Jack Nicklaus supports “out of the box” strategy to arouse youngster’s interest in the sport
The great “Golden Bear” of the game, Jack Nicklaus, shared his reservations about the depleting interest in the sport that he has played all his life.
Speaking at the annual PGA Industry Roundtable, Thursday, January 25, at the PGA Merchandise Show, Nicklaus expressed his concern about the apathy of the younger generation towards the sport and stressed the need to tackle the situation on war-footings.
He said, “I’ve seen what’s happened over the last few years. We’ve lost 23 percent of the women in the game since 2006, and we’ve lost 36 percent of the kids in the game since 2006. That’s not a good stat”.
Speaking to the host Ken Griffey Jr. of the show, Nicklaus threw his weight behind PGA Tour’s latest initiative, the Golf 2.0.
He said that there is a dire need to introduce a short form of the game to reignite interest of the general public in general and the younger generation in particular.
He insisted that the players who lost their touch in the course of time or the ones who lost interest in the game must be re-engaged to stabilise the future of the sport in the country.
He added, “I've got 22 grand kids, and they all play a little bit, I mean a little bit, really a little bit. They play less than I do, and that's not very much. Other sports are grabbing their attention. We need to introduce our kids to the game of golf”.
PGA Tour, in an attempt to increase the popularity of the sport among the youth, has now taken up the Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs of America as the official youth development partner in its efforts to re-engage the youth.
Griffey, who is a Boys’ and Girls’ Club board member, also suggested that the parents must take interest in the sport, as the combination can prove vital in strengthening children’s interest in the sport.
Nicklaus, winner of the record 18-major titles in the sport, now spends time looking after his multi-million course designing firm and has rolled out several ventures across the world.
He suggested that artificial synthetic greens maybe installed in public and state parks and around the swings in children’s play area in order to arouse their suspense and eventually interest in the sport.
Favouring the “out of the box” thinking pattern, Nicklaus held the 12-hole event in Muirfield last year where he introduced eight-inch holes to speed up the play.
Regardless of his relentless efforts, many of the former golfers lament the rise of membership fee in recent times of economic crunch.
The one-round charges which used to be around $20 a few years back, have now soared to $50-$150 making it even more difficult for the common populace to enjoy weekend golf.
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