Vital Signs, february 6, 2014

     In U.S. golf operations, budgets aren’t being squeezed quite as tight as they once were. To wit: This year, just about half (49 percent) of the nation’s golf-course superintendents anticipate working with a larger operations budget, according to data compiled by Golf Course Industry. Only 17 percent of the respondents to GCI’s survey said that they expect to see their budgets cut. Over the past three years, says GCI, allocations for non-capital operations have increased by almost $46,000, from $651,400 in 2012 to $697,000 in 2014.

     Over the past five years, the most committed golfers in the United Kingdom have become certified old-timers. Since 2009, according to a report by Sports Marketing Surveys, the average age of avid golfers in the U.K. -- those who play at least once a week -- has risen from 48 to 63. This is a shocking increase, and a stark illustration of what happens to a sport when young people stop playing it.

     Last month’s PGA Merchandise Show has been called “a terrific start to 2015,” but the attendance figures were underwhelming. The show attracted 41,000 people, only about 400 more than it did in 2014. Anyone searching for reasons to be optimistic about our industry’s near-term fortunes has to look elsewhere.

     As the rich get richer, their increasing wealth is being reflected in golf’s demographics. Citing data provided by KeyBanc Capital Markets, the Economist reports that “people earning $100,000 or more now make up 45 percent of all golfers, up from 40 percent in 2005.” While this may be welcome news in some quarters -- in particular, among private clubs, resorts, destination venues, and high-end public courses -- it indicates that golf is continuing to evolve into a niche sport for the well-heeled. So the next time you hear someone say that the average price of a round of golf is $29, remember that it’s never a bad idea to follow the money.

     Tiger Woods’ latest comeback has so far been a dud, but the smart money says that his struggles on the PGA Tour aren’t likely to affect his earnings potential. “The second billion will be there for him,” Neal Pilson, a former president of CBS Sports, told Reuters. Pilson, now a sports-industry consultant, added: “His personality, his looks, his contacts, his remaining skills, and the emotional tie that people still have to Tiger is eminently marketable.” In fact, Pilson believes that the business opportunities certain to come Woods’ way “would probably dwarf” those that made Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, and Greg Norman so wealthy after they quit playing professional golf.

     2015 will be remembered as a watershed year for U.S. millennials, as they’re set to become our nation’s largest living generation. The Pew Research Center, working off data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau, has determined that the number of millennials (defined as people between the ages of 18 and 34) will grow to 75.3 million this year. Sadly, this group has so far showed relatively little interest in golf, and some have suggested that it’ll be a “lost generation” to our industry. It hardly needs to be said, but the millennials are going to out-number the Baby Boomers, the generation that once hoped to die before it got old. The Boomers, who’ve also been a disappointment to golf, will shrink to 74.9 million.