The Best of All Possible Worlds?

[Peter Pallotta]

Following on the success of my 'one word' thread, a 'two word' thread:

Liebniz in the 1700s coined the phrase/concept that we live in  'The best of all possible worlds'. A couple of decades later, Voltaire mocked that notion mercilessly in 'Candide'.

So: in terms of the world & game of *golf*, what do you think? In one or (if necessary) two words:

Q: Do we live in the best of all possible worlds, yes or no?

And

(If no, one word) Q: Why not?

[Adam Lawrence]

Ah, Dr Pangloss, I presume?

[Peter Pallotta]

As I thought about it before and after posting, I was surprised to find that I'd answer the question "Yes". 

[Ira Fishman]

No.
Money.


Ira

[JESII]

I would say Yes, Opportunity.

[JMEvensky]

I would say Yes, Opportunity.

Yes--opportunities available.


No--opportunities unable to take advantage of.


Mark me down as conflicted.

[Edward Glidewell]

I would say no, because a significant number of the world's best courses are inaccessible to the vast majority of golfers.


I don't have a personal problem with that -- club owners have the right to be exclusive; it's their property. But the fact remains that 99% of golfers will never be able to play courses like Cypress Point, National Golf Links of America, Augusta National, Pine Valley, etc.


EDIT: Just noticed I totally whiffed on the one word part of the prompt. Oops. Ken Moum's subsequent post works as mine, though.

[Ken Moum]

No.


Access.

[Thomas Dai]

Yes.
4 words - waterproof shoes and clothing!
atb

[Tim Leahy]

Pebble Beach


If you have money.

[BHoover]

*Sward* *Loam*

[Matthew Petersen]

Sure, if you live in the UK where nearly all of even the best courses are available to the public (for public play or in many cases reasonable rates of membership).


Not so in the US where the vast majority of the best courses are private, the private clubs tend to be quite expensive, opportunities to play at private clubs when they do exist are quite expensive and the good public courses that exist are also rather exorbitantly expensive.


I'm not sure about the rest of the world, seems like it's a mix though more places are like the US model than not.

[Peter Pallotta]

Breaking my own rule to toss out a bit so speculation:

If it could be any different it would be - there's only us here, people/golfers, and so the game as it exists must be what we want it to be, because we're the ones who made it & who keep it this way.

Exclusive American privates (and high priced destination/resort courses) continue to flourish because golfers (ie us) are more than willing to praise & support & value & aspire to high-priced exclusivity. 

Stop travelling so far and paying so much, stop grovelling for access, stop obsessing over a few extra yards via new equipment, stop belt-notching and excessively praising every (purported) new gem, support your local course consistently & above all else, embrace the more-than-occasional pond and trees, stop demanding 'greatness' every time out or believing that you 'deserve' etc - and the world/game of golf would be very different.

But we don't -- and so it isn't. So I suppose that's they way it 'should' be, and that all is well and all manner of things are well.

In short: it is indeed the best of all *possible* golf worlds, given who we are. 

[Kirk Gill]

No.


Knee.

[Sean_A]

Breaking my own rule to toss out a bit so speculation:

If it could be any different it would be - there's only us here, people/golfers, and so the game as it exists must be what we want it to be, because we're the ones who made it & who keep it this way.

Exclusive American privates (and high priced American destination/resort courses) continue to flourish because golfers (ie us) are more than willing to praise & support & value & aspire to high-priced exclusivity. 

Stop travelling so far and paying so much, stop grovelling for access, stop obsessing over a few extra yards via new equipment, stop belt-notching and excessively praising every (purported) new gem, stop demanding 'greatness' every time out or believing that you 'deserve' etc - and the world/game of golf would be very different.

But we don't -- and so it isn't. So I suppose that's they way it 'should' be, and that all is well and all manner of things are well.

In short: it is indeed the best of all *possible* golf worlds, given who we are.

Pietro

I dig what you are saying.  Lets not, however, forget that the world we make was built on the shoulders of the world our parents gave us...good and bad. 

Ciao

[John Kavanaugh]

I don't get all the whining about access when there is far more opportunity than time.