Is Golf Really A Dying Sport – A Look At The Future Of Golf

Is Golf Really A Dying Sport – A Look At The Future Of Golf

Given that fewer and fewer children are taking up golf as a sport and playing it on a regular basis, we are left wondering what the future holds for golf in the years to come. By all accounts and according to the statistics, it appears that golf is in a state of decline.

In this article, we will look at the reasons why we think golf has been declining, how it can become more inclusive and start growing again, and why the growth of golf may not be as far away as we think it is. There are plenty of reasons why golf appears to be dying, and there are also reasons why the writing is not completely on the wall just yet.

Is Golf Really Declining In Popularity?

There is some evidence that fewer children are participating in golf, and at the same time, fewer people are joining golf clubs. If we take a look at Google Trends, we can see that it is trending towards every year, and even though golf is still a very popular sport all over the world, its popularity has definitely been on the decline over the course of the last ten years. First, let’s look at some of the reasons why.

The number of golf memberships dropped by the largest amount in well over a decade in 2019, and this is the result of a chain of events that is causing courses to raise their fees. This may become a vicious cycle as even more people drop out of the sport as a result of the rising costs.

It is true that there has been a decrease in memberships; for example, Wales lost 4% of its golf club members in 2019, and over 10,000 English golfers cancelled their memberships during the same time period. As a result, the total number of golfers who belong to clubs in Europe decreased by 0.6%, bringing the total number of members to just over 4 million.

The trend is just as concerning in the United States, where the number of people who play golf on a regular basis dropped from 30 million in 2002 to 21 million in 2016, and it appears that the downward trend has continued well into 2019. There are a lot of factors that could be contributing to the decline in popularity of golf.

Golf Is An Expensive Game

Golf is one of the most pricey sports in which to participate, and despite the fact that people’s living standards have been steadily improving over the past half-century, their disposable incomes have been steadily declining. As a result, many people have decided to forgo playing golf in order to save money, as they view it as an unnecessary expense.

The economic downturn that occurred in 2008 made it impossible for a lot of people to continue paying for their golf memberships, which inadvertently led them to stop teaching their children how to play golf. This situation made the problem even worse. The parents stopped taking their children to the driving range to prepare them for playing on the course where they were members, so the children were never taught how to play the game.

After the market crash, the idea of spending money on a set of golf clubs for a child seemed like an additional expense that was not required. As a result, many children never learned how to play the game of golf unless they began by using their parents’ clubs, as was the case with me and many other people. People didn’t view it as much of a sacrifice because there were so many other sports that their children could participate in without having to pay the exorbitant fees.

The End Of An Era – Tiger Woods Leaves The Game

It was right around this time that Tiger Woods stopped winning, had a few unfortunate incidents outside of golf, and then started getting bad, and then there was no press coverage of him. This coincided with the beginning of the game’s gradual increase in popularity. This fall from grace occurred at the same time as the financial crisis of 2008, and the result of this double-edged sword was a significant decrease in the popularity of golf.

When Tiger Woods announced his retirement, he diverted a lot of media attention away from the game, and when parents stop watching, kids stop watching. Every sport needs its star players to inspire the next generation, and when Tiger did so, he took a lot of that attention away.

This is not the first time that the popularity of a sport has declined, and we are confident that golf will make a comeback in due time. The prize money is incredible, and if there is less competition, that will also attract people into teaching their children how to play.

Lazy Generation That Want Instant Results

Sadly, the current generation is one of the most slothful in history. The majority of children in today’s society lack the capacity for patience and perseverance required to become experts in a sport like golf, which requires years of practice to master.

They don’t feel the need to actually learn the great game because they can just play a golf game on their phones or on the playstation, which is convenient for them.

They are extremely unlikely to ever pick up and become proficient in the sport if their parents do not participate in it and make an effort to teach it to them.

The Introduction Of The Smart Phone

Because of their smartphones and other forms of technology, people just don’t get as much exercise as they used to. This is leading to less participation in all sports, obesity, depression, and a whole host of other concerning trends that counteract the positive effects that technology can have. Kids spend more time with their heads buried in their phones and computers, cutting themselves off from the outside world, than they do exercising, and this is having a negative impact on their health.

When I was a kid, there was no technology, and during the long summers off from school, my friends and I would build on the golf knowledge that our parents had taught us so that we could become good players at our local course, where we would go to play almost every day. Unfortunately, the demand for something to do during the time off from school has been met by the proliferation of technological devices.

People Have Busy Lives

It is common knowledge that people lead busier lives these days, which explains why it is nearly impossible to book a tee time that will work for you and the people you want to play with at the same time.

There are a lot of clubs that only let their members play, the locations are difficult to get to, and if they do charge green fees, they are typically very expensive.

