Golf injury statistics vary sharply by definition and denominator. International reviews measure injuries per 18-hole exposure or lifetime prevalence, while Australian cohort data, professional surveys and U.S. emergency-department surveillance capture different parts of the problem.
Key Golf Injury Statistics
The most broadly useful figures are:
- 2.5 injuries per 1,000 full 18-hole exposures was the pooled international incidence estimate from studies published through February 2024.
- 73.5% of professional golfers reported a lifetime musculoskeletal injury in studies included through September 2023.
- 56.6% of amateur golfers reported a lifetime musculoskeletal injury in studies included through September 2023.
- Nearly 16% of Australian amateur golfers could expect a golf-related injury during one year of follow-up.
- 8.5 injuries per 1,000 18-hole exposures occurred among professional golfers in the pooled international analysis through February 2024.
- 1.3 injuries per 1,000 18-hole exposures occurred among amateur golfers in the same international analysis.
- 2.6 injuries per 1,000 18-hole exposures occurred among women golfers, compared with 1.4 among men, in studies published through February 2024.
- 66% of 526 international professionals reported an injury during their professional career in a survey conducted before its 2011 publication.
- 44% of surveyed professionals reported lower-back injuries and 44% reported wrist injuries in that professional-career survey.
- 46.2% of injuries in the Australian amateur cohort occurred during the golf swing during one-year follow-up.
- 18.3% of reported injury locations in Australian amateurs were the lower back during one-year follow-up.
- 70,868 U.S. upper-extremity golf injuries were estimated from emergency-department surveillance for 2011–2020.
- 69.2% of sampled U.S. upper-extremity golf injuries involved men in emergency departments during 2011–2020.
- 35.3% of sampled U.S. upper-extremity golf injuries involved patients older than 60 during 2011–2020.
- 44.63% of sampled U.S. upper-extremity injuries involved golf-cart accidents during 2011–2020.
- 30% of weighted U.S. lower-extremity golf injuries were strains or sprains during 2013–2022.
- 33% of weighted U.S. lower-extremity golf injuries involved the knee during 2013–2022.
Contents
- Overall golf injury incidence and lifetime prevalence
- Golf injury statistics by player level, sex and exposure
- Golf injury body regions and diagnoses
- U.S. emergency-department golf injury data
- Golf swing, cart and activity-related injuries
Overall Golf Injury Incidence and Lifetime Prevalence
Incidence measures new injuries against an exposure, while prevalence measures how many golfers report an injury over a defined period. Lifetime prevalence is broader still, and the measures below should not be treated as interchangeable.
A systematic review and meta-analysis of international studies published through February 2024 found a pooled incidence of 2.5 injuries per 1,000 athlete exposures, with one exposure defined as a full 18-hole round. The 95% confidence interval was 0.9–7.5 injuries per 1,000 exposures, and seven studies contributed to the random-effects estimate. Injury incidence in golf—a systematic review and meta-analysis
The same review included 269,754 athlete exposures. A sensitivity analysis excluding a special-athlete study estimated 1.9 injuries per 1,000 18-hole exposures, while the authors translated the pooled result to approximately one injury per 400 full rounds and 0.6 injuries per 1,000 hours; those conversions inherit the review’s exposure convention and heterogeneous definitions. Injury incidence in golf—a systematic review and meta-analysis
| Measure | Result | Population and period |
|---|---|---|
| Lifetime musculoskeletal-injury prevalence | 73.5% | International professionals; studies through September 2023 |
| Lifetime musculoskeletal-injury prevalence | 56.6% | International amateurs; studies through September 2023 |
| Professional-to-amateur relative risk | 1.50 | Pooled international comparison |
A separate musculoskeletal review covered 20 studies and 9,221 golfers. Its professional estimate had a 95% confidence interval of 47.3%–93.0%, while the amateur estimate had a 95% confidence interval of 47.4%–65.5%; lifetime recall and study heterogeneity limit direct interpretation. Epidemiology of musculoskeletal injury in professional and amateur golfers: a systematic review and meta-analysis
An Australian prospective cohort found that nearly 16% of amateur golfers could expect a golf-related injury during one year of follow-up. This annual cohort percentage uses a different denominator from pooled 18-hole incidence and U.S. emergency-department shares. One-year follow-up study on golf injuries in Australian amateur golfers
Golf Injury Statistics by Player Level, Sex and Exposure
Player level and sex show different patterns in the pooled exposure data, but the confidence intervals are wide and the comparisons are not age-adjusted in the available sex strata.
| Group | Pooled incidence per 1,000 18-hole exposures | 95% confidence interval | Evidence base |
|---|---|---|---|
| Professional golfers | 8.5 | 7.6–9.4 | One professional study; international |
| Amateur golfers | 1.3 | 0.5–4.0 | Five studies; international |
| Women golfers | 2.6 | 0.7–9.6 | Four studies; international, not age-adjusted |
| Men golfers | 1.4 | 0.4–5.2 | Three studies; international, not age-adjusted |
These pooled estimates come from the review of studies published through February 2024. The professional result is based on one study, and the amateur, women’s and men’s intervals reflect sparse and heterogeneous evidence. Injury incidence in golf—a systematic review and meta-analysis
In an international survey of 526 professionals conducted before its 2011 publication, 66% reported an injury during their professional career and 31% reported an injury within the previous year. Men had 2.53 times the odds of a lower-back injury compared with women, although this was a cross-sectional, retrospective survey association rather than a causal estimate. Injuries patterns among professional golfers: an international survey
Among surveyed professionals, 72% took time out from playing after injury and 83% received physiotherapy. The survey found no significant relationship between hours spent playing golf and injury likelihood (p=0.16), and no significant gender difference in injury frequency (chi-square p=0.62); neither non-significant result proves that no relationship exists. Injuries patterns among professional golfers: an international survey
Golf Injury Body Regions and Diagnoses
Body-region statistics differ depending on whether they describe lifetime reports, the distribution of injuries in a cohort, or emergency-department presentations.
