Is cost the reason for decline in new golfers?

[Jeremie Boop]

You're over Tampa way, right? I'll bet I can find a half dozen courses for under $10 a round over there...with cart.

I've heard that there are people who don't absolutely have to drink beer while playing golf too. Don't know that I believe it, but that's the rumor.....

I can appreciate that down in Florida you can find a round of golf so cheap readily.... However that is not the case anywhere around here. The cheapest I've ever seen is $12 and that's typically in the middle of the day during the week. Prime time golf *after 4pm weekdays and weekends* is rarely ever below $20. I'm not saying that isn't cheap but it's no "under $10"... While I would say difficulty is definitely one thing that causes people to quit golfing, cost is also a big reason people have to cut back and/or quit. I would say that people could get sticker shock when they think about picking up the game because most people don't think about buying used clubs, they want new equipment that they see on tour.

[David in FL]

I can appreciate that down in Florida you can find a round of golf so cheap readily.... However that is not the case anywhere around here. The cheapest I've ever seen is $12 and that's typically in the middle of the day during the week. Prime time golf *after 4pm weekdays and weekends* is rarely ever below $20. I'm not saying that isn't cheap but it's no "under $10"... While I would say difficulty is definitely one thing that causes people to quit golfing, cost is also a big reason people have to cut back and/or quit. I would say that people could get sticker shock when they think about picking up the game because most people don't think about buying used clubs, they want new equipment that they see on tour.

I was responding to @vangator .  There are certainly some areas with fewer courses and different price points, but again, the point is that golf doesn't HAVE to be expensive.  If you want, you can find reasonable golf.  It might not be at a top-tier course, but a lot of us learned to love the game playing on 9-hole munies too.....and a lot of people still enjoy that.

Where do you live in Ohio?  Nearest decent sized city.  I'd be surprised if I can't find some pretty reasonable golf with a 5 minute search....

[saevel25]

Another option is memberships. If you are planning to play a lot of golf, and don't mind playing one course. A lot of courses offer memberships.

Like the City of Dayton offers an $850 dollar pass for unlimited rounds of golf. Given that is walking only, but all four city courses are very walker friendly. If a person plays more than 35 times on the city courses then they would start saving money by getting the pass.

[dbuck]

I agree that it is time more than anything, especially to younger families with small kids. All hobbies take time, but many are more family friendly than golf, especially for really young families. Obviously pre- or no- kid couples can play together if both interested, and when kids get older they might be interested, but there is a period of time where it is not family friendly.

All the talk about beer, food, gas to the course, and so on is not relevant because you would do that with any activity. The cost of equipment is what you make it. Between pawn shops, ebay, and Goodwill, a serviceable and sometimes even "respectable" set of equipment can be put together for not much money.  As evidenced by a lot of pro-line shoes of late such as Ecco and True, dedicated shoes are not necessary.

[Lihu]

I can appreciate that down in Florida you can find a round of golf so cheap readily.... However that is not the case anywhere around here. The cheapest I've ever seen is $12 and that's typically in the middle of the day during the week. Prime time golf *after 4pm weekdays and weekends* is rarely ever below $20. I'm not saying that isn't cheap but it's no "under $10"... While I would say difficulty is definitely one thing that causes people to quit golfing, cost is also a big reason people have to cut back and/or quit. I would say that people could get sticker shock when they think about picking up the game because most people don't think about buying used clubs, they want new equipment that they see on tour.

Did I mention that Mangrove Bay was $21 with cart and a hot dog/drink? You might consider moving there. You're still young.

[NJpatbee]

Golf is a difficult game, but easier with today's (including the last 10 years) equipment than it has ever been.  18 holes of golf in the last 50 years has consistently been time consuming with crowded courses taking 5 hours on a weekend. I do believe though that the major factor in fewer people playing golf is cost related in that our jobs have not recovered from the "Great Recession" leaving people with less disposable income.  Our houses are worth less (for most of us), we earn less money, and for some people, especially casual golfers, the $30 - $60 on a weekend is better spent on essentials or going to a restaurant.  For the dedicated golfers that come on hard times, they will seek out the cheaper rates and play at off-times to stay in the game, whatever it takes. But most people that play 5-10 times per year will not miss golf if it means cutting back on a favorite activity, or paying the mortgage on time.  Same goes for people that have never played golf.

We are left with an overabundance of courses in some areas, and OEMS that cannot understand why golfers will not spend $400 for a new driver that is basically the same as their current one every 6-8 months.  There has been some fallout and there will continue to be more until the economy becomes robust once again.  But here are still many millions of us and the game itself is in no way threatened.

