But what of the image of the game beyond those of us who play? What might be the impact on golf further down the pecking order of what is being seen by the general public, rightly or wrongly, as golf ‘selling out’ to the Saudis?

The divide between the professional and recreational game has only grown over the past two decades and was widened further by last week’s announcement.

Those outside golf, however, don’t see a separation between the two. In the same way that the PGA and PGA Tour have been infuriatingly interchangeable in mainstream media over the last week, ‘golf’ and ‘professional golf’ are seen as one by many in the broader community.

None of which would matter if there were no real world consequences. But there are.

They’re small clues but there are enough of them in the day-to-day public discourse to give an indication how the game is seen from the outside.

Consider the only two circumstances where you might hear mention of club golf in the mainstream press: One is if there is a ‘Royal’ in front of the name and it is followed by any whiff of a scandal. The other is if a public figure’s membership of a certain club can be weaponised.

Now, that’s neither here nor there if it didn’t play into the hands of those who look to remove golf from our urban landscapes.

"What of the image of the game beyond those of us who play? What might be the impact on golf further down the pecking order of what is being seen by the general public, rightly or wrongly, as golf ‘selling out’ to the Saudis?" - Rod Morri.

But if a very unscientific straw poll of non-golf family and friends this past week is anything to go by, golfers should be concerned.

Almost universally it was seen by those who have no connection to the game that ‘golf’ has been ‘taken over’ (or a variation on that theme) by Saudi Arabia.

This is not broadly seen to be a positive.

When these same people are then asked to decide about devoting public space to golf or some other recreation, it is much easier to convince them golf is a game ‘for the few’ which locks out ‘ordinary people’ and should be well down the list for consideration.

In the public relations battle it is ‘death by a thousand cuts’ and the danger is that we in golf don’t see it coming.

Sure, golfers understand the difference between the PGA Tour and Northcote or Moore Park Golf Club but does Joe Citizen? Probably not and why would they?

Not for the first time in this space we lament the lack of a concerted effort to change the image of the game amongst the general public.

Part of the reason little is done is because it’s not a sexy issue nor an easy one to fix. It isn’t one that you can write a press release about, nor will it show immediate results.

But if the narrative doesn’t begin to shift, dramatically and soon, the consequences could be quite serious for golf.

Professional golf will always dominate headlines, particularly outside the golf specific media, but that doesn’t mean it should be the only narrative in town.

The game has much to offer the world beyond being played for money and it is us in golf who are going to have to start telling those stories to the world, not just ourselves.

It’s not going to be an easy task, but it could hardly be more important.