Information Superfairway - Clubs, Cart and Computer

from Pacifica

Continental Airlines in-flight magazine

Spring 1996

Pacifica
Continental Micronesia in-flight magazine
Spring 1996

Late last year golfers on Guam were catapulted into a new golf universe with the island-wide installation of the Solar System, a high-tech computerized golf handicapping database.   Until the introduction of the Solar System - a joint venture between Continental Micronesia, Duty Free Shoppers, Cosmos International and Computerland - few golfers in Guam had access to any handicapping service to compile and track their scores.  This lack of a standardized system made handicapping a guessing game - the $2 Nassau was a true act of faith, and off-island tournaments were an impossibility.  Now, shortly after penciling in their scores, golfers can amble into the club-house, enter their pars and birdies into a PC and instantly have an updated handicap.

Complying with the U.S. Golf Association's handicapping standards and written for use with Windows 95, the Solar System is user friendly, utilizing a touch-sensitive screen, vivid graphic icons and on-screen help menus.  The system may also bring Guam golfers to the forefront of the information revolution.  Conceivably, through the Solar System a golfer from Agana can update his handicap instantly after laying a round at Augusta or conquering the links at St. Andrew's.  However, as expected, the real world lags behind the virtual reality one:  Currently, the USGA handicap system does not recognize scores compiled from outside the country.

While true global connectivity may be awhile in coming, William Healey of Cosmos International foresees another imminent cyberspace leap for Guam golfers.   Coming soon, at several courses on the island, players will be able to make their starting times through the Solar System.  And if they don't want to hang around the 19th hole and want a little privacy, they will be able to access the system through the internet and check and update their score on their home computers.

---- originally published Spring 1996 in Continental Micronesia's in-flight magazine, Pacifica.
---- for more information contact:  healeywe@gmail.com