What Could Go Wrong? NIL Freedom Comes To Amateur Golf
What Could Go Wrong? NIL Freedom Comes To Amateur Golf
Governing bodies see player endorsements as a way to offset the cost of competitive golf.
Congrats Mary! Pistol Pete’s American Diner is so proud of your win in the Greater Boca Raton Junior Classic, Girls 14-15 division!
So proud, in fact, we’ve taken out this charming digital “classified” ad after you credited your win to our delicious kombucha-based Swamp Burgers (with fresh fruit replacing the fries because we value your dietary needs as you pay your way through junior golf).
See you at the diner Mary and thanks for tagging us on The Snap, The Tok, The Gram and The Meta, as your contract required. Fairways and greens!
Yes, that was satire based on a bizarre graphic shared as part of the “Modernized Rules Of Amateur Status” rollout.
Maybe the USGA’s infographics team is made up of old LSU basketball fans, or maybe they just decided to go whimsical to distract us from what amounts to the end of amateur golf. Hey, it was a good run!
Either way, the infographic offered a possible preview of where things are headed now that amateurs can pad their Venmo balances with endorsement money.
I could get all serious here and point out how the loosening of amateur status rules will lead to soul-crushing exploitation of our youth who innocently took up this crazy game thinking it might be fun. Or I could make you want to pop an edible to offset the pathetic day when kids are encouraged to hawk product just to make ends meet.