Golf is a sport with a phenomenal following in the UK. But we wanted to know how popular golf is in 2024 and how many people will take part in the sport at least monthly.
So at the start of 2024, we polled 2,000 people aged 16 and over to find out who’s planning to play regularly this year. We coupled that with some more research and digging into UK golf statistics and present this – our 2024 round up of must know golf statistics.
The Fast Golf Facts
If you’re only here for a quick round, then here are what we consider the key facts and figures in bullet point form! If you want more detail and context, you can read on:
- More than 1 in 20 people aged 16 and over in the UK plan to play golf at least monthly in 2024
- Men are more than 3 times likelier to play golf at least monthly than women
- The age group likeliest to play golf at least monthly in the UK are the 25 to 34s
- The West Midlands is the region of the UK where golf is the most popular
How Many People Play Golf in the UK?
We polled 2,000 members of the public with the help of a market research company in January 2024 to ask them which sports they intend to engage in at least monthly over the course of the year.
5.60% of them said golf was one of the sports they anticipated taking part in at least monthly.
But we saw significant variations in terms of the number of people taking part in golf when we dug into age, gender and even region. Let’s dive in.
How Many Men vs Women Play Golf?
While the overall national average was just over 1 in 20 regular golf players, there was some serious differences in responses between men and women.
- 8.52% of men said they will play golf at least once a month in 2024
- Just 2.55% of women said the same
In other words, men are more than 3 times as likely to play golf regularly as women.
Golf Popularity Statistics by Age
We also saw variations by age group. Let’s look at the numbers:
| Age | Proportion Who Will Play Golf At Least Monthly in 2024 |
| 16 – 24 | 4.65% |
| 25 – 34 | 8.72% |
| 35 – 44 | 5.59% |
| 45 – 54 | 5.99% |
| 55 and over | 4.48% |
Golf is far from an old person’s sport. In fact, it’s our second youngest age group where the statistics show golf is most popular.
8.72% of those aged 25 to 34 plan to play at least monthly.
Where in the UK do People Play Golf the Most?
The West Midlands, it seems, where people are almost twice as likely as the national average to play at least monthly.
Here’s the proportion of people region by region in the UK who, according to our survey statistics, will play golf monthly in 2024:
| Region | Proportion Who Will Play Golf At Least Monthly in 2024 |
| East of England | 5.35% |
| Greater London | 5.36% |
| East Midlands | 4.70% |
| West Midlands | 10.17% |
| North East | 2.50% |
| North West | 5.41% |
| Northern Ireland | 7.14% |
| Scotland | 8.86% |
| South East | 2.53% |
| South West | 4.00% |
| Wales | 8.60% |
| Yorkshire and Humber | 5.45% |
The data shows clear variations from region to region.
The three keenest golfing regions of the UK are:
- West Midlands (10.17% will play monthly)
- Scotland (8.86%)
- Wales (8.60%)
At the opposite end of the spectrum, just 2.50% of those in the North East plan to play golf monthly.
Golf on Social Media
Let’s face it. Plenty of us like to share our sporting endeavours on social media. We had a look at some of the most popular golfing hashtags on Instagram and found some have millions of posts. Here are some of the most popular (with the number of posts as of 13th February 2024):
- #golf (36.3 million)
- #golfswing (4.99 million)
- #golflife (5.2 million)
- #golftips (1.3 million)
- #golfday (1.1 million)
So without a doubt this is massive deal on social media with some golf related influencers amassing millions upon millions of views on their content.
But whether you’re an amateur enthusiast, an aspiring golf influencer or someone who fancies themselves as pretty skilled on the golf course, one thing is for sure. If you’re playing golf you’re in some pretty good company along with millions of others who pick up their clubs and don their golf shoes at least monthly here in the UK.
Happy golfing.
