Greg Nathan has been with the National Golf Foundation since 2007 and ascended to president and CEO in January 2024, succeeding industry legend Joe Beditz in leading the organization. One of the foremost experts on the state of the golf industry, Nathan has been recognized by Golf Inc. as one of the 25 Most Powerful People in Golf and works closely with CEOs and leadership teams from companies in every sector. Golf businesses value Nathan’s insightful perspective, broad and deep category knowledge, and a network of contacts that could challenge Kevin Bacon for degrees of separation.
What metrics does NGF track most closely to gauge the overall health of the golf business?
We describe ourselves as independent and objective reporters on the golf economy. Like any industry, the golf economy is made up of two parts: supply and demand. So that’s the natural place to start.
The need to deeply understand golf’s supply is one of the reasons we’ve always made significant investments into our databases — everywhere golf is played, retailers, club fitters, plus all locations for golf entertainment, driving ranges, and we’re tracking screen golf and technology-enabled ranges. We analyze the size, trends, how things are changing, and the type of investments being made to improve and diversify golf’s supply. Our focus is on the recreational golf industry, because as [NGF founder and World Golf Hall of Famer] Herb Graffis said, “It’s the recreational golfer from whom all blessings flow.”
On the demand side, NGF invests tremendously in understanding who’s playing; demographics, engagement, growth areas – such as how we’re at the historical high-water mark in the percentage of green grass golfers that are female and people of color. We’re constantly analyzing different segments, but sometimes the segmentation can’t simply be explained in frequency of play or demographics. This is why NGF is digging deeper into behavior. Why do people do what they do? Why do some become hooked while others play only occasionally or only in off-course environments like Topgolf or screen golf? We’re evolving how we study golf consumers by understanding their psychology and motivations. In recent years, we’ve also tracked golfer and non-golfer engagement with social media and golf-related content and how they’re impacting golf’s image.
The NGF can be looked at analogously as a general practitioner, and the patient is very healthy right now. Within the…
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