Golf Tourism?

1
Simon Hudson?

Contents
Contents 1
Introduction 2
Deining golf tourism 3
The Evolution of Golf Tourism 6
The Size and Impact of the Market 11
The Key Players 14
Summary 25
Websites 25
References 26

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Copyright © Simon Hudson 2009

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Design and setting by P.K. McBride

Golf Tourism

1 An Introduction to Golf
Tourism

Introduction
Ever since Tiger Woods irst won the Masters’ in 1997, golf has got sexier. No
longer largely the preserve of the privileged, it’s become a trendy sport with an
appeal across generations, genders and cultures. The Ryder Cup is now watched
on television by around a billion people worldwide. Compare that to the mere
260 million who watched the 2006 Soccer World Cup. TV has helped create golf
icons across the globe with increasing tournament coverage and advertising en-
dorsement. Golf pros promote everything from alcohol to automobiles and from
beverages to bling. Two of the top three earners in all sports in 2007 were golf-
ers. But professional golfers are not just aloof celebs. Any decent handicapped
golfer can play alongside their favourite heroes at corporate pro-am compe-
titions. Many businesses invest huge amounts in this unique opportunity for
sponsorship and executive perks. Living on golf courses has become a trend over
the past two decades. Golf course real estate has been spawning courses across
Europe, North America and Asia.
Fashion has also entered the arena, infusing golf attire with funky fabrics, shapes,
colours and detailing, pushing the limits of clubhouse etiquette. And golf gear is
no longer just for the golf course. Argyle-style diamond print sweaters became
city chic in 2008, reinforcing golf’s street cred. Golf retail has expanded, too,
moving on from small golf club collections to gigantic big box chain stores,
featuring multiple designer brands and computerised, virtual fairways as well as
extensive putting green practice areas to try out equipment.
Golf is becoming less corporate and more sport for all. Families world over are
looking to golf as a generational-spanning game and specialized family courses
are multiplying with affordable fees and lessons. Schools in Canada are even
introducing golf as part of the Phys Ed curriculum. Women are increasingly
attracted to the sport, with clubs developing female-only instruction and tour-
naments and pro shops luring them with pink and purple pretty clothing and
equipment.

2
 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

It is clear from the opening Spotlight that golf is big business. Whether as a
primary motivator or as a secondary activity, golf attracts millions of holiday-
makers worldwide, contributing over $20 billion annually. But, despite this phe-
nomenal igure, no-one has yet categorically deined who the golf tourist really is
and documented the scale of the industry. This book will examine international
golf tourism spotlighting countries, clubs, courses, consumers, competition and
commercial concepts.

Deining golf tourism

Golf tourism falls under the umbrella of sport tourism, one of the fastest growth
areas in the tourism industry. Although sport tourism is a relatively new concept
in contemporary vernacular, its scope of activity is far from a recent phenome-
non. The notion of people travelling to participate in and watch sport dates back
to the ancient Olympic Games, and the practice of stimulating tourism through
sport has existed for over a century. Within the last few decades however, desti-
nations have begun to recognize the signiicant potential of sport tourism, and
they are now aggressively pursuing this attractive market niche.
The subject has also gained strong academic and public interest in recent years.
This is evident in the publication of numerous textbooks related to sport tour-
ism (e.g. Standeven and De Knopp, 1999; Hudson, 2003; Weed and Bull, 2004;
Higham, 2005; Gibson, 2006), the development of the Journal of Sport Tourism,
and a number of special journal issues devoted to sport tourism. Much of this
work focuses on describing and deining the concept of sport travel, but broadly
deined, sport tourism includes travel away from a person’s primary residence to
participate in a sporting activity for recreation or competition; travel to observe
sport at the grass roots or elite level; and travel to visit a sport attraction such as
a sports’ hall of fame or a water park, for example.
Golf tourism itself has also been deined in a number of ways, but for the pur-
poses of this book, golf tourism is simply deined as travel away from home to
participate in or observe the sport of golf, or to visit attractions associated with
golf. Figure 1.1 is a representation of the business of golf tourism. The igure
shows the golf tourists in the middle and they can be divided into three basic
categories:
 tourists who go on holiday principally to play golf;
 tourists who play golf as a secondary activity whilst on holiday or on a
business trip;
 those who attend tournaments as spectators, or visit golf attractions.
Chapter 2 expands on the segmentation of golf tourists. They in turn are served
by a number of different sectors. These include the golf tour operators (see

3
Golf Tourism

Chapter 3), accommodation and transportation services (Chapter 3), the courses
and resorts themselves (see Chapters 4, 5 and 6). In turn, these suppliers have
to make important decisions regarding planning and development, marketing,
inancing and human resource development (Chapters 5, 6 and 7). Finally, the
business of golf tourism has a number of economic, social and environmental
impacts (see Chapter 8). Throughout this book, the players and elements in this
model will be discussed and analysed.

Spotlight: Wales Challenging the Giants of Golf

Tourism
The Welsh Assembly Government is counting on the Ryder Cup scheduled for
October 2010 at the Celtic Manor Resort to put Wales irmly on the golf tourism
map, rivalling Scotland, Ireland and England in the international arena. It is the big-
gest event ever to come to Wales and one of the biggest sporting attractions in
the world.
Scotland has always been considered the birthplace of golf with the rudimentary
beginnings of the sport back in the 15th century. The irst golf club was established
near Glasgow in 1744. St Andrews, built in 1754, was given the royal seal in 1834
and has been hailed ever since as the bedrock of British golf. But, more recently,
Wales has been identiied by golf tour operators as a cheaper but good quality
alternative for goling holidays.
The Ryder Cup is slated to be a landmark for the country’s tourism. The Welsh As-
sembly Government has recognized the importance of the Ryder Cup as a means
to challenge the ‘giants’ of golf tourism, stressing the alliance of business and golf
to attract corporate events and, as a spinoff, foreign investment. Currently, there
are 500 international companies based in Wales, employing 80,000 people, and
responsible for $21 billion in investments since 1983.
The government is using this globally-televised event to highlight tourism in rural
and urban Wales as well as business opportunities. With the national recession hit-
ting hard throughout the UK, it’s a heaven-sent chance to revitalize the economy.
Ryder Cup Wales invited Ian Woosnam to be the oficial ambassador for Team
Wales. Captain of the victorious European team at the Irish Ryder Cup in Septem-
ber 2006, Woosnam wanted to raise the Welsh proile as a separate entity from
England. ‘Winning the bid to host the 2010 Ryder Cup gave Wales the opportunity
to tell the world what it has to offer,’ he said.
Newport – chosen as the Ryder Cup city – has 45 golf courses within a forty-
minute radius, including four championship courses. The 160 miles long by 60
miles wide country actually has more than 200 courses with a goling tradition
stretching back centuries. The Welsh Goling Union was established in 1895, the
second oldest union in the world (second to Ireland). Alongside a rich sporting his-
tory in golf and rugby, Wales also boasts 641 castles and 687 miles of coastline,
adding to the broader tourism appeal.

