Three years have passed since the COVID-19 pandemic hit the United States and the PGA Show was thriving once again during its 70th edition in Orlando. 

Seen as the launching pad for the start of the golf season for decades, the PGA Show went virtual in 2021 and was heavily affected last year because of the ongoing pandemic. But it was clear from the more than 800 exhibitors in late January that the game has branched off into major areas of growth, with technology along many sectors taking the lead in the re-energizing of the sport. 

“Generally, we have this sense that golf’s image is evolving, it is showing up in new and different places,” said David Lorentz, the top researcher for the National Golf Foundation. 

For example, there was a significant presence on the Show floor from various golf simulator firms, showcasing golf’s willingness to think out of the box when it comes to attracting new players to the game. 

“The momentum we saw at the Show and also the knowledge that people are coming here with now is great,” said Ken Reynolds, vice president of sales for AboutGolf custom golf simulators. “People used to walk in and say, ‘What the heck is that?’ Now, it’s ‘Hey I want a simulator, this is the space I have, and this is what I’m looking to do, and this is how I want to use it.’”

There were numerous conversations and educational seminars that centered on golf access and accessibility as the NGF announced rounds once again increased by more than 13% each of the three years running. 

“We are about 1,000 days into this modern era boom for golf,” Lorentz said. “To me, it has sort of felt like the Apple Store on iPhone release day in the sense that we have a good product, people recognize we have a good product, and yet the buzz and the demand for it still seems a bit beyond belief for most. We’ve been conditioned over a 10- or 15-year period to not quite appreciate how good our product really is. So, when the windfall of demand came back in 2020 there was this sense of surprise, like it was almost an undeserved gift.”

The PGA Show has seemingly taken that “gift” and run with it full steam ahead. 

“You don’t necessarily execute golf on your own little island,” said Robbie Wooten, of Impact Golf Marketing, who has been to the PGA Show networking every year since 1993. “It seems like when you come here people get energized, they get fired up and they go back to their communities and make things happen.”