Term Limits for Raters !!!

[Matt_Ward]

With the election process marching quickly to November 2 I had the good fortune in speaking with someone I respect who is also involved with the ratings and I wondered aloud maybe it might be a good idea to have term limits for raters!

I mean how about a little democracy among those who sit in judgement of courses?

The common man (golfer) is always wondering how they remove the dead weight that exists in DC because they stay too long and after having read William F. Buckley, Jr's -- "Miles Gone By" I was struck by a quote within the book ... "Only the man who makes the voyage can speak truly about it."

The same goes for raters -- if you can't make the effort then how bout a little rotation -- you can come back but you can't stay forever.

Now forgive me if such a "democratic" idea falls faster than a anchor out a 90th floor window.

I also saw how well the "term limits" idea went over in DC and elsewhere -- but the crowd here on GCA is much more enlightened right?
 

[Dan Kelly]

Term limits is a bad idea for politicians, and a bad idea for raters.

Getting rid of the *bad* ones is a good idea, in both cases.

P.S. Hard to imagine a William F. Buckley sentence without an "I" in it -- although I suppose "the man" in that sentence might be a veiled "I," eh?

[Tommy Williamsen]

I have been on GD's ratings panel since 1992.  It took me about three years before I really could say that I had any consistency in my ratings.  It also took me a few years to realize what I didn't know about golf architecture.  Until this year I would average about 60 or 80 courses a year.  The numbers are down this year because I don't have the same desire to see as many courses.  But today I visited Terry Inslee and his wife who just had surgery.  He show no signs of slowing down.  And I suspect that next year I will be hot to trot to 40 or so different courses.  I must say that when I was in England this summer I p[layed about 25 different courses.  I just didn't rate them.  I wish GD would let me rate courses in the UK.

[Brad Klein]

I think it's fantastic idea, one of the best concepts I have heard in years that truly grasps the inner workings of the ratings process.

By the way, Matt, thanks for being on the Golfweek panel. You're fired.

[TEPaul]

"I think it's fantastic idea, one of the best concepts I have heard in years that truly grasps the inner workings of the ratings process.
By the way, Matt, thanks for being on the Golfweek panel. You're fired."

Now that's the Bradley Klein we all know and love! Fantastic!  

One wonders how on earth golf ever survived before there were magazine raters and rankings. I don't know but somehow it did. Perhaps it was some mysterious process when golfers found these things out for themselves and told others about it. What  a f... novel idea!    

 

[Matt_Ward]

Brad:

I tried to get on "the Apprentice" but they said the show was already booked. Since I could not get The Donald to utter the two famous words of "you're fired" I consider it a great honor to have you uter them to me.

Dan K:

I only started this thread for a little humor. I agree with you in what you said. By the way Buckley quote should be stapled to the forehead of any rater -- actual or prospective.

[Steve Lang]

 

Perhaps "Sunset Provisions" should really be about walking a course with a hip flask or other mental acuity trancendants and seeing its features in different lights..