United States
Golf Genius is the leading provider of tournament management and golf operations software, serving 11,000 clubs across 62 countries. Founded in 2009 by Mike Zisman, the company offers a suite of products covering tournament creation, registration, payment processing, live leaderboards, handicapping, retail, and coaching. Its primary customer is the PGA golf professional at private clubs and public courses, with notable institutional relationships including the USGA and PGA of America.
The company reached $1 million in revenue in 2017 after eight years of self-funded development, then scaled to approximately $53 million by the end of 2025, another eight-year run. Zisman projects revenue of just over $60 million for 2026. Golf Genius has been profitable since 2017, consistently targeting a 20% EBITDA margin, and holds $14 million in cash on its balance sheet against a total of $11 million ever raised from outside investors.
Growth has been driven by a combination of direct sales, institutional partnerships, and more than 10 acquisitions, including the 2024 purchases of consumer mobile apps GolfShot and SwingU. The company employs roughly 300 people, nearly half of them engineers, with a majority of the team based in Cluj, Romania through a wholly owned subsidiary. Employee ownership is a defining feature of the cap table, with staff holding approximately 60% of equity even excluding senior leadership.