by Gary Williams | Mar 30, 2023 | Blog
My first journey to the Sand Hills of Nebraska was twenty years in the making and I was only going to embark on the trek with my best friend in life. On the Sunday afternoon of our first day at the mecca built and designed by the team of Coore & Crenshaw we found ourselves sitting on Ben’s porch, affectionately named after one of the co-designers. The founder and visionary of the club, Dick Youngscap, had come out to the club that Sunday afternoon and he asked us to join him and his wife for lunch. Dick’s story and the… Read more
by Gary Williams | Mar 15, 2023 | Blog
Have you ever had a conversation with someone, and it was very clear that your opinions were divergent and reaching a common place was unlikely? It is usually during those moments that one or both of the impassioned voices will utter the most reliable and disingenuous disclaimer ever voiced, “With all due respect”. It’s these moments where civility and a modicum of respect for the other point of view are on life support. It is likely to be that time now in the industry of golf as the United States Golf Association and the Royal and Ancient have laid down… Read more
by Gary Williams | Mar 6, 2023 | Blog
Comparison is the thief of joy. And so why is so much of life spent doing just that? Bigger house, bigger car, bigger job, longer off the tee and so on. It’s a constant and what do we derive from all the comparisons other than envy and resentment? It’s not totally unhealthy or unconstructive to find measuring sticks because they can also serve to motivate and inspire. But the sports talk “gasbaggery” that permeates our world is continually and constantly polluted with comparisons of not just now, but of all time. These discussions parse everything down to who did what… Read more
by Gary Williams | Mar 2, 2023 | Blog
One of the great and valuable lessons in life is to learn from your mistakes. Repeating ill-fated plans or procedures is not only a clear sign of stubbornness, but it also strongly suggests that the most capable businesspeople may not be in charge. In a period of rapid and profound change on the PGA Tour, much of it was driven by the existence of LIV Golf. They have now decided what the future looks like, and it feels familiar and soft. The details of the structure of the new Designated Events are disappointing and it didn’t have to be this way.… Read more
by Gary Williams | Feb 7, 2023 | Blog
Enshrinement into any Hall of Fame requires a volume of achievement. Most accumulate the necessary statistics over a career that spans, if you’re lucky, a decade, to on very rare occasions, two decades. The Halls of Fame that celebrate the greats in the NBA, NFL, and MLB are reliant on a sensible voting body, and with the exception of time removed from the game, there is no baseline criteria for consideration. The World Golf Hall of Fame (WGHOF), which will soon be returning to Pinehurst, has changed criteria, voting bodies and gone from annual ceremonies to hosting once every couple… Read more
by Gary Williams | Jan 30, 2023 | Blog
I didn’t start finding an affinity for golf because it was more fun than baseball, basketball and football – that would come later. I spent every day growing up with friends on the fields and courts of my youth. Daylight would give way to nighttime and only when others had to go home would my day of play end. I never wanted for company, or friends, to fill days and my time engaged in the sports I loved. I even pursued the solitary and lonely pursuit of competitive junior tennis. That was never going to be sustainable because, as comfortable… Read more
