PETALING JAYA: Golf, which used to have a reputation as a sport for the well-heeled elite, is showing signs of economic strain.
The number of enthusiasts has dropped, causing sales of sport equipment and services to slide too.
According to industry players, there is significant decline in both the demand for equipment such as golf clubs and golf balls, as well as for the use of putting greens.
Gamuda Land club, township and property management director Tang Meng Loon attributed the decline to the state of the economy.
According to a forecast by economic research outfit Fitch Solutions Macro Research, Malaysia’s economic growth is likely to average 4.5% in 2020, down marginally from a World Bank forecast of 4.6% for this year.
Tang said the recent lack of enthusiasm among golfers to take to the fairway could also be due to the months-long haze followed by daily afternoon showers in recent weeks.
He said many golf clubs have managed to cushion the impact of a slowdown by hosting corporate tournaments and working closely with travel agencies to bring foreign golfers to putt in Malaysia.
“We now have about 2,000 members, mostly locals and majority of them are aged 35 and above.
“Thanks to their support, we have managed to keep the decline in revenue and profit to just about 5%.”
Tang acknowledged that many golf clubs are already offering lower rates to keep the players coming.
Another industry player Frankie Choo agrees.
“It’s a game mostly for the elite,” he told theSun.
Choo, a director of premier golf equipment accessories provider Transview Golf, said that apart from the slow economic growth, the change of government could have also contributed to a decline in interest in the sport.
“The change in the political scene, that has led to a weakening of the ringgit, has affected business,” he said.
He said two of the big four golf chain stores have already gone out of business, thanks to a 20% to 30% drop in sales industry-wide.
He estimated that the number of registered golfers has dropped to below 100,000.
Perhaps one way for the sport to get its swing back is to get some support from the government, as is the case in Thailand.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand organises a regular tournament to attract high-spending, long-staying foreign golfers on an annual basis.
But in the meantime, the industry in Malaysia may just have to count on younger people to start teeing off.