The game is suffering as a result of the fact that people do not have enough time to deal with the hassle that is involved in setting up a round.

There Are Tons Of Different Options

Young people who are just getting started in sports now have a wide variety of more exciting options to choose from, such as mixed martial arts (MMA), boxing, football, and the list goes on and on. And if they see players doing amazing things like Kobe, Messi, Ronaldo, and Mayweather, you can be sure that’s what they’re going to be practicing in the front garden. If there are big stars in basketball, then you can be sure that kids will choose that sport, and if there are big stars in other sports, then you can be sure that kids will choose those sports.

In order for golf to begin its road to recovery, the sport needs a star player to set a few new records and draw the attention of the media back to the sport.

The Age Of The Golf Generation Is Increasing

It would appear that the golden age of golf is behind us, and the average age of the world’s population is steadily increasing. Surely, a portion of the decline in golf can be attributed to the fact that avid golfers are reaching an age where they are no longer able to participate in the sport and are passing away. As a result, the number of golfers continues to decrease.

Golf Clubs Are Inaccessible & Overpriced

The typical Joe Soap does not have the means to purchase golf clubs. You get a group of your friends together and make the decision to play a round of golf. The next step is to locate a golf course that does not charge more than €100 for a single round. Because golf clubs did not reduce their fees or remove other barriers to entry when the recession hit in 2008, the sport has suffered as a direct consequence of this decision.

In an era when maximization of corporate profits was not the primary goal of life, these golf courses were not designed with the intention of turning a profit. Golf courses are scratching their heads over how they can turn a profit when it takes so much money to run the course, and as a result, they are resorting to charging higher fees and membership dues, which players are avoiding. They then resort to advertising agencies and golf tee time booking apps in an effort to increase their customer base, but this only serves to increase their costs further and reduces their profits even further.

If the average player is unable to find a suitable course or is unable to afford to play, then those who look up to them will also have no desire to play, and this will contribute to the perception that golf is a sport played by an elite few.

Golf Is Elitist

Golf has almost universally been seen as a sport for people of the middle and upper classes, and it has traditionally been seen as a game played at business events where deals are struck and relationships are established.

One more factor contributing to the decline of golf is the game’s diminishing utility in commercial settings, which is another contributor to the sport’s overall decline.

The Hope Of Golf May Lie In Asia

The opposite is true for Asian countries like Singapore, Thailand, and China, where rapid economic growth has coincided with a growing number of young people falling in love with the game of golf. While the number of courses being built in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Europe continues to decrease, participation rates also continue to fall.

Golf courses are springing up all over the place, and educational institutions are competing with one another to be the first to offer the sport of golf to their students. The youth of the western world are becoming increasingly overweight and unmotivated, but the youth of Asia are seeing an increasing number of Asian players on the PGA tour and are seeing golf as a fantastic opportunity to enjoy themselves and even have a career in it.

Because it is something fresh and exciting that has come from the West, something that the people who came before them in Asia did not have access to, Asia is flourishing as a result of the fact that millions of new people are taking up the sport.

As a matter of fact, the number of Asian players on the tour is sure to continue to surge as the Asian population continues to embrace the game. In fact, the future of golf may actually look like it does in Asia rather than in the United States.

Golf Is Dying And Nobody Cares

Nobody in the west appears to care that golf is on the decline, and there are a number of things that have to take place before golf can get back on its feet.

Golf Needs A New Star

If a new golfer emerges, begins to dominate the competition, and begins to win on a consistent basis in the same manner that Tiger Woods did in the late 1990s and early 2000s, then the public’s attention will once again be drawn to the sport of golf. The parents will pick up their golf clubs and take their children out for a game, and the kids will soon follow in their footsteps.

Golf Clubs Will Need To Be More Welcoming

Golf Clubs are responsible for encouraging young people to play on their courses. If they make it possible for children to use the facility without charge, not only will this encourage participation in the sport, but it will also increase the likelihood that the children who use the facility will become lifelong members.

In a world where feminism is on the rise, antiquated dress codes and rules that discriminate against women will also need to be reexamined and eliminated.

Schools need to get involved

If we can get more schools involved in teaching golf as a sport and way of life, the number of people who can at least swing a club properly and eventually go on to play the sport regularly will surely increase. Golf is a way of life.

Encouragement for children to participate in golf can come in the form of a field trip to a nearby driving range or at the very least, the formation of a golf team. If a couple of children begin to excel at the game, other children will watch them and want to participate as well.

Golf Still Lives

There are a lot of clubs that are failing, but there are also a lot of clubs that will continue to be successful in the current market. Considering that 20 million people in the United States play sports on a regular basis, the sport is by no means extinct, but it does need to undergo some transformations.