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the traditional golfing nations –Australia, Canada, and even
Scotland- are seeing similar slides. The reasons for this are
obvious, but it is that very nature of golf that makes changing
the sport so difficult.
Golf’s very nature is causing its collapse.
Golf is a cultural sport. First played in Scotland, it was a fa-
voured sport of Mary, Queen of Scots. It broke big in the 18th
and 19th centuries, when the length of the game was seen as
a bonus by people with the time
and money to participate. In
our era of constant engagement
and immediate entertainment, it
is hard to understand just how
much time the rich of the past
had on their hands. Golf be-
came a sport that underscored
one’s social prominence. As it
gained prominence in America,
it came to be much more than
a sport. The long hours spent in
a private retreat became a ven-
ture for businessmen to get to
know one another, to do deals
and understand their compet-
itors. As P.G. Wodehouse once
said, “To find a man’s true char-
acter, play golf with him”.
And just as golf suited the elitist,
male-dominated world of the
past, it now is failing to fit into
contemporary society. The Royal
and Ancient Gold Club of St
Andrews in Scotland voted to
allow women membership as
late as 2014. Another Scottish club only recently took down a
sign that read “no dogs, no women”.
In the past, men would disappear to the course for hours as a
regular slice of their weekend, leaving the wife to manage the
kids. Today, men are more likely to help out with running the
children to their own sporting commitments. Moreover, the
increasing divorce rate means that men are often spending
time with their children during their prime golfing periods.
Demographically, then, golf is in something of a squeeze.
Clubs continue to be elitist. Most of the courses closed in
America over the past seven to eight years are middle class
courses in smaller towns. This process has accelerated since
the 2008 downturn, as the middle class have less money. The
one voice that is advocating the health of the sport should
serve as some sign of the attitude within the sport.
Donald Trump clams that the sport is “booming”. He based his
assessment on the fact that his own courses are enjoying their
best ever seasons. But the fact that these clubs are stagger-
ingly expensive –the initiation fee at his West Palm Beach club
is $250,000- only goes to show that the sport’s broad appeal
is diminishing. Golf is retreating back into its role as a status
symbol sport.
But there are some who see the sport needs to adapt or
die. And while tradition is one of the factors that makes it so
attractive, it alienates many. Cricket –a sport that has limit-
ed appeal to the uninitiated given its long playing time and
arcane rules- has kept its audience
through innovations based on
making it faster and shorter.
In the U.S., some entrepreneurs
are fighting back against declining
numbers and old men in dusty
rooms. While clubs keep getting
better at helping golfers drive the
ball further and straighter, the re-
cently invented Gold Skate Caddy
promises to speed the game up
by an estimated 25 percent. An
electric scooter, its four wheels
cause less damage to the greens
and can zip around with much
more dexterity than the traditional
club cart. They provide a sense of
fun that was perhaps missing for
those golfers who were required
to walk between shots.
In an effort to gain more mass
appeal, Irish entrepreneur John
McGuire has come up with Game
Golf. “Tags” are screwed into the
clubs and a small device that is
carried on the belt provides data
points that chart the course of each shot. This creates a data
bank of shots which are then uploaded, so players can track
their own play, which can then be shared with other players
around the world. Game Golf plugs into the golf community,
making the game much less solitary.
In an effort to involve and engage children in the sport, Tay-
lorMade-adidas is promoting a project called Hack Golf. It is a
crowdsourcing idea that uses ideas from the golfing communi-
ty to radically change the sport. One idea taken from Hack golf
is the Two-Hour Round, which is based on faster play. Another
is the concept of a much larger hole, to make putting much
easier.
The notion of a larger hole has many traditionalists fuming,
but golf is perhaps at a stage where any idea that improves
its participation levels should be treated seriously. If it fails to
bring in the young, women and people of ethnic backgrounds,
it risks becoming a sporting curiosity, played by the rich and
watched by no one.
Demographically, then, golf
is in something of a squeeze.
Clubs continue to be elitist.
Most of the courses closed in
America over the past seven
to eight years are middle class
courses in smaller towns. This
process has accelerated since
the 2008 downturn, as the
middle class have less money.
The one voice that is
advocating the health of the
sport should serve as some
sign of the attitude within the
sport.
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ISSUE 21 | AUGUST 2015 |
27