June rounds were up 1.2% compared to the same month a year ago, helping keep the industry slightly ahead of last year’s record pace for play.

America’s Handicap

According to the National Golf Foundation, 77% of golfers keep score on a regular basis. The approximately 20 million golfers who do keep score tend to shoot in the mid-90s, with an average of 94. That hasn’t changed substantially in recent years.

Supply Versus Demand

The average number of rounds played annually (across all types of facilities) in the past four years sits 12% above the 10-year average prior to the pandemic. In those same four years, guest fees increased 16%. The increase comes after a decade of oversupply.

Two recent interesting tidbits in the world of golf

(1) JoAnne Carner (the oldest player to ever compete in a USGA championship) shot here age at the Senior Women’s (85). Her reaction, “I’m headed to the bar!”

(2) If you’ve ever been to Minnesota in the summer, you’ve experienced mosquitoes. A golfer at The Refuge Golf Club in Oak Grove, hit a mosquito control helicopter. It is not known if it was accidental or intentional.

Historic Norms

So far 37.5 eighteen-hole equivalent golf courses in America have closed this year (projections are about 80 for the whole calendar year). How does this compare to historic norms? In 2019, there were 279.5 eighteen-hole equivalent closures in America. The good news for golf? This will likely be a staggering 72% decline in closures compared to 5 years ago.