From a survey showing 87 percent of people think golf is for older people to the dry spring resulting in participation records being broken, May has been an interesting month.
Housing continues to be a major issue for the UK industry
May was no exception for stories about golf clubs, or former golf courses, potentially being concreted over and turned into housing to help meet the UK’s shortage.
But there was one story that was new – Australian company Bangarra Group has appointed Fairway Capital to review its Crown Golf portfolio in a bid to test the UK government’s push to develop the nation’s green belt.
If it all comes to fruition it would result in about 3,000 homes being built around eight golf courses in southern England over the next six years.
Participation records could be broken this year
Most of the UK had an unseasonably dry spring, which has led to some concerns about well irrigated golf courses have been going into the summer. However, this coupled with Rory McIlroy’s success at The Masters, seems to have contributed to a participation boom as well.
The number of rounds of golf in the UK in March 2025 were the highest for 13 years and a stunning 41 percent higher than in 2024.
While in April, over 1.4 million scores were submitted through the World Handicap System (WHS) in England alone. This wasn’t just the highest since the WHS was launched in 2020, it was a staggering 95 percent higher than in April 2024, and last year saw the highest number of scores submitted to date.
There’s huge interest in golf but many think it’s a game for older people
A survey by England Golf has found a maybe-not-too-surprising paradox – most people have tried golf but most people also believe it’s a game for older people.
The survey found that two-thirds of people have played crazy golf at some point in their lives and two in five ‘would love to try golf for casual meet-ups with friends’. Significant percentages also view golf as a great exercise opportunity and believe it could help relieve stress.
However, many probably do not view crazy golf as a legitimate form of golf and probably do not see playing the sport at a club as a viable option, as a shocking 87 percent believe golf is ‘exclusively played by those over 40′.
If the industry can help promote the narrative that golf is for the younger generation just as much as it is for older people, then we might see many more participation records being broken.
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