For the past three years, golf has enjoyed an almost-unprecedented surge in popularity. Since the outbreak of Covid, the number of players in the game reached an all-time high and rounds played reached a level not seen in more than 20 years.
As outlets for recreation and entertainment were taken away throughout the 2020 and 2021, many turned to golf for diversion and fun.
Many newcomers came into the game in that time frame, and committed golfers played more often.
The question on the lips of many has been “how long will it last?”
After all, apparel and equipment sales are down this year, according to many reports, so it only seems to follow that rounds played and the number of golfers would be on the decline, as well.
For those waiting to learn whether the bottom is falling out of the golf industry, the most recent reports on rounds played suggest we will have to wait.
According to Golf Datatech's Monthly Rounds Played Report for April, play was up 7.8 percent compared with the same month a year ago. Likewise, year-to-date rounds played was up 3.1 percent compared with the first four months of 2022. According to Pellucid Corp., the game is still riding the high that was realized during the Covid pandemic.
According to the report, rounds played were up in 31 states, thanks in part to an unseasonably warm winter in much of the country and a cool spring. Conversely, play was down in only 18 other states, Alaska notwithstanding. The largest year-over-year gains in April were made in Illinois, where play was up by 72 percent.
Other states enjoying double-digit growth were Delaware, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
The steepest losses were in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, where play was down by 61 percent.
The only other state that experienced double-digit losses in April was Hawaii.
According to Pellucid Corp., 4 million people came to the game during Covid. Many of those newcomers were juniors and women, both critical to long-term growth of the game. About 1 million of those players, according to Pellucid reporting, have stayed in the game, and most of them reflect the commonly held stereotypes surrounding the game — that it is supported by older men.
The good news is there are things about the game that are appealing enough to attract new players. The bad news is other factors are at work that prevent most of those new players from staying with the game.