December delivers downer weather nationally, November Utilization also off slightly

A year that was already underperforming on weather went out on a significant downer with Golf Playable Hours (GPH) registering -23% vs. December ’23 (poetic coincidence?).  That made the year-end figure settle at -2%, at the low end of what we call the neutral range (+/-2%).  The YtD regional breadth metric deteriorated slightly as a result but finished relatively level at a 1:1 ratio comprised of 11 favorable regions vs. 15 unfavorables and 19 in the neutral zone (+/- 2%).

National Played Rounds for November as published by Golf Datatech were positive for a 2^nd consecutive month at +3% at the All Facilities level.  Comparing back to last month’s GPH results (+5%), we can chalk up November’s rounds favorability exclusively to good fortune vs. good management necessarily.  Combining the two numbers to produce % Utilization shows that, for the month, we declined by 2 pts which didn’t materially impact the YtD gain which remains at +2 pts (solid) or 63%.

Jim Koppenhaver comments on the results, "Kind of like stock market moves over holidays, December is one of those months that many in golf write off due to its low contribution to rounds but, for the 12-month markets, it’s meaningful and weather matters.  Fortunately we had mixed results for the current month “where it matters” and most of the decline was in the 9-11 month markets.  Looking at the map for the current month (left-hand arrows), we saw “hits” taken in the SE Coastal while FL and Phoenix saw gains rounded out by TX and CA Coastal showing mixed results.  Looking at the YtD (right-hand arrows) it was a tough year for the majority of the East Coast geos and Atlanta while the Great Lakes regions had solid gains joined by Central TX (Dallas area).  Switching to December YtD market-level weather and focusing on our Top 25 Markets, Dallas benefitted from the biggest tailwind at +9% while Washington DC closed out the year as the biggest weather loser (-10%) followed by Phoenix and Philly (-9% each).  Finally, observing the November YtD Utilization leaders & laggards, Phoenix emerges as the clear leader (+6 pts) followed by Cleveland (+4 pts) while Dallas/Ft Worth is mathematically guaranteed the crown for biggest decliner at -6 pts with only one month left “to play”.  I’m still waiting for the “early responders” December submissions from our Golf Market Research Center (GMRC) subscribers for Rounds, Golf Revenue and Rate so we’ll just have to wait with bated breath to see what the final (record) figures are going to be for that portfolio in less than a week.  In addition to knowing their weather-adjusted performance, our GMRC subscribers also have visibility into the summarized portfolio of participants and a limited number of markets to reference whether their performance is pacing, leading or lagging the GMRC portfolio universe; you could too (hint, hint)."

Speaking of the GMRC and the ability for courses to see their monthly performance in comparative reports the day the month closes, we're always looking for more subscribers to give us either more market breadth or bigger samples in the markets where we have current participants.  We know from our visibility to the Golf Revenue numbers that courses are generally flush with cash (we've also seen all the public domain articles on renovations, massive CapEx spending etc. to corroborate) so we'd hazard a guess that the $500 investment decision isn't being hampered by lack of funds.  Program participants have been able to view graphic, single page monthly trend reports for Rounds and Utilization from '19-'23 as well as having a 7 measure KPI single page report for any month and YtD period for which they entered data.  The GMRC gives you visibility to your Market Profile and, after you enter your Rounds, Golf Revenue and Peak Season GF Rate by month, to immediately see your results through our comparative reports with integrated weather impact.  So how do you "get in on the action"?  Glad you asked...

Utilization from '19-'23 as well as having a 7 measure KPI single page report for any month and YtD period for which they entered data.  The GMRC gives you visibility to your Market Profile and, after you enter your Rounds, Golf Revenue and Peak Season GF Rate by month, to immediately see your results through our comparative reports with integrated weather impact.  So how do you "get in on the action"?  Glad you asked...

You can email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , to subscribe (see below for benefits) and get started by inputting your information through th current month or if you'd like to engage in the 2-wk trial

• Watch the 18 minute GoToWebinar recording of the program overview and a demonstration of the portal and reports (fill in your name and email and it will open the video link; you're not signing up for anything)
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