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The results of the CGA’s 2011 Colorado public golf course rounds and revenue survey are like many things in life — the way different people might view them is largely a matter of perspective.
For example, with the average price paid for a round of golf in 2011 down almost $2 from the year before, many players no doubt see that as a good thing.
But a lot of people in the golf business view a drop in green fee revenue per round as being detrimental to the game over the long haul as some courses may no longer be able to survive in an ultra-competitive marketplace.
Wherever you might fall on that debate, the numbers continue to tell the tale of an industry that — both locally and nationally — has lost some of its customer base in recent years.
With the Colorado public courses that responded to the CGA’s 2011 rounds and revenue survey by this week, the norm was a drop in both rounds and green fee revenue per 18-hole round.
A total of almost 60 public facilities — counting par-3 courses separately — have reported figures for both 2010 and 2011, and 18-hole-equivalent rounds played at those courses dropped an average of 1.8 percent for all of last year compared to 2010. As a group, Northern Colorado courses bucked the trend slightly, with rounds increasing almost 2 percent.
With courses battling for customers — often by lowering rates — the average cost paid for an 18-hole round fell $1.96 compared to 2010, based on the 55 facilities that provided those figures for each of the last two years.
“The $1.96 down reflects supply and demand,” CGA executive director Ed Mate said. “When supply and demand was more healthy years ago, there was no reason to discount. Now, the pie is no bigger, so people (in the business) think, ‘What do I have to do to keep my sliver?’ That’s why there’s been discounting.”
While many golfers enjoy paying less per round, the discounting trend worries Colorado PGA executive director Eddie Ainsworth.
“My concern is, if we continue to discount to fill the tee sheet, where does it stop?” Ainsworth asked. “From my standpoint, it’s time to draw a line in the sand and grow the customer base.”
No one will argue about that goal, but realizing growth has been far easier said than done. For instance, the National Golf Foundation notes that the number of golfers in the U.S. dropped 13 percent from 2005 to 2010. And the number of rounds played at Colorado public courses has likewise fallen, albeit gradually.
“We’re still in the ‘stable’ category,” Mate said. “The bottom isn’t going to fall out. “The NGF is predicting slow growth (in the years leading up to 2020). The gross imbalance between courses and the number of players is correcting itself slowly.”
But everyone agrees that golf has to be proactive in getting the trends heading in the right direction. That’s what the Colorado PGA Golf in Schools program — which the CGA and CWGA plays a major role in — is all about. The initiative makes golf part of physical education classes at participating schools, and it’s been growing by leaps and bounds.
And this spring, the Colorado PGA will promote a “Get Golf Ready” campaign to encourage participating courses to each recruit at least 30 new or lapsed golfers into the game’s ranks. Ainsworth hopes a minimum of 100 Colorado courses fully participate. If goals are met, he said that could mean 3,000 new golfers and $2.5 million pumped into the game in Colorado.
“It’s time for us to stop apologizing for golf and share it with the masses,” Ainsworth said. “It’s a great game and it doesn’t have to take a lot of time. Golf is fun, friendly, affordable and it’s about family.”
As tempting as it is for courses to discount in an effort to draw in more customers, Ainsworth thinks that will just result in more courses eventually closing, as Denver’s Green Gables Country Club did last year. That’s why the Colorado PGA’s leadership is making the case to its membership that selling discounted tee times through third parties is not a wise course of action.
“We’ve been sucked in without realizing the unintended consequences,” Ainsworth said, noting that such third parties don’t necessarily have the long-term best interest of the course at heart. “So we’re looking to take back control of the tee sheet.”
