82 GOLF.COM / S e p t ember 2019
Where the golfverse and Twitterverse
intersect, roughly 12,600 people are following
@datagolf these days. Those aren’t Taylor Swift
social-media numbers, but momentum is on the upswing for Data
Golf (datagolf.ca), the creation of brothers Matt (28) and Will (26)
Courchene. The data analytics on the Courchene’s site won’t help
you shed strokes during your own toils on the course, but if you’re
a fan of the professional game and into data or betting, you’ll find
the information on Data Golf ’s site both intriguing and a hell of
a lot of fun—they do analytics quite unlike anyone else out there.
The most popular attraction on DataGolf.ca of late is the live
model of every PGA Tour and PGA European Tour event. Every
five minutes, the model updates the probabilities of every player’s
chances in the tournament—an unparalleled perspective on how
the tournament is unfolding. The site will also mesmerize you with
spectacular data visualization, such as comparing the all-time
earnings leaders on the PGA Tour from 1990 through 2018, and
a course history tool so you can sort out your horses for courses.
Data Golf is based in Toronto, and started out as a blog in the
summer of 2016. As boys growing up in Canada, Matt and Will
were avid golfers and golf fans. As they accumulated data and
analytics knowledge during their college years, “We thought that
golf could use different types of media content other than just
round recaps,” says Will. “Obviously, Mark Broadie had done a
lot of stuff, but we didn’t see it being used that much, and thought
there was a hole in the space. We started an analytics blog, and
people found it kind of interesting, I guess.”
As the algorithm that led to the live
model evolved from its start two years
ago, the brothers have incorporated a way
to fairly compare scores across the U.S.
and European Tour. “That’s important,
because it’s a stumbling block for a lot
of people,” says Matt. “And, generally,
European Tour events have weaker fields,
so comparing Strokes Gained across the
tours isn’t a fair comparison.” Data Golf ’s
“True Strokes Gained” is adjusted for
the strength of the field in a given event.
In conversation, Matt and Will
Courchene’s banter and humor flow as
effortlessly as you might expect from two
brothers who seem to genuinely enjoy
the other’s company. Each has a master’s
degree in economics, which is a subject not indirectly tied to what is
likely to lead to the continued growth of their business—Data Golf ’s
analytics have substantial implications for betting on the Tour.
The gambling aspect isn’t paramount to the Courchenes (“We’re
continually trying to add to the available content perspective for
Matt (left) and Will’s living room is typical of many a Millennial abode.
The data they analyze and the way it’s presented? Anything but typical.
GOLF/Technology 2019