4
 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

The Ryder Cup dates back to the 1920s when it started as a contest between US
and British golfers. Samuel Ryder – a successful entrepreneur – donated the tro-
phy and the inaugural Ryder Cup matches were played at the Worcester Country
Club, Massachusetts, in 1927. Since 1979 the biennial competition evolved into
a USA versus Europe match, securing international TV coverage in 150 countries
and territories for 2010.
In the run up to the 2010 event, Wales reinforced its raised proile with curtain
raisers being staged during the Ryder Cup Wales 2009 summer of golf. The Bull
Bay Golf Club held the Welsh Open Young PGA Professional Championship in
both 2008 and 2009, sponsored by Ryder Cup Wales 2010. The Welsh Open at
Chepstow in July 2009 and the Welsh National at Llanelli in Sept 2009 were also
similarly sponsored.
The Welsh Assembly Government is also using this opportunity to regenerate golf-
ing facilities, providing inancial support to the tune of $3 million for goling projects
throughout the country via the Ryder Cup Wales Legacy Fund.
In a report by Roger Pride, Director of Marketing for the Welsh Assembly Govern-
ment, there were eight factors identiied to differentiate Welsh golf from traditional,
‘stuffy’ images. These were:
• Easy access to tee-off times
• The unique Welsh welcome means you won’t be made to feel small
• You can go at your own pace
• No unnaturally scorching sun
• The outstanding beauty of the natural environment
• You don’t have to take out a loan to pay for a round of golf
• Relatively easy access
• The antidote to the English, Irish and Scottish golf scenes
Pride, who is also a Director of Ryder Cup Wales 2010 Ltd, has led the develop-
ment of Wales’ golf tourism strategy. He has identiied their target demographic to
be the 29 to 49 age group for whom time is currency. Their needs encompassed
the Internet, closer destinations and shorter breaks. He also noted an increasing
proportion of female golfers, linking that with Welsh Hollywood icon, Catherine
Zeta Jones. The alliance between golf apparel and fashion was also underlined as
well as the crossover between younger celebs from music/TV/ilm/soccer to play-
ing and endorsing golf.
Sources:
www.rydercupwales2010.com
Melanie Hauser, 37th Ryder Cup Oficial Journal, for PGATOUR.com.2007, http://
www.rydercup.com/2008/rydercup/2008/usa/09/14/ryder_tv_091408/index.html,
‘Challenging the giants of golf tourism’, by Roger Pride, Director of Marketing,
Welsh Assembly, http://www.nationaalgolfcongres.nl/afbeeldingen/Presentatie_
Roger_Pride.pdf.

5
Golf Tourism

Economic impacts

Marketing

Golf destinations

Golf courses
Transportation & resorts Golf tour
operators &
intermediaries
Food & beverage
Social impacts

Development
Equipment
Accommodation The golf & clothing
tourist
Entertainments Golf events

Golf
Golf media attractions Real estate

Golf Golf
schools cruises

Fin
an nt
cin me
g y
plo
Em

Environmental impacts

Figure 1.1: The business of golf tourism

The Evolution of Golf Tourism

The origins of the game of golf have been the subject of numerous debates, but
it was the Scots who created the concept that the game of golf starts with the
ball situated at a point just above ground and ends with it disappearing below
ground (Campbell, 1994). The irst reference to the game in Scotland dates back
to 1457 when the Scottish Parliament declared that golf was interfering with the
defence of the realm practice of archery, declaring golf to be ‘utterly cryit doun
and nocht usit’ (Brasch, 1972). Despite this proclamation, golf was popular with
both the Scottish and English royalty (Mary, Queen of Scots was the irst woman
golfer) and soon spread to the common people, resulting in golf courses spring-
ing up all over the UK. The most famous of these was St Andrews which was
established around 1552. The Royal and Ancient (R&A), based at St Andrews,
assumed responsibility for formulating the Rules of Golf in 1897.
6
 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

As the British Empire spread in the 19th century, so too did the game of golf
(Readman, 2003). The irst golf clubs outside Britain were in India with the
establishment of the Bangalore Club in 1820 and the Royal Calcutta Club in
1829. Asia followed as courses were built between 1888 and1890 at Taiping in
Malaya, Bangkok in Thailand and a irst Japanese course in 1901 on the slopes
of Mount Rokko near Kobe. Courses opened in Australia and New Zealand
from 1871, the most famous being Royal Melbourne. In South Africa, Royal
Cape Town was founded in 1885 and a course which later became known as
Royal Montreal (Canada), opened in 1873.
Golf was well established around the world by 1885 although not in the USA,
the country that was to reine and deine it during the 20th century. John Reid is
acknowledged to be the founding father of golf in the USA. Reid, a Scottish ex-
patriate businessman, imported a few clubs and balls from Scotland and in 1888
set up a rudimentary three-hole golf course near to his house in Yonkers, New
York. The players of this irst course formed themselves into a club called St
Andrew’s (its name copied from its famous Scottish predecessor – complete with
an apostrophe to differentiate it). Very soon this club was forced to move on and
expand, doing so by building a course on land studded by apple trees close to the
Hudson River. These early club pioneers henceforth became known as the ‘Ap-
ple Tree Gang’. Very quickly golf caught on. In 1890, Reid’s cow pasture was the
country’s only golf course. By 1896, the number of courses had risen to over 80.
Four years later, there were 892 courses meaning that by 1900 there were more
American courses than British ones. This huge growth was spurred by the arrival
of hundreds of Scotsmen in the form of architects, greenkeepers and teaching
professionals (Readman, 2003).
The United States Golf Association (USGA) was formed in 1894 and, boosted by
economic booms in the 1890s and the 1920s, golf continued to blossom. By the
end of this period there were over 5600 golf facilities in the USA. For the next
30 years this situation remained relatively unchanged, until the 1960s when golf
in the USA experienced a second growth period. This was due to two factors.
First, the US government provided inancing for the development of public golf
facilities, changing a sport largely organized on a private club basis into one that
allowed mass participation for the irst time. Second, media exposure of the de-
veloping professional tours prompted a renewed interest in the sport.
Golf continued to grow in the USA and at one point in the early 1990s, golf
courses were being opened at a rate of one per day. This growth was largely due
to an increase in available funding (owing to deregulation of the banking indus-
try and the new banking institutions aggressively funding new development). In
addition, golf courses became a major part of real estate and new resort devel-
opments and for the irst time began to attract real estate buyers to particular
locations. Today, the US golf market is moving in a sideways direction. The total
number rounds played has been virtually lat at about 500 million rounds per

7
Golf Tourism

annum for the six years up to 2008. Although there has been little change in
the total number of golf facilities in the USA over the last couple of years, the
net growth in supply has been falling since 2001 (see Figure 1.2). According to
industry research irm IBISWorld, there were around 15,888 goling establish-
ments in the USA in 2008 (IBISWorld, 2008).

