GLOBAL JUNIOR GOLF PAR
BY Mathilda Andersson
RECENT DATA AND GLOBAL INDUSTRY LEADERS ARE INDICATING POSITIVE GROWTH IN JUNIOR INVOLVEMENT IN RECENT YEARS . GOLF ’ S RETURN TO THE OLYMPIC GAMES LAST SUMMER , AFTER A 112 YEAR-LONG HIATUS , WAS ANTICIPATED TO UPTURN THE GAME ’ S DIMINISHING PARTICIPATION RATES BUT IT ’ S TOO RECENT TO GAUGE THEIR SPECIFIC IMPACT AT THIS TIME .
The global golf industry ’ s protracted struggled to get more people into the game in major markets has damaged the sport ’ s future and mired its top businesses , with millennials gravitating to a more accessible array of pastimes .
“( It ) allows us to deliver a unified message to parents , participants , golf facilities and deliverers that MyGolf is the first step on the pathway for children to get involved in the game ,” Gallichio said .
“ The Sporting Schools initiative has been a wonderful addition to the Australian schools landscape by the Federal Government . MyGolf is used as our Sporting Schools offering , and so far we are delighted to have reached over 35,000 children across who may not have experienced the sport before .”
Recently recorded in the U . S ., casual golfers playing the minimum of one round per year has dropped from 30 million in 2005 , down to 24 million only ten years later . It ’ s the lowest recorded participation number since the mid- 1990s according to the National Golf Foundation ’ s data .
In Australia the numbers look much the same . In a report conducted by Golf Australia ( GA ) in late 2015 , in conjunction with the Golf Management Australia ( GMA ), a cumulative loss of 11 per cent in memberships over the past ten-year period was made apparent .
But it ’ s not all doom and gloom , according to Steve Mona , Chief Executive of the World Golf Foundation ( WGF ) which is a non profit organisation founded to unite the golf industry in support of initiatives aspiring to grow the game , a major trend globally last year was that junior golf participation has continued to increase .
In the U . S ., recent data shows that junior participation has grown 25 per cent , from 2.4 to 3 million participants , between 2011 and 2015 . Similarly in Australia , the 2015 National Golf Club Participation Report also showed an increase in junior members under the age of 18 , now accounting for 3.6 per cent of total members .
Part of the accumulative involvement in the country can be traced back to the many youth initiatives offered to Aussie children . One such initiative is the Federal Government ’ s ‘ Sporting Schools ’ – a school based participation program to help children foster an interest in sports , which is offering golf clinics through MyGolf .
These programs are held throughout the country by a mix of PGA Members , Community Instructors and teachers , and allow schools to experience golf – and pay an external provider to deliver golf - that may not have run a golf program before .
Another successful grow-the-game initiative in Australia is Golf Month . The annual national marketing campaign aims to drive participation in golf with an emphasis on reengaging lapsed golfers and increasing club membership . However , junior participation is also a key component .
Current club junior membership in Australia ( 2015 Golf Club Participation Report ):
• Male Junior Members – 11,818
• Female Junior Members – 2,018
MyGolf participation statistics :
• 2014 / 15 – 3,470
• 2015 / 16 – 6,254
• 2016 / 17 – 6,174 ( as at March 20 , 2017 ) – target 9,149
According to Steve Mona , the positive participation trend globally is due to several reasons , including golf ’ s return to the Olympic Games .
As a business as much as a sport , golf depends on new blood to survive as its traditional player base of older men ages out of the game . The Olympic Games , with its extensive broadcasting , was viewed as an excellent opportunity to attract a younger crowd .
According to Golf Australia Participation Manager David Gallichio , the MyGolf program has allowed for the organisation , in conjunction with the PGA of Australia , to promote a single national junior brand .