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Rarely has an entire sport been derailed by one man’s anecdotal perspective.
But that’s exactly what’s happened in Ontario, specifically because of Premier Doug Ford’s friends, who, even in the midst of the pandemic, apparently carpool to their regular golf games. Then they hang out for some illicit “pops” – the premier’s euphemism for cheap beer – and spread COVID-19 around.
“You know, they pick up another buddy, two or three, they go golfing … then after the golf they go back, they have a few pops, that’s the problem,” Ford said when questioned about golf’s closure at a press conference last week. “That’s the issue.”
What did we learn from Ford’s remarks? First, Ontario will remain the only place where you can’t play golf, apparently on the face of the Earth. Oh, and we now know Doug Ford has some really dimwitted friends. His decision to keep courses closed is the political equivalent of having a teen come drunk to the high school formal, and then canceling any further dances because of a solitary transgression.
Ford’s remarks have pushed an industry to the brink of open revolt. And that’s saying something when it comes to golf and Canadians. Golfers tend to be pretty passive in their views – conservative would be fair – and Canadians in particular nod politely with their legendary tolerance for acceptance even when faced with unreasonable leadership. It takes something significantly tyrannical or lacking in common sense to motivate them to action. But Ford’s shutdown of golf until “at least” June 2 is raising the possibility of a golf revolution.
“It is an insult to golf course owners, such as ourselves, who worked so hard to ensure we and all golfers playing by rules set out to provide a safe environment,” said Barry Forth, the general manager of Copetown Woods, a public fee course near Hamilton, Ontario. “I can’t say that I’m surprised by any decision the government makes any longer, but I would say that there are definitely rumblings of industry pushback.”
Last year, golf proved to be the resilient sport of the pandemic. Canadian golfers flocked to the fairways in record numbers after the initial lockdowns. The good news was COVID-19 didn’t appear to spread on the greens or patios at courses in Canada. By the end of the fall, golf had proven safe. With that in mind, most expected the game to return with minor safety protocols this spring, which is exactly how it opened. Then, with COVID-19’s third wave on the rise, the Ford government shut it down.
Golf remains active across Canada, at least outside of Ontario. Even in Alberta, where cases of COVID-19 have exploded, the game is being played with some occasionally baffling rules and strange restrictions.
The reaction to the government’s announcement was met with incredulity and understandable outrage. It isn’t just golf that’s getting held down because of the actions of Ford’s friends, but all outdoor sports. No volleys on the tennis court. Don’t even think of playing pickup basketball with a friend or the fuzz might show up, and the men in blue are being asked to keep you from taking any swings on the nearby baseball diamond. In truth, most of these restrictions have been ignored without repercussions. But golf has almost exclusively played along, assured in the perspective that right-minded politicians would recognize what the medical experts were trumpeting loudly – golf is a safe outlet for people in these strange times. Even local governments and city mayors can’t make sense of the restrictions and have argued for reopening.
“We’ve answered all of their questions. Apparently that’s not enough.”
Mike Kelly, Golf Ontario executive director
Some have blamed golf’s leadership for not doing enough to explain to Ford’s Conservative government that the sport is safe. But they have argued – only to have their pleas fall on deaf ears. Mike Kelly, the executive director of Golf Ontario, has been one of the voices on the video calls with government officials. Kelly is level-headed and conciliatory, but he’s been worn out by continually explaining to the Ford government what everyone else, medical experts included, recognize – there’s no rationale for why golf should be closed.
“We’ve answered all of their questions,” he says. “Apparently that’s not enough.”
The revolt is now at a boiling point, with the fire fanned by Ford’s strange anecdotal perspective and extended lockdown. Even before the recent news, a group of Ontario course owners began trying to rally in significant numbers. The thought is the authorities can’t hold down the industry if it came out in a concerted effort.
“We cannot afford to lose the golf season like the ski industry did this past season,” wrote Matt Staffen, general manager of St. Mary’s Golf and Country Club in a note to hundreds of golf pros and general managers across Ontario. St. Mary’s isn’t a blue-blood, private facility, but a mid-tier small town club, and Staffen says the community is hurting because of the closure and the time is ripe for some good, old-fashioned civil disobedience.
After all, St. Mary’s usually employs 70, a number that is currently slashed to 12, and Staffen says his facility can’t withstand an extended closure in an already short season. He’s apparently not alone; Staffen said his e-mail urging a large group of courses to open was met with generally positive reactions.
“With all the confusion around this, it is really tough for courses to figure out a way forward,” he said. “Golf can do this in a safe way – and I think everyone understands that.”
Everyone it seems, aside from the premier’s buddies, who have forced Ontario golfers to put their clubs back in the trunk, with no clarity on when they might be able to return to the game.
E-Mail Robert