252

Openings minus closures in 18-hole equivalents

182

103
88

31

-8.5
-26.5
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

Figure 1.2: Net growth in golf facility supply in the USA 2001-07. Source:
National Golf Foundation, 2008
Worldwide, during the 20th century, golf experienced similar patterns of growth
to North America. In Japan the number of golf courses increased from approxi-
mately 30 prior to the Second World War to 116 in 1957 and then 1700 in
1992. In France, the number of golfers doubled between 1981 and 1985, and
Spain experienced similar growth. In the 1980s the number of golfers increased
by 60 per cent in the German Federal republic, 57 per cent in Italy, 42 per cent
in Sweden and 41 per cent in Switzerland (Priestly and Ashworth, 1995). In
Britain the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews predicted in 1990 a need
to increase the numbers of golf courses by 691 by the year 2000.
The combination of the expansion of the game of golf worldwide and the
growth of international travel after the Second World War led to an increase in
the desire to travel for the purpose of playing the sport. An increasing number
of destinations started to develop and diversify their golf tourism products in
an effort to lure strong foreign currency, and thus spur economic growth. The
attraction of the golf tourist became a key tourism development strategy for
many regions around the world. By allowing the building of infrastructure and
the import of quality resort builders and operators, countries have been able
to achieve economic growth by attracting foreign tourists. Good examples of

8
 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

this type of practice exist in East Asia where countries such as Malaysia (see
Snapshot below), Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia have all built golf
infrastructures to attract international guests.
Reducing the seasonality impacts of tourism was another incentive for many des-
tinations to pursue golf tourists. Destinations that traditionally attracted tourists
for the reasons of hot climate and sandy beaches began to extend their holiday
season by adding products that do not necessarily require these attributes. For
example, in Spain, the Costa del Sol is now marketed off-season as the ‘Costa
del Golf’ with over 30 golf developments lined up along the 50-kilometre strip
of sand. There are also many examples of winter sport destinations building golf
courses in order to attract tourists to the mountains in the summer (Hudson and
Cross, 2005). Panorama in British Columbia, Canada, for example, spent $16
million building a golf course that is only open four months of the year, but is
part of owner Intrawest’s strategy to develop four-season resorts (Hudson and
Cross, 2005).
Just like the tourism industry in general, the golf industry is subject to increasing
globalization levels. For example, ownership and management of golf courses
in the USA is not restricted to domestic irms. Similarly, some major US golf
course management companies have increased their ownership of foreign cours-
es and clubs in recent years. For example, ClubCorp Inc also operates courses in
Australia, China and Mexico; American Golf Corporation has courses in New
Zealand and the UK; and Troon Golf has courses in 20 other countries outside
the USA including Mexico, the UK, Italy, Japan, Fiji, Australia, Kuwait, South
America and the Caribbean. This trend is likely to continue as irms look to
increase market share and attempt to achieve economies of scale by minimizing
average administration and maintenance costs per golf course.
The design of golf courses by well-known past and present goling profession-
als also contributes to the level of globalization within the industry. It is com-
mon for international golfers, such as Greg Norman (Australia) and Bernhard
Langer (Germany), to design and inluence US golf courses, facilities and land
estates. Many US players also work on golf course designs in foreign countries.
As promotion of golf courses becomes more common, the trend of using golf
professionals in course design is likely to increase as this can add to the prestige
and reputation of a golf course. Chapter 2 proiles the Legend Golf and Safari
Resort in South Africa, where each of the 10 holes has been designed by a dif-
ferent pro golfer.

Note: all currencies in US$. Exchange rates: 1 Euro = $1.276; 1 UK pound = $1.5;
6.8 Chinese yuan = $1.

9
Golf Tourism

Snapshot: Malaysia, open for golf tourism

Awarded ‘2008 Asia and Australasia Golf Destination of the Year’ by the Interna-
tional Association of Goling Tour Operators (IAGTO), Malaysia is an up and coming
destination for golf travellers. In 2007 around 503,348 tourists engaged in golf out
of a total of 20,972,822 tourist arrivals – about 2.4 per cent. Most of these golf
tourists came from the ASEAN nations (475,057) with Australia, South Korea, UK,
Hong Kong, Japan and India making up the numbers. This was an increase of
150,000 over 2006, generating more than $242 million in 2007.
Malaysia’s strengths as a golf destination are in its locations and year-round tropi-
cal climate but, primarily, cost. The array of over 200 courses is located by the sea,
in the islands, on the highlands, in the city and in the jungle. Cheap green fees are
a major advantage over regional competitors such as Thailand, they can be as low
as $10. Most courses are in the vicinity of main tourism areas around the capital
Kuala Lumpur, the Malay Peninsula and in Borneo, and the Ministry of Tourism has
produced a booklet on 50 of the best courses in the region.
The IAGTO award was testament to the government’s push to cash in on Asia’s
golf mania. Recognizing golfers as premium, high-spending tourists, Tourism Ma-
laysia has been targeting golf visitors via international competitions and golf fairs.
Malaysian golf’s crowning glory is the Maybank Malaysia Open which is sanctioned
by the European and Asian Tours, telecast worldwide by CNBC and other major
sports channels and watched by between 300 and 500 million viewers. In 1999
it became the irst ever co-sanctioned tournament in Asia and has been hosted
seven times by Saujana Golf and Country Club, named ‘The Best Championship
Course in Asia’ in 2005.
Malaysia also hosts the World Amateur Inter Team Golf Championship (WAITGC).
Tourism Malaysia attends the Orlando Merchandise Golf Show, PGA Golf Show
in Australia, Japan Golf Fair, and the Asia Golf Show in Shanghai and participates
in IAGTO’s International Golf Travel Mart. The government is actively encouraging
media fam (familiarization) trips to facilitate international travel press exposure.
Until the 2000s, golf was not promoted separately in Malaysia, it was just one
part of the tourism offering. Now the emphasis is on more specialized golf tourism
promotion. There are plans to coordinate with the Malaysian Golf Association and
other industry players to categorize local golf clubs with star ratings. The region
boasts championship and signature courses designed by the likes of Jack Nick-
laus, Robert Trent Jones Jr and Graham Marsh.
Malaysia’s regional competitors are Thailand and Indonesia but Malaysia has a
cost advantage as well as already having more golf facilities than current visitation
numbers require. However, Tourism Malaysia is keen to work with neighbouring
ASEAN countries to promote golf and tourism jointly. It is also attempting to sur-
mount an internal obstacle of lack of coordination between club operators and
government, by providing more speciic golf travel packages.
With corporate golf growing in Malaysia, the government’s focus on business trav-
ellers could also strengthen golf visitation numbers. Tourism Minister YB Dato’

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 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

Sri Azalina Othman Said announced a new ‘one-stop centre for business events’
in Dec 2008. A budget of US$1.4 million was allocated for the establishment of
MyCEB – the Malaysia Convention and Exhibition Bureau.

Sources
http://www.worldgolf.com/newswire/browse/56480-Maybank-Malaysian-Open,
accessed 1 December 2008.
Tourism Malaysia, website http://www.menteripenlancongan.com, accessed 12
January 2009.
Olszewski, P.(2008), ‘Cambodia sees green in bid to lure golf tourists’, Phnom
Penh Post, http://www.phnompenhpost.ocm/index.php/20080306188/Tour-
ism-20 accessed 17 June 2008.
Anon. (2008) ‘Tee times: selling the country through golf’, New Straits Times, 4
April, p.15.
Anon. (2007) ‘Going places’, Ottawa Citizen, 23 June, L.6, Style Weekly: Travel &
Leisure.
Anon. (2006) ‘Golf tourism, anyone?’, Malaysian Business, 1 July, p. 42.

