Some may say that the law has only recently had an impact on the game of golf they would be gravely incorrect. Long ago the legal system had a grip on the near stunting of the development of the game. King James ll of Scotland banned the playing of golf in 1457 citing golf as a distraction from honing necessary wartime survival skills, particularly the practice of archery.

Professional Golfers Career College faculty member Ed Smilow was quick to point out this fact to some 35 head golf professionals and general managers in August when PGCC hosted a seminar delving into the laws, codes and issues that impact the contemporary golf industry. The “sue first ask questions later” mentality extant in today’s society has created a mine field of potential litigation. Golf professionals must weave past these litigations and the purpose of the seminar, presented by Smilow, was to keep some of these issues on the day-to-day consciousness of the golf professionals. Errant golf balls, landowners’ rights, employment practices, and water rights issues are a small cross section of the legal issues that can be problematic for modern golf professionals.

Ed Smilow, a highly successful trial attorney, has found a new niche as an adviser to golf industry professionals on avoiding the legal pratfalls inherent in running a business that deals so directly with the public. According to Ed, it pays to be aware of the “sharks, snakes, old men and the twelve zombies” that represent the myriad ways that laws can affect the game of golf, - and the court rulings that keep those legalities constantly in flux. Smilow gives the golf industry a "C-", a poor mark with respect to its attention to risk management practices. Smilow provided a simple example of how golf professionals can protect their courses; typically professionals don’t conduct regular inspections with risk management teams and amending that practice would place any course in a safer place. Smilow maintains that courses “Should annually do a risk management audit in view of the shifting sands of law as it affects the golf industry.”

Ed is among the foremost authorities in this area, and has appeared as a speaker at the California Golf Course Owners Association, the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America and the Southern Section of the PGA.