2022 saw the most rounds of golf ever

New data from BRS Golf and GolfNow finds that more rounds of golf were played in the UK and Ireland in 2022 than any other year on record.

This is due to a surge in participation caused by the pandemic and the fact that no golf courses faced lockdown closures in 2022, unlike in 2020 and 2021.

Tee time management booking technology, BRS Golf, and the world’s biggest tee time marketplace, GolfNow, have been collecting data from a sample set of golf clubs across England, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales for the last few years. BRS Golf processed 24.7 million member rounds in 2022 (England, 12.36 million; Ireland, 5.29 million; Scotland, 3.98 million; Northern Ireland, 1.78 million; Wales, 1.28 million).

This was 1.8 million rounds ahead of 2021, 2.5 million ahead of 2020, and 11.2 million ahead of pre-Covid levels in 2019.

This represents an eight percent growth on 2021, 11 percent growth on 2020 and a massive 84 percent growth on 2019.

“Over the course of 2022 we saw a very consistent level of member play, with the patterns of monthly rounds following the traditional golf season,” said a spokeswoman for the two brands.

“If we look at the two main off seasons, January to March and October to December, the levels of member golf were almost equal in these two periods, with 5.1 million versus 5.05 million rounds played.

“With restrictions in place in the UK in Q1 2021, it is impossible to compare to this period, but looking at Q4 2021, the level of member play has remained flat. However, compared to the off season in 2019, we have seen an additional 2.3 million member rounds played in both Q1 and Q4 of 2022. Even with the shorter days, poorer weather and golf courses going through course maintenance programmes, we have continued to see a high level of member play.

“In the main golf season, April to September, 14.5 million member rounds were played. This was down by 1.7 million rounds on the same period in 2021, though 2021 had the post lockdown bounce in April and May for all countries except Scotland to skew the figures. Compared to pre-Covid levels, an additional 6.5 million rounds were played, representing an 81 percent increase in play.

“If we look at England in a slightly more granular way, and split the country into three regions – north, south and The Midlands – we can further see where the growth in rounds has been. Using 2019 as the baseline we have seen 87 percent growth in The Midlands, 88 percent growth in the north and an impressive 105 percent growth in the south of England. This equates to in excess of 2.25 million rounds in the north, 1.8 million in the south, and over 1.8 million in The Midlands.”

The data also shows that golf clubs had many more members in 2022 than in 2019 – and that they were playing more often.

At the end of 2019 BRS Golf had about 533,000 registered members using the platform. By the end of 2022 it had more than 673,000 registered members – even though the number of clubs using BRS Golf technology remained fairly flat over the same period.

“The data shows that the average number of members per club, and how often the members are playing, has increased significantly,” she added.

“In 2019, the average golf club member played 25 times per year, and this number had been in steady decline over the previous two years. Fast forward to 2022 and member play has increased to 37 rounds per year. This represents a 45 percent increase on pre-pandemic levels. What is also clear is that over the last three years the level of average rounds per member has remained flat, with the slight drop in 2021 explained by golf courses being closed for the vast majority of Q1 in the UK, excluding Scotland.

“The number of registered members on BRS Golf has remained pretty static over the last few months. This will be an interesting metric to keep an eye on, over the coming months as we move into renewal season. With the cost of living crisis and the huge increase in energy costs we have been experiencing there is no doubt golf clubs will be forced to pass on some of these costs to their members. What this does to our member base, will be important to track and we will be keeping a close eye on this to spot any early indications of changes in member numbers.”

In terms of visitor numbers, GolfNow saw a similarly strong 2022, generating £10.5 million in visitor green fee revenue for its course partners, with six consecutive months of more than £1 million in course partner revenue from April to September 2022.

The average basket value in 2022 was £54.37, with the average price per player being £24.59. This represents a 25 percent increase on the same period in 2019.