USGA Private Jet Travel, Vol. 5

What does the USGA president having access and control of a private jet an issue for the game?

For the moment, let's set aside the cost, even though the USGA is reportedly clamping down on basic expenses that relate to the organization's mission.

Let's ignore the elitist stereotype boost that the jet program provides.

And definitely look past the notion that the organization's officers have used a liberalized reimbursement policy that was meant to attract a more diverse volunteer base and turned it into a perk-for-the-elite program.

Oh, and shelve the other recent Executive Committee boondoggles (Russian Tea Room, Golf Journal).

Shoot, for the sake of this discussion ignore the mysterious nature of the private jet trips, which we are told are all legitimate and traditional USGA business (yet must remain confidential?).

Instead, consider what the private jet travel says about the current USGA Executive Committee culture.

I spoke to an array of past USGA presidents last week in hopes of understanding the institution's history and how the private jet use might be justified.

These calls were made before a directive went out from Far Hills telling past presidents to refer my calls to communications director Marty Parkes (yes, someone actually asked these past presidents--grown men of great wisdom, titans of industry and law--not to speak to little old me!).

One past president refused to talk about USGA business. A few expressed great concern but wanted to hear more facts.  Others did not know about the private jet and were fascinated by the notion of it. (I thought this said a lot about the secrecy of the jet chartering, because these were not exactly inactive past presidents).

And one past president likened the USGA president to a CEO and the executive director David Fay to a COO.

Last I checked, the USGA was a non-profit 501(c)(3) entity and therefore receiving tax-exempt benefits to help it carry out its higher calling: to protect the integrity and nurture the great sport of golf.

The USGA is not a corporation, yet it wants to act like one.

However, if it were a corporation, USGA shareholders and those affected by its policies would be able to get answers to basic questions, and more importantly, require top "executives" to communicate what they are doing on behalf of the organization. And we're not just talking about communications related to executive perks, but answers to basic questions related its mission of protecting the game.

Poor communication clouded by some peculiar sense of Executive Committee entitlement to secrecy will make it nearly impossible for the USGA to be the effective 501(c)(3) that it can be.

It is difficult to envision a scenario where the game benefits from a secretive, self-interested USGA Executive Committee.

Frank Hannigan ably laid out many reasons why the jet program is indicative of the USGA's current direction.

But for me the strangest thing about the lack of communication continues to be the lack of opportunity for member clubs, courses and golfers to understand and therefore support the organization in the face of strong opposition.

In other words, its hard to jump on the bandwagon when you don't even know what the band is playing.

Priority Oversight: How is the FedEx Cup Going To Work?

John Davis talks to players at the Scottsdale event and no one seems to know how the FedEx Cup will work. Or if it will work.

Els: "...called the World Golf Championships, aren't they?"

I wonder about it here, it comes out over there. Paraphrasing Albert Brooks's character in Broadcast News of course.

It seems that the lack of "World" in the WGC is on the minds of European Tour players too. 

James Corrigan in The Independent: 

Cue outrage, and not only at the European Tour Players' Committee meeting here at the Emirates Golf Club on Tuesday, but also, more intriguingly, from Woods yesterday. "Of course, the WGCs should be held in other places rather than just America," said the world No 1. "It's our responsibility to play around the world and grow the game as much as we can." Ernie Els, the world No 5, concurred. "It's crazy," said the South African. "They're called the World Golf Championships, aren't they?"

So what can the European Tour do about it? Nothing much, or so it seems if their gloomy statement is anything to go by. "We have communicated our disappointment," it read, "and can confirm that we did offer to host one of the World Golf Championships, but this was rejected."

Update on 2006-02-02 14:52 by Geoff

Thanks to Tuco for this more extensive follow up on the WGC's, which says the sponsors have stipulated that the existing three are played inside the U.S., while the World Cup is still definitely alive and well. The story also includes a few more quotes from players critical of the setup.

Seve: The Long Goodbye

Norman Dabell in the Telegraph:

It is the news that many were expecting long before now: Severiano Ballesteros, winner of five major titles, Ryder Cup inspiration on and off the course, and once the world's most revered golfer, has announced his retirement.

Don't have to be playing actively to retire? Sorry, continue Norman...

However, before Seve's fans go into mourning, he won't be hanging up his clubs until 2011, when he will be 54. By that time, he reckons, he will no longer have that legendary desire to beat the world, especially Americans, he has had for over three decades.

He's announcing his retirement five years in advance? Cher's farewell tour wasn't this long. 

Tiger: Who's a shotmaker? Who maneuvers the ball?

I should have read more "Tiger at 30" stories. Well, at least in the case of Jaime Diaz's Golf Digest look. I should have known Jaime would offer a fresh and newsworthy take. And it helped to have access to an unusually chatty Tiger.

