• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, May 31, 2017

With Tiger Woods’ bleary-eyed mugshot still ricocheting ’round the Internet, plenty of fans are remarking on how far the mighty have fallen. The same might be said of golf itself.

In his latest analysis of the sputtering golf business, Matt Powell, sports industry analyst for NPD Group, tees up the bad news. “Golf equipment sales for the full year of 2016 were down in the low single-digits,” he writes. “Club sales, an indicator of new players adopting the game, were down in the high single-digits. And golf balls, an indicator of rounds played, declined in the low single-digits.”

There were certainly bright spots, with sales of golf apparel up in the low teens, in part because of big increases from Greg Norman and Under Armour, according to the Port Washington, N.Y.-based market researcher. But thus far, Powell writes that 2017 isn’t shaping up to much better, with equipment sales off some 20%, and apparel down 25%. 

The main problem continues to the one golf just can’t outrun: Younger people just don’t like it.

The National Sporting Goods Association says that in 2016, just 18.5 million people picked up a club, down 12% from 2012. And while that same period shows a small increase of 1% for people 55 and older, the declines are steep in other age groups. Among those between 35 and 54, there’s been a 10% drop in participation since 2012; among 18-to-34-years old, a 23% decrease, and in the 7-to-17-age bracket, a 34% fall.

The organization has polled younger golfers about why they’ve given it up and found that 22% say they found something they enjoy more, 17% say it’s become too expensive and 10% say it just takes too much time.

“Golf has been trying to reach a young urban audience,” says Barry Janoff, executive editor of NYSportsJournalism and a Marketing:Sports columnist. “Tennis is much more successful, in part because tennis courts are much more accessible than golf courses.”

He points out that golf’s sponsorship dollars continue to be healthy, with IEG, Chicago, reporting that spending hit a record $1.8 billion in 2016, and is expected to reach $2 billion this year. And stars like Rory McIlroy and Jason Day (both Nike athletes) and Jordan Spieth (Under Armour) continue to generate plenty of interest, especially in Latin America and Asia.

But brands are struggling to adjust to consumers’ disdain. Both Adidas and Nike (which told USA Today it would stick with its relationship with Tiger Woods, despite the arrest) said they would exit the golf equipment business last year.

“With sales struggling, the golf business is now a market share game,” says Powell. “Brands and retailers can win, but they will do so only by taking share from others.”