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application, or knowledge base.
Instead, it is a shift in mindset. The
key to successfully adopting AI in
your business is your willingness
to try new things, learn, and
improve.
LET ME START WITH A STORY
One spring day in 2003, I was
working in the golf shop at my
local club. I was a college
sophomore, and had no idea that
this day would change the course
of my life and set in motion a 20-
year (and counting!) career in the
golf industry. Our Assistant Golf
Professional informed me that I
would need to run Men’s League
that night because he was heading
out of town. He plopped a stack of
scorecards and handicap list in
front of me and told me to get
started dotting cards.
I, being a person who values
efficiency, had no interest in
manually dotting 40 or so cards
because I knew we had a software
application that could automate
the process and even print neat,
professional-looking scorecards. It
took a little time to figure out the
application, but after an hour or so,
I had all the scorecards printed and
dotted. I even printed cart signs.
Including the time spent learning
the system; I still spent less time
than I would have manually
writing out the cards.
The members were ecstatic.
They loved the more professional
experience and were happy that
the strokes for their matches were
not subject to my arithmetic or
handwriting. The next day, I
arrived at the club expecting praise
from our Assistant Professional.
Instead, I was scolded, “How dare
you undermine the process,” he
said, “Now we are all going to have
to learn how to use the computer.”
This resistance to change,
though frustrating at the time,
taught me a valuable lesson. Over
the past 20 years, I have witnessed
the golf industry evolve as operators
have been forced to embrace
efficiency and adapt to doing more
with less. Fortunately, there are now
incredible tools available to help
golf operators work smarter. That
fateful day was just the beginning of
my journey to help golf course
operators find and implement tools
to make their lives easier.

UNDERSTANDING AI SYSTEMS
AND MODELS
The world of AI can seem
overwhelming, filled with technical
jargon and buzzwords. However,
you do not need to be an expert to
benefit from AI tools. A basic
understanding of AI systems will
empower you with the ability to
identify the right types of tools for
your needs.
At its core, AI relies on large
datasets to train models capable of
making predictions. For example,
ChatGPT is trained on vast
amounts of internet text, enabling
it to predict the next word in a
sentence. Similarly, Netflix’s
recommendation engine predicts
what shows you might enjoy based
on viewing history.
While these AI systems
perform different tasks, they share
a common foundation. Both rely on
models trained to predict specific
outcomes. Their models, however,
are very different. ChatGPT is a
large language model that is great
at writing copy. It is big, generic,
and flexible. Netflix predictions
rely on a machine learning model
that is focused on a single goal -
predicting what you want to watch
next. ChatGPT would be terrible at
this task, while Netflix’s prediction
model has no ability to write text.
This distinction is crucial when
selecting AI tools for your business.
General-purpose models like
ChatGPT are excellent for tasks like
writing or answering questions but
may not provide insights tailored
to your business. For personalized
insights – such as predicting
customer preferences or optimizing
inventory – you need models
trained on your proprietary data.
Regardless of the type of
system you are using - pre-trained
or proprietary - the most important
factor is whether the system can be
integrated into your business
processes. When selecting AI tools,
prioritize systems that integrate
seamlessly with your existing
technology.
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