December rounds finished with a flourish, up 24% nationwide with year-over-year increases in all eight geographic regions thanks to (generally) more favorable golf weather during the lowest-volume month of the year for play.
With 2023 play data in the books, rounds were up YOY in nine of 12 months overall. December marked the biggest jump on a percentage basis, pushing the year-end number to +4% over the 2022 rounds total.
As a result, 2023 finishes with the most rounds played in history, checking in just ahead of the record-setting 2021 total and marking the fourth straight year with more than 500 million rounds in total.
Some of the biggest December 2023 gains are attributable to more playable days — or even any playable days — in states in the upper Midwest like Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio and Illinois with rich golf supply. No states had a year-over-year decline in play compared to 2022 levels.
NGF provides facility-level rounds data to Golf Datatech in helping compile the free, monthly play reports on behalf of the golf industry. Click the image below to see the full report. ⬇
Click image for full three-page PDF
