Exclusive NGF Articles and Reports
Midyear Update: Golf Supply and Development
The U.S. golf market continued its march toward equilibrium at the midway point of 2025, with supply and development patterns reinforcing trends that emerged in 2024 and previous years.
Topic: Facility Management
Rounds of golf for June -- one of the most high-volume months for play -- were virtually unchanged from a year ago, as the U.S. market remained within striking distance of the record-setting rounds pace of 2024.
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
Assessing the Trajectory of U.S. Municipal Golf
Numbers to know - from openings and closings to conversions and resurrections
Municipal golf is in a unique place. On one hand, there are high-profile examples of popular muni facilities on the proverbial chopping block due to land values. On the other, there are well-backed efforts to preserve and restore some of the game's most historic properties. Municipal facilities are typically where golf is most affordable and accessible to people of all demographics, and there's greater attention on their impact today given the sport's renaissance.
Golf’s ‘Real’ Short Course Movement Awaits
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.
Cooler, weather May weather in parts of the East coast contribute to a slight national dip in year-over-year play.
Moderate rise in April pulls 2025 YTD even with last year's record play
After a solid April, U.S. play through the first four months is even with the record-setting rounds levels in 2024.
The Price to Play
Examining the changes in public playing fees and the average 18-hole rate by state
When detailing the average price of public golf, it’s not uncommon to hear the refrain, “But that’s not it costs to play golf where I live.” And there’s a reality behind those assertions. Not only can peak weekend fees be substantially higher, but playing fees vary widely by geography as well as the type of public facility.
Strong spring start again in northern climes
After seasonality limited play in some parts of the country in January and February, March rounds rebounded thanks to favorable golf weather in much of the northeast, helping spur another spring surge.
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?
Facilities, Facility Health, Municipal Golf, Development, 9-Hole and Par 3
Concise and comprehensive one-page summary reports on various supply-related topics
An Industry White Paper for Golf Facility Operators
With golf facility operators facing a complex decision-making process when evaluating simulator investments, this industry white paper serves as an essential resource for those evaluating simulator investments, providing a guide for implementation and ROI.
