From attendance at the PGA Merchandise Show in January, there was a common theme: for the game of golf to become more diverse, it must start internally with the Golf Associations.
Rhett Evans during a panel session stated that 56% of the workforce at the Golf Course Superintendents Society of America were female.
Sandy Cross was kind enough to provide me the following statistics from the PGA quarterly survey as of December 31, 2019:
- 298 person workforce
- 48.9% women
- 19.1% racially/ethnically diverse
- 23.0% Baby Boomer
- 34.1% Generation X
- 42.9% Millennial
Personally, I am pleasantly surprised by the diversification.
The PGA of Amerca recently partnered with Jopwell insights to better understand the community’s thoughts on careers in golf. The study showed:
“…there is more of a lack of awareness about career opportunities in the golf industry than a lack of interest in golf. When asked why they didn’t apply, 51% of respondents said they believed a background in golf or business was needed, and 76% were unaware of career opportunities with the PGA of America. However, when we explicitly stated that the PGA of America wants to recruit diverse professionals, their likelihood of applying increased dramatically.
Given that lack of awareness regarding jobs in the golf industry was the most reported barrier to entry, Jopwell and the PGA of America have devised a strategy for attracting more diverse talent to career in golf centered on three pillars: improving accessibility, increasing awareness, and creating systems of accountability.
Explore the key findings of the Jopwell x PGA of America Insights report and our strategies to increase representation in the golf industry in the Harvard Business Review article.”
This study was an ongoing effort to address the issues raised in a Sports and Leisure Research study 2016 titled, “New Context for Business Golf.” Download
