GOLF HAS ALWAYS BEEN A GAME THAT REQUIRES, and
rewards, improvisation and resilience. Even PGA
TOUR superstars hit a bad shot once in a while—
amateurs, a little more often—and part of the
game is learning to shake off a less-than-perfect
lie and find a way back toward the hole. Given this
need for resilience, it’s not surprising that despite
recent challenges to the world of professional
sports—and to every aspect of our lives—the game
of golf has not only survived but also thrived.Playing Through a Pandemic
In March and April of 2020, more than half
the nation’s golf courses—54%—closed due to
the COVID-19 pandemic. But with some foresight
and quick action, the game waged an incredible
rally with a widespread reopening in May. The PGA
TOUR helped lead a group of industry stakeholders
on “Back2Golf,” a cohesive framework to reopenfacilities while communicating to players and
staff that thoughtful, enhanced personal safety
measures had been enacted. Back2Golf provided
three phases of guidelines, reviewed by the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, which included
limiting cart ridership to a single player, mandating
social distancing, providing new means of remov-
ing balls from cups without touching the pin, and
more.
These efforts proved fruitful, and suddenly, it
seemed, everyone was a golfer, or a golfer in the
making. Despite losing two months of play, total
rounds completed in 2020 were up 13% year over
year (YOY) through November, according to Golf
Datatech. And per the National Golf Foundation,
the industry expected to add 500,000 new junior
golfers in 2020, a 20% YOY gain. Equipment sales
rose with this tide. Golf Datatech reported that July
2020 saw almost $389 million in sales, the highestAfter a partial shutdown,golf is now on a hot streak.CONTENT FROM PGA TOUROn the Upswing
DURING THE PANDEMIC, GOLF
FACILITIES, SUCH AS TPC SAWGRASS
(PICTURED), IMPLEMENTED HEALTH
AND SAFETY MEASURES THAT
ALLOWED PEOPLE TO CONTINUE
PLAYING THE GAME.