Hosted by The European Tour and chaired by Chief Executive George O’Grady, representatives from 16 European Federations, the International Golf Federation, The R&A, European Golf Association, Ladies European Tour and PGA’s of Europe joined The European Tour for a series of key note presentations and discussions focused on the future of the game at both the professional and amateur level.

The discussion kicked off with a session on “Golf in the Olympics” with O’Grady, who instigated the conference ahead of his transition to becoming President of International Relations when he steps down as Chief Executive in the summer, being joined on the panel by Peter Dawson, Chief Executive The R&A and President of the IGF, Antony Scanlon, Executive Director, IGF, Ivan Khodabakhsh, Chief Executive of the Ladies European Tour, and David Garland, The European Tour’s Director of Tour Operations, as they presented an overview of the Olympic effect.

The “Challenges Facing Europe” session explored areas such as improving the image of the game, how venues are reacting to a changing leisure environment and how the Tour can strengthen the links between the amateur and professional game with Mark Lichtenhein, The European Tour’s Head of TV, Digital Media and Technology, David MacLaren, Director of European Tour Properties, and Alain de Soultrait, Director of European Challenge Tour, leading the debate.

Some case studies centred around golf participation, presented by Christophe Muniesa, General Secretary, French Golf Federation, Marcus Neumann, Member of the Board – Sports, German Golf Federation, Lubos Klikar,, Sport Director, Czech Republic Golf Federation and Morten Backhausen, Director, Danish Golf Federation, provided plenty of valuable insights into initiatives such as the short courses in France, trends in ‘pay-and-play’ and opportunities to attract more juniors into the game.

Golf Europe – a group of European golf stakeholders collaborating to grow golf and enhance the sport’s contribution to European society  – concluded the conference by outlining its plans and objectives for the future and to introduce GoGolf, an Erasmus+ funded initiative designed to engage young people in golf at a pan-European level and enhance the evidence base of the health benefits of golf.  The  panel featured Richard Heath, General Secretary of the EGA, Steve Isaac,  Director – Golf Course Management, The R&A, Mike Round, Director of Development and Membership, Ladies European Tour, Ian Randell, Chief Executive, Confederation of Professional Golf, and Fredrik Lindgren, Head of Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability, European Tour.

George O’Grady said: “I would like to thank all the Presidents of Federations and other stakeholders for their time and making the effort inn coming here to Wentworth for what I am sure all will agree was a very useful and enjoyable experience. The timing of this conference heralds golf’s return to the Olympics, a once in a lifetime opportunity for our game and today highlighted many ways we can work together to collectively drive golf forward.”

The survey received more than 56,000 responses from golfers in 122 countries between September 2014 and March 2015. It was carried out by The R&A as part of its efforts to investigate the issues affecting golf and the extent to which they impact on participation in the sport.

The survey revealed that while 70% of golfers are largely happy with the duration of their rounds, 60% of golfers expressed the view that they would enjoy golf more if they played in less time.

Importantly, of the 25-44 year-olds who said that they were never happy with pace of play, 21% said that golf would need to take as much as one-and-a-half hours less for them to play more often. Of the 8,468 golfers in this age range who responded, 19% said they would welcome the opportunity to play nine holes more often as an alternative format.

The survey found that the two biggest factors preventing people from playing golf are work commitments (34%) and family commitments (29%) with the time taken to play (16%) ranked third. Other factors mentioned were alternative hobbies (12%), cost of play (7%), difficulty of play (1%) and cost of equipment (1%); although there were some regional variations on these percentages.

The R&A is organising a forum later this year where it will invite contributions from a range of organisations in golf on addressing pace of play and explore the key areas of player behaviour, management approaches and golf course issues.

Duncan Weir, Executive Director – Working for Golf at The R&A, said, “This survey is the first step for us in examining, in detail, the wide range of issues currently affecting participation in golf. There is plenty of anecdotal evidence available but we conducted the survey to obtain accurate data on how much of an issue pace of play is for golfers and to give us an insight into what they see as the main factors contributing to slow rounds.

