 |
Presented in partnership with Eagle One Golf Products YOUR GAME
|
 |
Golf: The patient
is holding its own
Editor’s note: The following story originally appeared on GCM’s blog, From the Desk of GCM, at http://gcm.typepad.com.
Depending on your particular point of view, golf is ill or very ill or in need of resuscitation. Either way, the game is not in the best of health.
In a flurry of statistics, that was the gist of the most recent edition of Pellucid Corp.’s annual State of the Industry address during the 2009 Golf Industry Show, as presented by Jim Koppenhaver, president of Pellucid, a company that provides analytical information on key issues in golf, and Stuart Lindsay, a consultant with Edgehill Golf Advisors.
Koppenhaver and Lindsay have been charting the statistical diagnosis of the game for some time now, inundating audiences with stats and then offering a peek inside the numbers, uncovering the challenges industry stakeholders face and the solutions they might consider.
While the current prognosis isn’t really good, it isn’t really bad, either. The whole cloudy scene is definitely in the eye of the beholder.
Koppenhaver and Lindsay held two similar sessions at the PGA Merchandise Show a week before the GIS, drawing a total audience of more than 150, including nearly 70 PGA professionals. The interest — or, rather, the concern — is evident, they said.
In New Orleans, Koppenhaver, who says “golf is a sport of discretionary time and money,” noted that 2008 was not as bad as he had expected, yet not good enough to avert genuine worry for the coming year. Minus the deluge of raw numbers, here’s a sampling of the trends as he sees them:
• Erosion of the consumer base continues.
• Facility velocity is in further decline, but course closings now surpass openings, which many consider a good thing … a necessary course correction, so to speak.
• The generational shift to Baby Boomers is encouraging, but Gen X and Y appear to not be interested in the game. In 1990, 40 percent of American golfers were between 20 and 40 years old. Today, that total is 26 percent.
• The total number of golfers is declining to 1990s levels.
• Frequent golfers (20 rounds annually) and committed golfers (40 rounds) have both declined, further indicating dwindling involvement.
• The number of female golfers remains steady, about a quarter of all golfers. Since females tend to lose interest in the game much quicker than males, Koppenhaver said the industry needs to recruit and retain more women.
• Seventy percent of all U.S. golfers have incomes of at least $55,000, which blunts industry efforts aimed at diversity and building a general interest in golf.
Calling the current condition of the game “golf stagflation,” Lindsay pointed to several challenges that must be addressed for growth to occur.
As certain population segments continue to increase, golf has ethnicity issues to deal with, he said, such as time (a barrier cited by 74 percent of those surveyed), money and access. Then, there are challenges in meeting golfer expectations — course conditions are ranked No. 1, followed by price, pace of play and course layout.
Lindsay also cited a definitive spike in the degree of difficulty for golfers in the last 20 years. “Seventy percent of courses built in that time have slope ratings over 125,” he said, noting a direct relation to an even more nagging issue, slow play.
Also, most golf facilities spend basically nothing — less than 2 percent of revenues — on marketing, relying more on the PGA Tour and its “Tiger effect,” the media and organizations’ new-player initiatives.
While Lindsay is encouraged by one of the newer grow-the-game programs, Golf 20/20’s Get Golf Ready aimed at prospective adult golfers, he said course ownership must lead the way in promoting the program and providing incentives, such as getting club manufacturers to provide equipment rental opportunities, as well as persuading golfers to mentor Get Golf Ready graduates to keep their interest piqued.
Vincent Johnson, the first recipient of the Charlie Sifford Exemption at the PGA Tour’s Northern Trust Open at Riviera Country Club outside Los Angeles, didn’t make the cut (he had rounds of 70-74), but the experience was, in his words, “Out of this world.” The exemption was created this year by the tournament to represent the growth of diversity in golf and to honor Sifford, GCSAA’s Old Tom Morris Award winner in 2007 and the first black member of the PGA Tour. He also won the Los Angeles Open 40 years ago. Johnson is a graduate of Oregon State University and won two college tournaments, including the PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship. He turned pro last year and currently is seeking financial support to pursue his career. |