The Size and Impact of the Market

It is dificult to isolate the full extent and impact of golf tourism, since trips
which include goling or watching tournaments may very well encompass other
activities, such as conventions, corporate meetings, incentives, or other leisure
activities, such as cruising or skiing. However, there have been attempts to ana-
lyse economic value of the golf industry as a whole, and golf tourism in particu-
lar, for various geographic regions. According to the International Association
of Goling Tour Operators the global golf tourism market is worth over US$20
billion, and this would explain golf’s global spread to places as incongruous as
Kazakhstan, Nicaragua, Myanmar (Burma) and Afghanistan. Developing coun-
tries are recognizing that golf tourists spend considerably more than the average
tourist, and golf tourism can therefore have a signiicant impact on their econo-
mies.

The golf economy can be divided into a number of interrelated subsectors of

which golf tourism is just one (see Figure 1.3). The golf industry cluster begins
with the golf facilities themselves and with the other core industries that produce
goods and services used to operate these facilities and to play the game – golf
equipment and golf apparel manufacturers, golf course architects, and club man-
agement services. Golf further enables a number of other industries, the key ones
being golf-related tourism and real estate development, both of which are closely
intertwined.

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Golf Tourism

Golf facility
operations
• Green fees, membership dues
• Food & beverage
• Lessons, schools, camps
Golf course capital • Rentals
investment
Media, tournaments,
Irrigation installation Course
associations & charities
renovations
Infrastructure Player
improvements Clubhouse renovations Charities
endorsements
New course Equipment/golf Television
Tournaments
construction car purchases
Golf supplies Associations
(on and off course)

Soft goods Hard goods

Apparel Books &

magazines Core industries

Enabled industries
Hospitality/tourism
Real estate
Air travel Car rental
Entertainment Real estate Related residential
Food & premiums construction
Lodging beverage

Figure 1.3: Golf economy clusters. Source: KPMG 2008a; SRI International
2008.
The economic value of these sectors can be measured by adding together the
direct, indirect and induced effects of golf’s activities on each cluster. Direct ef-
fects relate to the spending that occurs ‘on site’, for example at golf courses, golf
equipment retailers and the hotels in which golf tourists stay. The indirect effects
relate to the economic impact on golf’s supply chain, via the industry’s purchases
of goods and services. Induced effects are those brought about by consumer
spending by employees in the golf industry and its supply chain – the proportion
of their wages they spend on goods and services in the wider economy. Table
1.1summarizes the value of the golf economy, cluster by cluster, for both the
USA and Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMA).

12
 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

Size of the Golf Economy by Industry Segment, EMA Region and US ($ million)
EMA (2006) US (2005)
Golf Facility Operations $9,347 $28,052
Golf Course Capital Investments $3,117 $3,578
Golfer Supplies $2,487 $6,151
Endorsements, Tournaments & Associations $460 $1,682
Real Estate $8,792 $14,973
Hospitality/Tourism $3,492 $18,001
Charities $3,501
Total Golf Economy $27,695 $75,938

Table 1.1: Value of the golf economy in the USA and Europe, the Middle East
and Africa by region and industry cluster. Source: KPMG, 2008a
A Golf Economy Report produced by SRI International in 2005, determined that
golf in the USA generated $76 billion in direct economic impact (SRI, 2005). It
indicated that the sport generated a total economic impact of $195 billion in
2005, creating approximately two million jobs with wage income of $61 billion.
The report also showed a ive-year growth from 2000 of approximately $14
billion representing an average annual growth rate of 4.1 per cent, well ahead
of the average annual inlation rate of 2.5 per cent during the years 2000-05.
The increase primarily relected growth in golf facility revenues, real estate and
golf-related tourism. However, the industry observes a very poor level of prof-
itability on a year-to-year basis, and IBISWorld believes that the golf courses
and country clubs sector has experienced a loss over the nine years, 2000-08
(IBISWorld, 2008). The SRI report identiied the inancial contributions from the
game’s key clusters, including golf facility operations ($28 billion); golf course
capital investment ($3.6 billion); golfer supplies ($6.1 billion); tournaments, golf
associations, and endorsements ($1.7 billion); charities ($3.5 billion); hospital-
ity/tourism ($18 billion) and real estate ($15 billion).
In the EMA region, golf generated a direct economic effect of $27.7 billion, golf
tourism being responsible for $3.5 billion of this. Of this, 82 per cent was spent
in Europe, 17 per cent on the African continent and the remaining 1 per cent in
the Middle East. Most (55%) of the impact on GDP from the core golf industry
occurs in Great Britain and Ireland, whereas 79 per cent of GDP derived from
the enabled industries of tourism and real estate within the EMA region occurs
in Western Europe. Most of the impact of the golf industry in Portugal, Spain,
France and Italy relects golf enthusiasts travelling there for golf holidays and
their purchase of holiday homes built as part of golf communities and golf re-
sorts. Overall, golf tourism supports the employment of approximately 60,000
people throughout the EMA region.

13
Golf Tourism

The Key Players

Destinations
There are 32,000 golf courses in 140 countries worldwide, and currently the top
locations for golf tourism are North America, Spain and Portugal. Just over half
(17,000) of the world’s courses are in the USA, and golfers there spend $24.3
billion on green fees and equipment, according to the US National Golf Foun-
dation. A further $26.1 billion goes on goling travel, hotels, food and drink.
There are approximately 6000 European golf courses, and although it is often
considered a mature market, Europe still offers signiicant growth potential as
the rate of participation in the sport remains very low – at less than 1 per cent
of the population.
In the USA, approximately 11 million golfers travel within their country to play
golf – about 42 per cent of the total goling market (National Golf Foundation,
2003). Around 35 per cent of these trips include air travel. The most popular
states are Florida, South and North Carolina, California and Arizona. Golfers
in the Mid Atlantic and Northwest tend to travel outside their regions, typically
venturing into an adjacent one. Golfers in the Northeast are most likely to travel
to Central/South Florida, whereas Southeastern golfers are more likely to stay
within their region. In Canada, about 14 per cent of adults (3.4 million) play golf
while they are away from home, 31 per cent of them reporting that golf is the
main reason they travel (Lang Research, 2007). British Columbia has the highest
appeal for golf tourists who stay in the country, while Florida, California, Hawaii
and Arizona are the most popular international destinations for Canadians.
Table 1.2 is a list of popular destinations for the four largest goling markets
in Europe. This shows the percentage of visits from regular golfers in France,
Germany, UK and Sweden. The igures indicate that French golfers tend to stay
in France to play golf or favour countries like Morocco or Tunisia which are
French-speaking. German golfers typically travel to Spain or stay in Germany,
but some make the quick journey to Austria. Golfers from Sweden like to play
in Spain and Portugal and at home in Sweden. They also make the short trip to
Denmark. If British golfers travel to play outside their country, they tend to go
to Spain, Portugal, and the USA.
The Asian market is estimated to contribute 17-18 million golfers to the world
total. Japan is the most mature goling market in Asia, with a goling population
second only to that of the USA. More than 13 million Japanese, or around 10
per cent of the population, play golf. In 2008, there were about 2300 courses in
Japan. The golf markets in Australia and New Zealand are also mature, with a
fall in the number of core golfers. New developments however continue in Aus-
tralia, where in 2009 there are about 1500 courses serving just over 1 million
golfers. New Zealand has about 140,000 registered golf club members.

