The GAM only provides handicaps, right? WRONG!
Guest Editor Davide Graham

The Golf Association of Michigan, or GAM, was founded in May of 1919. Originally established as the Detroit District Golf Association, the name was changed in 1961 to more appropriately reflect its growing statewide membership with a total of 66 clubs, 25 of which were located outside of metropolitan Detroit. The original focus of the association was to hold championship tournaments for its members. Over the years that followed, many changes were pursued which effectively broadened the positive impact the association has on amateur golf in the state of Michigan. While many golfers identify the GAM as simply the provider of individual golfer handicaps or as the course measurer providing the GAM marker on the tee allowing a golfer on a par-3 to accurately determine their distance to the center of the green, the GAM does much more.

Today's GAM

Today, over 400 clubs and 70,000 individuals are GAM members. In support of amateur golf in the area, the GAM participates in a broad range of activities that are crucial to the ongoing growth and health of the game. Described below is a summary of what we do today:

• Tournament Administration - the GAM hosts 13 major tournaments during the season
• Educational Seminars - sessions hosted on the rules, handicaps and turfgrass
• Course Rating and Re-rating - USGA certified, provided to member and nonmember clubs
• Michigan Links Magazine Publisher - recent recipient of three national awards for photography and writing from the International Network of Golf
• Handicap Services - member clubs have the option to select from two authorized vendors to meet their members' needs
• Junior Golf Program - boys and girls can learn proper etiquette, develop their golf skills and participate in tournaments
• Turfgrass Research Support--the GAM facilitates member club donations to support research at MSU to help develop the most environmentally sound and cost effective approaches for building and maintaining our golf courses
• Caddie Welfare via support of the Evans Scholar Program--the GAM in support of the Western Golf Association facilitates the selection of deserving youth for scholarships and fund raising among our member clubs
• Amateur Status Clearinghouse on behalf of the USGA - the GAM serves as the initial screen on behalf of the USGA for individuals seeking to regain their amateur status
• Value Added Member Benefits - over 30 of our member clubs in 2001 provide a 15 percent discount off golf and cart rental from noon Sunday through Thursday evenings (except for holidays) to members who show their valid GAM Member Card at sign in

GAM in the Future

We believe that we can expand the range of benefits for our individual members in the future. For example, we have spoken to many of our current members who have expressed an interest in playing tournament golf but cannot participate in our current tournaments because their handicap is not low enough to qualify. We are developing a Net Tournament Tour for the 2002 season that will permit GAM members with higher handicaps to participate in a series of events during the season. Not only do we believe that GAM membership has its benefits, we're working hard to expand the range of member benefits in a meaningful way!

To learn more about the GAM, please visit our web site at http://www.gam.org.

If you are not currently a GAM member, simply look up your favorite course in our Course Finder section to see if it is a member. If not, you may locate another course nearby which provides GAM membership opportunities. Of course, you can also call our office in Farmington Hills at (248) 478-9242 and a member of our staff would be pleased to help you. GAM membership truly does have its benefits!