentially have to adjust the way they play the game because of the relative ease that the tour pros seem to play theirs?

Bifurcation already exists, just by virtue of the groove rule not officially going into effect until 2024 for amateurs not participating in USGA sanctioned events. The USGA could've easily used that precedent to continue differentiating the two obvious standards that already existed, most notably by not forcing the anchoring ban upon the very people who ultimately support the entire industry.

They didn't, and for them to suddenly act like they care about the average golfers, after they've basically ignored them for the past decade, is laughable.