Michigan Golf Journal May 2020

Michigan Golf Journal The Future of Golf With its first 100 years of history in the rearview mirror of the Golf Association of Michigan (GAM), what might be coming for the future of the GAM, and for that matter, the sport of golf in general? Honestly, the list could be endless – especially as golf in Michigan was paused this spring for social distancing and new protocols are certainty in our future. GAM, which was established in 1919, has entered its second century of serving the interests of golf clubs, individual golfers and public golf venues in Michigan. In 2020 and beyond, both opportunities and challenges lay ahead – such as: • expanding golf-related options for youth, women and diverse cultures • providing fun competitions for people who classify themselves simply as recreational golfers • exploring more entertainment sides of golf • addressing time constraints and speed of play GAM’s second century lies ahead By Tom Lang The Future of Golf Editor’s note: the vast majority of this story was written in the fall of 2019, as the GAM was still celebrating its 100 th anniversary year and no one had even heard of COVID-19 yet .