Survey of 514 Korean Golf Course Management Association Locations
Over 50 Million Visitors for 2 Consecutive Years
Average Users per Hole Slightly Decreased
"Impact of Saturation Compared to Domestic Infrastructure"
Last year, the total number of visitors to 514 golf courses nationwide reached 50.58 million, marking an all-time high.
The Korea Golf Course Management Association announced on the 29th, "According to the survey of visitors to 514 golf courses with six or more holes operating nationwide, 15.79 million visitors used 155 membership golf courses, and 33.78 million visitors used 359 non-membership courses."
The annual number of golf course visitors last year increased by about 20,000 from the previous record of 50.56 million in 2021. After surpassing 40 million for the first time in 2019 with 41.7 million visitors, the number significantly increased following COVID-19, exceeding 50 million for two consecutive years recently.
Status of Golf Course Visitors Nationwide [Data provided by Korea Golf Course Management Association]
The average number of visitors per hole, a management indicator, was 5,006 last year, about 86 fewer than the 5,092 average in 2021. By region, Gyeongbuk recorded the highest number of visitors per hole at 6,062, followed by Gyeongnam (5,684), Chungbuk (5,209), and Chungnam (5,180), all exceeding an average of 5,000 visitors per hole. Jeju had the lowest with 3,883 visitors per hole. Compared to the previous year, only Jeonbuk (0.8%) and Jeju (2.6%) saw slight increases in visitor numbers, while all other regions experienced decreases in average visitors per hole.
An association official explained, "The surge in visitors after COVID-19 is interpreted as reaching the limit of domestic golf course infrastructure." The statistics do not include fitness centers operated by the Ministry of National Defense or golf courses within U.S. military bases.
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