don't agree with all the article states, and there are some stereotypical themes, but overall it captures the essence of why golf is in decline.
I think it ultimately relates to profound sociological shifts, that have accelerated in the last ten years.
The article states that "Golf is hard". Boy, you had better believe that. But so is bowling, so is hitting a 90 mph fast ball, so if fly fishing, so is a lot of things. There are a whole lot of things that have been hard, that never kept us away. But we have a generation now that perhaps lacks the patience of previous, and is not willing to make the physical and psychic investment that being able to play golf or other diversions require. A lot is virtual now. You play a video game, you get instant gratification without expending a lot of effort. I cannot believe how many adults I see on their cell phones playing these silly games hour after hour. I cannot believe this is healthy from the pure sedentary standpoint, but I cannot help but think there is some neurological rewiring that is being done here, and the quick positive reinforcement these games provide, creates a powerful Pavlov's effect, and the player wants more and more. You just don't get that with golf. I am but a "lowly" 18 handicapper, I really struggle at times, it might take 15 holes before I get that shot that went exactly as planned. That means a lot of time and delaying of gratification, before I get the positive reinforcement. I am ok with that, because I accept the difficulty of the game and accept the fact that golf owes me nothing. Nothing despite the best equipment, reading and practicing, and the best of intents. I don't think that premise sits well with the younger people today, they are wired differently.
I don't buy the argument that golf is time consuming, because the stats showing how much time people spend watching TV, surfing the net, and texting shows that there IS time out there.
I don't buy the argument that golf is expensive, because you can go to Golfnow or clip some coupons and play for less than $20. There is a really decent public course down the road from me that offers annual memberships for $800 a year, and there is a really decent private course that offers an annual fee of $1200/year. Yet, a lot of these same folks won't hesitate to spend $50 at a local pub, or $600 for the latest electronic gizmo, and Topgolf is not exactly cheap either. I see a lot of eating and drinking there, plus the cost of hitting the balls.
A lot of young people are really buying into this income inequality thing, and the bad guys are the ones at the golf courses. There are a lot of people that think rich people are inherently bad and exploitive, and somehow your being at a golf or country club is feeding into this and validating the behavior of these terrible people. . The truth is that people of all walks of life play golf. There are cheap golf courses that we can all afford, there are luxurious, exclusive clubs that few of us can afford. How is that any different than cars, boats, houses, etc.? That applies to every aspect of our lives, boats, cars, houses, but somehow golf and golfers get branded differently.
One thing that has really hit me hard, is how tough it is to get a bunch of guys out these days. We used to have golf outings from work, we gave up. Used to be over a hundred, and dwindled to nothing, you could not get commitment. If you ask me to play a round next week, you get a yes or no. Getting a simple yes or no is almost impossible. It seems that guys are more concerned about how they are going to have to sell this to their wife, and what tit for tat is going to have to transpire, before the "license" is granted to go out for a few hours. I really believe we are transitioning to a matriarchal culture. Women rule. I work with a lot of women being an RN, and I can't tell you how motivated many of them are. Not only working 40-60 hours, but going to school for masters and PhD's, and still finding the time to manage the house and family. I think women are really carrying us now, and that is taking its toll, because now more women than ever are dying of heart disease, and many seem to me to be incredibly tired and under a lot of stress. So when you are carrying a disproportionate share , it is really hard to make the case to go to the club and spend the day.
Bottom line is there will always be golf, but it is in decline and will continue to decline, because of a variety of sociological factors. I do not buy the economic argument, because like I said the same ones that complain about the cost will not complain about the cost of drinking, cable tv, electronic devices, high speed internet , or the cost of decent tickets to see Lady Gaga. It is a matter or priority.
This group is a microcosm, and does not reflect the average golfer, who could care less about Ross or Raynor, or whether a hole is a Redan or Biarritz. They could care less about why a pond was put there or a mound or bunker was put there. They could care less about the history of a club and how many times a given hole was remodeled. Most just want to go out there and whack the hell out of the ball and fail to realize that golf is a game with many subgames (IE sand, chipping, putting, etc) And that is not a good or bad thing, it just is what is. Things come and go in life, things hit highs and go rock bottom. Golf is not entitled to succeed or prosper, it is at the whim of who wants to participate. I take the view that the impact of golf is due to incredible sociological shifts. Secondly, due to rewiring of our central nervous systems by electronic devices that can make us asynchronous with the physical and psychic investment required by the sport of golf. Electronic devices have consumed the lives of many. Of course, they have their place. It has gone way passed the point of "their place". The merging of cellular and electronic is upon us, it almost sounds like something you would find in an science fiction book, but it is upon us, very real. There are some that are immune to this, just like you could inject 100 people with the flu virus ten times and there would be some that would never catch the flu. The human species is devolving. From a health standpoint, look at the chronic diseases, start with diabeties. And from an intellectual standpoint, look what our schools are putting out and try to have a deep intellectual discussion with a lot of people. And a discussion that does not get degraded by emotionalism rather than reason. Golf is from a different time, it is a dinosaur. It is devolving just like we are. The golden days are over, so be it.