Just a decade ago, it looked like the golf industry had the world at its feet. Interest in the game was surging, and consumers snapped up equipment and booked tee times. These days, though, the sport is caught in an extreme decline. Golf is losing more players than it 's gaining, as 4.1 million people left the sport outpacing the 3.7 million who picked it up last year. With an overall decline in the number of players, that 's causing a ripple effect in the golfing world: Sales of clubs and other equipment are plunging, while some courses are pulling up their tees and calling it a day. This Case Study will look into the reasons why the Golf Industry declined and how the Golf Industry is working to increase participation.
I. Golf A. History
Almost all modern sports have origins in earlier games, as far back as thousands of years golf is no different. Most modern games then eventually developed into a more recognizable version in the last 200 years or so. Golf differs from its sporting counterparts. In its early days, Scottish Kings – James II and James IV – actually outlawed the game, believing the popularity of the sport conflicted with military training. However, King James IV himself became enamored with the sport by the 1500s, and in the early 1500s, in a short peace with England, the game became popular there as well, though when the two countries were back at war with each other, golf receded in England again. When James VI of Scotland took the
In “Golf Is...Too Easy?,” the author, Tyler Dikun, discusses the idea of how professional golfers make it look easy, but golf is still a very challenging sport. Golf equipment however needs to slow down its growth. The author begins by saying that today new golf courses are exposed before they even open because of golf ball changes. For example, bunkers have to placed further from the tee box due to the increase in distance. Dikun continues with stating golf courses now take longer to play for the average person because they have become too difficult.
New golfers increased from 1.5 million to 3 million between 1988 and 1998, but most of them quit due to increased cost of playing which went up by nearly 50%, unavailability of courses and time involved in playing. The global premium equipment market declined post 1998 due to various reasons like decreased demand, Asian economic turmoil and saturation of product in the market place. To CGC’s benefit the competition on golf equipment
There is general agreement that the Scots were the earliest of golf addicts but who actually invented the game is open to debate. We know that golf has existed for at least 500 years because James II of Scotland, in an Act of Parliament dated March 6, 1457, had golf and football banned because these sports were interfering too much with archery practice sorely needed by the loyal defenders of the Scottish realm! It has been suggested that bored shepherds tending flocks of sheep near St. Andrews became adept at hitting rounded stones into rabbits holes with their wooden crooks. And so a legend that persists to this day was born!
These magazines and movies are only a small portion of how golf has helped changed society. Golf provided a helping hand in bringing the American nation closer together as equals. Blacks and Whites of all ages and gender have been given the chance to play along side each other in a safe environment. Sports sometimes provide a place for equality. Golf is a great example of this equality. Stossel says "golf is beginning to look more like America: diverse, multicultural, and largely middle class" (2). But, will Americans take advantage of the
The 1980s and 90s were boom times but all goods things eventually come to an end. There will no doubt be good times again but right now individuals, businesses and communities have to adapt to economic realities in which people have less disposable income for some of the things they used to spend money on. One of these is golf. The number of gold courses grew throughout the United States in the 80s and 90s and the same was the case in Japan. Today, however, there aren't enough players anymore to support the number of courses, so many have closed. This creates the opportunity for development in places where middle-aged, mostly white males used to drive silly little carts and hit a little white ball with a club.
Fourteen clubs - four wedges, six irons, a rescue, a three wood, a driver, and a putter - this is golf. It is one of the most mentally challenging sports in the world. It can fool beginners who are deceived by its simplicity. Golf is often underestimated by those who have never attempted to play the sport. While it has often been known as a “rich man’s” sport, in recent years this perception has begun to change. There are a number of other generalizations made when talking about golf, yet these are most always from those who have never experienced, played, or followed the game. One should question how a critic with no knowledge of the activity could state whether or not golf should be considered a sport. Golf is a sport, regardless of what any critic has to say. Studies and experimentation, along with the experience itself, reveal all of the athletic aspects that make golf better than most sports.
Golf has developed various issues concerning its popularity and growth of the game. This is due to multiple factors such as a niche target market, economic influences, geographical issues of Canada, and demographic changes. Golf organizations have to meet and exceed the needs of consumers and how value in golf in order to sustain as a sport.
The legendary beginnings of golf in the United States can be traced back to the mid-1600s. One of the first published
Looking at the market we can see that Golf Companies have suffered after the 2008 recession. However, in 2012 golf ball market was $483 million in retail sales from 17.6 million units which was 4.1% growth from 2011, showing that there has been improvement in the market performance from companies that had lower prices for golf equipment as people were willing to spend on their product. However Altius could not regain
This new game that people were beginning to play in Scotland, seemed to take a hold of the people. At the time, the sport was open to all people- no fees to pay, no starting times- just a short game of golf that would always be followed by a trip to the local mead hall. Most golf played was on bets and times have not changed on that fact. Men would go and bet that they could beat the man next to them on the links, which at the time were only sandy, hilly pastures. It was because this game was at such a simple stage in its history; it required skill and finesse that almost all people could do. So, to meet the demand of the people, many courses were built along high bluffs on the eastern coastline in Scotland. It is here that nature developed dunes, ridges, gullies and hollows that would challenge the best of golfers.
Unfortunately, the golf industry is out of balance with the number of courses (supply) outweighing the number of golfers looking to play a round of golf (demand). Course owners struggle to attract rounds. In order to stay competitive in today’s market, you need to have differentiators that set you apart from your competitors. This module enhances the golfer’s experience at those courses that have it and they have a decided advantage over the competition with all other things being equal. If you are looking to attract more rounds, use the Golfer Experience Module to make the round more enjoyable resulting in more rounds and revenue.
It is unknown when the game of golf originated, but it is believed that people began playing in Europe during the middle ages. In the United States, golf was a sport primarily played by the wealthy individuals until tournaments began being televised. Since then, golf has grown to be a very lucrative industry with over 27 million golfers nationwide by the end of the 1990’s. “Competition in the Golf Equipment Industry,” a case study written by John E. Gamble of the University of South Alabama, is an overview of the problems currently facing major companies in the golf equipment industry: technological limitations (due to golf’s governing organizations), a decline in the number of golfers,
When I was nine years old I was first introduced to a new aspect of my life by two beloved family members, my great aunt and uncle. They showed me their passion in life, the game of golf. My Aunt and Uncle have been playing the sport for over 30 years now together, and have learned to love, and learned to be experts at the game. In showing me this passion at their home course, Legend Lake Country Club, I too began to develop a love for the game. It didn’t take long for golf to take over my life. I became obsessed, spending nearly all of my spare time with a club in my hand.
Interviews were administered during November 2014, with ten randomly selected working men and women throughout the state of Mississippi. Interviewees were asked a certain set of questions dealing with golf etiquette, business golf as a sales tactic, and whether or not it is beneficial or just a game. Secondary research was conducted through electronic searches.
When people here the word ‘golf’ they often correlate it with a misleading sense of boring, elderly men and women who have nothing better to do. Believe it or not, there is a broader reason why so many retirees indulge in the golf lifestyle. Yes, golf is a lifestyle, not just a sport. Many people, most of whom know absolutely nothing about the sport, do not realize that playing golf regularly can add five years to their life span and also have many other well-being-related benefits (“Health” par. 5). Golf is a great therapeutic activity because it teaches good etiquette, it enriches the mind, and it provides for a healthy lifestyle.