We sat down with Scott Strong, president of foreUP, at the Golf Inc. Summit in September 2025 and talked about technology in golf course operations, growth opportunities in the next five years, advice on how to navigate the intersection of golf and technology and more.
Full transcript below (lightly edited for clarity):
During your time in the golf technology space, what’s the biggest change you’ve seen in how courses run their operations?
The biggest change obviously occurred, what seems like a long time ago, was COVID. COVID really drove the entire industry to move toward technology. So the way the golfer interacted with the operators really became prevalent at that time as everyone sought to engage in a more technology-based way, touchless way. So that really drove the change. And then what’s occurred over the last few years is via technology, beyond that tipping point, the data that’s built up has been insurmountable and has allowed us to make different decisions and created different opportunities for us as we go forward to both increase the experience the golfer has with the golf course and the operational efficiency that an operator can have in a golf course.
Tee sheet pressure is a challenge many operators talk about. How do you think courses can strike the right balance between accessibility for golfers and profitability for clubs?
Yeah, this is a big thing right now. Whenever demand outstrips supply, you’re going to see both opportunity and challenges in an industry and an environment. And that’s clearly seen with the fortunes that golf has right now with the increasing demand. But what we’re seeing right now with operators is there are increasing ways to increase the supply out there with the different formats that are evolving, anything from screen golf to range golf to different yardage sizes for play, as well as the number of holes that are allowed to play. So we’re seeing that create different dynamics to create more supply for the appetite that’s ferocious out there for golf right now, which is wonderful.
The other thing that’s evolving, which operators should definitely pay attention to, is the discipline of revenue management. The interesting thing is, as people have used these platforms for years now, there’s multiple years of data that can help you optimize this price point, very sensitive price point challenge. And there’s ways now with revenue management to be able to really tune that price point to create balance between supply and demand. And that’s been going on in industries for many, many years now. So I think that the advent for people to be able to leverage that more in a seamless way and experiment with it, it’s really going to help create balance in the supply and demand challenges and opportunities.
Where do you see the most exciting opportunities for growth in the golf industry over the next five years?
Growth is really going to come from, it’s sort of a buzzword now, but artificial intelligence is really going to drive and change the way everyone interacts with the industry, both the operator, the golfer, and anyone inside of the business is going to just see different ways to interact as we take the agentic workflows that are capable that we can build now, we can really drive and elevate the golfer experience so that you get the return golfer many, many times over. And then operators are going to continue to build environments so that they can see the way their business is growing more directly and interact with their data sets more directly over time. And then most importantly, operators are also going to be able to create a workforce, a digital workforce, that’s going to offload some of the mundane tasks that are out there for their staff so that they can have retention of staff, staff delight. And actually, if your employees are happy, then your customers are going to be happy. And that’s just going to be a continual evolution we’re going to see really take hold over the next few years.
How does foreUp set itself apart in a crowded field of tech providers?
Our platform as a whole, the ability to offer a full suite set of capabilities so that every persona that operates and interacts with a golf course has something in the platform that’s adding value to their daily tasks and their daily exercises that they’re working through. So that’s really key is having a platform that offers something for the pro, offers something for the food and beverage director, offers something for the operator. And our full suite solution does that today. I think that a lot of people can say they do that, but it’s really the underpinnings of an enterprise like foreUP and Clubessential that we have the ability to build great things, and we’ve done that in the past; buy great things: We’ve made acquisitions in the past, both Task Tracker and Blue Golf. You have to have the capital to be able to identify acquisitions that are appropriate so that you can provide them to your force. And then also a great API suite so that you can partner. So I really think the best partners that you have, which foreUP is one, you’ve got to be able to build, buy, and partner in a really aggressive and supportive way to feed this industry. It’s heavy appetite for delivering to golfers.
What advice would you give to young professionals who want to build careers at the intersection of golf and technology?
We love this intersection. So our whole enterprise is really founded on people who have a passion for golf, a passion for customer service, a passion for that whole industry, but also people who are inquisitive and curious about technology. So our group is filled with the dynamics of both of those and the diversity. And so I’d give my advice would be anyone that’s truly interested in golf, stay curious about technology and you’ll find a route that has balance, especially as artificial intelligence comes along. And if you’re a technologist and you love golf, you know, we have room for you here. We are built on that diversity.
One quick story I’ll share with you. We acquired a business recently called Task Tracker. It was founded by Jamie Sharp. He’s now elevated to run all of foreUP for us. And the interesting point about him is he started out as a golf pro, an incredible golf pro operator, head golf pro at a club. And then one day he picked up, he noticed a problem, a challenge in the superintendent space with them being able to have whiteboards and manage tasks and to be able to optimize the play with the labor force that’s out there on the field taking care of the course every day. He noticed a challenge and he didn’t just go to someone to figure it out. He actually picked up a “how to code” book and he built this platform, which we later acquired and bought for an undisclosed amount. But it just goes to show you that don’t stop being curious and be inquisitive because this golf pro, that was an incredible golf pro, built the technology and is now part of the foreUP team building capabilities for golfers.
