Golf Australia is the governing body for the sport of golf in Australia, formed in 2006 after the Australian Golf Union (AGU) and Women's Golf Australia (WGA) agreed to merge. The decision, which was formally ratified at a meeting in Melbourne in August 2005, was made after the Australian Sports Commission threatened to withdraw its financial support unless the two bodies amalgamated. The Australian Sports Commission contributed approximately A$1.5 million annually to the Australian Institute of Sport for golf funding. Colin Phillips, the AGU's executive director since 1978, retired from his position in 2005, claiming that the way the decision to merge had been forced upon the sport by the federal government, had been a factor in his decision. Following the merger, IMG, the sports marketing company which organizes the Australian Open golf event, signed a three-year deal which increased its ties to Golf Australia. Former tennis pro and new Open chairman Paul McNamee also renegotiated a deal signed by the old AGU, whereby the tournament would be hosted at the Moonah Links course in Rye, Victoria three times in every five years. That decision had been heavily criticized by golf professionals who found issue with the course layout, low attendances and poor corporate interest, but the new organization was able to reduce its obligation to three tournaments before 2020. Golf Australia runs the Australian Open, the premier male and female golf tournaments in Australia, as well as the Australian Amateur and other national amateur events. It also runs key programs promoting golf in Australia, the two major being the MyGolf for juniors and Get Into Golf for adults. The Golf Australia National Squad is the key component of the countries High Performance program which supports talented young golfers. Squad members have included Geoff Ogilvy, Karrie Webb, Adam Scott, Minjee Lee, Hannah Green and Cameron Smith. Golf Australia owns and runs the Australian Handicapping system which operates throughout clubs nationally.
