That is just so Stupid. Just how can releasing a computer version of their course hurt them in any way IRL.
Maybe we should stop watching their TV broadcasts. After all, how do we know it is a real course too.
It's just so silly.
Jerry
A course, when it becomes part of a company's components has copyright laws just like anything else. Meaning, selling this game with PGA named courses will draw the attention of the consumer and make the game more enticing. A company has to pay for those rights to use those names when advertising their product.
An outsider who has nothing to gain from creating a virtual course with a PGA name has nothing to worry about. They can produce it as long as they don't sell it, and they can distribute for free.
Hence the success with Tiger Woods and Links Series. Devs were commissioned by Microsoft who paid for the rights to use the course names in Links. Same goes for EA Sports dev teams who developed PGA named courses, Electronic Arts paid for the rights to use PGA named courses.
Once the course builders (software) were released to the public, the public has the freedom to create any real course as long as they do not intentionally draw attention to the course name for commercial reasons. Those courses filled the cache for Links and Tiger Woods. The same will happen here once a dozen or so players master the Course Forge.
I do not create courses but I sure love playing them!