[Yoda]

Is it a coincidence that the named few has the same mentor?

Does the hostility, if there is one, lie on a deeper level?

There is one argument that "the other side" always seem to bring forward:

"The Canton video" and that it tells "the truth"!

What did happend here?

1. The mentor is Ben Doyle. He has trained many thousands of students and is not responsible for the regrettable behavior of a few.

2. Oh yes, there is hostility. An outright, abrasive hostility that is clearly evident in the recent finger-pointing, "you've just been beaten over the head" video of the major protagonist. It is the most hostile and divisive golf video ever filmed. In fact, it is without precedent in the game. And, oh yes, that hostility is born of frustration on a much deeper level...a level that has absolutely nothing to do with golf instruction, The Golfing Machine or even me. IMHO, of course.

3. The Canton video (of a first-and-last joint school) is a proprietary work. The school itself went well, but due to unforeseen circumstances, the video was delayed. Unfortunately, by the time the producer was able to complete his work, the "other side" had declared me their "enemy," and as you have correctly noted, was vowing to use the video to reveal "the truth," i.e., to see "who out-taught who at Canton." They would 'prove,' once and for all, who in fact was "the best." [As if anybody, other than themselves, actually cared.]

In other words, this video of a wonderful school was destined to become mere cannon fodder in the kangaroo courts they call "discussion and debate." The pre-game titter in the grandstands of their forums provided ample evidence of the coming mockery. There was no way I could let the school and its students be prostituted for that purpose.

I had hoped that time would provide a resolution to this problem. Instead, the blatant attacks and misrepresentations have continued and grown even worse. So, at least for now, the producer and I have absorbed the cost, shelved the video and that is that.