Dear Mike,
Women's golf is a topic near to my heart. My oldest daughters were on state high school championship teams. Back when they were junior golfers, you took over the LPGA Tour. I have followed women's golf closely since. I've long admired the leadership and vision you've brought to women's golf.
Five years ago, when you started in your current role at the USGA, you did an interview with the NLU podcast. One of your priorities and stated goals was growing women's golf, ultimately raising participation to 50% over the next 30 years. Since then the numbers have moved. Female participation is at an all-time high, and roughly a third of junior golfers are now girls. That is real progress and you deserve credit for it. But 50% is still a long way off, and how fast we close that gap depends on what we give these girls to play for. With that in mind, I humbly recommend you consider adding an event that would have an immediate and lasting effect.
MIXED FOUR-BALL CHAMPIONSHIP.
We've seen amazing stories emerge from the Four-Ball since the first one at The Olympic Club in 2015. Family stories every year, fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, brothers, sisters, but not brothers and sisters.
Think of the impact on women's golf when a generation of young women qualify and compete in matches, matches they care about, with their family. Most girls still come to this game through a father, a brother, an uncle. These father-daughter scenarios are obvious coming from a girl dad of five, but what other stories are we missing out on?
There is a rich history of golfing families competing at a high level. Gabi and Ryan Ruffels came up through the amateur ranks together. So did Anna Davis and her twin brother Billy. What about mother and son? While these stories are rarer, they are out there. Eric Cole was taught by his mom, so was Will Wilcox. Keegan's aunt Pat. The idea of this is thrilling, a mother sharing her love of golf, accomplishing this with her son. Mike, it just 'hits different,' so to speak.
What about a whole family qualifying together? Summerhays/Summerhays vs. Summerhays/Summerhays isn't far-fetched knowing how deep the talent runs in that family.
Even attempting to qualify. The striving to accomplish this as a family, this grows the game, grows it in hearts and minds. Golf becomes bigger and more meaningful when moments like this can be shared, the emotion is infectious.
Losing always hurts. Losing to a girl shouldn't sting any more. Girls sinking putts to win matches against their male competitors. This would normalize boys getting beat by girls to a generation of competitive golfers.
Imagine the compound effect it will have on young girls, a simple 'I want to do that with my dad,' could tip the scales in favor of golf. This event could be the difference for a Serena Williams, or Caitlin Clark type of athlete to choose professional golf over other sports.
Mike, looking 30 years ahead sometimes means looking ten years behind. Eleven Four-Balls in, we have a decade of proof that this format produces the stories people remember. We are leaving half of them on the table. I urge you to take action. Bring this event to life so stories like this can become actual possibilities.
I'm sure an event like this comes with a cost. As the founder of 13thMan, I'd like to sponsor it. We're a young company, so I'll be honest, I may need a layaway plan. But I have a delusional amount of confidence in where we'll be by the time this event comes to life. Put us down for it.
Benito Martinez
Founder, 13thMan.com, Girl dad of five