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hink for a moment about everything a golfer needs to get out on the course and play a round. Equipment, apparel and accessories? Of course, you can’t play without essentials like clubs, balls, clothes, shoes, a bag and more. It also takes access to a golf course in the form of a tee time or club membership, and ideally the player should have swing instruction and guidance in the game from a PGA of America Golf Professional to make the game fun and fulfilling using his or her coaching knowledge and today’s technology.
There’s another fundamental component, however, that every golfer needs to participate, enjoy and stay in the game over the long term: health. It may seem obvious that you can’t play golf if your body isn’t up to the challenge of making the many functional movements needed to swing the club, much less walking around the course, bending down on tees and greens, and even tying your shoes – much less being able to move without pain outside of the game.
Without health and wellness, everything else needed to play the game – equipment and apparel, club memberships, coaching from PGA of America Golf Professionals – can become unnecessary and players can drop out of the game. This makes focusing on health and wellness as they relate to golf an imperative for golf industry professionals who want to keep players active and engaged, from the aging Baby Boomer generation all the way down to junior golfers.
“As a PGA of America Golf Professional, you want your golfers to play well and play often for the enjoyment of the game, and also because that drives the business of rounds played, member retention, merchandise sales, golf travel – it’s all based on someone being healthy enough to play,” says Dr. Steven Lorick, President of the Golf Fitness Association of America (GFAA). “The worst thing for your golfers, and your business, is for them to get hurt or not feel well enough to play the game.
“Conversely, there’s also an opportunity to help people feel better through health and wellness programming to have their overall quality of life improve, which will lead to more golf and more lessons – I’ve never met a golfer who didn’t play more after improving their wellness.”
The GFAA was started by the publishers of PGA Magazine to build a bridge between golf and fitness professionals and create partnerships that serve golfers. Sport-specific health and wellness companies, such as TPI and the Gray Institute, as well as fitness companies like GolfForever, are making information and resources more available and accessible to PGA of America Golf Professionals, and golfers themselves are starting to see health and wellness as an integral part of the golf journey.
“If you’re a PGA of America Professional and you’re not spending time and resources on health and wellness, you’re falling behind your competitors,” says Joe Sheren, co-founder of Chicago’s S.M.A.R.T. Golf and Fitness Instruction and the 2022 Illinois PGA of America Teacher and Coach of the Year. “This is where the industry is heading, and it’s not a trend that’s going to go away.
“Think about it: If you’re teaching the golf swing, you already know a lot about the body. Either by educating yourself or by working to build relationships with fitness experts, you can elevate and improve your business and how your golfers feel every day.”
The golf business is taking notice of the growing demand for health and wellness in many ways. For example, Titleist purchased TPI and is increasingly marketing its screenings and programming – and the professionals it has certified – to consumers as its founders, PGA of America Golf Professional Dave Phillips and Dr. Greg Rose, are seen as the fathers of modern golf fitness. After years of working in other major sports, Dr. Gary Gray and the Gray Institute have launched their own golf certifications that are rapidly gaining traction with golf and fitness professionals. Companies like GolfForever and Technogym work with user-friendly technologies like Whoop bands, Apple Watches and Sportsbox AI to make fitness programming easier to track and more efficient, while top-ranked tour players like Scottie Scheffler and Nelly Korda share their fitness journeys through social media for recreational golfers to emulate.
“Club golfers always look to tour players when they model their behaviors, and now they see that the best players don’t just have a swing coach – they have trainers and physical therapists on their teams,” says Sheren, who co-owns and runs three golf coaching and fitness studios in the Chicago area. “That’s why having fitness as a cornerstone of our business was a requirement. I think if you’re not allocating time and resources to this at your golf facility, you’re limiting your business.”
The PGA of America is embracing the expanding role of health and wellness in golf in a number of ways to make sure golf coaches and facility managers alike understand their place in the business. In addition to being part of the PGA Education curriculum, areas devoted to health and wellness have become mainstays on the PGA Show floor and during PGA Show Demo Day in Orlando. In addition, Dr. Gray will be part of an onstage presentation at the 2025 PGA Teaching & Coaching Summit prior to this coming January’s PGA Show.
Fitness and wellness are also key parts of PGA Coach and the American Development Model (ADM). These tools help PGA of America Golf Professionals build connections and create solutions for students of all ages, including increasing their overall physical and psychological development through appropriate skills and exercises.
This all follows what golf industry professionals are seeing across the business: Successful clubs, facilities and resorts are investing in the link between golf and health and wellness. It isn’t just an altruistic strategy – it’s also a way to build and maintain business during a time of intense competition for golfers’ dollars.
“We see it around the country, where golf facilities are building or renovating fitness centers, hiring people with an understanding of the golf swing and certifications in fitness that can help their members and customers who play rotational ball and stick sports like golf, tennis and pickleball,” Lorick says. “It’s a team concept that leads to better business, but also an overall improvement in quality of life – you can get into better positions and movement patterns in golf, but also feel better afterward when you want to play with your kids or grandchildren, or just get out and be able to enjoy your life without pain or limitations.
“Golf is inherently healthy physically, mentally and socially. Keeping golfers able to play with their friends and families brings us together, and making that part of the golf experience at your facility is a blueprint for better business and relationships.”