Mini Golf Game

That’s the headline on an interesting article in the New York Times that details a drop-off in the number of Americans playing golf games, and tries to tease out some of the reasons such a drop-off is occurring.Perhaps this isn’t so surprising. The golf industry was flying high 10 years ago, with booms in participation, spending and golf course construction. But golf games course construction stalled several years ago, and now partipation appears to be dropping off.

The reasons may not be very complicated: Golf is an expensive hobby, and a round of golf takes about four or four-and-a-half hours to play, on average, in the U.S. When time and money are tight - as they increasingly are for more and more Americans - spending money on golf games, and spending a half-dozen hours getting to, through and from a round of golf, are likely to be increasingly seen as luxuries.

Citing statistics from the National Golf Foundation and the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association, the Times reported:

• Since 2000, the number of Americans playing golf games has dropped from 30 million to 26 million.
• Avid golfers - those playing 25 times a year or more - dropped by nearly a third, from 6.9 million to 4.6 million.
• Core golfers - those playing 8 times a year or more - fell from 17.7 million to 15 million.

Alexander Downer has missed a sitting of federal parliament to play a round of golf game, it has been revealed.

The former foreign minister missed a sitting on February 14, instead playing golf game with former deputy prime minister Mark Vaile, News Ltd reports.

The pair headed to the Royal Canberra Golf Club on the third sitting day of the new parliament, with parliamentary documents showing that just after 9am they were absent from three votes in the House of Representatives.

The depleted coalition would have lost the votes as the government has the numbers, but their absence has upset colleagues.

“Nobody who was seeking re-election would be behaving like this,” the source told News Ltd.

It’s the second time Mr Downer has come under fire this week, after revelations he missed question time to lunch with a journalist.