Olympic Golf?

Once again there is talk about making golf an Olympic sport.  During last week's PGA Championship, which coincided with the opening of the Beijing Olympiad, many of the top players were queried about the issue during their press conferences.  For the most part, the pros were luke warm to the idea.  Let's face it, the Olympics no longer carry the same prestige as once they did.  Much like the Tour de France, the Olympics has been done irreparable harm by scandal after scandal.  So asking whether the game of golf would benefit from an Olympic association seems a reasonable question.

During his press conference at Oakland Hills, Phil Mickelson came out in favor of golf becoming an Olympic event.  While he did make the point that the game could benefit by the increase in exposure, he seemed more interested in stating that such exposure could benefit his corporate sponsors.  No doubt Callaway, Crowne Plaza, etc. appreciated their man looking out for them.  But that does not address whether such an association would benefit the game, rather than the business, of golf.