3-Minute Business Insights
Short Game
NGF's recent survey of Core golfers indicated 73% recalled Tee It Forward, but a much smaller percentage had actually moved up in recent years. Here's what they found, and what's keeping others from moving forward a tee.
Based on research from the NGF’s definitive international facility database, the R&A's biennial Golf Around the World Report is back and counts golf courses in 206 of the world’s 251 countries -- with more than 38,000 courses globally.
It's the 25-year anniversary of Tiger's "Hello, World" introductory press conference. His impact on the game and business of golf was almost instantaneously felt and it continues to reverberate today.
NGF's database team has seen a significant drop in a particular supply-based area during the first half of 2021. Could this be the year golf course supply in the U.S. levels out?
The most frequently asked question since the beginning of the year was whether the elevated level of golf activity would maintain in 2021. Well, we’ve had our first real test – comparing peak season months in 2020 and 2021.
The 2021 first-half momentum for golf equipment sales carries over from second half of 2020. Is it better than 2019?
App use is becoming prevalent in all walks of life, including the golf world. There are now hundreds of golf-centric apps available and usage continues to climb.
Check out these numbers
You often hear golf referred to as the game of a lifetime. But is it? Unlike virtually every other sport, golf participation actually holds steady across the ages.
Just seven years ago, the proportion of all golf participants (on/off-course combined) who were women was 27%. Since then, the volume of female participants has grown by 43%, and there's even greater potential.
Golf’s overall participation base in the U.S. – combining on- and off-course players – rose 8% in 2020 to 36.9 million. This leaves us with three closely-sized and mutually-exclusive groups of Americans.
And it probably won’t be long before traditional, “green grass” participants are out-numbered. Perhaps as soon as this year.
A return to the friendly skies means more golf trips and destinations back in consideration. Core golfers, on average, are now expecting 1.8 golf trips in 2021 -- an increase of more than 60% over 2020.