“We feel that the next step in this process is to engage with our partners throughout the golf industry to look at these findings and invite them to contribute their views to these important discussions. Our forum later this year will provide the opportunity for these discussions to take place.”

The R&A distributed the survey through its affiliated bodies around the world and it was offered in six languages: Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese and Spanish.

Click here to download the report

Di Ponziano has been a regular visitor to India to support the development of golf in the country for over 20 years.  The honour comes in recognition of his assistance in establishing the National Golf Academy of India (NGAI) and subsequent development of many of the country’s coaches.

“Through  Donato Di Ponziano’s vision, strong focus and effective leadership, The Indian Golf Union established ‘The National Golf Academy of India’ almost a decade back,” said President of the Indian Golf Union, Jaydeep Chitlangia.

“It has created a pool of trained and dedicated golf coaches, and as a result of his efforts Indians now compete at the highest level of the game.  It is befitting that the NGAI and IGU are honouring  Donato Di Ponziano with this title in the 10th year of the NGAI.”

“Receiving this award today fills me with great satisfaction,” said Di Ponziano.  “I wish to thank the IGU who felt that I deserved the award, Indian golf professionals without which, in truth, I would never be successful in a project so ambitious, and also The R&A and the Confederation of Professional Golf for the help they have given to continue to grow the missionary projects for developing the sport.”

Chairperson of the NGAI, Dr. Satbinder Singh, added, “We at the IGU and at the NGAI are proud to confer this title on  Donato for his support in establishing the NGAI, which  hugely contributed towards the scientific training and teaching  of Golf Coaches and resulted in the growth of game in the country.”

Jesse Grewal, Director of the NGAI, also said “For Teaching Professionals in India, Donato has always been our ‘guru’. Thus it is befitting that Donato is the first Master Teaching Professional.”

For more information on the Indian Golf Union visit www.indiangolfunion.org.

The three-round Pro-Am tournament takes in three courses on Bulgaria’s Black Sea coastline in the form of Gary Payer Signature Design courses BlackSeaRama Golf & Villas and Thracian Cliffs Golf & Beach Resort, as well as the Ian Woosnam-designed Lighthouse Golf & Spa Resort.

PGA Professionals will compete for a prize fund of €25.000 (based on 25 teams) whilst also having the opportunity to win a BMW Hole-in-One prize supported by Varna Cars.

The opening round will take place at the Par 71 6,105m Lighthouse Golf & Spa Resort, followed up by the second round at 2013 Volvo World Matchplay Championship venue, Thracian Cliffs.

The third and final round will take place on BlackSeaRama Golf & Villas’ 6,240m Par-72 layout that offers a classic links-style layout and incredible views out to the Cape Kaliakra.

Beginning at €969 for non-members, and along with an exceptional après-golf offering (details here: http://eur.pe/1EuskS2), packages include:

• 5 night accommodation and complimentary airport transfer from / to Varna Airport
• Every day Lavish Buffet Breakfast included; Coffee, tea and Water in the Villas, Limited Mini-bar
• 1 practice day green fee @ BlackSeaRama
• Opening cocktail
• 3 tournament days green fees @ BlackSeaRama, Lighthouse and Thracian Cliffs (transfers included)
• 3 half-ways
• 2 Buffet Dinners
• Prize giving ceremony with Gala Dinner
• Free use of Fitness Center, Infrared and Finnish Sauna, Jacuzzi, Billiard, Table Tennis, Pools, Steam Bath and Relax zone, Wi-Fi Internet
• Access to all functions and activities during the Pro-Am week

Find out more information by downloading the Tournament Information Sheet here – http://eur.pe/1EuskS2 – and to enter download the Entry Form here – http://eur.pe/1ILyxXF. Contact blacksearama@blacksearama.com with entries and for enquiries.

————————-

For more information on the Confederation of Professional Golf visit the Tournament Hub Page, follow @PGAsofEurope on Twitter search the Hashtag ‘#BlackSeaRama’, or like the Confederation of Professional Golf Facebook Page.

