GolfMatch, an app that has "attracted around 30,000 members in a little more than a year, is introducing a concept" that matches players up "based on criteria ranging from average score and age to what style of golf you prefer," according to Brian Costa of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. The concept is that it is "better to find suitable companions in advance than roll the dice" with random pairings when players arrive at the course. Tee times "can also be booked through the online booking service GolfNow." GolfMatch Founder & CEO Peter Kratsios said, "We don’t market ourselves as an online dating app, but the concept is the same. It is a platonic golf connection." So far, the app has appealed "more to people looking to play public courses than to members of private clubs, who account for just 10% of GolfMatch’s members." Kratsios said that within months of developing the first version of the app in '13, the company "ran out of money, the chief technology officer left and the product was 'terrible.'" However, the concept "remained promising." On a single night in December '14, Kratsios said that he "raised half a million dollars from angel investors, which funded the relaunch of the app" in April '15. GolfMatch "has members in all 50 states and Canada." About 80% of them "are between the ages of 18 and 34, and 75% are men" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 5/14).
