GOLF DIGEST lists its 36 Most Powerful People in Golf for '98 in its January issue. GOLF DIGEST's Jerry Tarde writes "these 36 fellas get their phone calls returned, and they have no trouble procuring starting times at Pebble Beach." Tarde adds: "Women are woefully underappreciated on the list, which is to say there is none. Their absence is a commentary on the state of affairs in golf, not the bias of this management" (GOLF DIGEST, 1/98 issue).
| RANK | NAME | POSITION/ORGANIZATION '97 | RANK |
| 1) | Tim Finchem | Commissioner/PGA Tour | 1 |
| 2) | Tiger Woods | Player | 3 |
| 3) | David Fay | Exec Dir/USGA | 2 |
| 4) | Ely Callaway | Chair/Callaway Golf | 8 |
| 5) | Mark McCormack | Chair/IMG | 4 |
| 6) | Jackson Stephens | Chair/Augusta National | 6 |
| 7) | Arnold Palmer | Celebrity &] Arnold Palmer Golf | 9 |
| 8) | Robert Dedman | Chair/Club Corp. of America | 7 |
| 9) | Jack Nicklaus | Player & Golden Bear Corp. | 5 |
| 10) | Wally Uihlein | President/Titleist & Foot-Joy | 10 |
| 11) | Earl Woods | Tiger Woods' Father | 27 |
| 12) | Michael Bonallack | Secretary/Royal & Ancient | 13 |
| 13) | David Price | Chair/American Golf Corp. | 14 |
| 14) | Jim Awthey | CEO/PGA of America | 15 |
| 15) | Phil Knight | CEO/Nike | nr |
| 16) | The Environmentalist | — | nr |
| 17) | Greg Norman | Player & Entrepreneur | 16 |
| 18) | George Bush | Former U.S. President | nr |
| 19) | Bill Clinton | U.S. President | 18 |
| 20) | Frank Thomas | Technical Dir/USGA | 21 |
| 21) | Jim Ritts | Commissioner/LPGA | 17 |
| 22) | Henry Kravis | Partner/KKR & Co. | 30 |
| 23) | Johnny Miller | Commentator/NBC | 12 |
| 24) | Rees Jones | Architect | 19 |
| 25) | Steve Mona | Exec Dir/Golf Course Superintend. | 29 |
| 26) | Edwin Watts | CEO/Edwin Watts Golf Shops | nr |
| 27) | Colin Montgomerie | Player | 31 |
| 28) | Hughes Norton | Agent/IMG | nr |
| 29) | David Leadbetter | Teaching Pro | nr |
| 30) | Buzz Taylor | President/USGA | nr |
| 31) | Ken Schofield | Exec Dir/PGA European Tour | 24 |
| 32) | Carl Paul | co-Owner & President/Golfsmith | 36 |
| 33) | Tom Fazio | Architect | 22 |
| 34) | Juan A. Samaranch | President/IOC | nr |
| 35) | Lew Horne | CEO/National Minority Golf Found. | nr |
| 36) | Ben Hogan | Posthumous honor for game legend | nr |
