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14th annual National Golf Day will highlight record play, increased efforts at diversity

garry smits, florida times-union
·5 min read
Golf participation since the COVID-19 pandemic has set records for overall rounds played and the number of new players coming to the game.
Golf participation since the COVID-19 pandemic has set records for overall rounds played and the number of new players coming to the game.

The American Golf Industry Coalition's 14th annual National Golf Day will be May 10-11, with industry leaders holding more than 250 virtual meetings with members of Congress to discuss golf's economic, societal, environmental and health benefits.

One of the sessions will center around workplace inclusivity within the sport centered around the initiative "Make golf Your Thing."

The 90-minute forum on May 10 will be moderated by Golf Channel & NBC host and reporter, Damon Hack.

"Make Golf Your Thing" was launched at the 2021 National Golf Day. Led by six cross-industry workgroups, the initiative is specifically focused on education & skill development, talent acquisition, procurement, human resources, youth & adult player development, and marketing/communications.

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In past years, National Golf Day was sometimes about the struggle to make golf more accessible, finding ways to attract more players to the game and combating a tide of players leaving because of reasons such as time consumption and expense.

However, the industry has much to celebrate with a participation boom that was triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 when outdoor sports such as golf thrived when other activities were shut down.

For example, according to industry sources such as the World Golf Foundation and the National Golf Foundation, there was a record of more than 529 million rounds of golf played in the U.S. in 2021, 5.5 percent more than in 2020.

An all-time high of 3.2 million people played golf for the first time in 2021 and the demographics were encouraging: beginners were 45 percent more likely to be non-Caucasian and 35 percent more like to be female.

Facilities such as the Brentwood Golf Club on the Northside, with its First Tee affiliation, are helping bring minority youth such as Mario Reaves of Jacksonville into the game. He gets a chipping lesson from First Tee coach Ryan Sauer.
Facilities such as the Brentwood Golf Club on the Northside, with its First Tee affiliation, are helping bring minority youth such as Mario Reaves of Jacksonville into the game. He gets a chipping lesson from First Tee coach Ryan Sauer.

In 2021, there were 5.2 million non-Caucasian on-course golfers an increase of 8 percent over the past two years. African American, Asian and Hispanic golfers accounted for almost 21% of overall on-course participants, the highest total since 2013

There were 6.2 million women on-course golfers in 2021, an 11% increase over the past two years.

The industry plans to do more:

• Establish inclusion guidelines for golf course facilities across the U.S., and create a Make Golf Your Thing toolkit with resources for facility engagement.

• Conduct an employee survey measuring workplace inclusivity within the golf industry, with 35 organizations taking part (more than 2,300 participants).

• Launch a Grassroots Grants program to support groups dedicated to increasing participation among underrepresented populations in golf with $300,000 in funding awarded to more than 70 organizations so far, with an additional $750,000 in funding to be awarded this year.

• Creation of a golf industry-specific database of diversely owned businesses, which to-date encompasses more than 1,600 diverse-owned suppliers.

• Initiation of a “careers in golf development” program to offer opportunities in the sport to underrepresented communities.

• A soon-to-be launching Make Golf Your Thing directory for consumers to easily find a golf program, clinic, event or coach best suited for their skill level.

The American Golf Industry Coalition is a division of the St. Augustine-based World Golf Foundation. To learn more, visit golfcoalition.org.

Begay qualifiers take next step

The North Florida Junior Foundation held three qualifiers in conjunction with its regularly scheduled events for the Notah Begay Junior Golf National Championship Nov. 3-9 at the Koasati Pines Golf Course in Kinder, La.

Four-time PGA Tour winner Notah Begay sponsors a junior national golf championship in November.
Four-time PGA Tour winner Notah Begay sponsors a junior national golf championship in November.

The next step will be the regionals in Central Florida, with girls playing at the Indian Springs Country Club June 27-28 and boys playing at the Mission Inn Resort June 29-30.

The First Coast qualifiers:

Boys 10-11: Benjamin Strongosky, Sawyer Cook, Benjamin Hoag.

Boys 12-13: Jake Mason, Dawson Wooley, William Wiggins.

Boys 14-15: Ethan Tak, Ryan Nicholson, Luke Balaskiewicz, Max Cullen, Sean Grzebin, Jonathan Hoag, Ryder Robinson.

Boys 16-18: Alexander Lymus, Matthew French, Dylan Mason, Tanner Millar, Brock Buhnerkemper, Jackson Klauk, Noah Mayers, Cameron Reed, Colby Tedder, Adam Waller, Nolan Harper, Joshua Lay, Henry Robards, Teddy Sotsky, Matthew Webb.

Girls 10-11: Lily Wachter.

Girls 12-13: Amelia Santiago, Mila Hubert, Claire Bond, Sahana Chokshi.

Girls 14-15: Addy Vogt, Ryan Donaldson, Ashley Mikesell.

Girls 16-18: Alanis Santiago, Violet Robbins, Madison Balaskiewicz, Tory Barned, Emma Wells, Hannah Ashton, Avery Sabile, Veona Osborne.

Senior, women's events upcoming

The Jacksonville Area Golf Association Senior Championship will be May 15-17 at Deercreek. It will be played for the 64th time, making it the oldest continuous tournament on the First Coast.

There are three divisions, Senior (50 and over, Super-Senior (60 and over) and Grand Senior (70 and over). The Seniors will play 54 holes, the Super Seniors and Grand Seniors 36 holes. The 2021 champions, respectively, were Larry Smith, Gary Blackwell and Frank Perry.

The entry deadline is May 12.

The First Coast Women’s Amateur is June 22-23 at the King and Bear. Kaitlyn Schroeder of Jacksonville, a finalist in the recent U.S. Women's Four-Ball will defend her title.

There is competition in Senior and Super-Senior divisions. The entry deadline is June 13.

Information on both tournaments can be obtained by visiting jaxareagolf.org.

Kim wins Open qualifier

Nease graduate Auston Kim will play in her second U.S. Women's Open after winning a 36-hole qualifier at the Shannopin Country Club in Pittsburgh. She shot 4-under 138 to win by three shots and earn her way to the Open June 2-5 at Pine Needles. ... San Jose golf professional Hayes Farley was low pro and the Westside Golf Center team won the pro-am in the Straub Pro-Am at Amelia National. Farley had 48 points in the Stableford format, with Gerry James of Palencia next with 40. Rob Lee and amateurs Micah Arnold, Eric Lyon and Neal Frontz won the team competition. ... The Jacksonville Beach Golf Club will host a series of weekly summer camps for juniors aged 6-12 from June through early August. For details visit pga.com/things-to-do or call the golf shop at (904) 247-6184). ... Jacksonville Beach will aerify May 17-18 and Aug. 23-25. Green fees will be 25 percent off from May 20-22 and Aug. 26-28.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: 14th annual National Golf Day will highlight record play, increased efforts at diversity