Who wants change?
“I believe there is a narrative around the global game right now that is crying for change.”
We all love golf. The full 18 hole game. The 72 hole tournament. The tradition. The history. And nobody at The European Tour is looking to diminish that.
But everybody in the industry is talking right now about how to connect with Millennials and Generation Z. These two generations are the future of our sport, and if we as an industry can’t understand them, and adapt and expand what we are offering to them, then in the long term the game is in trouble.
“Millennials (1980-1995) have an average attention span of 12 seconds, and their number one anxiety is choice overload. Generation Z (1995 and beyond) have an average attention span of only eight seconds, and their number one anxiety is phone separation.”
The truth is that these young people make their decisions based on some different criteria to past generations. They are looking for different things from a golf course and from the game itself. If we just continue doing things the way we always have, we will fail to engage with them.
“For The European Tour, our core is the 72 hole tournament. For golf clubs and resorts, it’s the 18 hole green fee. That’s great. That’s perfect. But it shouldn’t be all that you are, and it shouldn’t be your only focus. If it is, I think you’re going to see the entire industry shrink over the next ten years.”
It’s up to us, as the gatekeepers of the game, to find ways to bring the next generation into the sport, to help them fall in love with it as we have – and that means innovation… and some bold thinking.
How do we change?
The primary thing modern generations are looking for is flexibility. They are used to having their services on demand, tailored to fit their schedule and easy to access. For us, this means being willing to rethink how people access the game.
“If the game was created today, I guarantee you that we wouldn’t have made it 18 holes. No chance. It would be a 12 hole game. Because you would never create a sport that takes four and a half hours to play in the modern world.”
We have to be willing to rethink the whole concept, to redesign courses if necessary. If you were to build a golf course now where you couldn’t get back to the clubhouse after 3 holes you’d be crazy. If you build them the way we have always built them, then you literally slash your future marketing ability.
“How are you going to stand out to generations with very short attention spans who live in a world of saturated content and incredible choice?”
We will continue to do the 72 hole tournaments, of course, but beyond that we will look to be more innovative. Don’t be afraid to have a club championship that is five holes. Or a championship that is five clubs. Why not try making your men’s night just six holes, and get them to the bar quicker. It’s all about enjoyment. You will always have your die-hards that come down and play the full 18 holes every week, but we have to reach beyond that.
This is what we are doing with GolfSixes. We are marketing it to a completely different demographic.
“Do I believe GolfSixes has an opportunity? I believe it has a great opportunity. I believe it can actually be the next format in golf. I do. And I believe it’s something that every golf club should adopt.”
TopGolf is another great example of thinking outside of the box, turning the driving range into a social gaming experience. Everyone should want to have a TopGolf at their club if they can, because it will draw a whole new crowd into the game. And isn’t that what we all want… to grow the game?
Like any business, if you’re not changing, then you risk the chance of becoming irrelevant. The need to be creative in our game has never been higher, and we don’t need to be afraid of that. We need to embrace it. We can keep the things we love, but also adapt, innovate, evolve. That’s how golf will survive and thrive for another generation.
“At The European Tour we are not going to become irrelevant. We’re going to lead innovation. We’re going to lead the transformation of the global game.”