As he often does so well, Jaime lets his subject do the talking:

"I enjoy moving the ball and hitting different shots, and I think that's the way golf should be played," he says. "But the game has changed since I've been on tour. It's hard to make the ball move. You look at the old guys who are or were true shotmakers, like when I played with Lee Trevino at Bighorn and he blew my mind with some of the shots he hit. Then you look on tour and you ask, 'Who's a true shotmaker? Who actually maneuvers the ball or does something different with it?' And there really aren't that many, if any, out here anymore."

"I'd like to see more spin added to the golf ball, so misses would be more pronounced and good shots more rewarded," he said. "Anytime you bring maneuverability back into the game of golf, it's going to favor the better players who understand how to control the golf ball. It still matters in firm conditions or in wind. I always like to shape something in there a little bit just because I'm giving myself a fatter area for playing a miss, because it's not a game of perfect. I'd eliminate the 60-degree wedge and set a 56-degree limit. For one, it would bring more feel back into the game. Because now guys lay up to exact yardages and hit nothing but full shots. Nobody hits half shots anymore. And it would make the short game around the green a lot harder. If guys didn't have a 60-degree or even a 64-degree wedge to save them, you wouldn't see them being as aggressive going into the greens, because they couldn't short-side themselves as much.

"It's all about keeping the skill factor. At the moment, equipment has brought everyone closer together. It's harder to separate from the field, without a doubt. It's a challenge." 

Tiger and his technophobic agenda. A thing of beauty!  

Woosy Worrying Already

Lawrence Donegan writes about Ian Woosnam already practicing his Captain's speech daily and his enlistment of stress relief techniques.

Ian, your speech will only be seen on the Golf Channel here in the States. No worries!

WGC's and World Cup of Golf

A thought/question.

In all of the 2007 PGA Tour schedule hoopla, I don't recall any stories about the reduction to three World Golf Championship events with the apparent elimination of the World Cup of Golf.

The World Cup had been played every year (but one) since 1953. Granted, it had not been much of an event lately, but it's another longtime event given back burner status in the new setup. More importantly, it offered a format other than 72-holes of individual stroke play, which is way too common in professional golf.

The WGC's were considered one of Commissioner Finchem's brilliant moves. The only casualty to date appears to be the loss of Greg Norman from Champions Tour events, otherwise they have served their purpose.

Yet, in the new deal the Tour appears to have gone from four WGC events to three, and more importantly, the remaining WGC's seem anchored in Miami, Tucson and Akron for the foreseeable future.

Did anyone write about this? Notice? Care?
 

USGA and Bowling

Steve Donahue in the Auburn Something-Or-Other writes about the USBC's lack of technology regulation in bowling. At times his comments echo the way some feel about the USGA:

The System of Bowling was defined in 1991 as the four components that had a direct affect on scoring. Those four components were: balls, pins, lane dressings, and lane surfaces.

Most of the specifications, parameters, and standards that were approved in 1991 for those four components then were based on what was available on the market at the time (especially for balls) and had been tested and approved for sanctioned competition in the “climate controlled” Testing and Research Center.

We were told each component of the System of Bowling would be reviewed periodically to insure that the integrity and the game's credibility is upheld so that a bowler's ability was the factor in scoring and not advancements in technology.

It reminds me of the “Wizard of Oz” when Dorothy, the Scarecrow, and the Tin Man are skipping down the yellow-brick road before they meet up with the Cowardly Lion and chanting, “Lions and tigers and bears, oh my,” because they are afraid of the dark woods they are traveling through and what unknowns await.

Who is the USBC afraid of offending when evaluating and establishing specifications for the components in the System of Bowling?

The USBC can evaluate pins until the cows come home, but if they are not willing to set relevant specifications and parameters that will address the scoreability factor of pins instead of just issuing unbelievable statements that pins of today score the same as they did back in the 1960s, then it will just be an exercise in futility.

Hey, at least they USGA doesn't do that! Donahue then writes (apparently not aware of the USGA's recent complacency...):

Is the USBC afraid if they initiate more restrictive standards for pins, balls, lane dressings, and lane surfaces, that manufacturers will protest and get reversals on balls that were rejected in the past?

The USGA sets the standards for golf balls and equipment and they aren't afraid to rule that certain balls and clubs are illegal?

Why is the USBC so gun-shy?

Baltimore CC Gets Senior Players

One of Tillinghast's finest gets a senior major. Very nice upgrade.

Riviera Wants 2009 Presidents Cup

Doug Ferguson reports that Riviera is begging interested in hosting the 2009 Presidents Cup.

"They're keenly interested in taking a look at this," said Michael Bodney, senior vice president of championship management for the PGA Tour. "It's all very preliminary, but they unsolicited wrote us a letter to host it."

"One thing they don't utilize are those lower tennis courts. There's a lot of room down there, and there seems to be enough room for a good TV compound."

One other issue was local interest. The gallery was noticeably thin during the '95 PGA Championship.