For more information on BlackSeaRama Golf Club visit www.BlackSeaRama.com.

Visit the Tournament Hub Page – http://eur.pe/2015BlackSeaRama

Keith has enjoyed an extensive and highly successful career in the worlds of sport and media.  He is currently President of Rogers Media, a media conglomerate in Canada, with responsibility for all lines of the media business, including 51 radio stations, 56 publications, 12 national TV stations plus 42 local stations, 300 digital properties as well as the Toronto Blue Jays, Canada’s only Major League Baseball team.

While at Rogers, Keith helped orchestrate the largest sports rights deal in Canadian history, the first of its kind worldwide, with the acquisition of a $5.2 billion National Hockey League rights deal for 12 years to include all media platforms.

Prior to this, Keith was President of Canada’s Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium where he created and led the media consortium for all broadcast rights holders for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, with responsibility for all production, programming, marketing, sales and sponsorship in the run up to and during the Games. Earlier in his career he was CEO of the Canadian Football League’s Toronto Argonauts, during which the team won the championship title in his first year of leadership.

Keith has a deep understanding of the professional athlete, having worked with them for over 30 years across several major sports including the National Football League, National Hockey League, Major League Baseball and the Canadian Football League.

This, combined with his extensive experience in rights management and negotiations; sponsorship creation; television production; marketing; communications; brand development and event management, made Keith the unanimous choice of the Board’s Nominations Committee.

David Williams, Chairman of The European Tour commented: “I am delighted to welcome Keith Pelley to The European Tour as our new Chief Executive.  Keith’s proven track record, extensive experience and outstanding leadership skills in both sport and media will be invaluable as we continue to further develop our strategy.

“Throughout the interview process, it was clear that Keith has an unwavering passion for golf as well as a strong grasp of the challenges and opportunities facing not only The European Tour, but the wider game of golf as a whole.  He knows the game, respects its history and I have no doubt he will bring an innovative approach to the development of The European Tour on the global stage.

“On behalf of the Board I would again like to thank George O’Grady for his extraordinary contribution to The European Tour and professional golf over the last 40 years and we are delighted that he will undertake the role of President of International Relations, ensuring The European Tour will continue to benefit from his knowledge and experience.”

Keith Pelley said:  “I am very honoured to be joining The European Tour as its new CEO at an exciting stage in its development.  The Tour already has a highly regarded reputation and I look forward to building on this using my previous experience in both media and sports to ensure it remains at forefront of the game across the globe.

“Throughout my career in North America, it has been a privilege to work with the best sports organisations, athletes, and media assets.  I am excited to build on these experiences on the international stage.”

George O’Grady, who will continue in the role of Chief Executive until Keith takes office officially, said: “I look forward to welcoming Keith to The European Tour and ensuring a smooth transition as I continue to develop my new role. I am certain that Keith will bring a fresh and business-focused perspective to the Tour.”

Thomas Bjørn, Chairman of The European Tour’s Tournament Committee said: “On behalf of all the players on The European Tour, I am delighted to welcome Keith Pelley as our new Chief Executive. Having spoken to him at length, I know the passion and commitment he will bring to the role as the Tour moves forward. You only need to look at what he has achieved in sports and business to date to see that his record speaks for itself.

“I would also like to place on record how impressed I have been with the process put in place by the Board of The European Tour to select our new Chief Executive. The Nominations Committee, led by chair David Jones, and consisting of David Williams, Damon Buffini, Chris Hanell and Robert Lee, handled the process in a professional and exemplary fashion and shows precisely the trust the players have in the Board.”

For more information visit www.EuropeanTour.com.

Confederation of Professional Golf Media Partner, GolfBusinessNews.com, spoke to Andrea Sartori, Partner KPMG Advisory, Head of Golf Advisory Services in EMA, about the new study.

