Minnesota Golfer - Directory 2023 - 4

INSIDE
THE MG A
What is MGA
Membership?
Tech Success
* BY TOM RYAN *
A look back at some of the events over the
last 20 years that helped shape where the
MGA is today as an organization.
T
he introduction of the World Handicap
System and the new GHIN platform in
2020, including the much-improved GHIN
Mobile app, have proven to be both a technical
and functional success. Golfers love receiving
their updated index daily, determining their
playing handicap from any set of tees, being
able to post their score immediately following
their round, and peer reviewing their buddies
at their fingertips. The ease of this whole
process is taken for granted now, but it is a
product of technology advances not available
until recently.
The fact the entire world is now operating
under one set of handicapping rules
was inconceivable 20 years ago. In fact, at
that time the MGA and other state associations
were challenged by outside handicap
vendors, who were marketing their products
to clubs as low-cost alternatives to
association memberships.
Back then, as cloud-based technologies
were new and in development, handicapping
at the local level was very much a local
hard
drive-driven
process.
Scores were
posted on computers in the golf shop, with
the scoring data " stored " in the kiosk and
later transferred in bulk to the USGA where
individual handicap indexes were updated
every two weeks. New indexes were posted
in locker rooms, and individual labels/cards
were available for the golfer to carry around,
to prove their index if necessary. It was very
" The MGA is the governing
body for the game in
Minnesota, and golf is
stronger collectively due
to its presence. "
4
MINNESOTAGOLFER Directory 2023
much " old school " and outdated.
At the time, there were several vendors
intent on building handicap computation
systems based solely on the " new " online
technology, even though the USGA Handicap
System did not allow online posting or computation
at the time. Under our license agreement
with the USGA, the MGA was bound to
offer handicaps computed under the rules in
place at the time.
When they couldn't get into the market
as a USGA " compliant " system, one online
vendor marketed themselves as a low-cost
alternative to the MGA membership. Our
response to their approach was a marketing
campaign that better explained the benefits
of an MGA membership, and that it was more
than just a handicap.
It's been a theme that remains relevant to
this day. Membership in the MGA supports
the game for all golfers in Minnesota: a voice
at the state capitol, the Minnesota Golfer
magazine, the course rating program that
supplies the data that supports the handicap
system, and it supports the administration of
our tournament program, senior tour, member
days and more. The MGA is the governing
body for the game in Minnesota, and golf
is stronger collectively due to its presence.
While we did lose some clubs for a period
of time, when they realized that the services
they enjoyed as member clubs were no longer
available to them, virtually every club that
resigned their MGA membership renewed
within two years.
While the outcome at the time was uncertain,
an effective communication plan centered
on the benefits and value of membership
in " your " golf association helped carry
the day, and golf in Minnesota has been better
for it.
See you on the course.
It's your invitation
to play some of the
finest golf courses
around, through
participation in MGA
Associate Members' Days
or the MGA Senior Tour. It's
your USGA Handicap Index,
now updated daily, after
a posted score. It's your
subscription to Minnesota
Golfer magazine, delivered
to your home. It's your
support of programs and
services that make the
game better.
2022 Tournament
Season Accounting
The MGA annual tournament
season accounting-
or revenues distributed
to MGA member clubs
for hosting association
championships, qualifiers,
Member Days and the
Senior Tour amounted to
more than $426,000 for
the May-October 2022
tournament year, a slight
dip (0.2 percent) over the
previous year. Here are
the details:
Carts: $61,790
Green Fees: $155,801
Prizes: $90,903
Food & Beverage: $92,089
Range: $15,765
Honorariums: $10,050
Total: $426,398
mngolf.org
http://www.mngolf.org
Minnesota Golfer - Directory 2023

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