Women’s golf participation spans traditional course play, short-format and off-course activities, junior pathways, leadership programs, and elite competition. In the United States, an estimated 7.9 million women and girls played on a course in 2024, while global and professional data show a broader ecosystem than 9- or 18-hole participation alone.
Key Women Golf Statistics
The most useful headline figures cover scale, participation format, access, and professional outcomes:
- 7.9 million women and girls played golf on a U.S. course in 2024, an NGF estimate for on-course participants.
- Women and girls represented 28% of the 28.1 million U.S. on-course golfers in 2024, according to NGF.
- The U.S. female on-course golfer population increased by 2.3 million from 2020 to 2024, an NGF estimate.
- Women and girls accounted for approximately 60% of the net gain in U.S. green-grass golfers from 2019 to 2024, according to NGF.
- Females represented 20% of U.S. on-course golfers in 2012 and 28% in 2024, showing the change in share over that period.
- Women were 33% of the 45 million Americans participating in any form of golf in 2023, covering on-course and off-course formats.
- Females made up 43% of more than 19 million Americans who played only off-course golf forms in 2024, an NGF estimate.
- Women represented more than 35% of U.S. latent demand in 2023, equal to more than 7 million non-golfers very interested in trying traditional golf.
- Only 49% of female U.S. golf participants included on-course play in 2024, compared with 65% of male participants.
- 108 million adults and juniors played golf across all formats in R&A-affiliated markets in 2024, excluding the United States and Mexico.
- Adult golf participation in R&A-affiliated markets reached 64.1 million in 2024, up 1.8 million from 2023.
- Women were 31% of adult participation in the R&A’s nine biggest markets in 2024, across formats.
- Women were 25% of adult 9- and 18-hole golfers in those nine biggest markets in 2024, while they were 50% of adult participation in other formats.
- More than 1,300 organizations worldwide had signed The R&A Women in Golf Charter by 2025–2026, according to The R&A.
- The LPGA*USGA Girls Golf programme had reached one million girls by 2023, with more than 550 sites globally.
- The 2024 LPGA Tour schedule included 33 official events in 10 countries and 15 U.S. states, according to the LPGA.
- LPGA Tour players competed for more than $118 million in total prize money in 2024, compared with the $70 million cited for 2019.
- The 2024 LPGA statistical leader for official money earned won $3,006,871, an elite-tour benchmark rather than a recreational outcome.
Contents
- U.S. women’s on-course golf: scale and long-run change
- Off-course participation, conversion and latent demand
- Global women’s golf participation across formats and regions
- Girls’ pathways, women’s leadership and access initiatives
- Recreational participation intensity and performance benchmarks
- Professional women’s golf: schedule, earnings and competitive outcomes
U.S. Women’s Golf Statistics: On-Course Scale and Long-Run Change
NGF’s on-course measure counts people who played golf on a U.S. course, separating that population from off-course-only participants. The latest supplied estimate puts women and girls at an all-time high in the NGF series in 2024.
| Measure | Period | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Female on-course participants | 2024 | 7.9 million |
| Female share of 28.1 million on-course golfers | 2024 | 28% |
| Female population increase | 2020–2024 | 2.3 million |
| Female share of net green-grass gain | 2019–2024 | Approximately 60% |
Source: Golf Participation: Growing & Diversifying.
The longer trend also shows a larger female share of the U.S. on-course market. Females represented 20% of on-course golfers in 2012, compared with 28% in 2024; an earlier NGF series recorded 20% in 2011 and 26% in 2023.
- NGF estimated approximately 7.0 million women and girls played on a U.S. course in 2023, the highest level since 2006 at that time.
- The net increase in U.S. female on-course golfers from 2019 to 2023 was 1.4 million.
- Female U.S. golfer numbers fell by about 2 million during 2007–2011, a 28% decline in that period.
These figures are estimates for U.S. on-course participation, not a count of unique women who played competitively or maintained a formal handicap. The 2023 figures come from Women & Girls Fueling Golf’s Growth, while the 2024 figures come from the NGF’s 2024 participation reporting.
Women Golf Data on Off-Course Participation, Conversion and Demand
Counting only course play understates women’s involvement with golf under NGF’s broader framework. In 2023, women were 33% of the 45 million Americans participating in any form of golf, while females were 43% of more than 19 million off-course-only participants in 2024.
- Females were 42% of the 18.5 million Americans who played only off-course golf forms in 2023.
- Female participants who played only off-course golf numbered 8.2 million in NGF’s 2024 estimate.
- Women represented more than 35% of U.S. latent demand in 2023, or more than 7 million non-golfers very interested in trying traditional golf.
The format split is also different by sex. Only 49% of female U.S. golf participants included on-course play in 2024, compared with 65% of male participants; for men, the NGF estimate identifies 20.2 million of 31.2 million male participants as including green-grass golf.
| Indicator | Women/females | Men/males | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Participants including on-course play | 49% | 65% | 2024 |
| Familiarity with par-3 courses among participants and prospects | About one-third | More than 60% | 2024 |
| Golf-interested people who had played a par-3 course | 9% | 38% | 2024 |
Source: Can Short-Form Golf Transform Female Retention?. The familiarity and par-3 figures are survey results whose population and fieldwork details are limited to the cited source.
The NGF combines on-course and off-course participation in its all-format framing, so its one-third female share is not the same measure as women’s 28% share of on-course golfers. This distinction matters when interpreting conversion from shorter or alternative forms into traditional course play.
