"To Frank, Golf was always a Game, and the Amateur golfer was its 
foundation."

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Ron Read was a longtime USGA employee who worked under Frank Hannigan. And while we've heard a lot about Frank's writings and contributions to the game, it's nice to hear from someone who worked under Frank and can speak to his management style.

Read writes:

He surrounded himself with “golf
people” who were passionate about serving the Game. His instructions
were minimal. He was not effusive in expressing gratitude for the long and
dedicated hours spent. We did not require it. We knew we had his
confidence.

Some thought Frank lacked diplomacy and was too direct. It was also an
asset. People knew exactly where he stood, and they trusted him.

To Frank, Golf was always a Game, and the Amateur golfer was its 
foundation. He once suggested to me that if the expected “great
earthquake” along the San Andreas Fault occurred during the old “Crosby”,
and the Monterey Peninsula fell into the Pacific, there would still be 30
million golfers enjoying golf on the mainland. The Game, played by
Amateurs, was always will be bigger than its stars in Frank’s world.

A service will be held April 26th at 1 pm for Frank in Saugerties, New York. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations be made to the ACLU, Planned Parenthood or your local no-kill dog shelter.

The Light Still Very Much Out In Bill Murray's Closet

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Lindsey Boetsch Tweeted a few shots from the Murray brothers' annual charity event in St. Augustine, and it's clear that Bill Murray is determined to look as (beautifully) awful as possible. 

But the Lama shirt is pretty sweet. Wonder how long before his people ask for royalties?

 

Video: Colbert Takes On Hack Golf, State Of The Game

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Colbert on golf! Finally.

Tip of the cap to Ashley Mayo for the alert on the Colbert Report's "Sports Report" (that's pronounced Spore Repore) where, at the 5:40 mark, Stephen Colbert and friends take on the PGA Show, Hack Golf and efforts to grow the game.

And I think before any golf writer, Colbert and writers actually have perused the crowd sourcing HackGolf.org website.

Re-Thinking The Year-End World Top 50 Masters Invite

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It seems like inside-the-Beltway stuff but the Masters exempting the Official World Golf Ranking's top 50 has many ramifications, most of them negative.

Doug Ferguson makes a case for the Masters taking the top 50 closer to the tournament.

The top 50 at the end of the preceding year received invitations, along with the top 50 a month before the Masters. Starting in 2003, the final cutoff was moved to one week before the Masters.

The club has never said why it takes the top 50 at the end of a calendar year. Perhaps it's so players can make travel arrangements, or perhaps it was to give an advantage to overseas players, who compete deep into the year. PGA Tour members have more avenues to qualify throughout the season.

But imagine what would happen if there was only one cutoff for the top 50 in the world, and it followed the Florida swing.

Matteo Manassero (51), Branden Grace (57), David Lynn (65) and Peter Hanson (70) all were in the top 50 in December. They would have spent the Florida swing trying to stay in the top 50 or move back in. That change might be something for Augusta National to consider if it feels the field is getting too close to 100 players.

Queen Opens R&A Membership Betting As 3-1 Favorite

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I couldn't find it on their site but PaddyPower.com is offering 3-1 that Queen Elizabeth will be the first female member of the Royal And Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, tweets Martin Dempster of The Scotsman.

Last year Paddy Power had "given odds of 11/8 on the club not allowing their first female member until a point between 2016 and 2025. More worryingly the odds on the end of their ancient policy not coming until before the end of 2025 are at 4/6."

Well those numbers are obsolete now, and The Queen certainly fits the Royal and Ancient membership profile: really old, really rich, really British and really likes gin.

I still have my fingers crossed for Condoleeza Rice.

As for the all important UK reviews, Owen Gibson of The Guardian slaps the R&A around for not pushing host courses to take in female members before concluding:

If his members vote in favour of dropping the ban on female members on 18 September, with a two-thirds majority required, it will be interesting to see whether that changes.

Just as the emergence of a young Tiger Woods acted as a powerful symbol for the idea that you didn't have to be white and rich to play golf, so the painfully slow process of shedding its sexist image is another necessary step in maintaining tradition but positioning it for the future.

Derek Lawrenson couldn't help but be skeptical about the vote's timing on the same day as the Scottish independence vote.

'The reason for holding it that day is that it is enshrined in our constitution that the business meeting takes place the day before the last day of Autumn Medal week. So you see our dilemma,' said Peter Dawson, R&A chief executive.

A good day to bury bad news should the members, who are predominantly past retirement age, remain set in their ways? Dawson is confident that will not be the case and there will be the requisite two-thirds majority, thus ending 260 years of men-only rule.

Getting In The Masters Mood: Podcast Edition

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It was my great privilege to appear on Mitch Laurence's Golf Connections show to discuss the run-up to the Masters, but I'd evn more strongly recommend listening to his recent pre-Masters shows with Ben Wright, Frank Christian and John Derr. (Scott Michaux had a great piece on Derr last year.)

The Masters memories are flowing, and it's a treat to hear what these grizzled veterans of all things Augusta have to say.

I explain all and link to the shows here in this GolfDigest.com Local Knowledge item.