14
 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

2005 Percentage
Country where they golf
France Germany UK Sweden
Australia - 0.5 0.6 0.3
Austria 0.3 10.5 - -
Canada - 1.0 0.5 -
Caribbean 2.3 2.6 0.3 0.3
Denmark 1.3 0.2 - 5.3
Dubai 0.7 1.9 0.5 -
Egypt 1.7 3.3 - 1.9
England - 0.2 26.5 0.5
France 47.7 2.6 5.2 1.1
Germany - 19.0 0.5 0.5
Italy 0.3 4.0 0.6 3.5
Malaysia - 0.2 - 0.5
Mauritius - 0.5 - -
Morocco 19.3 1.7 - -
Portugal 3 4.5 13.1 6.9
Rep. Ireland 1.3 1.7 5.1 1.6
Scotland 1.7 2.4 11.7 2.9
South Africa 1.3 1.7 0.8 1.1
Spain 4.7 21.9 21.2 15.7
Sweden 0.7 0.5 0.3 41.3
Switzerland 0.7 1.0 - 0.3
Thailand - 3.1 0.9 2.7
Tunisia 7.3 4.3 0.2 7.2
Turkey 1.7 3.3 0.8 1.1
USA 1.3 5.0 5.1 1.6
Wales - - 3.2 0.3
Other short haul 0.7 1.2 0.3 3.5
Other long haul 2 1.2 2.6 -
Total 100 100 100 100

Table 1.2: Popular destinations for the four largest goling markets in Europe.
Source: SMS Golf Holidays, 2005
The traditional golf markets mentioned above can expect increasing competition
from the emerging golf destinations that offer high quality goling experiences at
affordable prices. These include Mexico, Egypt, Thailand, Malaysia and China,
where the number of golfers is growing by 30 per cent a year. KPMG Golf Ad-
visory surveyed over 120 golf course architects in 2008 and found that Turkey,
Dubai and South Africa are also expected to be among the most popular destina-
tions for golfers in the future. Dubai is the only city in the UAE that hosts major
tournaments and also has a number of courses for golf tourists, such as The
Montgomerie, Al Badia Golf Course, The Dunes and Nakheel Golf’s six courses.
At the end of 2008 the irst course in the world designed by Tiger Woods opened.
Tiger Woods Dubai is a residential community and resort, as is the new Jumeriah
15
Golf Tourism

Golf Estates.
In China by the end of 2008, there were over 300 courses open across the coun-
try, nearly half of them located in the southern Guangdong Province (responsi-
ble for over a third of tourism arrivals to China), and the country’s two major
cities of Shanghai and Beijing (KPMG, 2008b). The development of the leisure
and tourism industry has led to an increase in golf tourism in the country, and
media exposure from hosting world-class golf tournaments (including the World
Cup of Golf) has fuelled interest from overseas markets. China’s most successful
golf resorts include Shenzhen’s Mission Hills (see ‘Snapshot’ below), Shanghai’s
Sheshan International, Beijing’s Pine Valley and Kunming’s Spring City. These
are comparable to some of the best golf resorts in the world, and the trend for
high quality goling complexes is likely to continue as developers respond to the
demand from the growing middle and upper classes for top quality housing and
living environments.
Another emerging destination for golf tourists is India. Although golf tourism is
only just beginning to be promoted there, a modest number of golf tourists are
arriving from Japan and Korea. According to the Indian Golf Union there are
186 golf courses and approximately 100,000 golf club members in the country
(KPMG, 2008c). Courses in India are not usually part of a residential com-
munity or an integrated component of a tourist resort, but this is changing.
Residential dwellings built around a golf course are the latest trend in the Indian
realty sector. For example, in 2007, Royal Indian Raj International Corpora-
tion, a foreign investment company in the India real estate sector based in Van-
couver, announced a partnership with Jack Nicklaus to build as many as eight
18-hole courses as multimillion-dollar centrepieces to the irm’s new resort and
residential communities across India (Kumar, 2007). The growing number of in-
ternational golf events hosted in India and the increasing success of professional
Indian golfers on international circuits, will, like in China, lead to more positive
exposure for the sport, and a continued growth in golf tourism in the country.

Snapshot: Mission Hills, China – The World’s

Largest Golf Resort
Amid a Chinese golf boom, the Chu family has created the world’s largest golf resort
near the Hong Kong border. Boasting 12 courses, Mission Hills supplanted Pine-
hurst Golf Resort in North Carolina in the Guinness Book of Records in 2007 when
the inal two courses were added to the gigantic, three-phase development.
The courses – covering a 15-square-kilometre site – were designed by pro golf-
ers, the irst ive representing ive continents with Jack Nicklaus for North America,
Vijay Singh for Oceania, Nick Faldo for Europe, Jumbo Ozaki for Asia and Ernie
Els for Africa. Eleven of the 12 are championship courses, with the 12th designed
by China’s most famous golfer, Zhang Lian Wei as an 18-hole, par three layout.

16
 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

The 216 holes were all constructed by Brian Curley of Schmidt-Curley Design from
Scottsdale, Arizona.
China’s irst international golf event was held at Mission Hills in 1995. After the
success of this World Cup of Golf inal on the original Jack Nicklaus course, the
International Federation of Golf Tours assigned a series of 12 World Cup inals up
to 2018, which will be held on the newer, 7320-yard Jose Maria Olazabal course.
The 18th hole abuts the gargantuan Dongguan Clubhouse.
With around 87 per cent of Chinese golfers male, Mission Hills is trying to promote
women’s golf with regular Ladies’ Days as well as the Mission Hills Golf Academy
by Cindy Reid. The Chu family also contracted Sweden’s Annika Sorenstam to
design her irst golf course there.
Lavish hotel accommodation is at a ive-star resort surrounded by impressive resi-
dential properties, some as big as 9300 square feet, designed by US and Italian
architects. There are 219 rooms at Mission Hills Resort and 90 in the adjoining
Savannah Wing, plus 35 meeting rooms throughout the $400 million resort. There
are four spas, pools and diverse itness facilities.
The largest of the clubhouses is the Dongguan which comprises 63,000 square
metres of dining, conference and retail venues, including Asia’s largest golf shop
and China’s only golf club maintenance centre.
There is also a second golf academy, spearheaded by David Leadbetter, where
local kids can take free junior programmes. One of the six driving ranges is, at 250
metres, the longest in China. The club also boasts Asia’s largest tennis centre with
51 courts, including a 3000-seater stadium court.
Chinese golf courses traditionally have a higher number of staff than elsewhere in
the world. Mission Hills leads the way with around 7000 employees, including 3000
mostly female caddies. Part of their job is to hand-pick weeds from the fairways
and greens, to keep Mission Hills’ environmental promise to avoid pesticides.
Out of China’s 1.4 billion population, a substantial 230 million people live in a four-
hour driving radius of Mission Hills. The Hong Kong border is just 35 minutes
away and Macao’s glitzy casino district, an hour’s drive. A recent survey conducted
by the China Golf Association suggested that 2000 new golf courses would be
needed in China this decade to keep pace with the interest in the sport and the
burgeoning population.
Golf course proits are heavily dependent upon real estate sales. Mission Hills is
targeting China’s growing middle and upper classes with promo phrases such as
‘personalized environs for the elites’ to describe its luxurious lifestyle. However,
with an economic downturn starting to affect Chinese spending power, Mission
Hills will have to look further aield to ill its beds. So far, more than 1000 properties
have been sold, half to Hong Kong buyers with the remainder from Taiwan and
other Asian countries.
Membership fees are notoriously high in China, averaging around US$67,000 in
Guangdong Province and even more nearer Shanghai. Green fees are also the
highest in the world ranging from US$50 to $200 for 18 holes. Mission Hills adver-
tises weekend green fees of US$132 including caddie.

