When news broke that the PGA Tour’s Sentry Tournament at Kapalua would not return and uncertainty surrounded the Sony Open at Waialae Country Club, Hawaii’s visitor industry feared the worst. When the Sony Championship Hawaii at Waialae was confirmed for 2027, there was a collective sigh of relief.

But that relief obscures a larger problem.

The cancellation of major PGA tournaments is not the cause of Hawaii’s golf challenges. It is a symptom.

Two major studies reached the same conclusion 15 years apart: Hawaii’s golf industry lacks statewide leadership.

The SRI International “Hawaii Golf Economy” 2008 report estimated that golf is worth $1.4 billion statewide. A follow-up 2023 study concluded that golf’s economic impact increased to $1.9 billion annually.

Golf supports thousands of local jobs — from groundskeepers to accountants to local farmers. Visitors plan vacations around tee times — spending that extends beyond greens fees to hotels, rental cars and restaurants.

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Yet Hawaii still has no statewide golf strategy.

That is the real story.

Perhaps golf fell between the cracks — too commercial to be treated as recreation, yet too recreational to be promoted as a strategic economic sector.

The 2008 study recommended creating a Hawaii Golf Alliance to coordinate statewide strategy. Two decades later, that recommendation remains unrealized.

The 2023 study painted a more sobering picture. Hawaii has fewer golf courses than it did in 2007. The average golfer is getting older, while few younger players are entering the game. More troubling, the study estimated Hawaii’s golf courses were operating at 53% of capacity.

Both studies reached the same conclusion: Hawaii lacks coordinated leadership to steward one of its most valuable tourism sectors.

Economists call this an industrial policy — not government ownership or subsidies, but a long-term strategy with stakeholders for an industry that matters.

The state invests in healthcare, AI/information technology and renewable energy because they are viewed as strategic sectors. Why not golf?

Imagine if Hawaii treated golf the way it treats those other industries. There would be annual reporting, coordinated destination marketing and workforce planning. Instead, Hawaii golf is a bunch of golf course operators — all working alone.

A Hawaii Golf Council could bring together the Hawaii Tourism Authority, state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, University of Hawaii, county governments, the Aloha Section PGA, and golf operators to develop a state golf strategy — and issue an annual data-based “State of Hawaii Golf” report.

That vision should extend far beyond luxury resort golf.

Most Hawaii residents will never play the Hualalai Jack Nicholas-designed resort golf course. But municipal and military courses are equally important to the industry’s future. Scotland markets “golf regions” — not just famous courses. Hawaii should promote golf the way it promotes local dining — authentic experiences from Kauai to Hawaii island — at every price point.

Surprisingly, Hawaii collects little statewide data on kamaaina or visitor rounds, employment, or course economics — you cannot manage any business without data.

The greatest long-term challenge is demand.

The 2023 study warns that Hawaii’s golfer population is aging faster than the national average. Unless more young people enter the game, local golf courses will inevitably close.

That means expanding junior golf, strengthening partnerships such as First Tee, and making municipal golf more accessible for local families.

Higher education has a key role. The University of Hawaii system should develop a Golf + Resort Management program combining tourism, environmental science and business, leveraging Hawaii’s golf industry as a year-round “living laboratory.” Ohio State University has a PGA-accredited golf major — in a state where snow covers golf greens four months a year.

Finally, Hawaii should establish measurable performance goals: junior participation, statewide golf dashboard, university degree programs and affordable “locals’ golf.”

The handwringing over the Sony Open should remind us of something important.

Hawaii’s “golf economy” future will not be determined by whether one PGA tournament stays or leaves. It will be determined by whether Hawaii finally develops a statewide strategy for one of its most valuable — and most overlooked — economic sectors.

Ray Tsuchiyama advises on hotels and golf courses at ChaneyBrooks, Hawaii’s oldest real estate firm.