Golf’s not just surviving in Canada—it’s thriving. The 2024 Golf Canada annual report, dropped on March 6, reveals nearly six million Canadians hit the links last year, with over 360,000 members logging nearly 11 million rounds. What started as a pandemic pastime has morphed into a full-blown passion, fueled by kids, women, and fresh ways to play.
“The boom we saw has settled into steady growth,” Golf Canada CEO Laurence Applebaum said Tuesday. “Tech upgrades, lifestyle shifts, shorter game formats, and simulator golf—it’s all clicking to keep people swinging.”
Programs like First Tee and Youth on Course are teeing up the next generation. First Tee, a life-skills initiative using golf as its hook, went nationwide in 2024, reaching over 100,000 kids since its 2021 debut. Youth on Course, making the game wallet-friendly, spread to nine provinces with 105 courses offering $5-or-less rounds—racking up 32,900 plays by 5,382 young golfers. “They’re having a blast,” Applebaum said, noting a demographic shift. “Our player base got younger and more female in ‘23 and ‘24.”
The She Plays Golf festivals, launched in Calgary in 2023 and expanded to Toronto and Vancouver last year, welcomed women and girls into the game with a no-pressure vibe. Add in an executive women’s program for pros eager to join the golf scene, and it’s clear: inclusivity’s a hole-in-one. “It’s not one thing—it’s 20 things aligning,” Applebaum said. “Golf’s hitting its stride as a mental and physical health win for all ages.”
Golf Canada spiced up 2024 with the Canadian U15 Championship and Canadian Collegiate Invitational, pushing its championship tally to 36. The BDO National Golf League kept the momentum rolling, with over 10,000 players from 107 leagues battling it out. Fifty-two pairs earned a shot at the title during the RBC Canadian Open at Hamilton Golf and Country Club, with the champs jetting off to Royal Troon, Scotland, for The R&A 9 Hole Challenge at the 152nd British Open.
From fairways to simulators, Canada’s golf scene is proving it’s no flash-in-the-pan—it’s here to stay, and it’s younger, fresher, and more diverse than ever.