17
Golf Tourism

With China slated to become the top inbound destination in the world by 2020,
timing could be good for an increase in destination visitors, attracted in part by the
media exposure of over 50 tournaments which were held at Mission Hills between
1995 and 2008. The club hosted Tiger Woods’ irst visit to China, in order to pub-
licize the venue in the USA.
Dr David Chu, a strong advocate for golf being included in the 2016 Olympics –
which would raise its proile even further – is head of the family operation. Sons
Tenniel and Ken and daughter Carol all came to work within the company after
graduating from universities in Canada. It was living in Toronto that irst introduced
Chu to golf, giving him the inspiration to bring the golf and country club model back
to China on a massive scale.
Sources
Quinn, H. (2008) ‘Over the wall’, West, August/September, p. W14.
Carey, R. (2008) ‘Around the world in 18 holes’, Successful Meetings, April, p. 89.
Macintosh, R. Scott (2005) ‘China’s golf empire is a family affair’, International Her-
ald Tribune, 29 September, http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/09/29/properties/
web.rechu.php accessed 18 Feb 2009.
www.golfbenchmark.com, Andrea Sartori, KPMG Golf Advisory Practice in EMA,
Budapest, info@golfbenchmark.com

Golfers
There are an estimated 59 million golfers worldwide (Rees, 2008). Between 5
and 10 per cent of these golfers travel overseas each year for the main purpose of
playing golf, making the international scale of the golf tourism market between
2.9 and 5.9 million. The principal market for dedicated golf tours has been golf-
ers who regularly participate in the sport, but over the last few years there has
been a noticeable stagnation and even decline in the number of ‘core’ golfers,
particularly in the mature markets of the Anglo-Saxon countries (Mintel, 2006).
However, the number of occasional golfers is growing worldwide, providing the
opportunity for tour operators and resorts to offer golf as an add-on feature
to holidays. Golf is also becoming an important part of meetings and conven-
tions.
Figure 1.4 shows the percentage of golfers by region of the world. Despite the
popularity of golf, there is great growth potential with only 1 per cent of the
world’s population playing golf at present. This compares to the USA where
10 per cent of the population plays golf. It is estimated there are about 30 mil-
lion golfers in the USA, 8-9 million in Europe and about 17-18 million in other
parts of the world, in places like Japan, Australia and South Africa. The main
source markets for golf tourism are the USA, UK, Japan, Canada and Australia,
although the number of golf tourists coming from Taiwan, Malaysia, China and
Thailand is expected to rise. Chapter 2 discusses the golf tourist in more detail.

18
 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

South America 2%
South Africa 1%
Oceania 3%

Europe 12%

North America 58%

Asia 24%

Figure 1.4: Golfers by region of the world (%). Source: Mintel, 2006.

Golf Hotels and Resorts

A resort typically consists of a luxury hotel with amenities – golf, beach, skiing
and/or spa – that make it a destination in itself. A resort generally does not rely
on a city or attractions outside its property to attract guests. Most resorts have
conference centres or meeting rooms to accommodate business functions, but
the majority (60 per cent) of resort guests are leisure travellers. Chapter 3 looks
at golf resorts in more detail, but a signiicant trend in resort development is
smaller golf-oriented properties: inns, lodges, and boutique hotels with fewer
than 125 rooms – some with as few as 15 – and access to championship courses
designed by big-name architects.
Golf course design is a lucrative business. The Middle East is a massive growth
area with a company called Dubai World at the heart of it. It has set up a res-
idential division called Leisurecorp, which makes its money from developing
properties around the golf courses. It pays well-known players huge sums to
be involved. David Spencer, Leisurecorp’s CEO said ‘for a Greg Norman golf
course, to have him intimately involved, (is) in the vicinity of $2.5 million...
Vijay Singh is $1.5m. And the new star in the design business is Tiger Woods
who has a design fee but couples that with a guaranteed return on the real estate
so his igure is quite a bit higher, in the region of $40 million’ (Carter, 2008).
Chapter 3 provides more information on golf hotels and resorts.

19
Golf Tourism

Golf Real Estate

Golf courses are increasingly being used to support quality residential develop-
ments. The golf real estate business is now almost ive times bigger than the in-
vestment in golf courses themselves. In the USA an estimated 63,840 golf course
homes were constructed in 2005 at a total cost of $11.6 billion. Additionally,
SRI estimates that new golf courses in 2005 generated $3.3 billion in increased
real estate value or premium (SRI, 2005). The premium is the additional amount
a buyer is willing to pay for a home or property located on a golf course or in a
golf community. Other studies have shown that golf courses come only second
to water features as the most desirable ‘amenities’ for a housing community, and
buyers are prepared to pay up to 30 per cent more for this premium (KPMG,
2008a).
In Europe, the Middle East and Africa, more than 150 golf-related real estate
projects came to fruition in the region in 2006, providing 17,000 new villas,
houses and apartments and generating a total of $24 billion. Nearly three-quar-
ters of these properties were built in the South of France, Portugal and Spain,
countries with favourable climates and strong existing images as golf tourist
destinations.

Golf attractions
The deinition of golf tourism presented earlier in the chapter included tour-
ists who travel to visit golf-related attractions, and there are a growing number
of such attractions. An example is the World Golf Hall of Fame, situated in
the World Golf Village in Florida. With a blend of conventional museum-style
exhibits and cutting-edge video presentations, the 2973-square-metre exhibi-
tion space offers hundreds of artefacts and displays from the sport’s early days
through to the modern game. Another example is the USGA Museum in Far
Hills, New Jersey, America’s oldest institution dedicated to the sport of golf. The
museum celebrates the history of golf in America, with a particular focus on
USGA championships. The museum dedicates extensive resources to its educa-
tional responsibilities and has developed a variety of programmes to disseminate
information, scholarship, and educational programming to a broad and diverse
audience. The museum has recently undergone a $20 million makeover, and
there are now more than two thousand artefacts on display, as well as six new
galleries, each spotlighting an iconic moment in USGA history, including Tiger
Wood’s record-breaking 2000 Open victory at Pebble Beach.

