Grow The Game

In my new post at Port Colborne Country Club I am fortunate to have a lot of great members surrounding me. One of the best parts of the job is the banter that goes on daily around the Pro Shop. While most of the membership consists of retirees, there is also a great mix of  young golfers for good measure. All of this makes me think. What is the next generation of golfer going to be like?

If I were to think back to the "pre-Tiger" days there wasn't really much going on in the way of the game being grown. The reality is that Tiger Woods brought a lot of new golfers to the game who otherwise would not have taken up the game. In his heyday, Tiger brought together a wide array of golfers to the game from all walks of life. Admittedly, I guess I fall into this category in a way even though I was never really a Tiger fan. There is no doubt that he's the most dominant player to walk the fairways of this generation. Maybe it is now considered the previous generation now. After all it seems that there has been a torch of sorts passed. Can you imagine what no Tiger would have done for the career of a guy like Phil Mickelson? In my opinion, Tiger is the first person since Arnold Palmer to really have an impact on the game. Legions of fans, tournaments with huge purses and of course big time television ratings. This was all a prelude to the current crop of Tour players that have reaped the benefits of those before them. Guys like Rory, Jordan, Day and Fowler are now bringing more youth to the game. The youth... a necessity to make the game of golf sustainable in dire times when play is dropping off. I'm sure the Olympics in Rio may help grow the game a little bit too. There is so much out there now for junior golfers. Great equipment, trendy fashion, clinics, technology and all of this could lead to "paid for" educations. There are a lot more pros than cons when it comes to introducing youth to golf.

Getting back to my course. As much as I like the banter around the Pro Shop from the "Old Guard"  I would have to say that my favourite thing around there is the junior golfers. They bring such a different energy to the course. They are curious about the game and they are always looking for information when it comes to equipment. But I think the really fun part is watching them go out as a group onto the course. "The Boys" come into the Pro Shop to make their tee time for their afternoon round like everyone else. Then as their time approaches they gather at the first tee... not before spending time on the range and maybe the green. Then before we know it it's 12:22 and off they go. By the time they hit the 6th green you can hear their voices carrying throughout the tree-lined golf course. Usually it's laughter or youthful exuberance but sometimes there is an argument about what one kid did and how it wasn't golf etiquette.

I was fortunate to have had the opportunity to golf with one of our board members last week, his son Ethan and another junior Sawyer. Sawyer was actually one of the first members that I met in the off-season and as it turns out he lives two doors down from the golf course. I told him then that I better see him at the course every day. Now even though he isn't there every day he is there more often than he isn't. As much as I enjoyed the golf what I enjoyed more was the fact that they were out there. I had to leave after nine holes but it was at that point where we took off our caps and shook hands.

The juniors out there are a resource that we need to have to grow the game. With Father's Day approaching,why not get out on a range of golf course and play some golf with the junior in your life?

Until the Next Tee