[ He ’ s ] somebody [ who ’ s ] not afraid to think outside of the box . As all of you know , he ’ s inspirational .” |
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A LASTING LEGACY
To that degree , the same could be intimated of Davis . His imminent departure is akin to a slowly-setting sun — the stunning Hawaiian type that can ’ t be seen all that often . Simply put , Davis was one of a kind .
For nearly 32 years — ten as the CEO and executive director — Davis ’ orbit has been the USGA . He quietly told the USGA Executive Committee almost four years ago that 2021 likely would be his final year . This , after thinking he would be a USGA lifer .
“ At the heart of this , I have always loved golf course design ,” Davis says . “ I loved learning , seeing , playing , studying golf courses . I ’ m closer to 60 than I am 50 , and there was almost a sense that if I don ’ t do this , I ’ m going to regret it .”
Besides his significant pull behind modernizing the Rules , developing different risk-reward approaches to course setups , and steering the new Golf House Pinehurst project , Davis ’ legacy will be tethered to other indelible innovations and forward-thinking steps .
On his watch , a lucrative $ 1.1 billion 2013 deal with Fox Sports materialized ( since revamped ); the World Handicap System launched ; Allied Golf Associations were established ; new men ’ s and women ’ s amateur four-ball championships were created ; and Green Section sustainability issues have become important everyday conversations .
Along with the R & A , the USGA under Davis adopted a rule change that prohibits anchoring a club while making a stroke . In a last hurrah , Davis worked with the R & A in 2020 to initiate the Distance Insights Project ( DIP ), an extensive study looking at impact of distance in golf .
All this hasn ’ t been lost on Whan . He ’ ll take a homogeneous approach on some issues that are in lockstep with Davis , but don ’ t expect a carbon copy executive director .
“ Mike Davis and I will be friends the rest of our lives , but no one will confuse the two of us as the same guy ,” Whan says .
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“ I think in Mike we ’ ve got a wonderful leader . We ’ ve got a big-idea person . [ He ’ s ] somebody [ who ’ s ] not afraid to think outside of the box . As all of you know , he ’ s inspirational .”
— Mike Davis , outgoing USGA CEO and Executive Director
TAKING A SWING
Plans call for Whan to take the helm July 1 . Davis will help with the transition . Whan has already constructed a list of seven priorities , but holds personal license to trash them . He says when he started at the LPGA , he went in with a list of 10 points ( never publicly released ) and by his 100th day he realized half of them were embarrassingly wrong .
Championships , of course , will remain vital to the USGA ’ s mission . He ’ d like to forge more alliances to solve challenges . Mending fences with the PGA Tour is a priority , he says . He is also well aware of the hot item : the Distance Insights Project . The distance debate has been ongoing since golf ’ s infancy .
“ I ’ m certainly not going to be the USGA CEO who throws a blanket over R & D and puts these handcuffs on innovation and says manufacturing ends today ,” he says . He offered more . “ Golf , despite its long history , has always had this excitement factor and innovation
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factor and a chance to get to believe that your 14 handicap can be 12 this year and finding the right mix to do that .”
In one of his conversations with the selection committee , falling back on his gift for finding accord through partnership , Whan came off sounding like an inspirational speaker .
“ I need you and I promise I ’ ll make you uncomfortable as long as you promise to let me make you uncomfortable , so we can both find ways to push the envelope ,” he says .
Coming full circle , it all hearkens back to the maxim on his desk . By his own admission , Whan ’ s mode is to move fast , but he ’ s also intuitive enough to know that going farther matters more .
Call it a prospectus or a sneak peek at what ’ s to come . If anything , being the person in the huddle called upon to smoothly bridge the Davis-to-Whan eras together suits him fine .
As his father conveyed to him growing up , it ’ s OK to make mistakes . Learn from them and just don ’ t make the same ones again the next year .
“ I have a little note on my notepad that says , ‘ Respect history … but don ’ t be afraid to make it ,’” Whan says . “ I believe that I ’ m going to learn a lot about the history of the game at the USGA . I ’ ll revere it , like I did the history of the LPGA , but I ’ m not going to be afraid to make a little history , too .
“ And if you ’ re trying to make a little history , you ’ re going to fail a few times ; you ’ re going to swing and miss . But I won ’ t be afraid to swing .”
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