Golf tournaments as attractions

Golf tournaments can attract thousands of spectators and can give a signiicant
boost to the golf economy. The British Open, for example, can pull in up to
200,000 and an average PGA championship in the USA draws crowds of up to

20
 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

60,000. In 2006, the Ryder Cup was staged at the K-Club in Ireland, and ac-
cording to a study by Deloitte for the European Tour, the event generated $182.5
million in direct revenues, while its total economic impact was valued at $306
million.
In 2007, there were 120 international professional golf tournaments in the EMA
region, of which 84 were staged in Europe. Major tournaments in the USA di-
rected by the PGA of America, the PGA Tour, the United States Golf Association
and the Ladies Professional Golf Association generated approximately $954 mil-
lion in 2005. Tournament revenues include fees generated by selling broadcast
rights, corporate sponsorship of events, and spectator ticket sales and merchan-
dise purchases.
In other parts of the world, the Japanese PGA Tour is domestically a hugely
popular and rich tour covering over 39 events. Other tours include the Aus-
tralasian Tour held in countries such as Hong Kong, Malaysia, India, China, the
Philippines, Thailand, Australia and New Zealand. The Sunshine Tour meanders
through southern Africa during the winter months, November to March. These
two tours have showcased the likes of Greg Norman (Australia) and Ernie Els
(South Africa) and raised the proile of golf destinations in various countries
especially in the winter months. Add to these the Ladies Professional Golfers As-
sociation tours of Europe and the United States, the hugely popular Seniors Tour
and a myriad of smaller tours and the result is a continually dynamic worldwide
golf tournament. This travelling entourage attracts a large media circus fuelling
interest and development of golf in all corners of the globe. Chapter 7 covers
these golf events in more detail.

Golf retailers
In the USA the ive largest golf retailers are Dick’s Sporting Goods, The Sports
Authority, Golfsmith, Edwin Watts and Golf Galaxy. Unit sales of golf clubs
grew between 2002 and 2005, but have since levelled off as have the sales of soft
goods – balls, bags, gloves and shoes (National Golf Foundation, 2008). The re-
tail sales market for golf equipment and apparel in Europe, the Middle East and
Africa is $2.4 billion (KPMG, 2008a). Europe accounts for most (96 per cent)
of this market. Golf equipment is about 60 per cent of sales while the remaining
40 per cent are the sales of golf apparel. The four largest markets in Europe are
Great Britain and Ireland, Germany, France and Sweden, which also have the
highest number of players. The decade since 2000 has seen a new crossover of
goling designs to fashion and, conversely, the fashion world inluencing golf ap-
parel. Equipment has also evolved recently, and self-improvement marketing has
persuaded even the savviest golfer to indulge in the latest ‘technology’.

21
Golf Tourism

Tour Operators
A large number of tour operators cater to the golf tourism market, from the
small specialists like Jenahura (proiled in Chapter 3), to larger tour operators
like Wide World of Golf. The travel giants like Thomas Cook tend to leave
selling golf packages to these dedicated tour operators because of the need for
intimate knowledge of the courses and resorts. In recognition of golf tourism
as a growing niche of the travel industry, IAGTO was set up in 1997 as a rep-
resentative body for a number of the world’s leading golf tour operators and
resorts. At the end of 2008, IAGTO’s membership comprised 1136 accredited
golf tour operators, golf resorts, hotels, golf courses, receptive operators, airlines
and tourist boards in 75 countries worldwide with speciically 328 golf tour
operators in 47 countries.
Some tour operators have been targeting golf tourists for many years. Wide
World of Golf for example, was founded in 1957 in San Francisco by Michael
C. Roseto who owned a successful travel agency and began planning golf tours
to Hawaii for fellow members of The Olympic Club. WWG claims to be the old-
est and most experienced golf tour company in the world, operating in over 25
countries. More information about Wide World of Golf can be found in the case
study at the end of this chapter.
One trend in the golf tourism industry is the packaging of golf with cruises.
Golf cruises will be covered in more detail in Chapter 3, but all of the major
cruise lines now offer golfers the chance to play golf ashore as part of an or-
ganized excursion. Golfers on a cruise can play on almost every continent, and
golf cruises are standard in the Caribbean, Mexico, the British Isles, Hawaii,
Bahamas, and Bermuda. Itineraries for New Zealand, Australia, and the South
Seas also sometimes include a golf package. Silversea Cruises even offers the
opportunity to play courses in Africa as part of its Silver Links Golf Cruise
programme. Caribbean Cruise Lines Ltd has set up a company called GolfA-
hoy.com to distribute golf cruises, and the company customizes golf packages
on most Princess, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Carnival, Seabourn or Silversea
worldwide cruise itineraries.

Golf Schools
In the last decade or so, goling instruction has been increasingly offered as a
central or an add-on feature of goling packages. Instruction packages are a good
way to tap into the market of novice golfers, who are less likely to book a golf-
ing holiday than experienced golfers with handicaps (Mintel, 2006). The largest
chain of American golf schools is that of former English golfer John Jacobs. The
John Jacobs Golf Schools are at 32 resort hotels in 15 states. John Jacobs also
has an in-house travel department that offers complete golf tourism packages
including air fare and accommodation. A Snapshot in Chapter 2 proiles the

22
 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

Sandals Resorts Golf School in Ochos Rios Jamaica. The school offers lessons
that focus on the golfers full swing, pitch, chip, sand play specialty shots, golf
psychology, and club itting.

Case Study: The Wide World of Golf

Founded in 1957, Wide World of Golf was an early pioneer of organized golf tours.
Michael C. Roseto started the company in San Francisco originally as a travel
agency, planning golf tours to Hawaii, then moving on to the famous courses of
Scotland and Ireland as the company morphed into the irst North American golf
tour operator. It now conducts tours in more than 25 countries from ive interna-
tional ofices.
Roseto instigated the irst American visits to Japan to attend Friendship Cups as
well as South African events. Among many other irsts, he originated golf cruises
back in the 1960s and Wide World of Golf is today the oficial golf operator of
Seabourn/Cunard Cruises. Roseto also initiated ‘Around the World Golf Tours’ for
small groups of private clients. They ly to around ten different locations, combining
golf and sightseeing over a 30-day itinerary.
As trends changed in the 1990s with golf tourists opting for more independent
travel, Wide World of Golf altered its focus from larger groups to customizing tailor-
made tours. Around 80 per cent of its clients now select custom tours but Wide
World of Golf still produces a number of luxury group tours, corporate golf outings,
golf incentive programmes, and retail package tours to events such as the British
Open, US Open and The Masters.
Since the 1950s, Wide World of Golf has taken tens of thousands of golfers to
more than 30 countries all over the world. Today, partners Bill Hogan and Mike
Lardner head up the company, directing proceedings via the international ofices
as well as the licensed seasonal representatives over four continents. They organ-
ize trips ranging from three days at Pebble Beach to a 30-day round the world tour.
The average package, though, is nine days at a cost of around US$5,000. ‘Our
typical customer is a country club member, over 50, semi-retired or retired, from an
afluent demographic who has both the money and time to travel internationally,’
says Hogan, who has been President of the company for the past 20 years.
Traditional destinations focus on the UK where golfers can choose one-week es-
corted tours to the British Open, Scotland or Ireland and two-week escorted tours
combining two countries. Ground travel is by luxury coach with the package price
including accommodation in irst class hotels, breakfast, some dinners, sightsee-
ing trips, four rounds of championship golf at top rated courses every week plus
tickets to events. With Wide World of Golf, golfers can play the prestigious courses
they have seen only on television before. In Ireland there’s Ballybunion or Killarney,
for example; in Scotland, Royal Dornoch or one of the St Andrews courses; in
California, Pebble Beach or Carmel; in Wales, Royal Porthcawl; in England, Royal
Birkdale.
Alternatively golfers can opt for a Valderrama Spain golf package, visiting the ‘Cos-
ta del Golf’ or go on a San Lorenzo Portugal tour. The Thailand package includes
Blue Canyon CC and South Africa’s itinerary encompasses a Fancourt, Sun City

