The mood was upbeat and traffic was good at the 2019 PGA Show in Orlando this week as the golf industry looked back on its best year in quite a while, despite the persistent headwind of declining rounds played. According to Golf Datatech, rounds played slipped 4.7% in 2018 through Nov., extending a 2.6% decline the year before. Despite the participation falloff, two years of retail right-sizing following the demise of Golfsmith and The Sports Authority has resulted in a marketplace with a substantially reduced footprint and very clean inventories. The buoyant economy, tax cuts and low unemployment all contributed ... Log in to view full article.