What is interesting about this development is that, according to our sources, only Golf Channel was contacted to help develop the “white paper.” Our sources indicated that neither EZ Links, LLC (A PGA Tour Affiliate), CourseTrends, Golf Pipeline, W-5 or any other third party firms were consulted in arriving at the terms of the final document. You would think that when concerns about monopolistic practices prevail, the Associations would have not acted like a monopoly controlling input.
Having formed a golf management software company in 1989 and have been the first to introduce internet tee times for clients in 1995 , I would tell the organizing groups to take a “flying leap” if I wasn’t consulted about guidelines to which they would want to hold our firm accountable. Also,I certainly never would contribute financial resources to an Association to monitor the practices of our competitors.
Sources speculate that many golf course owners will be rankled by some of the provisions and being humored that Golf Channel is not in compliance with the document they help create.
More later when paper is released this coming Monday.
