3-Minute Business Insights
Traditional, on-course golf participation in the U.S. was up again in 2022, and off-course gains were even more significant.
What does search engine data for golf from 2022 tell us about 2023 and beyond?
Questions lingered throughout the year when it came to rounds: Would demand dip? Would golf’s Covid dividends begin to wane? As 2022 winds down, here's how national play is stacking up.
Play in October still trended ahead of recent pre-pandemic years
Rounds of golf for October 2022 were relatively flat nationally compared to a year ago, with a slight change within the range of typical weather-related fluctuation.
We asked golfers what they’re most thankful for when it comes to the traditional game and the results reveal its widespread and generation-spanning appeal. But what is particularly interesting is the differentiation in responses among age groups.
New On-Ramps Help Boost Golf Participation
Proliferation of off-course golf is a factor in on-course growth
Looking broadly at the game’s evolution and its overall participant base, the total number of on- and off-course golfers in the U.S. has risen to record levels because of the emergence and continued growth of non-traditional forms of the game.
New Milestones in Golf’s Evolution
Golf’s evolution has been under way for some years now, long before more recent changes spurred by the pandemic, and two milestones hit this year are significant.
Play sees slight YOY dip after three months of summer increases
Rounds of golf for September 2022 were down almost 2% compared to the same period a year ago, the first year-over-year decline in national play over the past four months.
A summer resurgence showed 2022's slow start was attributable to poor golf weather rather than a softening in demand
“We were down significantly in April and not exactly sure what to expect... and then it came roaring back.”
The peak-season, summer months of June, July and August are disproportionately important for the golf industry -- a make-or-break period for most golf facilities. This summer, the industry climbed out of the hole that Mother Nature dug early in the year.
Strong summer pulls 2022 rounds totals closer to record 2021
August of 2022 yielded the third straight peak-season month of year-over-year play increases at U.S. golf courses.