"You wonder about the L.A. market," Bodney said. "You've seen what's happened the last two majors, and that causes you to stand back a little bit."

Update on 2006-02-01 16:37 by Geoff

Quotes in Thomas Bonk's LA Times story would indicate that this is a non-story.

Bodney said Riviera is big enough to handle the staging issues of a big-time event, such as corporate hospitality areas and a television compound, but he said he was concerned that the market wouldn't respond.

"I can take this event to 10 or 15 places and I know for sure 25,000 or 30,000 people will show up. I don't know if that's going to happen in L.A.," Bodney said. "We can't afford to have a dud. We can go to a lot of places and I know it's not going to be a dud."

More on Strath

Mike Clayton elaborates on his original story about Davie Strath and also writes about the headstone unveiling ceremony that took place in Melbourne.

Save Musselburgh Links

My latest Golfobserver.com column is posted.

If you are interested in the efforts to save the world's oldest continually played course, here's their "get involved" page.

And here's the official club site.

Dawson To The Rescue

At least when the USGA messes with a time-tested golf course, they try to act like it was someone else's idea. Preferably, a golf architect.

Not the R&A. Mike Aitken writes about the effort to inundate Turnberry with more driver-eliminating bunkers. Donald Steel is the supervising architect, but he's not the one making the decisions.

"There are a number of other changes in the pipeline which are yet to be finalised between ourselves and the Royal and Ancient," [Turnberry GM Stewart] Selbie added. "The discussions are ongoing. Obviously, there are going to be some changes to championship tees. Just adding length to the links is not necessarily the answer, although there are a couple of instances where we will be looking to add a little more distance around the 16th and 17th holes."

Concerned that Turnberry's finishing stretch, which brought out the best in Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson in 1977, is not quite as testing as it once was for a new generation of players who all hit the ball further than their predecessors, the R&A is examining a number of options related to the positioning of tees and greens.

David Hill, the R&A's director of championships, said: "Peter Dawson, our chief executive, is due to visit Turnberry later in February and will have a look at three different options. As it stands, we think we could make the 17th even better."

Now, anyone can hang out a sign and call themselves an architect. Guilty as charged.

But is it really the job of the R&A Executive Secretary to meddle in course design?

Well, it beats doing something about the distance problem. 

Walker Cuppers at the White House

President Bush hosted the victorious U.S. Walker Cup at the White House, with chaperones...

USGA incoming President Walter Driver (he officially takes office on Feb. 4), outgoing president Fred Ridley, Hall, Lewis and players Matt Every, Brian Harman, Billy Hurley, Anthony Kim, Michael Putnam, Kyle Reifers and Lee Williams entered the Oval Office in single file. (Three players from the team, John Holmes, Nicholas Thompson and Jeff Overton had prior PGA Tour commitments and did not attend). Bush greeted each one individually.

I wonder if Bush asked how long the Dulles baggage claim took? 

In this story, Brian Harmon talks about the president and the compliment he paid him.

“It was a real honor to be at the White House,” the Savannah native said from Washington before boarding a plane. “President Bush is such a great guy. He’s very down to earth. We actually talked some about Georgia football. I told him I think he’s doing a heck of a job.”

Dubai Progress Reports

You know what this week's Dubai event means? Time for player-architects to make ceremonial design visits!

At IMG they call this synergy.

I know you've all been wondering about the progress of Ernie Els' signature design in Dubai. So there are plenty of quotes in this story from the Big Easy about how wonderful it is. But here's the money quote a man named U and whose last name is the real reason copy and paste was invented:

Accompanying the Big Easy on his tour, U Balasubramaniam, CEO Dubai Sports City, said:” It is a great pleasure to have Ernie back in Dubai and we are particularly pleased that he has been able to take time out of his busy schedule to take a look at the ongoing construction of his golf course. We are proud to have such a big name in the game of golf associated with Dubai Sports City.”

Yes, pleased he could take time out of his schedule to look at the construction of his course. The sacrifices.

Speaking of sacrifices, Vijay actually talked to reporters about his project.  Actually, these sound more like press release quotes...

The Fijian born star then flew to the site of his course at Jumeirah Golf Estates, which lies approximately 22km south west of Dubai city centre to review the initial course routing plan against the existing topography and wind direction, discuss tee and green heights, and review the proposed lake edge details and integration of the real estate components.

Singh said: 'We have an incredible canvas to work with for my course at Jumeirah Golf Estates. I am honoured that Nakheel has given me and my design team the opportunity to showcase my design skills and commitment. I take this responsibility very seriously, and clearly I'm not the kind of person that settles for second-best.'

'My courses are designed by Vijay Singh, not for Vijay Singh,' he continued. 'The Water course will be a challenging test of golf, but it won't be unfair. This golf course will stand the test of time and will be a worthy addition to the best courses in the world.'