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[Jeremie Boop]

I was responding to @vangator.  There are certainly some areas with fewer courses and different price points, but again, the point is that golf doesn't HAVE to be expensive.  If you want, you can find reasonable golf.  It might not be at a top-tier course, but a lot of us learned to love the game playing on 9-hole munies too.....and a lot of people still enjoy that.

Where do you live in Ohio?  Nearest decent sized city.  I'd be surprised if I can't find some pretty reasonable golf with a 5 minute search....

I appreciate the offer to look, however I'm pretty good about looking for deals myself. The main issue is anywhere there may be decent deals is 45+ minutes away. I have regularly driven up to and over an hour to play with @saevel25 and @CarlSpackler , however those courses weren't cheap and I wouldn't drive that far just to golf on the cheap because with the gas and travel time it wouldn't be all that cheap would it? My point was, while you may be able to find super cheap golf prices where you are that is not the case for everyone. Therefore the cost of golfing could well be a factor in whether they are able to golf or not.

Another option is memberships. If you are planning to play a lot of golf, and don't mind playing one course. A lot of courses offer memberships.

Like the City of Dayton offers an $850 dollar pass for unlimited rounds of golf. Given that is walking only, but all four city courses are very walker friendly. If a person plays more than 35 times on the city courses then they would start saving money by getting the pass.

Memberships are a great idea for being able to golf a lot, but that's a pretty significant investment upfront is it not?

Did I mention that Mangrove Bay was $21 with cart and a hot dog/drink? You might consider moving there. You're still young.

Lol, the idea of moving for cheap golf may sometimes seem attractive but I wouldn't leave my family and the job I love for it.

[mcanadiens]

Another option is memberships. If you are planning to play a lot of golf, and don't mind playing one course. A lot of courses offer memberships.

Like the City of Dayton offers an $850 dollar pass for unlimited rounds of golf. Given that is walking only, but all four city courses are very walker friendly. If a person plays more than 35 times on the city courses then they would start saving money by getting the pass.

What I've got is the City's  $450 option (my annual X-mas/birthday gift from the fam). That means $5 per round w/o the cart. It's allowed me to play a heck of a lot more golf than I other wise would have.

I think the point of the thread overall is what is stopping people from trying golf and not so much what is causing people to quit. Cost may not help much, but golf is simply a sport that you don't just decide to try one afternoon. You more or less need to be led into it (which was the idea behind another popular thread.).

[saevel25]

Memberships are a great idea for being able to golf a lot, but that's a pretty significant investment upfront is it not?

That is why I said, "if you are planning to". It is kinda stupid to just pay for a membership and not get the benefit out of it.

[Slowcelica]

Around here this point is mute, anyone under 18 can play for free at the first tee courses. Yea they are par 3 courses for the most part but you can get some good practice in. Also if you walk, I pay $8-$13 for green fees for 18 at the muni courses that's pretty cheap.

Golf is a difficult game, but easier with today's (including the last 10 years) equipment than it has ever been.  18 holes of golf in the last 50 years has consistently been time consuming with crowded courses taking 5 hours on a weekend. I do believe though that the major factor in fewer people playing golf is cost related in that our jobs have not recovered from the "Great Recession" leaving people with less disposable income.  Our houses are worth less (for most of us), we earn less money, and for some people, especially casual golfers, the $30 - $60 on a weekend is better spent on essentials or going to a restaurant.  For the dedicated golfers that come on hard times, they will seek out the cheaper rates and play at off-times to stay in the game, whatever it takes. But most people that play 5-10 times per year will not miss golf if it means cutting back on a favorite activity, or paying the mortgage on time.  Same goes for people that have never played golf.

We are left with an overabundance of courses in some areas, and OEMS that cannot understand why golfers will not spend $400 for a new driver that is basically the same as their current one every 6-8 months.  There has been some fallout and there will continue to be more until the economy becomes robust once again.  But here are still many millions of us and the game itself is in no way threatened.

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Honestly I am starting to agree that the reason for the decline in golf is the recession, in economics there is a the idea of inferior, normal, and luxury goods. Which golf would fall in the category as a luxury good, if your not doing well and don't have the extra $$ then you can do without it.

[Archie Bunker]

Cost is the initial barrier for some. But you can find inexpensive equipment and reasonable greens fees if you work at it. But there's nothing you can do about slow play. I find it agonizing to wait and watch before every shot on every hole. If I wanted to watch people play golf for 5 hours, I would simply watch The Golf Channel.

