Have You Had An Attitude Adjustment?

With snow, frigid temperatures, rain and overcast conditions across most of the country, depending on where you are, Thanksgiving weekend in Canada looked to be one big turkey, along with mashed potatoes and stuffing, for those in the golf industry.

Of course, if we were looking for something to give thanks for, it could be that we aren’t facing the same uncertainty that we experienced last year when the economy was tanking and the speculation was that it could be the worst recession most of us had ever faced in our lives.

There was even talk about a big D depression ahead in 2009, but it didn’t work out that way. From this vantage point, the damage from the economy wasn’t nearly as bad as first predicted, nor did we come anywhere close to what the United States is experiencing,

That doesn’t mean we escaped totally unscathed by the economy, which wasn’t the only challenge faced by the golf industry in 2009. If that wasn’t enough, the weather just complicated things, according to most people I talk to across the country.

So, with the 2009 all but in the books, how is your mood compared to this time last year?

While the economic picture seems brighter, there are other challenges ahead. Certainly in British Columbia and Ontario, there is uncertainty of how golfers will react to an extra seven or eight per cent, respectively, being tacked on to their purchases as part of the new Harmonized Sales Tax (HST).

The HST could very well be coming to a prairie golf shop near you, which makes it more of a national story than exclusively a regional one.

While the economic impact study released by the National Allied Golf Association (NAGA), may eventually have a positive effect on the industry, one disturbing point that came out of it was that rounds were down as much as 10 per cent in 2008.

That was discovered before the economy took its downturn, so how bad was it in 2009 and how bad will it be next year? We can only guess, just like we can only speculate on how the weather will affect us in 2010.

That’s not to be negative, but there is a lot of uncertainty facing the industry on several fronts, so how does your mood now compare to October of 2008? Is it much more positive, a little more positive, the same or more negative?

Be sure to drop by the GNN Poll on the home page to cast your vote.

Perhaps, our last GNN Poll may give a hint on how this one will turn out as 57 per cent of respondents said they plan to keep their rates at 2009 levels next year, while 14 per cent said they will reduce their rates.

Nearly one-third of respondents, however, said they plan to raise their rates, so perhaps the optimism is growing out there. Be sure to make your feelings known on the GNN Poll and, as always, you’re always welcome to expand your thoughts inside the GNN Forum.

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