The LPGA announced that its #HoodieForGolf campaign has raised more than $350,000 since April 2021 that will go to the LPGA Renee Powell Fund and the Clearview Legacy Foundation.
The initiative was sparked by 2014 U.S. Women’s Open winner Michelle Wie West, with the intent of spotlighting the LPGA’s commitment to change the way the game is viewed. The money came from the sales of more than 16,000 hoodie sweatshirts.
“I’ve been amazed by the support for the hoodie and what this campaign represents – for the LPGA and our commitment to increase diversity in golf,” said Wie West. “We just wanted to create something that was easy to access and would make a statement.
“The hoodie is all-inclusive – worn by men and women of all ages, races and backgrounds. We want golf to be an inclusive sport and to increase access for people who haven’t had access to the game for a really long time.”
According to the National Golf Foundation, the number of golf course closures in 2021 – 130.5 as measured in 18-hole equivalents – is down 53 percent from its peak two years ago, before the pandemic. That’s less than a 1 percent decline in the overall U.S. supply, which totals 16,035 golf courses across 14,033 facilities nationwide, the NGF said in its latest report.
“Over the past year or so we’ve talked about the improving supply/demand balance for golf in the U.S.,” said Joseph Beditz, the organization’s president and chief executive officer. “We continue to see indications of this move toward equilibrium in the year-end 2021 data, from a drop in course closures and improved overall facility health to an increase (however slight) … yes, an increase … in not one, but two facility types.”
The NGF report indicates the number of municipal courses has actually risen by 4 percent in the past decade, mainly boosted by municipalities acquiring financially challenged daily-fee or private clubs and offering them as a community amenity and preserved green space.
Also, the private course total increased in 2021 for the first time since 2007 (a net rise of 12 courses), which Beditz says is another indicator of the movement toward a better balance of supply and demand.
Targeting a May opening, course designer Bobby Weed led a media tour of the upcoming Stillwater Golf Course, which is the first new course to be built in Florida’s First Coast area since 2002. The facility will be located near the midpoint of Jacksonville and St. Augustine in the northeast region of the Sunshine State.
The par-72 course at Stillwater will run across 148 acres and will measure nearly 6,800 yards from the back tees. The course will be open to public play until enough homeowners in the surrounding development have moved in, at which point Stillwater will become private.
Weed’s company has designed a number of other courses in the First Coast area, including Dye’s Valley at TPC Sawgrass.
“(Stillwater) is a sensitive piece of property and we respected that,” said Weed, a Pete Dye disciple. “It’s very linear with a lot of wetlands and the overall site was a challenge. But we think it looks like it just settled into the property. It looks like it belongs here.”
TAP-INS
Welsh footballer Gareth Bale will host the DP World Tour’s Cazoo Open in August at Celtic Manor Resort, where the four-time Champions League winner also will take part in the Wednesday pro-am (READ MORE). … Daniel Island Club in Charleston, South Carolina will host the 2023 U.S. Junior Amateur and the 2026 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball, the USGA announced (READ MORE). … The PGA Tour and TrackMan announced an expansion of their partnership, saying tour events now will have tracing capabilities for every shot hit during the season (READ MORE). … Golf Saudi will join the European Disabled Golf Association, which aims to improve the lives of people with disabilities through the game of golf.
Staff and Wire Reports