Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
Many Utahns will hit the links this holiday weekend, but many fewer golfers than a decade ago.
Despite the popularity of Tiger Woods and televised golf, the number of golfers nationwide, and here in Utah, just isn't on par with what it used to be. Now resorts are working to change that.
Jack Wells and Jan Peterson play golf with passion, practiced strokes and plenty of laughs.
"You have to have a sense of humor because you're not going to get any better, for goodness sake. But you might have moments when you're a little better, and that inspires you for the next time," Wells said.
Plus, they always get a tee time. "There's an oversupply of golf courses and an undersupply of golfers," explained Chris Briscoe, director of golf at the Homestead Resort in Midway.
The total number of golfers in the United States dropped from 30 million in 2000 to 26 million today, according to the National Golf Foundation.
Among core golfers who play at least eight times a year, there's a 17 percent drop. "When you talk about greens fees, $65 and up, a lot of people just can't afford it, and I think that's slowing things down," golfer Rudi Kohler said.
The Professional Golfers Association (PGA) came up with three main reasons people don't play: Golf takes too much time, it's expensive and it's hard.
So, the PGA sent a message to its members telling them to find ways to grow the game. "We need to figure out ways to make it more enticing for people to play golf and to continue to play golf. That's what we need to do," Briscoe said.
At Homestead Resort, they came up with the "Senior Saver Experience." It gets seniors on the course free after noon Monday through Friday. Ideally, they bring younger players with them.
Wells and Peterson don't pass up that deal. "If you get people out here to just hack around, pretty soon they say, 'I like this. Maybe I'll take a lesson,'" Wells said.
The incentive seems to be working for this resort. Over the past two months, for every three seniors that has come to play free, the resort picks up one paying customer.
Joshua Lillywhite and his brothers are the next generation of golfers getting inspiration. "There's lots of parts in the swing. You have to focus on where you want to hit it," Lillywhite said. Already a student of the game, he's eager to get better.
"Right now, we just have too many golf courses. But the game is not going away, it's going to grow and continue to be a great game," Briscoe said.
Those who love the game will keep enjoying good deals and open courses.
Gas cards and other deals are on the table too. Shop for other incentives and you may find some courses are more affordable right now.
E-mail: jboal@ksl.com