Click Here to View the Interview in Full at GBN.com

Andrea, KPMG Golf Advisory Practice continues to publish meaningful thought leadership on the golf sector. You have recently produced a new study on golf resorts. Why have you chosen this time for the study?

Yes, you are right; the KPMG Golf Advisory Practice leads the way in thought leadership in the golf industry. Last year we published the Golf Cost Development Survey for Europe, Middle East and Africa and in a couple of weeks we will publish the annual European Golf Participation Survey.

The report on integrated golf resorts comes at a time when the property sector is slowly coming out of the global economic crisis and with this in mind, we believe it is a good time to investigate the development of and future outlook for integrated golf resorts in greater detail. Our analysis has shown that whilst some integrated golf resorts did open during the crisis years, the rate of growth slowed significantly. Today we are seeing a returning level of interest in the sector.

At the same time the golf holiday market has shown signs of continued growth in the past few years, with global golf holiday sales growing by more than 20% between 2011 and 2013.

Click here to download the report

Explain the general concept behind integrated golf resorts?

First of all is important to observe that there is not a commonly accepted definition of what constitutes a resort. In our study, we have considered a resort as a planned development comprising one or more golf courses, hospitality facilities and/or residential real estate for sale. The subject of our study is golf resorts located within 20 km of the coast of European Mediterranean countries, as well as the coast of Portugal. We also define an integrated golf resort as being planned and developed as one mixed-use project.

The key element of the market that we have analysed is the inclusion of golf as a main feature of the resort. Increasingly the concept of a golf resort has been backed up with a range of other sports and leisure facilities, but it is the combination of all of these components that can contribute to the success of an integrated golf resort.

How has the concept changed over the years?

Costa Navarino Bay Course – operated by Troon Golf. (photograph courtesy of Kevin Murray)
Golf resorts have existed since the early 20th century. In the early days the concept comprised more simply a hotel and a golf course or courses.

As holiday patterns changed, and with a greater availability of means of travel, the resort market boomed and a holiday residential market started to grow. From the 1980s the proportion of integrated golf resorts featuring residential real estate for sale increased and between 2000 and 2009 as many resorts opened including holiday real estate as those including only a hotel.

Interestingly in many cases developers focussed on real estate sales have chosen to include a hotel as well. This often make sense as the hotel can provide a range of facilities which add to the attractiveness of the resort as a whole, a brand that can help to position the resort and establish credibility in the eyes of real estate buyers.

Why has the residential real estate-golf combination grown in importance?

The key answer to this question lies in the potential returns on investment from residential sales. In terms of positioning the resort in the eyes of potential consumers; golf remains a key driver to higher premiums in real estate or tourist developments. Golf courses come second only to waterfront sites as the most desirable location for a housing community.

In a recent survey of resort developers carried out by KPMG, nearly half of the respondents indicated that the real estate sales price premium generated by a golf course was in excess of 20%. Almost all survey respondents indicated that a premium was achieved on residential real estate as a result of a golf course.

It is important to realise that many people who purchase real estate in an integrated golf resort may not actually play golf. Rather they are attracted by the thought of living on a golf course – the green areas of the fairways, the lifestyle and the sense of “prestige” associated with living beside a golf course. In addition there is a greater potential of increased investment value of a golf course home.

In today’s market, how important is the use of a “branded” golf architect and internationally branded hotels?

Monte Rei Golf & Country Club – Nicklaus Design (photograph courtesy of Aidan Bradley)
This is an area on which we are frequently asked to give advice. Increasingly in today’s golf and hospitality markets, the issue of brand is of key importance. It can be key to raising the profile of a resort.

Our research showed that in the last fifteen years around a third of all new golf courses have been designed by firms of architects associated with a well-known golfer. Interestingly in the last five years, this proportion has grown to 60%. Furthermore, our study demonstrated that residential real estate on a resort with a “branded” golf course achieves a greater premium. 35% of the resorts studied estimated a premium above 10%, and 25% estimated a premium of between 6%-10%.

