Minnesota Golfer - Fall 2017 - 3

EDITOR'S
LE T T ER
Scoring in the Digital Age
Paper, apps and policy inside the ropes.
B
" [Digital live
scoring]
allows fans
to follow the
action online,
whether at
their desk
or on the
course with
their phone. "
ack in the day, the MGA " pioneered "
live scoring during the
State Amateur Championship,
The USGA and R&A are currently conits
flagship
event, by fax machine. Needless
to say, the effort was labor intensive. Today,
with the advent of mobile technology
like smartphones and apps, it requires a lot
less labor to deliver live scoring during our
championships. At the 2017 MGA Mid-Amateur
Championship, with the final round
hosted at Southview Country Club, five staff
walked with the leading groups and entered
scores as the players holed out. While still labor
intensive, this hole-by-hole approach allows
fans to follow the action online, whether
at their desk or on the course with their
mobile phone.
" I can't believe how many people comment
to me about how they follow the live
scoring. I'm even more astonished by how
many non-golfers enjoy the live scoring, "
says Andy Jacobson, runner-up at the recent
Mid-Amateur, who plays out of Eagle Creek
Golf Club in Willmar, Minn. " It amazes me
when I return home how many people tell
me 'I was following you online' or 'I was
glued to the live scoring link.' "
Those eyeballs (and thousands more like
them) attribute to the spike in traffic we see
at mngolf.org during events where live scoring
is featured. Live scoring also adds a touch
of professionalism to MGA championships,
adds Jacobson. So yeah, the extra labor is
worth it.
sidering sweeping changes to the Rules
in an effort to modernize them, as well as
clarify and simplify the language to make
them more accessible to golfers worldwide.
In fact, the new Rule 3-3 (Stroke Play) replaces
the old Rule 6-6, and explains that a
" score card " may be any paper or electronic
form approved by the Committee. The new
Rule allows for " certification " via a physical
or electronic signature. Clearly the rulesmakers
are making way for the day when paper
scorecards are complemented by-if not
outright replaced by-digital media.
How soon that day arrives depends a lot
on how quickly golf administrators and
competitors accept the intrusion of these
digital tools inside the ropes. I have no doubt
that technology will soon catch up with the
needs of our competitive players (who are
already familiar with range finders, yardage
books, smartphone apps and " wearable
technology " ). Harder to convince will be the
old guard who regard paper scorecards as
immutable. Whatever form the new scoring
technology takes, it will have to be as easy to
use as putting pencil to paper-and valid in
the eyes of those both inside and outside of
the ropes.
See you on the tee.
W.P. Ryan, Editor-in-Chief
www.mngolf.org
Fall 2017 MINNESOTAGOLFER
3
http://www.mngolf.org http://www.mngolf.org
Minnesota Golfer - Fall 2017

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