Contextualizing the U.S. Golf Economy

You may have heard that golf is now a $102 billion industry in the U.S. – 20% larger than it was in 2016, the last time there was a proper quantitative review of the game’s economic contributions.

$102 billion certainly sounds like a lot, but numbers like this aren’t all that easy to grasp. So, here’s some (hopefully) helpful context. $102 billion is five times the revenue of the NFL.­­i It’s roughly the global income of UPS, which delivered an average of 24.3 million packages per day in 2022.ii It’s 25% more money than Tesla, P&G and The Walt Disney Company made last year, 120% more than Nike brought in, and 220% more than Netflix.

Caledonia Golf & Fish Club, True Blue Golf Club Unveil Leading Fall Golf Package

Caledonia Golf & Fish Club and True Blue Golf Club, two of America’s top 100 resort courses, have unveiled their always anticipated Golftoberfest package, an offer that provides traveling players with maximum value during the Myrtle Beach area’s peak fall season.

The package, which runs from October 1-31, is a three-night, four-round deal that allows golfers to play the pair of Mike Strantz designs in any combination they choose. Award-winning golf is complemented by villa accommodations that include 2-, 3- and 4-bedroom units at True Blue Resort.

Founders Group International Partners With Nicklaus Design For Restoration of Pawleys Plantation Golf & Country Club

Pawleys Plantation Golf & Country Club, a Jack Nicklaus signature design renowned for its beauty and challenge, closed May 22 for a greens and bunkers restoration and a clubhouse redesign, Founders Group International announced.

FGI contracted with Nicklaus Design and their Design Associate, Troy Vincent will be spearheading the four-month project. Pawleys, which features six back nine holes that play along a stunning tidal marsh, will reopen in late-September, allowing golfers to enjoy one of Myrtle Beach’s most popular courses during the heart of the fall season.

2nd U.S. Adaptive Open Set to Welcome a Global Field to Pinehurst in July

The field for the 2nd U.S. Adaptive Open – a national championship that showcases the world’s best golfers with disabilities on Pinehurst Resort & Country Club’s Course No. 6 from July 10-12 – has been set, the USGA announced today.

The USGA received 285 entries for the 2023 U.S. Adaptive Open, and the 96-player final field includes competitors from 28 states and 11 countries. The championship’s youngest competitor is 15-year-old Russell Aide from Canada, and Linda Port, of Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., is the championship's oldest player at 75 years old. Of the 96 players in the field, 66 played last year, and 30 will be making their championship debut.

Top 2 Seeds Advance to Semifinals at Kiawah Island Club

The sting of not qualifying for the upcoming NCAA Division I Championships may be starting to finally wear off for Aaron Du and Sampson Zheng. Sure, the disappointment of their University of California-Berkeley team coming up three strokes short in last week’s regional in Norman, Okla., will always linger subconsciously, but what’s transpired over the last four days at Kiawah Island Club has at least given the two 21-year-old juniors a second wind of positive energy.

Du and Zhen, both natives of the People’s Republic of China who came to the United States as teenagers to attend high school in Florida, registered a pair of impressive victories on Tuesday at breezy Kiawah Island Club’s Cassique to reach the semifinals of the 8th U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship.

USGA Announces 33 Additional Players Exempt for 123rd U.S. Open Championship

The United States Golf Association (USGA) today announced that 33 additional golfers, including major champions Jason Day and Patrick Reed, have earned full exemptions into the 2023 U.S. Open Championship, to be contested June 15-18 at The Los Angeles (Calif.) Country Club’s North Course. These exemptions bring the number of fully exempt players to 84.

Exemptions were awarded to 25 players who earned a place in the top 60 of the Official World Golf Ranking® (OWGR®) as of May 22, who were not otherwise exempt. Day, who will compete in his 11th U.S. Open and is a two-time runner-up, won the 2015 PGA Championship. He is ranked No. 22. Reed, who won the 2018 Masters Tournament, is ranked No. 44. It will be Reed’s 10th U.S. Open.

Club Champion and TXG Launch Fathers of Fitting International Podcast

Club Champion, the globe’s top club fitter, has added a new podcast to their roster! Fathers of Fitting features the founders of the top fitting brands in the world — Club Champion, TXG, Golf Principles, and PureForm — as they are now all housed under the Club Champion umbrella. Founders Nick Sherburne, Ian Fraser, Jason MacNiven, and Paul Jenner come together to talk fitting, equipment, and all things golf. The new show is available in video form on YouTube and audio-only on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and a variety of other podcast platforms.