The same is perhaps true in terms of the use of international hotel brands. Certainly a well-known hotel brand can assist in raising the profile of a resort and nearly 40% of all hotels in resorts covered by our study are operated under an international brand. It is however interesting to note that there is no brand that currently has leadership in this market.

Is now a good time to be developing a golf resort?

It appears that we are into a phase of modest recovery following the economic crisis – our experience shows that this can be seen to an early extent in the second home property market. It appears that it is more in the market for higher quality properties and unique concept that are attracting more attention in the early stages of the recovery.

At the moment we are noticing that second home buyers from key feeder markets – such as UK, Ireland, Germany, and Scandinavia – are beginning to explore once again the idea of buying second or third homes in golf resorts in Southern Europe. The CIS regions and Russia, prior to the Ukrainian crisis, were also emerging as potential buyers.

We are seeing a revival in developer confidence in some areas. This despite the fact that there is still limited debt financing available for green field golf related projects. In facts, banks have not shown the same kind of openness to green field development at this time and they are rather interested in investing in the extension of existing successful properties. Existing resorts are now investing in repositioning themselves and in some cases projects which were halted and are currently under development are revising their original concept in order to become more attractive in the changing market. It is perhaps in some emerging countries that greater future potential exist.

Where in the European Mediterranean do you see the potential for golf resort development?

More established markets such as Spain, Portugal and to a lesser extent France and Italy, have a mature integrated golf resort supply. Especially in Spain, at least for a few years, there will be a limited number of new projects, whereas emerging markets currently have the least supply and potentially offer the most opportunity. Our study has demonstrated that there are improved prospects for new developments in emerging golf resort markets, such as Croatia, Montenegro, Cyprus and Turkey. Despite the uncertain economic and political situation, Greece could also be an interesting market in the mid-term.

In the next five years we expect to see growth in the number of resorts in the above mentioned emerging markets and the South of Italy, which has phenomenal golf tourism potential. One problem that has surfaced in general is the lack of suitable available land and a low prioritization of golf in national tourism program. What we have observed is that if emerging destinations wish to compete against mature destinations, the concepts of resorts need to be based on mix of components focused on niches which differentiate them from competitors.

KPMG Golf Advisory Practice: www.golfbenchmark.com.

This article originally appeared on GolfBusinessNews.com – to view the original article visit http://eur.pe/1FRIPSV

“Some of the coaches had travelled almost 3000 km by rail, bus and taxi to attend…”

The honour of working as a golf development officer and the privilege of working together with some of the best golf professionals is in itself probably one of the most exciting and humbling opportunities I have experienced in the past 10 years.

Recently in previous visits I worked with Keith Williams in Argentina and in India I was given the topic of short game together with a putting guru, Steven Orr.

The idea was to give three courses, each over three days, with level A, B and C coaches who work close to Delhi but also from across India.

Considering the size of India we had no idea how far the coaches would travel.  To our amazement we realised that some of the coaches had travelled almost 3000 km by rail, bus and taxi to attend these 3 days.  I said humbling because in the feedback they mentioned they would have travelled double.

The content was based on basic geometry and physics to better understand the ball flight and the connection to what happens when a golf ball is hit.  The group was then divided into pitching and putting and spent the day in practical sessions having fun and trying new exercise and drills, as well as ways to help them improve their skills and knowledge as coaches.

We left feeling we had made a difference – we’d visited a very special country with very special people who made us feel very special!

Hungary was also very interesting as the topic was slightly different being targeted at improving communication and growing the game.

Discussions with the different golfing bodies took place, a few projects were looked at, and a pathway for the future was developed.  The professionals then had a 1.5 day workshop on how to develop themselves and their market for the future, whilst also looking at basic information on the launch monitors and ball flight laws.

I will finish this short case study by thanking The R&A and the Confederation of Professional Golf for making these visits possible.  The influence and impact that these visits have on countries is way past what we think and offers experiences and knowledge to so many people who never forget these special opportunities.

