Golf has absolutely surged in popularity in the past few years. The sport has gone from old rich men to teens in frat boy fits striping 250 yard drives. Companies like Callaway, Topgolf, and the PGA are booming in business because of this increase in popularity. The popularity is primarily coming from younger people, like teens or young adults.
The official sport of golf was inspired by a very similar game played in the 15th century. The sport was created in Scotland and one of the first ever golfers was a Scottish king that was 40 years old at the time (very telling about the stereotypes of golf). The stereotype of golf being for old rich men has carried on for multiple years now, but golf is spreading like a wildfire among the younger generations. No one really knows exactly how this could have happened but there could be a few culprits. Golf influencers have taken golf from 60+ year old men swinging thousand dollar clubs on the tv into just a couple of average guys playing golf on a random course. Creators like Good Good Golf, Bryson Dechambeau, and Grant Horvat have made the game of golf young. Not only are the professionals and the youtubers popular, but collegiate golf is also making an impressive run. Collegiate golf is just a bunch of college kids playing golf to ultimately win a trophy and possibly entrance into the best of the best tournament, the PGA Tour. People are doing anything they can to get their hands on some golf. Even if it’s watching an hour long youtube video, as long as it’s golf, people are happy.
Golf is a sport that someone can enjoy throughout their lifetime. In October of 2024 the National Golf Foundation found that in the U.S.A alone there are around 25.6 million people that play golf. Among that 25.6 million the average time that a player remains active in the sport is 20 years. There was a more recent study done in 2025 that discovered that 43% of golfers are over the age of 50, and 57% of golfers are over the age of 50. This shows that the game of golf is genuinely played by all ages. But there’s one question that needs to be answered about all of this. Is this just another teen trend that will die off in a year, or are teen golfers here to stay. Darin Bondi, a junior at Broad Run and an avid golfer says, “The smacking of the ball against the club when you hit a good shot is simply addicting”. People got hooked on the feeling of the shot, the mental aspect of the game, and the continuous improvement in skill. Some people are even hooked on the clothing that golf offers. There’s brands like Nike who offer the stereotypical bright colored polo, Or brands like “bad birdie” who take a more modern artistic route to golf clothing. Darin Bondi, when asked about the look of golf clothing, said, “Oh golf drip? I love it, its classy, and professional but not too professional”.
The game of golf is played and enjoyed by all types of people. In recent history the game of golf has become popular with the younger generations. Some people speculate that this will be a short lived trend. Some think that this is a hobby to stay. Maybe the trend will stick and all these teenage golfers will be stereotypical dads hitting the course on the weekends one day in the future.
