Is golf the new pilates?

First it was Pilates. Then came padel. And now suddenly it seems like a golf club is appearing everywhere. On Instagram, in fashion, during a weekend getaway, and even with people you thought until recently spent their free Sunday mainly with a cappuccino and a walk through the city.

I get it. Golf has had quite an image problem. But that image is shifting. In the Netherlands, the sport is growing, more and more young people are starting with it, and golf is also becoming more accessible for women.

So: is golf the new Pilates? Not literally, of course. You’re not going to lie on a mat with a golf club under your arm. But when I look at the combination of sport, lifestyle, your social life, and especially: how fun it looks on Instagram, then the two have surprisingly much in common.

Why is golf suddenly so popular?

The numbers certainly don’t lie. At the end of 2025, there were 439,731 golfers registered in the Netherlands with the NGF, compared to 427,893 a year earlier. That is a growth of 3.5 percent. Especially younger golfers are finding their way to the course better.

Even more interesting: in the past year, the number of golfers between 22 and 50 years old grew by 5.2 percent. The number of women in that age group increased by 3.2 percent.

That is exactly the group that the Dutch Golf Federation is also actively targeting with the campaign Welcome to the Club: getting more women and younger golfers to the course. Meanwhile, 150 clubs are participating, and since the start in 2023, various accessible introductory lessons and programs have been added.

And then there was the Solheim Cup

As if golf needed a little push to become cooler, the Solheim Cup was played in the Netherlands last weekend. The best female golfers from Europe and the United States came together at Bernardus Golf in Cromvoirt and attracted over 80,000 visitors. Europe ultimately won 15-13 against the US.

And anyone who thought that a golf tournament mainly consists of dead silence and someone softly shouting ‘fore!’ clearly hadn’t walked around. There was music, there were fans, there was singing along, and the whole thing resembled a large sports event more than the stereotypical image of golf.

Also, the outfits received attention. And that brings me to the next point.

Golf belongs to fashion

Because let’s be honest: part of the golf hype is simply in the clothing. Vogue France wrote in 2025 about the rise of golfcore as a fashion trend, where the classic golf aesthetic is mixed with influences from old money and quiet luxury: neat polos, knitted sweaters, caps, pleated skirts, and lots of cream, navy, green, and white.

That might be the biggest similarity with the Pilates trend. With Pilates, it all started with a pair of sports pants. Before you knew it, everyone was wearing a matching set to the supermarket, to get coffee, and walking around Vondelpark.

With golf, something similar is happening. The polo is no longer just for the course.

Is golf really the new Pilates?

Well, not entirely. Pilates remains Pilates and golf needs a bit more grass than an average reformer studio. But the reason why the comparison sticks is interesting. Both sports have become more than just a way to move. They have become part of a lifestyle. You have the clothing, community, the places you go, and of course the photos that immediately appear on Instagram.

The difference? With Pilates, after an hour, you usually know exactly where your muscles are. With golf, after an hour, you can still genuinely have no idea why that one ball keeps going in exactly the wrong direction. And maybe that’s the charm.