First on the agenda was a visit to Germany, where the Golf Resort A-ROSA Scharmützelsee in Badsarrow was presented as the potential host venue for the biennial contest between Europe and the United States.

Located on the fringes of the German capital, Berlin, the inland links-style course was designed by former European Number One and six-time Major Champion Sir Nick Faldo.

Ryder Cup Officials met with Marco Kaussler, Director of the Ryder Cup Germany application, and his team plus Richard J. Vogel, the Managing Director of the A-ROSA hotel holding company DSR, to discuss what they see as the cornerstones of their bid to stage The Ryder Cup in Germany for the first time.

The delegation also met with German Cabinet Minister Peter Altmaier and the Mayor of Berlin Michael Müller before visiting the iconic Olympic Stadium and the new airport in Berlin, which is scheduled to open in 2017.

Next, Ryder Cup Europe’s delegation travelled to the north-east of Spain to evaluate the Costa-Brava-Barcelona candidacy.

The two-day trip consisted of a tour of the iconic cities of Barcelona and Girona, as well as the proposed future host venue, PGA Catalunya Resort, where the delegation met with owner Denis O’Brien.

After taking in the logistical planning being put in place by the Spanish bid, the trip concluded with a formal reception with the Mayor of Barcelona Xavier Trias and Secretary of State for Sport Miguel Cardenal, as well as a visit to one of Catalunya’s unique attractions – the Nou Camp stadium, home of FC Barcelona – where the delegation members hit golf balls from the hallowed turf.

Spain’s bid enjoys support from the highest levels, including from His Royal Highness King Felipe VI, who has accepted the Honorary Presidency of the Costa Brava-Barcelona 2022 bid for The Ryder Cup.

Following their Iberian odyssey, RCE journeyed east to view the Italian bid centred on the Marco Simone Club on the outskirts of capital Rome.

Ahead of the inspection visit to the course, Ryder Cup officials were received by Italian cabinet undersecretary and sports delegate Graziano Delrio in Rome’s historic centre, before visiting the Olympic Stadium in the company of officials from the Italian National Olympic Committee, whose support for the bid was reaffirmed by its President Giovanni Malagò.

The delegation were also given a tour of The Quirinale, the private residence of the President of the Italian Republic.

The Jim Fazio-designed Simone course, which was founded by and is still owned by celebrated fashion designer Laura Biagiotti and her family, hosted the 1994 Open de Italia while the Eternal City – whose Mayor Ignazio Marino also joined the delegation – is visible from parts of the layout.

Final stop for the delegation came in Austria and centred around the Fontana Golf Club to the south of the capital Vienna, a venue which has already staged tournaments on both The European Tour and the Challenge Tour.

After a tour of the golf course and a meeting with founder Frank Stronach and owner Siegfried Wolf, the delegation were then shown the many iconic buildings and locations within Vienna itself.

Included in the tour of Austria’s capital was the majestic Hofburg Palace, the Parliament – where they were welcomed by the President of the Parliament Dores Bures – and the Town Hall, where they had an audience with Mayor Michael Häupf.

A further tour of Fontana’s infrastructure and outlying facilities took place on the delegation’s second day during which they also met with Klaus Schneeberger, the leader of the Party which governs Lower Austria, the location of Fontana Golf Club.

Ryder Cup Director Richard Hills, said: “On behalf of everyone at Ryder Cup Europe, I want to place on record my thanks and appreciation of the hard work put in by all the representatives of the nations we visited on our fact-finding trips. We very much enjoyed seeing precisely the vision that each country has for the hosting of The 2022 Ryder Cup and look forward to the receipt of their Official Bids in due course.”

One nation who will not be submitting a bid, however, is Portugal, who informed Ryder Cup Europe officials that they are no longer in the running.

