Issues facing Junior Golf
Tuesday, 7 September 2010
JEFF Blunden Advisory Services (JBAS) in their newsletter, Back of the Cup (BOTC), discuss the issues facing junior golf and why juniors are important to the long term health of golf.
Highlighted was the reason for golf currently enjoying high participation numbers; older age groups are taking up golf not for the first time but the second as they were first introduced to golf as juniors and are now returning to the game.
It uses statistical analysis to demonstrate the declining number of junior golfers and the ramifications this will have on the game in the future; this being that without a solid base of junior golfers we will not have as many people in later years returning to the game, meaning the current participation levels cannot be sustained.
BOTC also suggest possible reasons for the decline, such as the perception that golf is “an old person’s game.”
To improve junior golf BOTC suggest the industry start better recording keeping of junior participants and use these to establish club benchmarks.
Each individual in the industry can also help rectify the declining number of junior golfers as BOTC suggest golfers be more flexible in their attitude to junior golfers and even start an old club donation program.
For the full article please click here.