Here’s why golf is so popular among people in their 20s and 30s.

From June 18th to 21st, the ‘34th Kia Motors Korea Women’s Open Golf Championship’ took place. Ryu So-yeon took home the winning trophy after a cutthroat game. Due to COVID 19, the tournament did not host the gallery, but it still was a huge success. It even recorded the highest TV ratings for all Korean women’s golf major competitions.

The 34th Kia Motors Korea Women’s Open Golf Championship showed the transition of golf generations; the photo is of the tournament winner Ryu So-yeon.

This competition set the stage for the transition of golf generations. There was a big decrease of average age of the players entering the competition while those who are in their 20s and 30s including the 30 year old tournament winner Ryu So-yeon and players Choi Hye-jin, who is 22 years old, and Cho Ah-yean, 21, showed great results.

Players early in 20s like Cho Ah-yean have shown great results in this competition.

This coincides with the current golf market trend. From 2018, there has been a big increase in people in their 20s and 30s enjoying golf as a hobby; the so-called ‘young golfers.’ According to the Korea Golf Association’s 2018 research, 56.6% of the respondents who said they were ‘willing to learn golf in the future’ were those in their 20s and 30s. In early June, the analysis of Hyundai Department Store’s golf product sales increase for the first half of 2020 in different age groups also showed that the sales from the 20s and 30s consumers increased by 10.7% compared to previous year’s first half.

A New Wave on the Field Created by New Generation and the Era

Digital golf lesson and the popularization of screen golf, etc., have provided people in their 20s and 30s to encounter golf.

There is a reason why 20s and 30s took interest in golf. First, these people prioritize experience over owning things. They place great value in deciding what to eat, what to wear and what to experience. So, rather than buying a house or saving up, they spend their money on going on trips and having a hobby. We call this tendency ‘Small Luxury.’ And they chose golf courses as a place to realize their small luxury.

The popularization of screen golf also contributed to 20s and 30s getting familiar with golf culture. KakaoVX, which operates a screen golf brand, implemented latest technologies like VR onto screen golf and provides sophisticated screen golf service for the likings of 20s and 30s. 18 types of ‘Kakao Friends‘ motions and sounds are added as well as a fun factor ‘Photo Zone’ where you can see photos with a screen background upon a hole-in-one. Watching golf lessons unaffected by time and space limitation through various digital channels like YouTube is also another reason behind the increase of young golfers. A certain golf wear brand made use of this trend and carried out a live YouTube golf class after 5pm for those who were heading home from work.

Until now, golf had the image of being a ‘luxurious, business sport.’ But now that the people in their 20s and 30s have entered the golf market, things are starting to change. It’s becoming a true sport in a sense, one that can be enjoyed by everyone without any pressure.

Golf Marketing Targets 20s and 30s.

The golf industry is carrying out various marketing strategies that target the 20s and 30s (photography source. Volvik official homepage).

These days, there is a popular hashtag on SNS where the 20s and 30s hang out. It’s ‘#golfstagram.’ They certify and share golf related information such as golf courses and golf wear with this hashtag. As this phenomenon can naturally lead to the promotion and sales of golf related businesses, the golf industry is aggressively carrying out marketing strategies for the young golfers.

Volvik, golf product brand, carried out collaborations with brands favored by 20s and 30s like Marvel and Disney. Their Captain America, Iron Man, Winnie the Pooh, and Mickey Mouse golf ball packages launched last fall was a huge success which made a big contribution to their sales increase. Kakao also released golf wear, golf ball, accessories, etc., with their own characters Ryan, Apeach, Frodo, etc., to target customers in their 20s and 30s. Golf wear brands are also moving fast. In consideration of the trait of this particular generation that prioritizes utilization, brands are introducing designs that can be utilized as everyday fashion with bold patterns and colors to accentuate the youthful vivaciousness. It’s also worth noting how the photoshoot models have become younger. A golf wear photo spread even made use of drones, cameras and joysticks with which the younger generation is familiar.

How to Play Rounds of Golf at Reasonable Prices

There’s now an app that can reserve a golf course at a reasonable price according to each golfer’s tendencies.

There’s a case of marketing that maximizes cost-efficiency and convenience as well. It’s led by the ‘no caddy, no cart’ strategy. If you don’t use a caddy, you can save more than 30,000 KRW per person on a round, so it’s quite popular among the young golfers. There are also a marshal caddy (driving caddy) which is in charge of course introduction and cart driving, and the self-license which allows you to enjoy the game while driving your own cart after fulfilling only a few criteria that also help with cutting costs.

There’s also an app that reserves the golf course at a certain price range, region, and time. It’s a huge improvement from the existing reservation method which had people phone the course and find out the time and cost or have a membership. You can compare different prices for different times at a glance and make the reservation easily. You can also quickly find out whether they provide meals, allow shorts, as well as the number of players allowed. It also provides reviews on the grass status, caddy expertise, landscape, facility, etc.

There’s also a business that operates the golf product loan service for the 20s and 30s who prefer shared economy. You can use an RMX driver and an iron for 20 days through this service and even get a discount if you wish to make a purchase after the use.

These days, due to COVID 19, there are concerns about indoor activities. Thus, there are more and more golfers in their 20s and 30s enjoying golf while abiding by everyday life guidelines such as wearing a mask, distancing from one another by 2m, not eating after roundings and not taking a shower. People are expected to carry out such endeavors to safely enjoy golf. What used to be a luxury social game just for the middle-aged with high entry barrier is now transforming into a popular sport for everyone, as the time calls for one. Here’s to the future of golf culture which will be easily accessible and enjoyed without pressure.