JM,
If ANGC really wanted to be a role model, why wouldn't they create a good looking golf course and then say we did it and only spent X amount of dollars. That would be truly impressive to innovate how to maintain a course on a limited budget, and they actually could afford to try different methods and still recover if it doesn't work out.
Not to pile on Kalen, but this section is a real head scratcher to me. How is it they would recover if something didn't work out?
Do you mean kick Rommetty out of the club if she gets fired from IBM?
Have you looked at a recent aerial of the place?
By my count that have 4 maintenance yards and dozens of acres of practice areas. Its a fantastic place to try out new techniques on maintaining different type of grasses, varying watering techniques and frequency of application, fertilizers variants in varying application sizes, mowing habits, etc, etc, etc. They could try out something new on the par 3 course and see how well it holds up under play, before moving it to the big course.
How many golf courses around the country have the kinds of resources and space to do this type of work? Think of the innovations they could create or the processes they could refine? Now that's doing something for the good of the game.
As Mike Cirba hinted at just today, we all stand on the shoulders of the innovators/dreamers/creators of yester-year who have come before us and we all owe them a debt of gratitude. Clearly life has smiled brightly on the green jackets....why not offer something back in the form or real innovations to the future of the game and how its brought to the masses?
P.S. Pile on guys, even I'm surprised by the number of IMs i'm getting in support of my viewpoints. There are lots of people out there who feel the same way I do, but don't want to ruin their chances of being invited to ANGC.
As for me, I would gladly wish they send me an invite...I'd turn em down flat!!!
