Florida Named “Golfiest” State

Posted by zz Dan Hauser

Updated on July 3rd, 2015

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Published in Golf

Golf.com and Sports Illustrated ranked all 50 states by their “Golfiness” and the state of Florida was given the top spot on the list. The list, compiled by Golf.com’s travel expert Joe Passov, was done by rating each state on a 0-50 scale in four categories: avidness of golfers, quantity and quality of courses, legacy/vibe, and Joe’s own rating.

Joe’s had this to say in his description of Florida:

“‘My parents didn't want to move to Florida, but they turned 60 and that's the law,’ joked Jerry Seinfeld. There are many reasons why so many PGA Tour pros from Europe and the U.S. make Florida their home: No state income tax, more courses (1,042) than any other state, terrific facilities and superb weather nearly year-round. The state also hosts a quartet of PGA Tour events at public–access courses: PGA National, Trump National Doral, Innisbrook and Bay Hill, where Arnold Palmer can often be found holding court. The ultimate endorsement: Past, present and future No. 1s, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, all reside in the Sunshine State. If it's good enough for them...”

Florida was given a total rating of 187, which was 12 points ahead of Arizona which came in second.

As Joe mentioned, Florida boasts the most courses in any state in the country with 1,042 golf courses. Florida also has an all-star team of professional golfers, both past and present that call Florida and South Florida home. Jack, Tiger, Rory, Rickie, and Keegan, just to name a few. Those are just ones that call South Florida home. A bevy of golfers live in the Central Florida and North Florida area including Graeme McDowell, Ian Poulter, Billy Horschel, and Jim Furyk.

In addition, Florida host 10 professional golf tournaments between the PGA, LPGA, Champions, and Web.com Tours. The Honda Classic at PGA National, WGC-Cadillac Championship at Doral, The Valspar Championship in Tampa, the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in Orlando, and The Players Championship in Ponte Vedra Beach are all hosted by the PGA Tour. The Champions Tour hosts the Allianz Championship in Boca Raton every February as well as the ACE Group Classic in Naples. The LPGA Tour now starts and ends their season in Florida. They kick everything off in Ocala with the newly formed Coates Golf Championship, while they play their Tour Championship in Naples. The Web.com tour also concludes their season every year in Florida, holding their Tour Championship in Ponte Vedra Beach.