PGA TOUR return offers timely boost to golf businesses

Golf is now one of the first sports deemed to be no longer out of bounds as the lockdown is starting to be relaxed.

News that the PGA TOUR plans to resume in June, even behind closed doors initially, is a massive plus to fans of the sport, regular participants, and the considerable amount of businesses that rely on its income. This is also great news for those interested in golf betting, as bookies will start offering odds for matches as soon as the tour resumes.

Golf ticks a lot of boxes when it comes to recovering from the coronavirus lockdown thanks to planned tee times and comprehensive courses. It means that both the professional game and local courses alike could soon be back in full swing if everything runs smoothly.

Sport England has offered grant support to struggling sites during the pandemic. Still, nothing could be more vital to recovery plans than the bonus of having courses reopening at the same time that the professional game is back in action.

Courses in England and Ireland are reopening this month

Golf courses and tennis courts in England can reopen from Wednesday, May 13, following Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s address to the nation on May 10.

Golfers will only be allowed to play on their own or with members of their own household, as the new head of Scottish Golf suggested last month.

Golf courses in the Republic of Ireland can reopen from Monday, May 11, with a number of rules in place including that golfers can only be members of a club and they must live within 5km of it.

Professional action will support business recovery

The return of the professional game invariably boosts the amount of people that take part in the sport themselves. Courses, driving ranges and pitch and putt operations can usually expect bigger numbers during the top events as people are inspired by the pros. The year 2019 saw a surge in golf participation with numbers hitting a four-year high at 979,500 adults that play at least twice a month, according to Statista.com.

Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson, Ian Poulter and Brooks Koepka earlier this year

The return of the PGA TOUR also increases the possibility of the PGA Championship taking up its rearranged start date in August. Organisers now hope the event will be able to take place between August 6 and 9 in San Francisco. Having these up and running while local courses are also reopening will be a key combination after uncertain times.

PGA TOUR is big player for business

The PGA TOUR is big business in its own right, and the figures highlight just how vital it is that the sport gets back up and running. Other companies should be able to benefit from a swift return to action on its part.

• The PGA TOUR reported $1.28billion in revenue in 2017.
• Total prize money for the PGA TOUR’s 49 tournaments is a record $376million for the 2019-20 season.
• Reports suggest the PGA TOUR brings in around $700million annually through television contracts with CBS, NBC and Golf Channel.
• The tour is broadcast to more than one billion homes in 226 countries and territories in 23 different languages.
• In 2018, all tour tournaments generated a record $190million for charitable organisations. That brings the all-time total to nearly $3million.

The importance of the PGA TOUR to the general appeal of the game globally was underlined by commissioner Jay Monahan. He said: “We take very seriously our role as caretakers.

“When you look at caretaking, celebrating, motivating, really inspiring people to play this great game, when we’re successful on those fronts, the PGA TOUR and this great game will accomplish super things for a long time to come.”