"Golf’s omission from the federal relief package served as a wake-up call to industry officials"

Golfweek's Gene Yasuda reports on the golf industry delegation convening upon Washington to talk up the sport and help Powell-Tate justify even more lobbying fees. A couple of items stand out:

Industry executives also made the trip to Capitol Hill to ensure their sport wouldn’t be overlooked as it was during the 2005 natural disaster that left New Orleans in ruins. Golf’s omission from the federal relief package served as a wake-up call to industry officials, who concluded many in Washington knew little about the game’s economic, environmental and societal value.

“That was a public relations black eye for golf,” said Steranka, who spearheaded the legislative initiative. “Golf has never been more a part of America’s popular culture, but what is not understood and not appreciated is the tremendous economic impact of our industry and the scale of our environmental management practices.”

Somehow I think had golf been part of the federal relief package, that would have been a public relations black eye.
 

The environmental stuff sounded better:

At a conference at the National Press Club, Steve Mona, former CEO of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America and new chief executive of the World Golf Foundation said: “Golf has been involved in what we would term the ‘green movement’ for 2 1/2 decades.”

He provided little-known facts such as:

• Golf course irrigation accounts for 0.5 percent of the 408 billion gallons of water used per day in the U.S., as estimated by the United States Geologic survey.

• On a typical 18-hole course of 150 acres, only six acres – dedicated to tee boxes and greens – are considered intensively maintained.

• Nearly 30 percent of 18-hole courses are involved in a formal, voluntary environmental stewardship program.