Golf Industry Stocks Surge as Daylight Saving Time Boosts Evening Play

Daylight saving time, which begins for most states at 2 a.m. Sunday when clocks “spring forward” by one hour, is eagerly anticipated by many in the golf industry. The time change is seen as a way to encourage more evening golf and to prevent efforts to establish permanent standard time, which would leave less time for an evening on the links. Late afternoon players tend to buy food and drinks in the clubhouse, making them a valuable segment for golf courses.

Connor Farrell, general manager of Stone Creek Golf Course in Omaha, highlighted the financial impact of losing daylight saving time. He stated that his business could lose 100 tee times a day, resulting in a $500,000 annual loss if the time change were to be eliminated. This sentiment is echoed by other industry professionals who see the time change as crucial for their business operations.

Golf has a long history with daylight saving time, dating back to William Willett, a British builder and avid golfer who in 1905 published a pamphlet advocating for moving clocks ahead in April and returning them back to their regular settings in September. The U.S. adopted a version of this during World War I and again in World War II. Congress passed the Uniform Time Act in 1966 that set up the biannual time change, and lobbying efforts by the golf industry are largely credited for Congress expanding daylight saving time by a month in the mid-1980s.

Despite the benefits, the constant clock adjusting has drawn criticism from Americans who are weary of losing an hour of sleep in the spring and facing early darkness in the fall. This has led to numerous bills introduced in nearly every state over the years to halt the practice. The National Conference of State Legislatures reports that in the last six years, 20 states have passed measures calling for a switch to year-round daylight saving time, many at the cajoling of golf industry lobbyists. However, states could switch to permanent standard time, as Arizona and Hawaii have done, but Congress would need to change the law to allow permanent daylight saving time.

This hindrance, along with arguments that permanent standard time would improve sleep quality and foster safer morning commutes, has seen more states consider opting out of daylight saving time. Lawmakers in more than a dozen states have introduced bills this year to make standard time permanent. Nebraska is among several states considering this change