The Golf Industry Show is an innovative trade show designed for owners and operators of golf facilities and golf course management professionals. Featuring the largest exhibit floor in the industry, the event combines education, networking and solutions for golf course superintendents, equipment managers, owners/operators, general managers, chief operating officers, and architects and builders.

The Golf Industry Show is presented by GCSAA and NGCOA, along with participating partners the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCA), the Golf Course Builders Association of America (GCBAA), the United States Golf Association (USGA), the National Golf Foundation (NGF), the International Golf Course Equipment Managers Association (IGCEMA), and supporting partner the Society of Golf Appraisers (SGA).

Education conferences

Along with the show, GCSAA and NGCOA will be presenting their annual education conferences – both GCSAA’s Education Conference and NGCOA’s Annual Conference will be held Feb. 27, 28 and March 2.

Show objective

The objective of the Golf Industry Show is to provide the golf and club management industries with a dynamic, progressive trade show event that provides unparalleled networking opportunities and hands-on access to golf course and facility management solutions for the professional members that GCSAA, NGCOA, GCBAA, ASGCA, NGF, USGA, IGCEMA and SGA serve.

A brief history

The Golf Industry Show is a combination of the GCSAA International Show and the NGCOA Trade Show. GCSAA and NGCOA merged their trade shows into the annual Golf Industry Show, beginning in 2005 in Orlando. That inaugural event was ranked the 82nd largest trade show in North America that year by Tradeshow Week 200.

Hurricane Katrina forced the 2006 Golf Industry Show to move from New Orleans to Houston the September before and then because of a scheduling conflict the organizers moved it again to Atlanta less than four months out. Attendance for the event was 18,900, down from the 22,723 that were in Orlando in 2005, but up from the 18,146 that were in Atlanta in 2003 for the show’s predecessor, the GCSAA International Golf Course Conference and Show.

CMAA joined the Golf Industry Show in 2007, helping set an attendance record during the event at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, Calif. A three-year best number of 9,697 qualified buyers (those who are part of the purchase process) in attendance were greeted by a record 981 exhibitors covering a record 291,250 square feet of exhibit space. The total attendance of 23,109 was an all-time high and surpassed the 2006 figure in Atlanta by more than 4,000. Officials were pleased with the final statistics and reviews, given that the West Coast traditionally attracts fewer attendees and exhibitors.

In 2008, The Orlando show set records in a variety of categories. Overall attendance fell just shy of 26,000 at 25,737 to surpass the previous high established in Anaheim. In terms of qualified buyers 10,553 walked the floor, eclipsing the mark set in Anaheim. The trade show itself was the largest ever with 965 companies represented with exhibits covering 300,900 square feet.

The 2009 show in New Orleans welcomed 17,151 total attendees, including 7,012 qualified buyers, as well as 765 exhibitors covering 257,900 square feet of the New Orleans Morial Convention Center’s trade show floor.

The United States Golf Association (USGA) joined the Golf Industry Show as a participating partner in 2010. The San Diego event drew 7,029 industry professionals involved in purchasing decisions, surpassing the number of qualified buyers who attended the previous year.  A total of 657 exhibiting companies accounted for 204,000 square feet of exhibition space. Prior to the show, CMAA announced it would not be continuing its partnership after 2010.

For the 2011 event in Orlando, the show was joined by two new partners, the International Golf Course Equipment Managers Association as a participating partner, and the Society of Golf Appraisers as a supporting partner. The show attracted 14,781 total attendees, including 5,752 qualified buyers, as well as 551 exhibitors that spanned 180,000 net square feet of the Orange Country Convention Center.