[newtogolf]

I'd say over all cost has quite a bit to do with what ever decline may be taking place. There are extra costs to consider besides just green fees. Assuming you already have your basic equipment purchased, food, beverages, transportation, and other incidentals need to be factored in.

When I go to play, I have to add in some of the 6-8 gallons of gas it takes to get to the nearest course, and then back home. Green fees of $25, another $20 dollars in gas, another $20 dollars for food/beverages. Let's throw in another $20 for incidentals that may include some skins. I am at $85 for 18 holes, which is almost $5 per hole if you want to take it that far. If I shoot an 80, it's over a dollar per stroke. Of course, on the bright side, is if I shoot 100, it's only $0.85 a stroke.

The time to play factor is moot point to my way of thinking. I go to play 18 holes regardless of how long it might take.  If it takes 5-6 hours then so be it. I don't like longer rounds, but they are what they are, and will never go away. I know some folks will stay away due to longer playing times, but that to me is their own issue.

With the drought issues that are taking place out west, poor course conditions could tend to keep some golfers home.  Who want to play off thin, hard, and patchy lies? I know the course I play the most is going to raise their green fees by $2-$5 in November. Their (irrigation) water supplier is raising their cost to the golf course. They reclaim as much water as they can, but it's not enough. I'll pay the higher fees because I like to play on nice fairways, and greens.

Then there's the first time player who gets put with a group of "snobs"  who have forgotten their first time playing the game. Bad first impressions can make folks not want to return.

Last but not least there is the old stand by for the loss of players......Tiger Woods is ailing.

I have to think your costs for gas are related to where you live, 6-8 gallons of gas translates to 120-160 miles for a gas guzzler and over 200 miles for most cars.  That's a long way to go to play a round of golf.

[Aflighter]

It might be because a lot of  guys say my age have families now and more priorities and don't have the free time or money to play.Think its because a lot of people are working more and get no time to play.From just observing todays youth,they just seem more interested in other things.To me golf teaches us a lot of good things like honesty and unfortunately todays youth don't get it.Golf can be a lonely sport where its just you and really no big groups of people around and I feel kids nowadays rather be part of groups and chase girls rather than learning a game that can be hard to learn right from the start.

[WUTiger]

Time and the difficulty of the game.

Time is one big factor, especially for parents. During the last decade, adult time has evaporated as a concept. In families of even moderate means, it's a constant sequence of youth soccer games, chess club, math tutors and - in many cases - assorted church events. And, we're into the era of designer kids . Many families only have one or two offspring these days, so heaven forbid if Biff and Buffy don't come out perfect.

Also, with our stranger danger cult, Girl Scouts can no longer sell cookies door to door unsupervised. Adults have to monitor selling for many hours, so mom and dad might be better off to donate $$ and skip the fundraisers.

And, there's the difficulty of the game. Too many new courses seem to have tricked-up greens to prevent the pros from making excessive birdies. Unfortunately, the pros don't play there , but the trick greens mean more double bogies and slower play for the average golfer.

[vangator]

Did I mention that Mangrove Bay was $21 with cart and a hot dog/drink? You might consider moving there. You're still young.

I play Mangrove all the time. $15.51 to walk after 3pm. $24.52 to ride after 3pm. Add $10-15 to those before 3pm. Don't know about that hot dog and drink unless you've found a special deal. I have my wife keeping an eye out for Groupons and LivingSocial. She found a twosome at Lansbrook (very nice course) for $30 for two. That's a deal. I play with my son-in-law and that course will eat him alive. Also, I typically don't drink alcohol when I'm golfing. Afterwards is a different story.

[vangator]

You're over Tampa way, right? I'll bet I can find a half dozen courses for under $10 a round over there...with cart. I've heard that there are people who don't absolutely have to drink beer while playing golf too. Don't know that I believe it, but that's the rumor..... ;-)

I live in Largo, which is in Pinellas County just to the west of Tampa. I don't think you could find a goat ranch for under $10 walking!

[Lihu]

I live in Largo, which is in Pinellas County just to the west of Tampa. I don't think you could find a goat ranch for under $10 walking!

I was just in St. Petersburg, before 4:00pm they had that hot dog special with cart. Check it out they might still have it. I really liked the course. Next time I go, we should hook up with Dave.

[vangator]

I was just in St. Petersburg, before 4:00pm they had that hot dog special with cart. Check it out they might still have it. I really liked the course. Next time I go, we should hook up with Dave.

That's sounds good. Your signature says So Cal. In St Pete on business?