England Golf have announced that 2025 was another landmark year for the game across the country, with iGolf and iPlay reaching new heights and more scores than ever before being submitted through the World Handicap System.<\/p>\n
remarkable 11.83 million scores were submitted through WHS\u2122 in 2025 \u2013 a 16% increase on 2024 and the highest total since the system\u2019s introduction.<\/p>\n
Nine-hole golf saw particularly strong growth, with submissions rising 28%, and 18-hole scores increased by 14%. Meanwhile, general play continued its upward trajectory, accounting for 52% of all scores and growing 26% year-on-year.<\/p>\n
Following the introduction of four-ball better-ball (4BBB) scores for handicapping purposes in 2024, England saw a 68% increase in acceptable 4BBB scores being submitted in 2025, which shows the education and support provided is having a real impact on the number of acceptable scores being recorded.<\/p>\n
England Golf\u2019s sustained focus on growing the women and girls\u2019 game has delivered significant results.<\/p>\n
WOMEN’S GOLF<\/strong><\/p>\n Female golfers submitted more than 151,000 additional scores in 2025, representing a 14% increase. Bank Holiday Monday 5 May was the most popular day of the year for female participation, with 13,200 scores entered.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Saturday 3 May became the busiest day overall for golf in England, with 98,361 scores submitted \u2013 including 93,591 from male golfers.<\/p>\n Richard Flint, Chief Operating Officer at England Golf, said the figures reflect a sport in excellent health.<\/p>\n \u201cGolf really is thriving in England, and the stats are there to back it up,\u201d said Flint. \u201cOur commitment to inclusivity and accessibility through the Respect in Golf movement is making a real difference. All affiliated clubs and counties have embraced and implemented modern ED&I policies, ensuring the game is welcoming to all.<\/p>\n \u201cThe rise in WHS\u2122 scores also shows the simplicity and popularity of the MyEG app, which enjoyed a record year with more than 500,000 downloads. Education around score entry has clearly improved, and shorter rated tee sets for men and women are helping more people play together on courses that suit their ability.”<\/p>\n THE RORY EFFECT<\/strong><\/p>\n Flint also highlighted the growing appeal of shorter formats. \u201cThe growth in nine-hole scores \u2013 particularly among women, up 24% \u2013 shows that golf doesn\u2019t always have to mean 18 holes. If nine holes help people enjoy the physical, mental, and social benefits of the game, that\u2019s fantastic.<\/p>\n \u201cOther factors for the growth would certainly include the fact that we had a dry, hot summer, so therefore more people want to get out on the course, and there\u2019s no doubt the feel-good factor from Rory McIlroy\u2019s grand slam win at The Masters, or Europe\u2019s away win at The Ryder Cup, had an impact on inspiring more people to pick up a club.<\/p>\n \u201cAll of these factors have played a role in driving our core aim of inspiring more golfers, and we hope more will continue to catch the bug in 2026.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" England Golf have announced that 2025 was another landmark year for the game across the country, with iGolf and iPlay reaching new heights and more scores than ever before being submitted through the World Handicap System. remarkable 11.83 million scores were submitted through WHS\u2122 in 2025 \u2013 a 16% increase on 2024 and the highest total since the system\u2019s introduction. Nine-hole golf saw particularly strong growth, with submissions rising 28%, and 18-hole scores increased by 14%. Meanwhile, general play continued […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":31629,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[445,9],"tags":[935,3412],"class_list":["post-31628","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-golf-news","tag-england-golf","tag-golf-2025"],"yoast_head":"\n