You know, the more I think about this the more I'm pissed off with all due respect. We should be trying to help spread the benefits and joys of this great, great game.
If you guys think that this game will thrive, much less survive in 50-100 years just by a shrinking White portion of the population playing further and further out from major population centers, you're out of your minds.
Unless we can find a way to bring affordable, viable golf back to large population centers, and find a way to bring it to socio-economic groups and races who haven't historically had those oppportunies, then we might as well all be playing the polo of the 21 century, because we'll have just as much relevance in about another 25 years.
Mike,
Your making the assumption that XYZ "socio-economic groups and races who haven't historically had those oppportunies" want to play golf. The post-war generation established a leisure time for the working class and they wanted to play golf. Now much of our urban growth comes from immigration, and those guys come here with leisure activities already in hand such as baseball, soccer and cricket.
My real home course is:
http://www.randallsislandgolfcenter.com/Randalls Island is 480 acres and the golf range takes up a decent size footprint.
They did just upgrade the golf range - a little, but they are now re-building/building on the rest of the island :
Current Facilities Include:
Icahn Stadium, a world-class IAAF sanctioned track & field facility, capable of hosting local, regional, national and international events
Premier Soccer Field adjacent to the Stadium with artificial surface, lighting, scoreboard and bleacher seating for 600
18 Soccer Fields (currently under construction)
26 Softball and Baseball Fields (currently under construction)
Tennis Center
Golf Center
Ferry Dock
Picnic areas
Playground
New Park Projects
Redevelopment of 64 sports fields (currently under construction)
SporTime Tennis Center – privately developed (slated to open fall 2008)
Interpretive and Interactive Boardwalk (complete)
Waterfront Pathways (ongoing)
Wetlands and salt marsh restoration (currently under construction)
Shoreline and seawall reconstruction (ongoing)
Roadway, parking and infrastructure improvements (ongoing)
Visitors and Nature Center (tbd)
Now should New York build the above or should they build two 18 hole golf courses. By the way, Randall's Island serves 700,000 people per year!
The guys who are really getting screwed are the cricket players. Nothing for them on Randall's officially but they may be able to get permitting at off times and convert the field. They never have enough fields: http://www.nycgovparks.org/facilities/cricket