Golf greats: The game needs modernization to bring in next generation

WASHINGTON -- LPGA legend Nancy Lopez first picked up a golf club at the age of eight. From there, the LPGA tour became her other family.

Though her competitive playing days are over, the three-time major champion is still dedicated to growing the game of golf.

Lopez, alongside PGA Tour greats Davis Love III and Steve Stricker, gathered with members of the golf industry and members of Congress at We Are Golf's National Golf Day event on Wednesday.

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We Are Golf, created in 2009, is a coalition of golf's leading organizations designed to communicate with Congress and other federal policy makers about the significant impact of golf on the nation's economy and way of life.

The advocacy initiative met in the Rayburn House Office Building to discuss golf, a growing industry in the U.S. which contributes nearly $70 billion to the economy while generating nearly $4 billion annually in charitable donations.

Participation numbers fell slightly in 2015 according to the World Golf Federation, so the question becomes: how can more people get involved?

"Now that my tour life is over I’m trying to bring people to the game because I know the pleasure it brings me," said Lopez, who was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1987. "We're so busy nowadays, and golf takes you away from that, especially for women. They don’t go to the course, they're intimidated a bit, and I’m trying to get them out more because I think they'd be great supporters of the game."

For Lopez there's a simple fix and it revolves around a core concept of the game: playing 18 holes.

“Everybody thinks they have to play 18 holes. In the afternoon when you’re off work, just go putt, or chip or play just three holes, or just play 9," Lopez suggested. "Give people another way to learn the game. Charge per hole instead of having to play 18, because you really don’t have to play 18."

While that could be an easy fix, the simplest way to get people involved might be to watch those who play it best.

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“You have Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Jason Day, Rory McIlroy, guys like that on the PGA Tour are transforming how the game is perceived by the millennial generation," said Stricker, who will serve as a vice captain for the 2016 U.S. Ryder Cup team. "They’re the beacons that are bringing people into the game as either fans or participants. They're great players, great people and they’re personable.”

Steve Mona, CEO of the World Golf Foundation, called the millennial generation "the future of the game."

"The key is we need to bring in the younger generation and that’s where programs like The First Tee, Drive, Chip and Putt, PGA Junior, LPGA USAGA girls golf, we have record amounts of youth participation."

The game has become modernized, implementing new technology from the clubs you swing to distance trackers that are compatible on virtually every course.

“We’re all so hooked into technology that if we don’t bring it into the game, kids are gonna get bored and they won’t get excited about it," said major champion and two-time Ryder Cup captain Love. "We’ve got to modernize or it’ll get boring to the next generation.”

You can follow Adam Woodard on Twitter @AdamWoodard.