BEDFORD, Ohio — Buoyed by a historically mild winter, the number of rounds played at the Cleveland Metroparks’ 8 public golf courses is already off to a roaring start this year, continuing the post-pandemic momentum that has brought exponential growth and a steady stream of new players.
Although plenty of weekend warriors have already taken advance of warmer-than-normal winter temperatures, the Metroparks’ golf courses officially opened for the 2023 season on Monday. Coupled with 70-degree temperatures and students on spring break, droves of golfers flocked to courses across Cuyahoga County on Tuesday.
If the first few months of the year are any indication, 2023 appears likely to meet or beat the number of rounds played in years past, said Damian Cosby, the PGA director of golf for the Cleveland Metroparks.
“In years past, you would see articles all the time, saying, “golf is dying, courses are closing,” Cosby said. “The demand is up exponentially. We’re up 35 percent.”
In each of the previous three years, there have been in excess of 300,000 rounds of golf played across the district’s 8 public courses. Pre-pandemic, the Metroparks reported an average of 230,000 rounds of golf played annually.
The trend has also been seen on the national level.
According to the National Golf Foundation, the golf industry has reported the introduction of two million new golfers every year from 2011 through 2019. However, from 2020-2022, there have been three million new golfers. Prior to the pandemic-related golf boom, the previously recorded high was 2.4 million new golfers in 2000, when Tiger Woods was at his peak popularity.
While 2022 was down 4 percent (largely due to weather) year-over-year from 2021’s record high, it still ranks in the top four years on record for number of rounds played, according to the National Golf Foundation.
Cosby said municipal golf courses, which are often more affordable than other public courses, have benefitted greatly from the pandemic golfing boom.
“I love being in the municipal space. We have a greater effect on the golfing community than a professional at a private club. We get to go out into communities that traditionally haven’t been invited to come play and we get to say, 'hey, we want you to play our golf courses,'” Cosby said. “The great thing about the Metroparks’ golf courses is — and we say this all the time — we have something for everybody.”
From beginner courses like Washington Golf Course to intermediate and advanced courses like Senaca and Manakiki respectively, the Metroparks’ portfolio of public courses serve as a natural host to a golfer’s progression, Cosby said.
After COVID-19 lockdowns were lifted in the spring of 2020 and for the 18 months that followed, golf was one of only a few activities where people could safely socialize and practice social distancing. This dynamic opened the door to thousands of players picking up a golf club for the first time.
“What we saw was obviously new golfers coming into the game but also a lot of what I call ‘lost golfers.’ Folks that for whatever reason put their clubs down and said, ‘I don’t have time. I have two kids, soccer and cheerleading,” Cosby said. “During the pandemic, there was nothing else for you to do.”
From the avid, every-week golfers to those that play only a couple of times a year, the increased demand for tee times has been well apparent. Pat Carney, who has been golfing his whole life, said available tee times at his favorite courses have been harder to come by. Although frustrating at times, the increased demand is good for the game, he said.
“It’s a lot harder to get on the courses now than it was three, four, five years ago,” Carney said. “Before the pandemic, a lot of golf courses were closing, which was somewhat frustrating because there were a lot of courses that I enjoyed playing. Now, we’re back. Now, you have to get tee times, which I don’t like as much. I used to like playing 9-holes whenever I wanted to.”
Read moreabout what the Metroparks has planned for the golf community in 2023.
