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The game of golf exploded in 2020 as more and more people got out and played amidst the pandemic. Golf rounds in November of 2020 were up 57% compared to November 2019 alone. While the PGA Tour shut things down for a few months and some courses in certain parts of the country closed for a time, golf was one of only a few activities that seemingly everyone deemed as safe.
Whether you’re someone that picked up the game during the pandemic or simply played more golf while the rest of the world hit pause, you deserve to know the best and worst cities for golfers in 2021.
LawnStarter compared the 200 largest cities in the United State to figure out which cities are the best for golfers around the country. They evaluated 13 key metrics, including number of courses, number of golf specialty stores, monthly precipitation, and average temperature.
Top 10 Cities For Golfers In 2021
1. Scottsdale, AZ
2. Los Angeles, CA
3. New York, NY
4. Anaheim, CA
5. Las Vegas, NV
6. Phoenix, AZ
7. Mesa, AZ
8. Gilbert, AZ
9. San Diego, CA
10. Glendale, AZ
It’s no surprise to see cities out West dominate this list, but seeing New York in the No. 3 spot is definitely a shocker. While there’s no shortage of great courses in the NYC area, those great courses are not easy to get to, easy to get on, or easy on the wallet. As someone who lived in Manhattan for two years that only got to play golf when traveling, I’d personally rank New York 200th on this list, but based on the metrics here, it’s the third-best city in the country for golfers, apparently.
10 Worst Cities For Golfers In 2021
190. Anchorage, AK
191. Clarksville, TN
192. Columbus, GA
193. Montgomery, AL
194. Jackson, MS
195. Macon, GA
196. Metairie, LA
197. Hunstville, AL
198. Shreveport, LA
199. Springfield, MO
200. Mobile, AL
Well, now we’re just picking on the Southeast, but with climate and monthly precipitation playing a role in these rankings, these make a lot of sense. Go spend a few days in Jackson, MS in the middle of July and tell me if you want to even step outside, let alone go play 18 holes. Anchorage is also at the bottom of the list too because you have about a 13-day window to play golf in Alaska throughout the year.