Golf growing fast in soccer-mad Brazil
25,000 Brazilians now teeing it up, up from 6,000 five years ago
Golf on NBC |
 | Next up: Del Webb Father-Son Challenge |
 | Latest golf video |
 Woods achieves goal of winning Nov. 15: Tiger Woods says he put together some good rounds to win in Australia. |
 | Special feature |
 |
 | Slideshow |
 | NBCSports.com |
 | Slideshow |
 | more photos |
| Slideshow |
 | more photos |
SAO PAULO, Brazil - Pele and Ronaldo are heroes to generations of Brazilian sports fans. Tiger Woods may be next.
Golf is one of the fastest growing sports in this soccer-mad country. Brazilians of all ages, incomes and social classes are taking up the sport, which previously was played only by the country’s elite.
“The sport has grown at a very fast rate, it is amazing what has been happening,” said Alvaro Almeida, president of the Brazilian Golf Confederation. “And that’s the result of a push to make golf accessible to everybody, not only to those who have a lot of money.”
Its growth has been startling in the past five years — although still modest compared with the United States and Europe. About 25,000 Brazilians play golf on a regular basis — up from just 6,000 in 2000.
Brazil has 30 percent more golf courses, 40 percent more driving ranges and three times the number of golf stores it had five years ago. More than 30 projects for new golf courses are underway across the country — including one financed by Donald Trump and designed by Jack Nicklaus.
Media exposure also has grown sharply in this nation of 186 million people.
The magazine Golf Digest now is being published in Portuguese, Brazil’s language. Some Brazilian newspapers have added golf columnists. And for the first time, the PGA Tour is being broadcast live to Brazil on a local cable channel.
Golf officials estimate the sport today represents a $150 million market in Brazil.
“Clearly, Brazilians are beginning to show interest in the game,” said Homero Setti, who recently opened a golf store in a posh Sao Paulo shopping mall. “More and more people want to find out about the sport, and want to find out what it’s like to play it.”
Golf already has captivated World Cup winners Ronaldo and Kaka, Formula One driver Rubens Barrichello and three-time French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten. They are among a growing corps of celebrities frequently shown chipping and putting on courses across Brazil.
“This has been crucial for the growth of golf in Brazil,” Almeida said. “When people see their idols playing golf, they begin to get interested in the game, too.”
In the past, access to golf was restricted to members of the country’s most exclusive clubs, where membership cost thousands of dollars and was affordable only to a tiny fraction of Brazilians.
Today, most of Brazil’s 105 courses can be played by anybody, even nonmembers, and often at reasonable prices.
A weekend round on some courses can be played for $21, and a bucket of about 50 practice balls at one of the country’s 15 driving ranges usually costs $4 or less.
The average price for a round, however, is about $34 — still high in a country where the minimum wage is just $127 a month.
To keep the sport growing, the golf industry is trying to attract more youngsters.
“Golf is a great alternative for those who want to try a different sport,” 13-year-old Danilo Marques said between swings at a driving range in Sao Paulo. “It’s not everyone who loves soccer.”
At the country’s first public golf complex, the FPG Golf Center in Sao Paulo, free golf clinics are offered for children. More than 300 children and teenagers have joined the program since 2001, said Joao Batista Rodrigues, the teaching pro who runs the clinics.
“Golf is a lot of fun. I didn’t think it was going to be,” said 7-year-old Verena Galvao, who splits her after-school time between the free golf classes and ballet.
|
“I used to play soccer, but golf is a lot different,” the 13-year-old said. “You can play it by yourself, and at any time.”
The country’s top professional is Alexandre Rocha, who is trying to qualify for the PGA Tour. Rocha nearly made it this year but failed to reach the last stage of qualifying school by a single stroke.
Brazil’s leading female golfer is Candy Hannemann, currently on the LPGA Tour. Her best finish in three seasons has been a tie for fifth.
“Once we get someone to win in the United States, golf will spread across Brazil very quickly,” Almeida said. “We don’t need a Tiger Woods, just someone who could attract more media attention to the sport, like Kuerten did for tennis.”
- Discuss Story On Newsvine
-
Rate Story:
LowHigh - Instant Message
MORE FROM GOLF |
 Golf Section Front |
| Add Golf headlines to your news reader: |
Sponsored links