Page 11 - GBC Fall Eng 2016

industry Leaders Weigh in
For golf, the upcoming Olympic Games in
Rio de Janeiro is a blank sheet of paper. There is no comparative barometer. All we have as a reference point is from 112 years ago in 1904. That is when Canada’s George S. Lyon won the Olympic gold medal in St. Louis, MI and, that it was the last and only time golf was a medal sport at the Games.
There is no data to draw conclusions from or to create theories. What we have is our best guess.
GoLF’S RETURn To THE oLYMPiCS
Here is what we do know: golf is returning to the Olympics after more than a century; Canada is the defending champion and 60 player fields for both the men’s and women’s competition will vie for Olympic gold through a 72-hole stroke play competition on a new Gil Hanse designed golf course.
We know of issues with the Zika virus causing some top players, including Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, and Jordan Spieth to withdraw from the Games. We know there are environmental and economic concerns,alongwithlogisticsproblems.
That said, golf is still going to be played in Rio. And, it will be watched. According to a global broadcast report from the 2012 Games in London, the Olympics had an audience of close to 5 billion viewers from almost 100,000
hours of television coverage. That is the equivalent of over 11 years of footage. Online there were 8.5 billion Olympics-generated page views from 621 million unique visitors.
That kind of reach is owned only by the Olympic Games. Will that have a positive effect on the game in the short and long term? Could govern- ments worldwide, especially those whose countries are not involved with golf, make provisions for the sport by investing in grassroots programming and golf-based infra- structure? Here at home, and in golf centric countries globally, can the Olympics offer a new channel for participants?
A number of golf industry leaders weighed in on golf in the Olympics and what the best possible outcomes might be for Canada and the sport in general. Here are their thoughts on the ROI on Rio:
Golf Business Canada 11