2024 IGA Yearbook

12 HANDICAPPING & COURSE RATING A Year of Growth and Community As the Iowa Golf Association (IGA) wraps up another impressive year, I am proud to share that the continued growth and success that have defined our membership over the last few years has continued again in 2024. The IGA has remained at the forefront of fostering a vibrant and growing golf community across the state. This can be seen in the great variety of member clubs and individuals that make up the IGA family which I am so excited to be a part of. Here's a look back at some of the key numbers and milestones from 2024 that I think are worth sharing! Membership Growth Continues to Soar In 2024, we welcomed 8 new member clubs and served over 29,700+ IGA individual members. Individual growth was up 8% from the previous year which in comparison to previous years has continued to remain steady! Junior golfers, in particular, have experienced a remarkable 45% surge, totaling 2,393, while women’s participation grew by 4%, bringing our female membership to 3,947. Online Members – USGA/Iowa AGA Club Our online membership program has also continued to grow, seeing a 4% uptick in memberships. This programhas helped give golfers who don’t necessarily belong to a private facility an opportunity to obtain an IGA membership through a member club in their area. Through this initiative, we continue to support clubs with a rebate of $14 per golfer, providing an additional stream of revenue for public facilities across the state. To compliment the IGA’s online membership program the USGA has also promoted its own online membership program which is a partnership with us. Golfers who search the web looking to get a handicap will be directed to the USGA’s website that streamlines a process where if they join they become a member of the local state association their zip code falls under. The USGA/Iowa GC has been a huge success and has grown to become one of the largest clubs we serve. MATT ARENHOLZ, COMMITTEE CHAIR Eric & Reese Buntenbach