The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022 - 16

MARKET FOCUS
Columbus OH at #12 in Latest Ranking;
down-the-middle, average distance
Columbus, OH Core Business
Statistical Area (CBSA)
I
n this monthly section we profile one of the Top 25 US
Golf Markets based on a Pellucid composite score of the
golfer base, the supply level and rounds demand. Within
that Top 25 universe, we then rank them based on relative
health using a Pellucid weighted scoring system of 7 variables
ranging from Population Growth to Avg. Facility Utilization.
We're now working our way through the Top 25 markets based
on the last time we updated it to catch the markets we've neglected
in our Top-down, then Bottom-up treatments (we only
have 12 months/yr between updates and we have 25 markets
to cover; someone is going to get left out). For regular followers
of this column, you'll notice 2 changes in the map above
and noted in the Legend: 1) We're now distinguishing within
Public-Regulation Length the Munis (green symbols) vs. For
Profits (blue symbols) and 2) We've added Closed Courses
since 2000 (black symbols). Our recently-released '20 version
of the GLMA contains numerous enhancements in supply
tracking as well as annual timeseries charts for rounds ('00-'20)
and golfers ('05-'20) for every US location.
In this issue, we'll profile the 12th-ranked market, the
Columbus, OH Metro CBSA. Columbus has always been
a great, balanced supply, affordable golf, long season market
that's a good barometer for the nation as a whole. That said
and despite having a number of progressive owner/operators,
we currently don't have any Buckeye participants in our Golf
Market Research Center initiative (no Cleveland or Cincinnati
either, let's go Ohio!); any volunteers? Based on the
recently-compiled year-end numbers, Columbus finished the
year pretty much in the center of the fairway compared to the
national average and not significantly longer or shorter off the
tee (Rounds +6% against weather +2% yields Utilization +4
pts; solid, not spectacular).
By rounds demand (one of our 3 selection criteria for initial
inclusion in the Top 25 list), Columbus punches below its
composite ranking weight coming in 22nd in rounds among
US markets with facility-reported annual demand of ~3M
rounds (that's the through-the-turnstiles tally which counts
both local and tourist play). Looking at the golf consumer
base, we see that the market is home to a healthy local golfer
base of ~163K golfers (this is local, resident population only).
That golfer base is served by a modest supply base of 97 18hole
equivalent (EHE) facilities producing an average ratio of
~1.7K local resident golfers per EHE, a level above the national
average (128 index).
The supply mix vs. the national distribution across Pellucid's
five access/value/usage segments shows a significant bias to
16 The Pellucid PersPecTive
Private
PubPremium
FPROF
PubPremium
MUNI
PubValue
FPROF
PubValue
MUNI
PubPrice
FPROF
PubPrice
MUNI
Learning
&
Practice
Closed
Golfer
Base
- Est. # of Golfers (Ks)
- # of 18 Hole Equivalent Facilities
- Golfers per 18-Hole Equiv.
Supply Mix
Tot. Holes
- Private
- Pub-Prem
- Pub-Val
- Pub-Price
- Learn & Prac
Columbus, OH
CBSA Tot US
162.9 21,065
97 16,034
1,680 1,314
128
1,566
33% 29% 115
25% 20% 126
23% 23% 100
11% 18%
7% 10%
64
69
Supply/Demand Balance*
- '00-'20 Cume Supply Growth/Decline
- '00-'20 Cume Rds Demand Growth/
Decline+
- '00-'20 Cume Mkt Supply Dilution
(-)/Absorption (+) Level*+
Rounds Demand & Facility Velocity
Tot. Facility-reported Rounds
- Avg. Ann Rds Velocity (Ks, per EHE)
- %Utilization Rate (Fac. Vel/Cap. Rds)
* Period % Chng in Rds vs. Period % Chng in Supply
-8% -8%
10%
6%
19% -2%
3,220,352
33.2 30.9 107
62% 59% 106
Above average level vs. US (Index >105)
Average level vs. US (Index 95-104)
Below average level vs. US (Index <95)
Index
vs. US
February 2022
The Pellucid Perspective - February 2022

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