How can we encourage extra girls and ladies, particularly these of their 20s and 30s, to play golf? Over time it is a query that I have been requested repeatedly, and I’ve tried to reply it on a number of events.
Golf is a sport that younger girls do not naturally gravitate in direction of, except they arrive from a household of golfers or are launched to the game at a younger age by a accomplice or good friend, and this lack of attraction might be partly attributed to the mystifying exclusiveness related to golf.
It is irritating as a result of these of us which are already acquainted with the game recognise the immense advantages the sport gives, however breaking down the preconceived notions that many younger girls have about golf and its accessibility has confirmed difficult.
Nevertheless, final month, I had the chance to attend an occasion at Pitch Golf London, which was organised in partnership with adidas and attended by social media influencer Mia Baker. It was an unbelievable wow second for me after I entered a room stuffed with practically 150 enthusiastic girls of their 20s and 30s, all keen to debate and expertise golf. The golf trade has made important efforts to have interaction this demographic, in addition to girls of all ages who’ve been recognized as an untapped market and important to the sport’s future, however witnessing such a big turnout at a single occasion was actually inspiring and it is encouraging for the long-term prospects of the ladies’s sport.
(Picture credit score: Pitch Golf)
In distinction to many conventional golf golf equipment that pose limitations for beginner golfers, the environment at Pitch is inviting and inclusive. Anybody can choose up a golf membership and name themselves a golfer in their very own approach, whether or not it’s usually enjoying on a simulator, reaching a reliable degree for infrequent rounds, or just taking pleasure from vacation golf. It is a huge transition for girls to make from ‘social’ golfer to golf membership member, however venues like Pitch are serving to to supply that stepping stone ought to girls need to make that leap and take the game way more significantly.
At this occasion, girls had been having fun with drinks, consuming pizza, and even getting their nails performed once they weren’t hitting golf balls. It is no marvel that this setting appeals to a youthful viewers and has the potential to draw extra girls to the game. Moreover, occasions like this play a vital function in dispelling stigmas and misconceptions surrounding golf, and so they emphasise that it would not matter the way you play, the way you gown, or the way you look – everyone seems to be welcome.
(Picture credit score: Pitch Golf)
adidas has lengthy been a forward-thinking model dedicated to pushing boundaries and selling inclusivity and social relevance, so by partnering with the like-minded group at Pitch, this occasion marked the primary of many this yr, which purpose to advertise girls’s golf and in the end create a group for ongoing engagement. Off the again of this occasion, the Pitch Academy has chosen 100 fortunate girls from a whole bunch of purposes who will obtain membership to incorporate 5 classes, seven apply classes, and every shall be kitted out with adidas gear.
Kate Kilner, 26 Analysis Analyst from London mentioned: “I am loving this occasion! I undoubtedly really feel much less judged right here, even when it is simply inside judgement. With it being all girls right here, I really feel much less like I must compete and show myself; I can chill out and give attention to my sport as I really feel extra supported in a room full of ladies”.
(Picture credit score: Pitch Golf)
It was unsurprising to find that lots of the girls current had been followers of Mia on social media. Mia, being youthful and dynamic, makes use of her posts to showcase golf as an pleasurable sport that’s accompanied by an equally pleasurable life-style. As talked about above, for younger girls unfamiliar with golf, it stays comparatively obscure. Skilled golfers like Charley Hull or Georgia Corridor are troublesome for them to narrate to, and it is seemingly they have not even heard of them. However they’ll join with somebody like Mia and he or she serves as an inspiration, as Maisie Thomas from Kent defined:
“I bought into golf with my ex-boyfriend and once we broke up, I had nobody to play with as a result of golf is just not a preferred sport amongst ladies of their 20s. It made it troublesome to progress as I had nobody I felt snug to ask inquiries to or search steering”.
Throughout conversations, I used to be additionally struck by the will of their golfer boyfriends for them to play as nicely, making it a shared pastime. I do not imply to suggest that every one males have traditionally been unsupportive of their companions enjoying golf. Nevertheless, historically, males have most well-liked to maintain that facet of their lives separate, resulting in the continued segregation between female and male sections at golf golf equipment. It’s clear that this new technology of golfers is captivated with collaborating in combined golf extra usually.
In fact, the problem is to retain curiosity and golf would not go well with everybody. However occasions like this, mixed with the optimistic influence of the inflow of feminine social media influencers, are serving to to boost the visibility of ladies’s golf and offering a pathway to draw younger girls to the sport who might need in any other case disregarded it utterly.