Manuel Agrellos, President of The Portuguese Golf Federation, said: “We have once again enjoyed working with our colleagues at Ryder Cup Europe, as we assessed the merits and viability of formally submitting a bid to host The 2022 Ryder Cup within Portugal. We are certain that a Ryder Cup in Portugal is of paramount importance as it will allow the exposure of our country as a top golf destination and will allow us the opportunity to further develop the game in Portugal. We have reluctantly concluded that the prevailing economic environment would prevent us from developing as strong a bid as we would wish and have therefore decided to wait for a future opportunity.”

Following the inspection visits, the prospective host nations for what will be the 44th staging of The Ryder Cup, will make their formal submission of Official Bids on or before the closing date of Thursday April 30, 2015.

Following that, a period of detailed analysis of each bid by a management team working on behalf of Ryder Cup Europe – together with the assistance of an independent panel of experts – will be undertaken, with the announcement of the successful host country and venue for The 2022 Ryder Cup expected this autumn.

For more information on the Ryder Cup visit www.rydercup.com.

79 of the 97 players competing in the year’s first major— a total of 81% — trusted their games to Golf Pride grips.  In fact, 26 of the top 30 finishers (32 players including ties) used Golf Pride grips at Augusta National Golf Club.

Golf Pride’s popular Tour Velvet family of grips were used by 55 players during the year’s first major. Tour Velvet family models’ usage was three times greater than all other grip brands combined.

“We, at Golf Pride, make extraordinary investments in the research, development and production of our grips to ensure that they will perform to players expectations – especially on the back nine of Augusta on Sunday afternoon,” said Brandon Sowell, global sales and marketing director for Golf Pride. “To see so many of the world’s best players choose Golf Pride, solely based on the merits of the grips’ performance and not a paid endorsement, makes our usage numbers so much more rewarding.”

Golf Pride’s success in the game’s biggest events is a well-established tradition in golf. In fact, players using Golf Pride grips have won 85% of the last 20 of golf’s major championships, dating back to the 2010 U.S. Open. To view Golf Pride’s entire line of products played on Tour visit www.golfpride.com.

Eaton’s Golf Grip Division is the world’s largest manufacturer of golf grips, with manufacturing, sales and distribution facilities on six continents. The division’s Golf Pride brand is recognized globally as the number one choice in grips among tour and recreational players, competitive amateur golfers, club manufacturers and club repairmen.

For more information, visit www.golfpride.com or visit us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/GolfPride.

Visit the Golf Pride Partner Hub

As the #1 ball in golf, we spoke to Titleist’s Golf Ball Director, Michael Mahoney, to discuss why ball fitting is so important for all types of golfers and how that could influence your own ball fitting offerings.

What is the importance of golf ball fitting, and for golfers to play the same golf ball every time they play?

We hear all the time from golfers’ things like, “I’m not good enough to be able to feel the difference” or, “I just play whatever is in my bag”.  By playing whatever is in their bag you run into the challenge of not knowing what the golf ball is going to do when you execute the shot the way you want to.

So to give you an example, a golfer who is hitting a shot into a tight pin over a bunker from say, 40 yards; if you put all of our golf balls down and hit that shot five times with each golf ball, you’ll start to notice a pattern and that they all perform a little differently on that shot.

It’s really important that a golfer knows that when he or she hits the shot that they are trying to hit, that the golf ball is going to perform how they are expecting it to.  Playing the same golf ball consistently is really critical in helping you to play better golf.

What is the focus of Titleist golf ball fitting?

Our process focuses, first and foremost, on helping you to lower your score and helping you play your best golf.  Our methodology starts with those shots that contribute the most to lower scores, which are the shots into and around the green.  We go from the green back to the tee when we’re fitting, and start with those shots.

As a result, our fitting methodology fits the vast majority, 95%+ of golfers into a Pro V1 or Pro V1x, because those golf balls have the best scoring performance regardless of whether you’re a 25 handicap, a 10 handicap or a tour player.  Our methodology doesn’t change depending on where you are from a skill level, your age, your gender, no matter what. Our fitting focuses on shooting lower scores, and it focuses on those scoring shots.

What about players who don’t swing at the same speed as a tour player, is Pro V1 or Pro V1x still the best ball for them?

