As a subscriber I was discouraged by the cover photo of the May issue. For persistently wearing his cap backwards a young Hollywood celebrity recently was cashed out of his membership at a world class LA club because he refused to abide by the club's longstanding dress code policy that prohibited such attire...a code he accepted when he joined. Now we see that GD thinks it is hip to foist that nonsense off on its readers. Save the "gangsta" look for the skateboard park - not the golf course.
Gene Erbstoesser, Long Beach, CA
What are you thinking (smoking?) Rickie Fowler on the cover? Ok, he is a great up-and-coming player. Fine. But, with his hat on backwards? Wow, and my son, 23, noticed it and said yes, "Dad, that is not right." What is going on, are the inmates now running things, like, totally, or what? PS: And, like, where the hell is your letters section in the table of contents? Hey, Dudes, get it together, please.
Steven Faraher-Amidon, White Rock, CA
After seeing the cap turned around on Fowler's head, I did not bother to take my copy of Golf Digest out of its cellophane wrapper, but threw it in the trash. Men set the standards of respect, dress and decorum for the game for many years. Today's players have lost the fine art that golf was referred to as a "gentleman's game" and not a forum for rappers. Don't need any styling tips.
Don Epperson, Albany,OR
It's a shame, Don, that you chucked the May issue away without removing it from its package because, as our next writer points out, there is a lot to like in the issue. Lately, many Golf Digest issues leave me wanting more travel articles to more affordable destinations (especially in this economy?!), and fewer drills that I have no time to take out for a spin even in my garage. GD is my escape, my "bathroom round", my greens fee substitute. Give me a monthly dream I can dream within the framework of recession middle-class reality! But I gotta admit, you brought it back to us core golfers with the May issue. It spoke to me! The most comprehensive Myrtle Beach guide I've ever seen (real buddy trippers, the best steaks-radio-hotels-and-budget-friendly-restaurants, and a big ol' pic of an Elvis impersonator?!), quick fix tips for 11 common faults (I have 6 of the 11) for the range-deprived, a profile of a young gun (Fowler) who's actually a feel player like me and not the next robo-swing, a club that has a B.S. grid bet, and an honest discussion of obsolete technology? Finally, most of an issue I can actually relate to!
Joby Grow, Coatesville, PA
Joby apparently missed Fowler's backwards hat--or didn't care about it--and got a great issue. I'm torn on these "dress code" issues--backwards hats, cargo pants, designer jeans, shirt tails out, among others--because what's important to me is Joby's enthusiasm for the game and for a "young gun" like Fowler. I know that dress codes are not what makes this a cool sport as far as he's concerned. He just loves the game, probably the public-course game, and that's all that matters. As a guy who grew up on munis and now plays a lot of my golf at private clubs, I can also appreciate the standards and rules imposed by those clubs: 'This is the way we do it; if you want to play here, do it this way, too.' No problem with that. It's the confusion of the game's traditional dress with its traditional values, that stops me. Gentlemen these days sport a lot of different looks, on and off the golf course. What kind of person is he? That should be the question.
--Bob Carney
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