On National Girls and Women in Sports Day, take a look at climbing participation numbers and increased opportunity for women’s golfers.
On National Girls and Women in Sports Day, women’s golf has much to celebrate. The statistics and shout-outs rolled in Wednesday on social media, painting a picture of a growing segment of the game.
Women and girls across all sports are recognized in this way annually on a day powered by the Women’s Sports Foundation, an organization that funds research, educates and advocates for women in athletics.
In the golf world, many of the competition opportunities for women are afforded through through LPGA and USGA Girls Golf, a national junior golf program that provides opportunities for girls to learn the game.
The USGA annually hosts five amateur championships for women at all ages, and participation has climbed noticeably there, too. The USGA reported receiving 189 entries for the U.S. Girls’ Junior in 1989, and a record 1,606 entries in 2018. The U.S. Women’s Amateur also hit its record entry number (1,468) in 2018.
The ANNIKA Foundation also creates playing opportunities for young women and does it all around the world. According to the foundation’s 2018 annual report, 550 girls from 60-plus countries participated in one of the foundation’s events last season. More than 600 ANNIKA competitors have played golf at the collegiate level, with 45 earning LPGA Tour cards.
More: Annika Foundation gives back to golf on global scale
At the college level, recent research compiled by the NCAA reveals a major participation jump in women’s college golf. The sport gained 157 new teams – across all three NCAA divisions – since 2008, which accounts for the largest growth among all women’s sports except lacrosse and track and field.
Women’s college golf grew at more than triple the rate that men’s golf did, though men’s numbers are also up in the last decade. The NCAA reports a net gain of 46 men’s golf teams across all divisions.
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