From the Clubhouse: We ask England Golf if the sport is heading for a cost-of-living crisis + WHS is finally going global!

Tee sheets are still busy, membership remains buoyant and, as the success of England Golf’s independent golfer scheme shows, new players continue to be attracted to our wonderful game.

While the number of rounds played may not be hitting the heights of 2020 and 2021, they remain way above pre-Covid levels – and there has been no sign in this year’s club renewals of a halt in the sport’s popularity.

And yet there are gathering clouds on the horizon. The cost-of-living crisis, spearheaded by huge energy bills that seem certain to come our way later this year, represent a big threat to our disposable incomes and could dramatically change our leisure habits.

So how can golf prepare for this and how can the authorities help? And what about other issues around growing participation for women and girls, sustainability, and the World Handicap System?

To talk about the success of iGolf, and how England Golf are meeting the challenge in some of these areas, our guest on the From the Clubhouse podcast is the governing body’s chief operating officer Richard Flint…