The ability to be self-effacing and deferential, if not accomplished at the art of outright brown-nosing, can't hurt, either.
"It's an exercise in supplication," Votaw said. "You have to be humble."
As a lobbying point, Votaw said he might mention that adding golf to the games could lead to world peace. It can't hurt.
"No golf-playing nation has ever invaded another golf-playing nation," Votaw said.
Golf would be launching an invasion of its own if added in 2016, officials believe. The game has stagnated in the United States, where over the past few years, more courses have closed than have opened. TV ratings have slumped and rounds played nationally have remained flat. With the game going increasingly global -- top professionals have played in Shanghai and Singapore in the past two weeks -- emerging countries like India and China would theoretically spend seed money on Olympic golf development if it gets added to the Games.
While the merit and mercenary motivation behind lobbying for golf in the Olympics have been hotly debated -- stances taken by several U.S. media outlets have been surprisingly mixed and occasionally caustic, to Votaw's surprise -- the sport's inclusion would certainly generate more interest abroad.
"I don't think there were 300 million people playing basketball when the Dream Team played in 1992 in Barcelona," Votaw said.
Formal bids will be filed in the spring, and next summer, presentations will be made to the IOC executive board. A decision on which of the two sports will be added isn't expected until early October.
"I have no doubt that Olympic golf is comfortably the biggest grow-the-game opportunity that exists to help us bring golf to so many countries where it's just starting up," Dawson said this summer.
