Exclusive NGF Articles and Reports
NGF’s 2025 Participation in the U.S. Report – Now Available
Year-end 2024 data for on- and off-course participation in the world's biggest golf market.
This annual summary through year-end 2024 provides the latest data on golf participation — both traditional on-course golfers and those who engage with the game away from the course. The report includes detailed information on key segments such as beginners, women, people of color, juniors, and a closer look at the continually-expanding pool of non-golfers who say they’re very interested in playing the game.
Golf Participation: Growing & Diversifying
The face of golf may have changed more in the past five years than the previous 50. Golf’s latest participation numbers are out and they reveal unprecedented diversity in the game -- both on and off the course.
The annual National Rounds Report provides a summary overview of play across the U.S. in 2024 — from national and state levels. This member report takes a look at rounds trends, with comparisons to pre-pandemic engagement and details about play levels based on age groups, participation segments, and avidity.
Final-month dip can't derail another record-setting year for rounds
Colder December weather in the Northeast and Midwest than a year ago wasn’t enough to derail another record-setting year for play on a national level. It’s the third time in four years that rounds of golf have hit record levels.
Golf continues to evolve. Those who’ve been around the game for a while know it changes rather glacially. 2024 continued a progressive and exciting era in our sport. The game’s traditions are still being honored. It’s ageless spirit and sense of community preserved. But the ways in which consumers are engaging with golf and consuming the game are growing and changing.
The NGF’s Top 100 Businesses in Golf is a platform intended to highlight the vitality, size and diversity of an industry that has more than a $100 billion annual impact within the U.S.
NGF’s State-of-Industry Report for 2024
NGF's Golf Industry Report, named in honor of NGF's founders Herb and Joe Graffis, compiles many of the game’s key data points on the business of golf and the health of the game in a single publication: golf participation, engagement, rounds-played, golf course supply and development, golf equipment sales, retail supply, the game’s reach, and more.
70M+ Americans Changed Their Views on Golf
Recreational golf has enjoyed a renaissance in the post-pandemic era – with increases in participation, play and engagement – and a key driver has been an increasingly positive narrative surrounding the game. Perceptions of golf and golf’s brand have shifted dramatically over the past decade or so, and social media has helped lead the charge.
Warm, dry weather leads to biggest YOY October jump in play since 2020
Warmer, drier weather extended the golf season in the Midwest and Northeast, leading to one of the largest year-over-year jumps in play in 2024
Amid the uptick in golf construction (and understandable excitement about a few brand new courses), perhaps the most noteworthy sign of the health and vitality in U.S. golf supply is the considerable investment being made in existing facilities.
When looking at rounds-played momentum on the heels of the peak season, the only real question has been whether the weather will hold up. Hurricane season was a not-so-gentle reminder of the impact weather has on an outdoor sport like golf.