Among professional golfers, lifetime hand-and-wrist injury prevalence had a relative risk of 3.33 versus amateurs, while lifetime lower-back injury prevalence had a relative risk of 3.05. The underlying diagnoses were often non-specific, so these are pooled associations rather than precise clinical diagnoses. Epidemiology of musculoskeletal injury in professional and amateur golfers: a systematic review and meta-analysis
In the Australian amateur cohort, reported injury locations were distributed as follows during one-year follow-up:
- The lower back represented 18.3% of reported injury locations.
- Elbow and forearm injuries represented 17.2%.
- Foot and ankle injuries represented 12.9%.
- Shoulder and upper-arm injuries represented 11.8%.
These percentages describe self-reported injury locations and may not sum to 100% across all categories. One-year follow-up study on golf injuries in Australian amateur golfers
In the U.S. upper-extremity NEISS study covering 2011–2020, fractures were 26.8% of sampled golf-related upper-extremity injuries, strains and sprains were 23.4%, and soft-tissue injuries were 15.9%. The leading sampled locations were the shoulder at 24.8%, wrist at 15.6% and hand at 12.0%. Estimates of Golf-Related Upper Extremity Injuries in the United States: A 10-Year Epidemiology Study (2011-2020)
U.S. Emergency-Department Golf Injury Data
NEISS figures describe golf-related injuries presenting to participating U.S. emergency departments, not all golf injuries. They omit injuries not treated in those emergency departments and should not be read as participation-adjusted risk.
The upper-extremity study recorded 1,862 sampled injuries and estimated 70,868 nationally across 2011–2020, equivalent to approximately 7,086 emergency-department injuries per year as a simple average of the study’s ten-year estimate. The national figure is weighted from NEISS rather than a complete case count. Estimates of Golf-Related Upper Extremity Injuries in the United States: A 10-Year Epidemiology Study (2011-2020)
| U.S. upper-extremity ED measure | Share | Period and scope |
|---|---|---|
| Men | 69.2% | Sampled injuries, 2011–2020 |
| Women | 30.8% | Sampled injuries, 2011–2020 |
| Patients older than 60 | 35.3% | Sampled injuries, 2011–2020 |
| Patients aged 10–19 | 18.4% | Sampled injuries, 2011–2020 |
| Treated or examined and discharged | 93.6% | Sampled ED cases, 2011–2020 |
| Admitted or hospitalized | 5.0% | Sampled ED cases, 2011–2020 |
Lower-extremity NEISS surveillance for 2013–2022 found that strains or sprains were 30% of weighted injuries, contusions or abrasions were 17%, and fractures were 16%. By body part, the knee accounted for 33%, the lower leg 25% and the ankle 22% of weighted lower-extremity injuries. Golf-Related Lower Extremity Injuries Presenting to United States Emergency Departments: A 10-Year Analysis (2013-2022)
Golf Swing, Cart and Activity-Related Injuries
Mechanism data show that golf injuries are not limited to the swing. In the Australian amateur cohort, 46.2% of injuries occurred during the golf swing; among swing injuries, 23.7% occurred at ball impact and 21.5% during the follow-through. One-year follow-up study on golf injuries in Australian amateur golfers
The international professional survey reported the following lifetime injury sites, with multiple responses possible:
- Lower-back injuries were reported by 44% of professionals.
- Wrist injuries were reported by 44% of professionals.
- Elbow injuries were reported by 23%.
- Neck injuries were reported by 20%.
- Shoulder injuries were reported by 19%.
Because respondents could report multiple injury sites, these percentages are not mutually exclusive. Injuries patterns among professional golfers: an international survey
In the U.S. upper-extremity ED sample from 2011–2020, golf-cart accidents accounted for 44.63% of injuries, falls or trips for 29.22%, and golf-club swinging or mechanics for 10.37%. In the lower-extremity ED study for 2013–2022, golf-cart-related events accounted for 40% of injuries; both mechanism shares are limited to their respective ED populations. Estimates of Golf-Related Upper Extremity Injuries in the United States: A 10-Year Epidemiology Study (2011-2020) Golf-Related Lower Extremity Injuries Presenting to United States Emergency Departments: A 10-Year Analysis (2013-2022)
The Australian cohort reported an odds ratio of 3.73 (95% CI 1.29–10.75) for injury associated with amount of game play. It also reported an odds ratio of 0.32 (95% CI 0.12–0.86) associated with when clubs were last changed, but that observational association does not establish that replacing clubs prevents injury. One-year follow-up study on golf injuries in Australian amateur golfers
Together, these results describe different surveillance windows and denominators: international exposure studies estimate new injuries per round, surveys capture recalled injuries among selected golfers, the Australian study follows amateurs for one year, and NEISS measures emergency-department presentations. The systematic reviews also emphasize heterogeneous injury definitions, limited professional exposure studies and limited generalizability beyond high-income settings.