The membership at the legendary Winged Foot has refused to extend an invitation to the US Golf Association for the 2015 US Open Championship. In addition to some interesting internal politics, it appears that the main problem was that the USGA is cheap. They were offering the club less money than they did in 2006, when the club also was forced to take the money losing US Amateur.
If the USGA is as cheap as the accusations, we may see a lot more municipal courses in the rota and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I like the idea of the US Open being played on courses that the average Joe can access. The USGA is supposed to represent all golfers—not just those at exclusive clubs. It can only help the USGA and the game of golf to have more Opens at places like Bethpage and Torrey Pines. I don’t care a lot about Winged Foot; I’ll never play there. I will, however, watch the Open at Torrey Pines this year with intense interest, since I have played that course.
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Its great to see curses we can actually play, it gives us a great contrast to courses like Augusta with its exclusivity.
The reason that the PGA is going to munis is all about what you wrote—they’re just too cheap and want someone else to pay for everything while they rake in the bucks in those tents. Private courses can’t foot the bill but city officials aren’t that smart and can be manipulated to provide facilities and upgrades with the “promise” of tourist revenues that never really cover those costs.
Just trot out Tiger and the stars get in their eyes and they can’t see straight. Suckers.
Paul C—I also think that members are not keen to give up their course for three weeks during a summer—and municipal golfers should not be happy about giving up a course for three weeks that their tax dollars have paid for.