“This show is a fun take on the golf industry and it is decidedly different from our other content,” said Cassandra Bausch, Club Champion’s Director of Marketing and the host of the podcast. “We put four of the most unique personalities in the industry in one place, so you can imagine the potential with a more open format.”

Medalists Roll Into Final 16 at Breezy Kiawah Island Club

For the 32 sides who survived the stroke-play portion of the 8th U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship at Kiawah Island Club, the start of the Round of 32 on Monday at breezy Cassique brought about a chance for a reboot. The great scoring from the weekend – which saw several championship scoring records matched – was now in the rearview mirror.

Now it’s all about beating an opponent, not an entire field, and living by the old cliché of survive and advance.

Major Domination in New York for Fujikura Golf

Fujikura, the leader in performance golf shafts, was honored to be the #1 driver and wood shaft at the second Major championship of the year.

At the 105th PGA Championship, Fujikura followed up their previous major success in Augusta with another #1 driver and wood shaft spot in Rochester, New York.

Brooks Koepka Wins 2023 PGA Championship with Srixon and Cleveland Golf Club in the Bag

Brooks Koepka is the 2023 PGA Championship winner, earning his fifth major championship on Sunday at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York. This is his third Wanamaker trophy and first major title since 2019. Koepka has 11 Srixon/Cleveland Golf clubs in his bag and plays the Z-STAR DIAMOND golf ball.

It was a dominant performance from the now five-time major champion as he rose to the top and fended off the field at the demanding Oak Hill. After an opening round 2-over par 72, Koepka followed up with a second, and third-round 66, despite tough conditions. He carded a final round 3-under par 67 to win the tournament by two strokes. Koepka becomes only the third player in the stroke play era to have won three or more PGA Championships.

PUMA Golf Launches New ALPHACAT NITRO Shoes

PUMA Golf has introduced the new ALPHACAT NITRO, a spikeless shoe with premium cushioning that provides explosive energy and propulsion with each step.  With the new Alphacat Nitro PUMA continues to raise the bar in the spikeless golf shoe category, creating a fashion forward design with hi-tech materials and advanced performance.

The ALPHACAT NITRO design features a new and innovative NITRO FOAM material, which is infused with nitrogen gas to create exceptional cushioning and energy return with every step. The newly designed material is also extremely lightweight, allowing for an energy saving design. The Upper EXOShell is engineered with mesh to provide enhanced structure and support both during the swing and while walking. In addition, a Dual Material Alpha Traction sole design provides grip and stability in a wide variety of turf and weather conditions as well as impressive durability.  And true to form for all PUMA kicks, a unique Formstripe External Heel Counter looks cool wherever the shoes are worn.

College Sides Share Medalist Honors; Match 36-Hole Scoring Mark

Joe Cansler was headed to the scoring tent behind the 18th green of Kiawah Island Club’s Cassique on Sunday when he uttered the words, “best golf I’ve ever seen.” He wasn’t describing the play of his partner and fellow North Carolinian, Jeremy Ray, but what he saw the past five hours from a pair of University of California-Berkeley juniors – and one in particular – during the second and final round of stroke play of the 8th U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship.

Sampsonyunhe Zheng, of the People’s Republic of China, who is partnering with countryman Aaron Du, recorded eight consecutive birdies from No. 9 on his own ball en route to a championship-record-tying day and eventually a share of medalist honors with 2022 semifinalists Carter Loflin, 18, of Duluth, Ga., and Wells Williams, 19, of West Point, Miss.

Grady, Sovero Match Championship Record (61); Lead After Round 1

Kevin Grady didn’t know the 18-hole championship record, but he wanted to get to 10 under par. That meant making birdie on the final hole of Kiawah Island Club’s Cassique late Saturday afternoon. Grady stuffed his approach to 6 feet, converted the putt and he and partner Andrew Sovero completed a 10-under-par round of 61, matching the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball mark established last year by two sides.

It also gave the Catonsville, Md., residents a one-shot lead after the first round of the 2023 championship. They were one stroke ahead of Garrett Rank, of Canada, and Joseph Deraney, of Belden, Miss., a pair of past U.S. Mid-Amateur runners-up whose partnership was four years in the making. They carded a 9-under 62 on Kiawah Island Club’s River Course, the stroke-play, co-host. Jeffrey Forster and Teddy Vigna, a pair of teenagers from Santa Barbara, Calif., who are the fourth-youngest side in the field, also carded a 62 at Cassique.