23
Golf Tourism

and Cape Town golf safari. Trips to New Zealand include top lodges and courses
at Cape Kidnappers and Kauri Cliffs. Australia itineraries include visits to Royal
Melbourne, Kingston Heath, the Mornington Peninsula or New South Wales.
Celebrity endorsement by Hollywood ilm star, Russell Crowe is a slick addition
to Wide World of Golf’s website street cred. The link came about when Crowe’s
cousin, Jeff Crowe (himself a famous cricketer) worked for Wide World of Golf in
New Zealand. Russell Crowe jokes about his dubious golf abilities online whilst
supporting the company’s customized tour options.
Golf cruises have been intrinsic to the company’s offering since the 1960s and
they now utilize small 30-100 passenger charter ships in the Mediterranean. In
2008 they introduced new golf cruises to the Greek Islands, Turkey, Spain and
Morocco.
The company targets couples by appealing to non-goling partners via an array
of combined activities. ‘We have sightseeing tours set up with a stable of step-
on guides available for the day,’ says Hogan. ‘They are all experts, so perhaps a
university history professor in Edinburgh will come on board and show the clients
the sights with a historical perspective.’ In Scotland sightseeing may encompass
whisky distilleries, woollen mills, witch tours, shopping or high tea at grandiose
manor houses. ‘We set up trips depending on what each country is famous for so
it might be anything from battleield tours in continental Europe to D Day landing
beaches,’ he adds.
Combination holidays are increasingly popular for golf tourists who want a dif-
ferent focus off the course as well as satisfying the needs of non-golfers in the
party. Wide World of Golf combines golf with ishing, wine tasting in New Zealand,
photography seminars in Scotland and cookery classes safaris in South Africa at
Shamwari Game Reserve where Tiger Woods got engaged. ‘When you add the
safari element it makes it more of a couples’ destination as there is a certain level
of romance that goes along with going on safari,’ says Hogan. ‘Golf and wine
make a great pairing in New Zealand, France, Italy and Argentina and our cooking
packages for Italy are quite popular. I would like to expand that side of it to attract
more couples and groups of couples in areas such as France, Spain and other
Mediterranean areas,’ says Hogan.
Over the decades marketing methods have changed for the company. ‘We used to
play up more of the golf courses. Back in the early 80s the key selling point was the
golf course line-up,’ remembers Hogan. Nowadays the type of accommodation
and range of extra-curricular activities are equally as important in attracting cus-
tomers, particularly with the addition of more women to both the goling and non-
goling clientele. Hogan has noticed a rise in female participation in the sport and
in his tours over the past ten years, not only in couples but also as women-only
groups. Wide World of Golf has arranged Hong Kong golf and Christmas shopping
itineraries; summer trips to London for theatre and golf; spa and golf; and Fashion
Week in Paris where the ladies play golf as well as taking in the catwalk shows and
associated activities.
With recession hitting the USA, Hogan is marketing good value destinations to his
customers. Wales, Thailand and Argentina offer cheaper alternatives than some

24
 1: An Introduction to Golf Tourism

of the more traditional golf destinations. ‘Wales has suddenly become a popular
destination for us. It’s somewhat undiscovered but the golf is just about as good as
Ireland and Scotland for about half the price. In this marketplace, price is deinitely
a consideration but fortunately we’ve got enough recession proof customers. We
do need more economical product in the marketplace, though, to attract new
customers,’ says Hogan.
With new golf courses and resorts being currently developed in New Europe, Rus-
sia is on Hogan’s radar for future expansion. ‘The average North American has
great curiosity about that country and destination,’ he explains. He is also look-
ing at Egypt, having irst taken golfers there in the 1980s when it was a relatively
popular long-haul destination. He has identiied golf course developments along
the Nile as a growth destination for the company. ‘What we’ve found over the years
is that a lot of our clientele have already been to lots of more mainstream places
and they are looking for new, more exotic destinations to visit,’ says Hogan. He has
reinstated Dubai on their schedule for the irst time since the 9/11 fall-out made
Middle East golf less viable.
Source: Telephone interview with Bill Hogan, 12 December 2008; http://www.
wideworldofgolf.com

Summary
This chapter lays the foundation for the remainder of the book by providing an
initial insight into this growing area of golf tourism. The chapter begins with
a deinition of golf tourism, and for the purposes of this book, golf tourism is
simply deined as travel away from home to participate in or observe the sport
of golf, or to visit attractions associated with golf. The evolution of golf tourism
is then discussed followed by a section on the size and value of the market. The
key players are then introduced – the destinations, the golfers, golf hotels and
resorts, golf real estate, golf attractions, golf retailers, golf tour operators, golf
schools and golf tournaments.

Websites
www.wgf.com World Golf Hall of Fame in Florida
http://www.randa.org The Royal & Ancient Club of St Andrews
http://www.usga.org/home The United States Golf Association (USGA)
http://www.internationalgolffederation.org The International Golf Federation
http://www.ngf.org The National Golf Foundation
http://www.iagto.com International Association of Goling Tour Operators
(IAGTO)

25
Golf Tourism

www.panoramaresort.com Panorama
www.intrawest.com Intrawest
http://www.usgamuseum.com USGA Museum, New Jersey
http://www.sunshinetour.com The Sunshine Tour oficial website
www.jacobsgolf.com John Jacobs Golf Schools
www.carnivalgolf.com Carnival Cruises Golf
http://www.gobarging.com European Waterways
http://www.wideworldofgolf.com Wide World of Golf
http://www.royalindianraj.com/ Royal India Raj International Corporation
http://www.dubaiworld.ae/en Dubai World
http://www.leisurecorp.com/_HOME_/ Leisurecorp

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Gigson, H. (2006) Sport Tourism: Concepts and Theories, New York:
Routledge.
Higham, J. (ed.) (2005) Sport Tourism Destinations, London: Elsevier Butterworth-
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