Why the golf industry largely supports permanent daylight saving time

(NEXSTAR) – In less than two months, every clock in the U.S. will be on standard time, with the end of daylight saving time coming as early as possible this year.

That could change if the Senate acts quickly on a bill that would make daylight saving time permanent in the U.S. The country has observed year-round daylight saving time for stretches before, but it never lasted long .

There are many who do not support “locking the clocks,” pointing to the drawbacks it may have for our health , the impacts it would have on how they practice religion , and the safety concerns associated with when the sun would rise , especially in winter.

There are, however, proponents of making daylight saving time permanent, including President Trump . An industry long associated with Trump largely agrees.

Golfers are among those who have come out in support of daylight saving time, both in its current format and in the hopes of permanent observance. Course owners and industry advocates told The Associated Press last year that, if the U.S. were to observe permanent standard time, it could lead to a loss in business.

There isn’t unanimous agreement on what should happen to the clocks among members of the National Golf Course Owners Association (NGCOA), CEO Jay Karen told Nexstar via email. Karen testified before a Senate committee and a House subcommittee last year regarding daylight saving time legislation.

About two-thirds of NGCOA’s members support permanent daylight saving time, Karen explained, while a quarter are content with the current twice-a-year changing of the clocks.

“So, if Congress and the White House intend to change the law and stop changing the clocks, they must choose either permanent Daylight Saving Time or permanent Standard Time,” he said. “If they must choose, we support permanent DST.”

Under permanent daylight saving time, it’s winters that would feel vastly different than they do now. In much of the U.S., the sun wouldn’t rise until after 8 a.m. for at least part of the winter. For some, the sun wouldn’t come up until after 9 a.m. The trade-off, though, would be later sunsets in winter .

That extra daylight in the afternoons could allow golf courses the opportunity to “eke out more activity,” Karen explained. He acknowledged, though, that any golf courses that close for the winter, like those in the northern U.S., would not be impacted by “any change in the law.”

If standard time were to become permanent, summer sunsets would happen an hour earlier than they do now. For much of the summer, that could mean sunsets prior to 7 p.m. Industry experts in Nebraska and Utah came out strongly against local attempts to make standard time permanent, saying the move could lead to lost revenue for golf courses in their respective states. Karen told the AP that year-round standard time would harm “thousands of courses.”

There is another daylight saving time-related bill that could still find its way through Congress. The Daylight Act of 2026 would make “half” daylight saving time permanent . Instead of clocks falling back an hour in November, for example, they would fall back 30 minutes .

When asked about this approach to locking the clocks, Karen said that “any bill that allows for more recreational daylight, meaning when sunshine aligns with people’s availability to get outside and exercise, is favorable for our industry.”

“I’d like to point out that this is about much more than golf,” he added. “Having extra time to enjoy healthy outdoor activities that require sunlight is good for physical and mental health, as well as our economy. It’s a win-win.”

You may be running out of afternoon tee times right now. Through September, parts of the country will lose an hour or more of daylight .

Unless the Senate takes up and passes the Sunshine Protection Act soon, you can expect your clocks to fall back an hour on Nov. 1.