.....and bifurcation is all about the loss of control....
Maybe.
The link between the pro game, the amateur game, and the business of golf strikes me as unique among the sports.
Not at all true, A.G.. Bowling is exactly the same. Tennis is too, but would you really want to spend 20 minutes on the center court of Wimbledon getting beat by Andy Murray 6-0, 6-0, 6-0? Golf is a lying bastard of a sport that makes us think we are the same as those who play it for a living just because all of us can beat any player in the world for at least one putt, or one hole or even one round (if we are good and/or lucky enough). Regardless of what we might think, we are all crap relative to the real players, and the fact that the USGA and R&A spend a lot of their time and our money perpetuating that myth is scandalous.
Rich
Rich,
I miss your point. Tennis and bowling are also not bifurcated as to equipment, true. And relevant to my point in that it wouldn't be in those sports' best interests to bifurcate, either.
As to your last sentence, I KNOW I'm crap relative to "real" players; that has absolutely nothing to do with the issue of bifurcation, does it? As for me, I just don't care how low they go on Tour; I LIKE it that we use the same ball and equipment, etc., that they do. I think that's a good thing, and I would hate to see it go away. But that's just me...