Thirty years ago today, I was two years old for the greatest victory in American sports history . Mike Eruzione's game winning goal to beat the mighty Russians to advance the US amateurs to the gold medal game was a pivotal moment for not only the country but the sport as well. Then the 2004-05 lockout sent the sport of hockey into an abyss. Last night's US/Canada hockey certainly helps to revive the sport of ice hockey.
This gets me thinking of the game of golf. Today there are more golf course closures, the Tiger Woods debacle and the economy, how low can it go? The game needs something to bring it back to a better life.
Olympics? probably not. But it does need more exposure, it needs a new face. Golf has the TV contracts and plenty of media coverage. The door is open, wide open. There are no signs of Tiger returning to the game right now, especially after what we saw on Friday, we may not see Tiger until 2011.
In 2010, golf will have its spotlight on some of the grandest stages the game has to offer; Augusta, Pebble Beach, St. Andrews and the Ryder Cup. This is the time for faces to emerge to become new leaders and ignite the game once again. I look forward to seeing what golf has to offer in the future.
Some of the problems we face in the industry mirror the problems of our economy. There were too many courses built too quickly, much the same as boom housing. The game became overvalued, much the same as real estate. Mostly though, the expectations of growth were not matched at the grass roots level in any way. Golf became less affordable, more time consuming and less junior friendly in the past 20 years. This was a great wake up call for all of us to provide an affordable product that matches the diversity of our country and is more fun than prestigious.
ReplyDelete