Women’s Golf in the United States: Ongoing Inequities and Fairways to Equity

Women's golf in the United States is at a crossroads: participation is at record levels, and professional women's golf has achieved global commercial success, yet deep inequalities still exist at every level. This paper reviews recent studies to explore four interconnected topics in women’s golf in the U.S.: participation trends, institutional and interactional barriers, organizational and media practices in professional women's golf, and the role of golf in women's business opportunities and networking. Analysis of high school participation data shows an increase in the number of girl golfers, but projections suggest their proportional share may decline by 2034, indicating the fragility of recent progress. In recreational settings, exclusionary club cultures continue to hinder women's full participation, while the growth in women's involvement during the pandemic era remains uncertain for the future. In employment and coaching, women comprise less than 5% of PGA golf management program enrollees and under 3% of PGA professionals, driven by gendered perspectives on coaching and male-dominated hiring networks. At the professional level, media coverage of the LPGA reveals intersections of sexism and racism. Golf can serve as a powerful platform for women's networking and entrepreneurship, but these benefits are often limited to those who already possess social capital and can navigate gendered norms.

This paper concludes that these equity issues are interconnected and rooted in institutional and cultural factors rather than isolated concerns, and that they require a coordinated, multi-level approach, including policy reform, organizational culture changes, coach education, leadership development, and media accountability.