[HDPM]

Way back in the day being an amateur meant you could enter the clubhouse. Pros were blue collar guys and if there was a tournament were expected to change shoes in the parking lot. They were not allowed in with the polite company. Things have changed. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] (Actually things got better in Walter Hagen's era, so it has been a while. But amateurism was more highly regarded in the past.)

Golf has always had relatively strict rules separating amateurs from pros. It hasn't gotten as bad as as other sports, but golf has loosened up, to its detriment IMO. The advantages/disadvantages have been outlined. The main prohibition is not playing for prize money. IMO the USGA has been way too soft on amateurism and needs to tighten things up.