HAS LOCKDOWN BROUGHT IN NEW GOLFERS

With golf essentially being one, if not the only, sport you can still play during this time frame, do you think this is bringing or has brought new golfers to the game? I personally have been asked by several friends who have never golfed to take them out.

My opinion is its very unlikely to last. Golf is a great way for people to get exercise now who can't do anything else, but it's unlikely they will stick with it once this returns to (more) normal life.

I doubt golf is seeing any kind of boom right now either, as the new golfers probably do not offset those scared to go out

I live in a golf course neighborhood where many of the members have their own carts and the course has remained open. You can sign up for tee times via an up up to 7 days in advance. Since our stay at home order has been in effect you have to login first thing in the morning to get a tee time for the corresponding day in the following week. The tee sheet is booked solid every day from the first tee time in the morning through 7:00 at night. It is crazy how much more play is going on at our course.

Courses are a lot more busy in my area as well. Never struggled to get a tee time at area courses over the last several years, until the last month or so.

Golf still has the stigma of being a rich man's/elite sport when obviously in a lot of cases it is not. So it might get a few new players but nothing close to making a serious positive dent.

Maybe a temporary surge. Nothing lasting.

not in maryland..courses still closed

I will add there are a ton more hikers and gardeners these days as well..

I can't speak for the weekdays... but weekends at the courses have been packed since the order was adjusted... there are quite a few new people.. im sure it'll go back to normal when people are allowed to do the things they normally do during summer

I have seen a lot more kids. School is out, everybody is staying home, not many jobs (even without Covid), so there has been a bunch playing. As Jeff said, most will not stick with it, but maybe some will.

I had a mid-afternoon tee-time today (Tuesday) and it was like a Saturday morning. I couldn’t even park in the parking lot it was so full.

Tee times were stretched out a couple minutes longer apart than normal though, so pace of play was actually really good. It might be bad for business, but I hope tee times continue to be paced apart by at least 10 minutes.

I think the idea that golf is perceived as a rich man's sport is a myth. What other sport can a flabby 45 year-old cubicle rat play? Hammer throw? Boxing? Pole vault?

There are the same number of private golf clubs in the US today as there were in the (first?) Great Depression. That is not growth at all.

Public and municipal golf courses are covered up with middle age, middle income people.

Definitely seeing a lot of "non golfers" on the course lately. Not that it's a bad thing in and of itself. Every day is Saturday morning. Lots of slow rounds.

Our courses are still closed. Don't know when they will open again.

I think it's a wash here in Florida, sure there are some new players, but there are also the more elderly or fragile who aren't playing in the current situation.

Our courses are closed in Massachusetts. May 18th is the governor’s next announcement on the issues.

Looks like MA is now open for play as of 30 minutes ago...

A few weeks ago I saw golf course revenues in Texas and other states that had remained open for golf were up ~50% year over year

That’s what got me interested. I was invited to go with coworkers when we were still working, but couldn’t go because I didn’t have equipment. I want to be prepared for getting into it.

No way! Timely thread - I was joking around the other day that the golf courses were now packed tight becasue people who didn't even play golf were out here just to kill 5 hours off before going back to lockdown and hiding under their beds.

I've never had so much competition getting tee times since the 'demic began, that I'm certain of!

I'm very hopeful our courses will be open this week. Depends on tomorrow's announcements. But since garden centres are being allowed to open I really can't see why golf courses aren't.

No new golfers but everyone/anyone who has ever golfed is out and about now - the northeast has had some mild weather but it's been so all over the place. The days that are nice though? Insane.

I see a rise in "trick shot" artists, hopefully they convert to full time players or go away totally. I can foresee Golf Channel doing a new show based on this as well. I hope I'm wrong...

It might be pick up briefly, until people run out of money when the economy collapses.

I DON'T KNOW WHAT WE'RE YELLING ABOUT

There are tens of thousands of new players, or those with a set of clubs available who just want to get outdoors and are willing to pay for the opportunity.

And that’s just at my home course. ??‍♂️?

These hacks need to go back to work. #shrinkthegame lol I was able to get out at 5:30 on a Thursday. I didn't get 18 walking in though. First round of spotlight golf since the shutdown.

I got stuck behind a 3some Saturday that I swear had never swung a golf club in their life. It was my wife and I, on a course we typically get around in 2.5-3 hours. It took almost 5 hours.

Most courses here are running modified groups (one course has singles only, for example) so overall throughput is definitely down. Overall I'm seeing fewer golfers, also new golfers are nowhere to be found. It takes clubs, ambition, friend / lessons, etc. to get started and I don't think people have the motivation for that just yet. Lots of people hiking around the golf course (and on the golf course when things were shutdown!) but not so many playing.

I have definitely seen new people at my local course. While I agree it will probably be a temporary surge it is helping my home course weather a very difficult time. My home course is never in great shape financially, so this surge will help.