2021 IGA Yearbook

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR 2 021 brought a welcome shift back toward “normal” for the IGA. Vaccines and their effectiveness allowed us to gather in ways we are much more accustomed to, even while we all are still dealing with COVID-19 and its effects. A terrific lineup of host courses helped us see record entry numbers. The momentum from the uptick in rounds in 2020 was generally sustained which, while it might make it harder to get a tee time, ultimately is good for the business of golf. The NGF reports that rounds played in 2021 (thru September as that is the most recent data available) are actually up 8.4% in the U.S. compared to 2020. Now, you have to remember that many golf courses across the nation were forced to shut down in the spring of 2020, which is really what has led to numbers being up overall in 2021. If you compare the summer peak numbers of 2020 when courses opened back up and saw record play, then 2021 is slightly down compared to 2020. But that is to be expected considering how unusual 2020 was (in a lot of ways but in particular, in golf). The NGF projects that rounds played in 2021 will finish up around 3-5% compared to 2020. That is great news, certainly. The somewhat sobering part is that we evidently did not do as great a job as originally expected in bringing new golfers to the game, as the number of unique on-course golfers will only go up by about 1%. That is where we need to do better. One way the IGA and our Foundation aims to help bring more people to the game is through our Youth on Course program. We began offering Youth on Course in 2018 and it has grown every year. For those that don’t know, Youth on Course is a program where we subsidize rounds of golf for kids. That first year we had just shy of 100 kids sign up. This year we had approximately 500 kids participate and subsidized over 1,200 rounds. We hope and plan to continue to grow this program as it removes the financial burden to play golf for youngsters. We are early in the life span of Youth on Course so it is difficult to fully see how it is impacting the growth of golf here in Iowa, but we expect that a good percentage of the kids who get on the course through this program will make the game a lifetime habit. That certainly means it is a wise investment in our future. CHAD PITTS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/CEO, IGA & IGAF