Global Women’s Golf Participation Statistics Across Formats and Regions
The R&A’s 2024 participation research covered 148 countries across affiliated markets outside the United States and Mexico. It estimated 108 million adults and juniors playing across all formats, including 64.1 million adults and 43.9 million juniors.
| R&A-affiliated-market measure | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Total adults and juniors, all formats | — | 108 million |
| Adult participation | 62.3 million | 64.1 million |
| Junior participation | — | 43.9 million |
| 9- or 18-hole participation | 42.7 million | 43.3 million |
| Registered golfers | 8.2 million | 8.4 million |
Source: Over 100 million golfers in R&A markets as participation grows. Total participation increased by almost 3 million from 2023 to 2024, while registered golfers were 7.4 million in 2020.
Women’s representation differs sharply by format in the R&A’s nine biggest markets. Women were 31% of adult participation overall, 25% of adult 9- and 18-hole golfers, and 50% of adult participation in non-9- and non-18-hole formats in 2024.
- Asia had 26.2 million adult golf participants in R&A-affiliated markets in 2024.
- Europe had 20.3 million adult golf participants and 18.5 million junior participants in those markets in 2024.
- Canada had 6.9 million adult golf participants in the 2024 R&A-affiliated-market estimate.
- Eighty percent of young people participating in R&A-affiliated markets used formats other than 9- or 18-hole on-course golf in 2024.
Alternative formats can precede traditional course participation. In the R&A’s 2024 report, 37% of on-course golfers in Canada and 36% of on-course golfers in England had played an alternative format before playing on a golf course; both are survey results with population and fieldwork details limited to the cited source.
Girls’ Golf Pathways, Women’s Leadership and Access Initiatives
Participation statistics also include the programs intended to create future players, leaders, coaches, and administrators. These program figures describe reach or impact and are not counts of unique active golfers.
- The LPGA*USGA Girls Golf programme had reached one million girls by 2023 and had more than 550 sites globally as of that year.
- USGA financial support for LPGA*USGA Girls Golf exceeded $8 million from 1996 through 2024.
- More than 1,300 organizations worldwide had signed The R&A Women in Golf Charter in the 2025–2026 reporting period.
- The R&A Women in Golf Leadership Programmes had benefited 300 women in 46 countries by 2025.
- More than 75% of graduates of The R&A Women in Golf Leadership Programmes achieved promotions or career advancements through 2025.
- Active LPGA Tour players represented 33 different countries, including the United States, in the 2024 season.
Sources: Golf for all – Women, Applications open for The R&A Women in Golf Leadership Programmes, USGA’s Investment Has Taken Women’s Game to New Heights, and 2024 LPGA Tour Storylines and Statistics.
The leadership-program promotion figure is a survey result with population and fieldwork details limited to the cited source. The Girls Golf and Charter totals use programme reach or signed-organization wording, so they should not be interpreted as a current participation rate.
Recreational Women’s Golf Benchmarks and Elite Performance Data
The LPGA statistics describe elite professional competition rather than the recreational women’s golf population. They are useful benchmarks for the level of performance recorded on tour, but they do not represent typical amateur scores, distances, earnings, or participation intensity.
| 2024 LPGA benchmark | Leader or result |
|---|---|
| Official-money leader | $3,006,871 |
| Scoring-average leader | 69.887 strokes per round |
| Birdies leader, Ayaka Furue | 237 |
| Eagles leader, Alison Lee | 8 |
| Greens-in-regulation leader, Haeran Ryu | 75.1% |
| Driving-distance leader, Polly Mack | 283.661 yards per measured drive |
| Rolex Player of the Year leader, Nelly Korda | 214 points |
| Players recording a hole-in-one | 16 |
Source: 2024 LPGA Tour Storylines and Statistics. The measures are official LPGA statistical-summary results for the 2024 season.
The same source records the LPGA Tour’s international and competitive scale. Its official 2024 schedule included 33 events in 10 countries and 15 U.S. states, a schedule measure rather than a count of all women’s golf events.
Professional Women’s Golf Statistics: Schedule, Earnings and Outcomes
Professional women’s golf offers a separate set of measurable outcomes: events, purses, wins, player ages, and prize-money totals. In the 2024 LPGA wins-by-country table, 20 tournaments were covered across 8 countries, and U.S. players recorded 10 of those 20 wins.
- Nelly Korda accounted for 6 of the 20 wins in the cited 2024 LPGA wins-by-player table.
- The average age of the 2024 LPGA winners in the cited summary was 24.850 years; this is a derived summary value for that subset, not the whole women’s golf population.
- The youngest winner in the cited 2024 LPGA summary was Chanettee Wannasaen at 20 years, 3 months, and 5 days.
- The oldest winner was Amy Yang at 34 years, 10 months, and 26 days.
- LPGA Tour players competed for more than $118 million in total prize money in 2024, compared with the $70 million cited for 2019; the approximately $48 million difference is reported by the LPGA source.
Purse growth is visible at individual events. The 2024 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship purse increased to $10.4 million, the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship purse was $3 million, and the latter represented a $700,000 increase from 2023.
The 2024 LOTTE Championship had 120 players competing for a $3 million purse. These event-level figures describe particular LPGA tournaments in particular locations, not average earnings for women golfers generally.
Sources: 2024 LPGA Tour Storylines and Statistics, KPMG Women’s PGA Championship Purse Increases to $10.4 Million, Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G Announces Globally Recognized Sustainability Certification, Purse Increase for 2024 Event, and Five Things to Know About the 2024 LOTTE Championship presented by Hoakalei.
Official sources reviewed for this overview did not provide a comparable women-specific consumer-cost series. Accordingly, the participation and professional figures above should not be used to infer typical equipment, access, travel, membership, or playing costs.