How employable are golf pros?

CareerExplorer rates golf pros with a D employability rating, meaning this career should provide weak employment opportunities for the foreseeable future.

Are golf pros in demand?

Between 1999 and 2003, Tiger Woods won an estimated thirty-two golf tournaments, among them seven majors. During this period golf was, not coincidentally, at its most popular. Since then, the industry has struggled to regain traction. Today, it is in need of reinvention, as the sport’s current struggles are having a downward impact on its overall jobs outlook. Resurgence of the golf industry depends on its finding better ways to compete with a shift in leisure activities brought on by the internet and social media. With time at a premium and workdays often extending beyond five o’clock, fewer and fewer people can regularly dedicate four hours or more to play eighteen holes of golf, especially considering the often high cost. These challenges make it more important than ever for aspiring pros to reach the level of golf proficiency required of pros: regularly shooting around par. Although club professionals are not expected to be championship golfers like those on the PGA Tour, passing the PGA Playing Ability Test is required for PGA membership. At both public and private courses, the head golf professional oversees the operations of the golf shop, including merchandise sales. This calls upon aspiring golf pros to supplement their game expertise with skills in management of a leisure industry business. Consequently, candidates significantly increase their employability if they are graduates of the PGA Golf Management (PGM) University Program, a five-year program leading to a Bachelor’s Degree in Golf Management and PGA membership. As the industry appears to be open to more flexible course scheduling; per-hole and family pricing; and embracing golf apps and new technologies to attract millennials, the number of players is expected to grow again, and so too is the number of jobs for golf pros.