From the editor
Pull up a chair.
Golf has never had more players. Rounds are at a record, and a lot of the people playing them are new. But the usual way into the sport still runs through a country club, a premium magazine, or a friend who already knows the rules.
I coach lacrosse and played in college, and golf is the other game I keep coming back to. What I like about it is the same thing I like about any good team: there is a standard, there are habits that make everyone's day better, and the best rounds end with people sitting around telling the story.
Patrons & Pros is my attempt to open that up. The name comes from the two kinds of people at every tournament: the pros who play it and the patrons who love it. Most of us are somewhere in between, and we should all get a seat.
Here is what you can expect. Clear instruction, no jargon. Honest recommendations, with every link disclosed. Reviews of the places that actually make a round, starting with the clubhouse bars and patios around Orlando. And a standard of care that anyone can meet: show up looking sharp, treat the course and the people on it well, and make the new guy feel expected.
We are just getting started, so tell me what you want to see. Write to [email protected], and join the list to hear first.
Daniel
Editor, Patrons & Pros