Golflogic.ca

What if boomers have fooled everyone and traded their golf bags for backpacks or motorcycles? This question came to mind after I ran across some statistics recently that suggested a decline in golf participation in BC and North America in general.

Every time I play, there seems to be a crowd in front of us and behind us. The green fees haven’t gone down, which you would expect in a soft market. So I called the guy who has his finger on the pulse of the game in British Columbia.

Kris Jonasson, Executive Director, BC Golf Association the past decade, keeps in touch with the BCGA’s 67,000 members and their clubs. He also reads every survey and research report that comes across his desk. He has a pretty good idea where the sport is headed in the province, from grassroots programs to the elite BC teenagers now earning their reputations in national tournaments. He said when the sun in out, tee-times are full and business is good. It’s in the off-times that the bean counters start working the numbers and coming up short. “It’s always been a problem tracking down the number of golfers,” Jonasson said. “But there are signs the market is down.”

With some 280 public courses in BC, and 11 private clubs, there was an increase from 1998 (771,000) to 2006 (830,000) among those who play at least one round of golf a season. This metric doesn’t measure golfers as a percentage of overall population growth or decline, however. During the same period there has been significant growth of upscale residential communities being built with new golf courses.

Jonasson explains course growth as real estate driven not market-driven. He remains cautious about forecasting the numbers of golfers. “Our concern is whether golf participation achieves continued growth of 1% – 1 ½% per year, and for the past two years it has been flat,” he said.

Industry growth will be chief among the topics discussed when Jonasson takes the gavel to the podium of the International Association of Golf Administrators (IAGA) meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina for its annual meeting. As their new president, he brings savvy and a robust charter to the position. It doesn’t hurt that British Columbia was voted the Number #1 golf destination by the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO) in 2007.

While golf continues to be the #1 participation sport with one in five people across the province and North America playing at least one round per year, Jonasson and others will keep their eyes open for factors that could deter sustained growth. This could include slowing US and Asian economies, prolonged poor weather, and a rapidly aging population who are turning to other sporting alternatives.

Maybe we should just ask the Scottish, who invented the game. Did they ever worry about statistics?