The Pellucid Perspective - August 2020 - 9

THE SOUL OF GOLF

The "Soul of Golf " is
Misplaced by Many
By Jim Koppenhaver

www.PellucidCorp.com

PHOTO BY BY DENIZ ALTINDAS ON UNSPLASH

M

y wife recently bought me a golf book for my birthday
by Brett Cyrgalis titled "Golf 's Holy War" and subtitled
as "The battle for the soul of a game in an age of science." I give him points for a provocative title and recognize he
has usurped me as the king of lengthy subtitles on simple points.
I think she bought it for me because I'm a fan of Michael Lewis
and his several entertaining (and factual) stories on how information and insights have upset several industries (Flash Boys for
stock trading and the more well-known/recent stories of Moneyball and The Big Short, both of which were made into successful
movies). For anyone outside the golf industry, the front cover
recommendations would tease
one into believing that Brett is
truly going to explain the "soul
of golf ". Jaime Diaz's quote is
"A sophisticated and timely state
of the game...Rarely has a golf
writer been more illuminating."
OK, this is going to explain the
state of the game, something that
we know a little about and discuss annually in Orlando, cool.
James Patterson, not surprisingly,
brings us the more clever and
prickly recommendation, "Brett
Cyrgalis has written a highly entertaining, very smart book about
a maddening, very stupid game.
You should read it." Now I've got
to read it to figure out why James
Patterson thinks it's a "stupid game" for those of us who play and
either love or simply enjoy it. By the book's final page (238),
I came to the conclusion that Brett had made some interesting
points about various aspects of the golf swing, playing golf intuitively vs. analytically, course architecture and sports psychology
but he needed a mulligan on the promised topic of "the battle
for the soul of a game." Understanding that opinions are like
belly-buttons, everyone has one, let me outline the why behind
the whiff.
Having now plied my trade of information and insights in this
industry for nearly 20 years, I believe I've accumulated the knowledge and experience to call BS on the plethora of presentations,
news articles and books that purport to address the State of the
Industry and yet are confined to the PGA TOUR's health, the
latest initiative by the USGA, some recognized golf course architect or the instructor-to-the-stars du jour's personal observations
and opinions. I would propose that these either aren't credible or
miss the mark fundamentally for the following reasons:

*	
*	

At the heart of the golf industry's largest segment (golf
played by participants at golf courses) are 21M golfers
and 15.5K individual golf facilities
In the consumer franchise, a "vast minority" of golfers are so absorbed in the game that they give much
thought to dramatic improvement, the thrill of competition or the psychology of golf and how it helps them
become their "best selves." As support for the first two
points, consider that <5% of golfers have taken a lesson
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The Pellucid Perspective - August 2020

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