It seems, again, that extra time and the safety of outdoor exercise in a beautiful setting is driving the boom and not any of golf’s PSA-fueled initiatives or the PGA Tour Commissioner’s claim of playing a part. Maybe that data is coming.
In the meantime, Hahm writes:
According to research from the National Golf Foundation, there have been notable increases in participation among juniors and beginners, along with returners, as golf has positioned itself as a healthy way to pass time during this crisis.
“The number of junior golfers (ages 6-17) could increase by as much as 20% this year, a potential COVID-related bump of a half million golfers by year’s end. During a time when many other activities were on hold, including youth sports in many instances, we’ve also seen increases in the number of beginning and returning golfers of about 20% during the first half of 2020,” NGF editorial director Erik Matuszewski told Yahoo Finance.
And this…
Nationally, rounds of golf were up 19.7% year-over-year in the month of July, marking the biggest increase ever for a high-volume summer month since NGF started monthly tracking in 2000. This reflects an increase of approximately 10 million more rounds than in July 2019. In August, rounds were up 3% nationwide over the same period in 2019, after climbing from a 16% year-to-date deficit on April 30.