“Hey golfers, let’s not screw this up”

Incidents of golfers defiantly resisting distancing rules and other behaviors are on the upswing (Tim Gavrich with the GolfAdvisor roundup of incidents in Connecticut, Massachusetts and England) and the sight of Presidio Golf Course being turned into a park won’t do much for pulse rates (Tessa McLean with that report, and Jason Deegan with an excellent analysis of this growing par/golf debate at GolfAdvisor).

Still, the signs are positive for golfers itching to play. Course openings are up and in the United States, are projected to be in the 77% neighborhood by early May according to this week’s NGF report. It remains clear that golf is one of the safest and best things you can do.

Yet, as expected when the pandemic broke out and golf courses were closed despite the benefits, there is a sense the sport will subject itself to backlash by pushing too fast to open courses or convene large scale tournaments.

Sam Weinman addressed this in an excellent GolfDigest.com piece after a recent round with his son, suggesting golf is a litmus test of sorts.

We all want to play, and a cursory glance at courses in my area suggests most are trying to make it work—tee times spaced out, practice facilities and clubhouses closed, carts banned or limited to those who really need them. When my course sends out weekly emails outlining or emphasizing these restrictions, the subtext is always, “We’ve got a decent thing going here. Don’t screw this up.”

Yet there are reports out of different parts of the country and abroad where golfers are holding firm to the game they’ve always played. Big groups, two players to a cart. Beers flowing post-round. At a time when deep sacrifices are being made all around, there is great danger, both symbolic and otherwise, in assuming the asks being made of society don’t apply to golf. The game fights a bad rap as it is.

And this was well stated by Joe Beditz, CEO of the NGF:

“Golf now has an incredible opportunity to lead, not to mention an obligation to set a safe, responsible example for other sports and activities,” Joe Beditz, CEO of the National Golf Foundation, said recently. “Done right, this is a chance to show how golf as an industry, and community, can not only weather this crisis but come out of it in a positive light.”