3-Minute Business Insights
For decades, many short course operators have marketed themselves with a "championship-lite" promise to deliver all the hallmarks of the "real thing," but with the added benefits of speed and accessibility. While a sensible strategy for some, the pursuit of legitimacy through scaled-down emulation appears to have created a perception trap for many short courses.
Topic: Course Operations
Golfers’ perceptions of Short Courses are crucial to understanding their place – and untapped opportunity – within the golf landscape, particularly when considering 'transitional' golf facilities that can convert beginners to lifelong golf consumers. Our recent survey on the perceptions of Core golfers revealed some stark contradictions.
Topic: Green-Grass Facility
The perceived "Short Course movement" in golf, and engaging players with less time-consuming options, conceals a disconnect in the market over the past two decades. While millions of dollars are being actively invested in extraordinary par-3 experiences, the more “local” short courses that could serve as everyday developmental pathways have closed at disproportionate rates.
Women and girls have accounted for almost half of the sport's growth over the past decade and now represent one-third of all golf participants including on- and off-course players. But this remarkable surge comes with multiple challenges: getting more to make the jump to traditional golf and then keeping them coming back once they do.
Women and girls have quietly become the driving force behind golf's post-pandemic resurgence. What makes the growth particularly significant is its youthful energy. More than half of net participation gains among women have come from those under 30, and equally encouraging is the cultural shift that's taking hold.
How can the imagery used in golf media and marketing create meaningful barriers to both initial and deepening engagement? And might the consequences of our historically-narrow view influence experience design itself?
Why Golf Trip Recommendations Hinge on Consistency
The Par That Pays
NGF surveys reveal one-third of golfers chose their last golf destination based on recommendations from someone they know. Word of mouth isn't just important for golf travel businesses – it's absolutely critical.
Golf’s Travel Boom and the Hidden Loyalty Engine
The past three years have seen record or near-record numbers of U.S. golfers traveling to play the game. What does that mean for the industry at large when it comes to the "travel window" effect?
Topic: Associations
Replacing ‘Dead-End’ Questions with Loyalty Catalysts
If golf is supposed to be a relationship business, why are golfers greeted in pro shops and retail stores with generic transactional questions typically answerable with a single word?
Masters of Loyalty: Strategies Beyond Points and Perks
The Masters Tournament has cultivated one of the most passionate followings in any industry. It's a phenomenon worthy of attention, especially as the golf industry more broadly examines strategies that can build enduring loyalty -- without points or perks.
Loyalty: The Next Innovation Frontier?
As the golf industry enjoys unprecedented success, NGF research suggests most Core golfers feel like "just another customer," with transaction-based relationships emphasized over loyalty. As customer expectations evolve, relationship-building will likely emerge as the most undervalued innovation frontier in business and, perhaps, a new battleground in golf.
