[jinnsamys]

Cost is certainly a factor but I believe that there are two other things that need to be considered as well.

The first is that like so many other pursuits, golf has become specialized and technologized (is that a word?) to the point that I think the perception is that pro golf sits at one very high and very technical level and golf for the rest of us is far below and I believe that the notion that "anyone can become a pro" (and the impetus to get better at the game) is virtually gone.

Years ago, I think most people thought that if one had a love of the game and enough time on their hands that anyone could take a shot at turning pro someday. But these days, between the college golf factories and the ever increasing dependence on gear and specifications, I think that for the first time in history there is a real disconnect between the people and the pros.

I'm not saying that everyone used to have a desire to turn pro, but it was rather the idea that it was possible and the reason was the perception that the equipment the pro's used and what the average player used wasn't that different because technology wasn't there to make it all that different. But today, I think people see getting into pro golf as a million dollar undertaking and that kills the dream (however fanciful) and thus the interest.

The second thing is the single-parent or the working parents household.

Because of the strains and demands of modern middle-class life, the leisure time that was enjoyed by many in the past is gone. It has been replaced by schedules and commitments and the idea of a father passing his golf wisdom to his son on any regular basis has all but disappeared.
When I learned the game, my father took me out to play every week and he was there to teach me the finer points of the game as well as the etiquette and he engendered an interest in the game in me that became set in stone. But today, many fathers are either absent or simply don't have the time to nurture a child's interest in the game beyond a perfunctory level and though the "basics" may be passed on, the passion isn't because it takes time to develop a passion.

I don't know whether any of this makes any sense to others, but these are a couple of things that I've thought about over the years and that I've observed.


-JP