It's not about golfers <i>per se</i>, but it never was about the energy savings. At least, that's not why people want it. It's purely cultural.<p>Why do I say that it's cultural? It should be obvious. It starts in mid-March and ends in November. This doesn't make sense in the context of day length (February has more daylight than November). The standard time period (which is less than half the year) corresponds with the coldest months.<p>DST could be year round, but in the winter, it's more of a downer to have darkness at 8 am than at 5 pm, and outdoor activities tend to be limited to 3-4 contiguous hours because of the cold, so short afternoons aren't an issue. But in the October-November leaf season, people still want light at 6:00 in the afternoon, which they wouldn't get without DST. That makes a lot of sense in the context of, e.g., fall hiking trips.<p>DST isn't a bad thing. It's bizarre, but most people hate the idea of getting up an hour earlier. DST tricks everyone into doing this at the same time: to get up at 6 and just call it 7. It's brilliant how well it works.<p>For the record, before DST, businesses had summer and winter hours because it just didn't make sense to expect people to conform to the same clock-time schedule year-round. DST just regularizes that process.