In my more than 40 years as executive director of the American Junior Golf Association, I’ve seen the youth sports landscape change drastically. Today, I believe we face one of the biggest challenges I’ve seen in my career: the growing commercialization of youth sports. As a recent Wall Street Journal article highlights, private-equity firms and other investors are pouring money into youth sports, raising an important question for junior golf: What happens when financial-return expectations meet a junior golf pathway built around helping young people reach their potential?
We don’t have to look far to see how this can play out.
Youth hockey offers one of the clearest warnings. As private equity-backed operators have consolidated rinks, tournaments and training facilities, costs have risen and families increasingly face fees for everything from ice time to streaming games. With limited alternatives, families often have little choice but to pay.
Youth baseball has followed a similar path. Community-based leagues have increasingly given way to travel teams and tournament circuits that require significant financial commitments from families. The growth of large-scale tournaments, destination events and related platforms has created a youth-sports economy that often rewards spending as much as participation.
The numbers reflect those trends. According to 2025 research from the Aspen Institute’s Project Play initiative, family spending on youth sports had increased 46 percent over the previous five years while participation decreased slightly. A 2025 New York Life survey found that 20 percent of parents had reduced or ended their child’s participation in youth sports because of financial concerns, while nearly 60 percent said youth sports created a financial strain on their family. Those numbers should give all of us pause.
Let's be clear: nationally competitive junior golf is never going to be mistaken for the local youth baseball leagues that my son grew up playing in, where a modest registration fee got you a uniform, a season’s worth of games and maybe a stop at Dairy Queen after a win. Competitive junior golf requires travel, lodging, food, course access and other expenses that make it inherently more costly.
There is a significant difference between a sport being expensive because of the realities of competition and becoming more expensive because financial returns become the primary objective. That distinction matters, and it's one we must continue to protect.
Over the years, I’ve watched families pack sandwiches, stay with host families who became friends for life and spend countless hours on the road because they believed golf could open doors for their children. In many cases, I’ve watched those open doors change lives.
But there is a significant difference between a sport being expensive because of the realities of competition and becoming more expensive because financial returns become the primary objective.
That distinction matters, and it's one we must continue to protect.
So how can junior golf avoid some of these same challenges?
Like many organizations across the game, the AJGA has spent nearly 50 years working to make competitive junior golf more accessible and affordable. Through the Liberty National ACE Grant program, we've reimbursed more than $9 million to families and their junior players with the talent to compete nationally but not the financial means. Thanks in large part to AJGA sponsors and partners who share our values, we have also reduced fees across our membership and tournament structure. By 2030, those reductions will save AJGA families more than $6 million. Additionally, many AJGA events offer travel stipends as well as complimentary meals and practice rounds and, with seven events a week in the summer, locations that offer proximity to more families.
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The good news is we are not alone. Organizations throughout golf are working to broaden opportunity and affordability. In addition to the many grassroots organizations around the country, the USGA and their U.S. National Development Program, PGA Jr. League, U.S. Kids Golf, Youth on Course, First Tee and Augusta National’s Drive, Chip & Putt, among others, are helping create more entry points and opportunities for young golfers.
Those efforts are producing real results. According to the National Golf Foundation, junior golf participation has increased 58 percent since 2019. I’ve watched that progress happen firsthand. It didn’t happen by accident. It resulted from a deliberate effort across the golf industry to expand opportunity and lower barriers to entry. That’s progress worth protecting.
At the AJGA, we measure every decision against our mission of developing young men and women through golf. Maintaining that commitment will become even more important as the junior golf landscape continues to evolve.
The prospect of increased private-equity investment in junior golf deserves careful consideration. Investment itself is not the problem. Capital can help expand opportunities, improve facilities and create more pathways into golf. But growth must be measured by accessibility, affordability and player development, not simply financial returns.
My plea is simple: let’s focus on making junior golf more attainable and affordable for talented players with aspirations of playing golf in college and beyond, without compromising the experience for young players and their families. The future of junior golf depends on it.
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