With the golf season ramping up across much of the country, there’s good news about the state of the game: Golf’s boom keeps on booming. That was the angle of a recent Sports Business Journal story citing National Golf Foundation (NGF) stats showing that a record 48.1 million people played golf on and off course in 2025. That marks a 55 percent increase over the past decade, and NGF CEO Greg Nathan is quoted in the story that the seeds of the current golf boom were sown before the coronavirus pandemic. “Number one is that people are discovering the intrinsic qualities and values of golf, and that they’re aligned with what people want,” Nathan says in the story. “It is one of the ultimate analog activities in a world of digital activities. If you think about the loneliness epidemic that gets discussed a lot, golf is a fabulous antidote for that. So, in many ways, golf is the ultimate activity for physical and mental health and wellness.” Be sure to read the full story for more data and a look at where the sport could be heading in the future.
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The USGA and R&A continue to research a possible Rules of Golf change that would roll back the distance golf balls fly starting in 2030. While the topic has been discussed for years, few people have had a chance to test golf balls that would conform to possible new limitations. Golf Digest was able to procure some prototype golf balls manufactured to shorter specifications, and recently ran a story finding that nearly all golfers will lose distance with the reconfigured designs – some players more than others. Testing with robots and humans with swing speeds from slow to tour-level showed a relatively small decline in driving distance for slower swing speeds – only a yard or two for some – while higher swing speeds could see 10-plus yards taken off their drives. The tests also show that the shorter distances appear to be the result of less-aerodynamic designs, not a “deader” core. There are plenty of statistics to peruse in the full story.
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Last month’s Masters Tournament has come and gone, as has the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, which in cluded two opening rounds played at nearby Champions Retreat Golf Club in Evans, Georgia. The role of Champions Retreat’s PGA of America Director of Golf Mike Rymer (pictured with his wife, Erin) was recently part of a feature story by John Steinbreder on Global Golf Post. The story recounts how Rymer’s grandfather got him into the game, and how he gravitated toward a golf career that eventually led him to Champions Retreat. Rymer discusses his path to Evans, Georgia, and how he has continued to work on his game over the years while helping members improve theirs – he credits longtime PGA of America Coach Steve Bosdosh with helping him take his own game to a higher level. Check out the full story to read more about how Rymer and Champions Retreat have made the club a hub of hospitality around the Masters and throughout the year.
link: https://bit.ly/4vd2LAV
Another PGA of America Golf Professional making headlines recently is Adam Harrell, the swing coach of PGA TOUR rookie Michael Brennan. Golfweek’s Adam Schupak reported on the long-term coaching relationship between Brennan and Harrell, as well as Harrell’s other coaching-adjacent pursuit: teaching middle school math in Ashburn, Virginia. Harrell, a PGA of America Golf Instructor at 1757 Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia, teaches school during the day and coaches golf in the evenings and on Saturdays. In all, Harrell has been splitting time between teaching school and teaching on the range for more than 15 years. “Hitting a golf ball is not as important as learning to read,” Harrell is quoted as saying. “But it’s all intertwined in a way; teaching is teaching.” The full story discusses Harrell’s success in working with PGA Jr. League players, as well as how he’s helped shape Brennan from a promising junior to a PGA TOUR rookie who won the 2025 Bank of Utah Championship on a sponsor exemption.
link: https://bit.ly/4viAw3S