Jordan Spieth 2023 PGA Championship Scripting

Jordan Spieth has started off the new season strong with a runner-up finish and five top-10's, and he's poised for success with an eye on completing the Grand Slam at the PGA Championship this week.

Spieth has played in 10 PGA Championships in his career, and he's also been with Under Armour Golf for 10 years - ever since UA signed Spieth as an ambitious 19-year-old with no official Tour status back in 2013.  Here's a look at what Jordan will be wearing this week at Oak Hill.

Graphite Design Tour AD-HY Shaft Review - 2023

When we put a hybrid in our bag the hope is it's going to be easier to hit, higher launching, softer landing, and even a bit longer than the iron it's replacing.  But far too often you see and hear people saying they just can't hit hybrids.

Well the problem might not be your hybrid itself, but rather the shaft in your hybrid.  And for many players the new Graphite Design Tour AD-HY hybrid shaft is going to finally unlock the potential of your hybrid, maybe even making it the favorite club in your bag.

PGA Championship Offers Comprehensive Coverage with Multi-Platform Digital Products and Content

The 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York, will feature the PGA of America’s robust multichannel digital suite, interactive platforms and broadcast partners CBS Sports and ESPN.

The immersive experience will allow fans to interact and engage with the PGA Championship (May 18-21) through access to real-time scoring, video, updates and coaching from PGA Professionals.

Teen Queens: Clemente, Zweig Take Title at The Home Course

Five years ago, Avery Zweig made history as the youngest competitor in the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship at 11 years, 3 months, a mark that still stands. On Wednesday at The Home Course in DuPont, Wash., she and her younger partner, Gianna Clemente, added their names to the record book in an even more meaningful way.

Clemente, 15, of Estero, Fla.; and Zweig, 16, of McKinney, Texas; rallied from an early 2-hole deficit to defeat current collegians Tiffany Le and Kate Villegas, 3 and 1, and capture the 8th iteration of a competition that has been dominated by juniors. Clemente, the runner-up in last year’s U.S. Girls’ Junior, and Zweig surpassed 2016 champions Hailee Cooper (16) and Kaitlyn Papp (17) as the youngest champions of this event by a combined two years of age.

Bagging Big Bucks: How a Top Caddie Out-Earns Pro Golfers

Ever wondered what it's like to be a caddie for a top PGA Tour golfer? It's not just about carrying clubs; it's about having unmatched knowledge of the course, making crucial decisions, and - you guessed it - making some serious cash.

Meet Ted Scott, the caddie for Scottie Scheffler, who's raking in more dough than many pro golfers, thanks to his golfer's on-course success. In this rotowire.com article you go inside the lucrative world of elite caddies, revealing just how much they make and how their earnings stack up against those of some notable PGA Tour players.

USGA Announces Tee Times for 8th U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship

The United States Golf Association (USGA) today announced tee times for the first two rounds of the 8th U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship on Saturday, May 20 and Sunday, May 21 at Kiawah Island Club in Kiawah Island, S.C.

The U.S. Amateur Four-Ball consists of 18 holes of stroke play on May 20 and 18 holes of stroke play on May 21, after which the 128 sides (256 players) will be reduced to the low 32 sides (64 players) for match play. There will be five rounds of match play, starting May 22 with the first round. The second and quarterfinal rounds are slated for May 23. The semifinals will be played the morning of May 24, with the 18-hole championship match scheduled to follow that afternoon.

Young Stars Steal Show as Championship Reaches Semifinals

Despite their young ages, Gianna Clemente and Avery Zweig are no strangers to USGA competition. Zweig, 16, is playing in her fifth U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship, teaming up with Clemente, 15, for the last three, reaching the semifinals in 2021 and the Round of 16 in 2022. Clemente, who first burst onto the scene when she qualified as an 11-year-old for the 2019 U.S. Women’s Amateur, has since Monday-qualified for three LPGA Tour events, and last year reached the final match of the U.S. Girls’ Junior. Zweig already has a U.S. Women’s Open appearance under her belt.

The high schoolers entered this week’s 8th U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball as a team to watch, their junior careers clearly making them a formidable threat. After rounds of 69-67 in stroke play, they entered the match-play bracket at The Home Course in DuPont, Wash., as the No. 15 seed, and cruised through the first two rounds with a pair of 5-and-4 victories. In Tuesday afternoon’s quarterfinal match, Clemente and Zweig took the lead for good against Vanessa Borovilos and Cara Heisterkamp on the eighth hole en route to a 3-and-2 victory.