We hear that all the time!  In fact, club golfers do swing at the same speed as tour player.  They may not do it with driver, but when a tour player hits a shot with their 7 or 8 iron, that’s probably the same swing speed as some club golfers have with their driver.

To simply answer the question, golf club fitting is very focussed on specific shots; we fit the driver for a very specific purpose, for one type of shot.  We would never say, “Let’s take your driver and hit a 40 yard shot with it”.  It would not work very well for that, but we fit wedges for that!  We fit irons for their specific job, but the golf ball doesn’t change, the golf ball is the same regardless of what shot you are hitting so it has to work on all of those shots.

So a golf ball for Titleist has to be long, so in the long game it has to be low spin, has to fly far and generate a lot of speed, and in the short game it has to generate high spin from a relatively low speed shot.  Pro V1 and Pro V1x are the most highly engineered products we have and they are designed to do exactly that; generate exceptional distance and also have great spin in the short game.  Pro V1x is about the longest golf ball that you are going to find anywhere in the world for all golfers; it’s an extraordinary long product.  We don’t fit for swing speed, we don’t fit for distance, we fit for scoring and Pro V1 and Pro V1x deliver that for all golfers.

Even lady golfers?

Well, the last time I checked the golf ball doesn’t look up and all of a sudden perform differently because it sees that a woman is hitting it versus a man!  We look at the products that are labelled ‘ladies’ products, and we don’t quite understand them.  There are certainly no characteristics within the products, no special technology that helps them detect that a woman is swinging at it!  We see just as wide a variation in woman’s golf games as we do in men’s and so we design golf balls that are the best performing products for everyone!

What is that sets Titleist apart?

You can’t develop the Titleist culture of dedication towards making the best golf balls in the world in one day.  We invest not only a lot of money, but a lot of time and energy in commitment to making the best products in the world.  When you see the trust that golfers have in Titleist, it’s not only about golf balls that perform best, but that they know that nobody other than Titleist associates have played a role in the process.

We make all of our products in our own ball plants, with our own associates, mostly on technology that we designed in-house.  We are protected by more patents than anybody else in the industry and our technology is more advanced than anybody else in the industry, and that we have a commitment to delivering products that golfers, whether they are trying to make a living playing golf or trying to achieve their best at amateur level, they can trust that our products are going to perform the way they expect them to consistently, ball after ball after ball.

We look at PGA Tour or European Tour counts and those are very validating, but when we look at the US Amateur or British Amateur, those counts go from 65-70% to 80-90%, it’s very validating that we’re achieving our mission, which is to deliver golf balls of superior performance and superior quality for serious golfers.

Current fully-qualified PGA Members will be entitled to free daily tickets plus half-price tickets for a guest (week passes are excluded). The Member’s guest must be checked in on-site personally by the Member.

Prior reservation of daily tickets is required for free entry.  This reservation can only be made by using the following relevant registration form:

Download Confederation of Professional Golf Member Country PGA Professional Registration Form

Download PGAs of America PGA Professional Registration Form

Please send the completed registration forms to solheimcup2015@pga.de.

Once your registration is received you will be sent a confirmation of registration at the e-mail address stated within 5 days at the latest.

Please note: No tickets will be sent in advance.  Access will be granted on location by checking in at the PGA Counter. You will be given just the tickets for the particular event day. Free entry for members of PGA of Germany and international PGAs that are a member of the Confederation of Professional Golf will only be granted after prior registration and sight of your valid PGA ID card with photo or a letter of confirmation of your PGA membership combined with a valid photo ID! For international PGA members there is a maximum of 100 free tickets available per day (first come, first serve).

Ticket-reservations are open until Friday, 21. August 2015.

Entry is free for teenagers up to and including 16 years, who are accompanied by an adult.

For more information visit: http://eur.pe/1aqkhHZ

How About Chile?

The great thing about The R&A golf development missions are that you always meet people who are passionate about the game of golf – a coach, a player, a secretary or even an old member of a club who shares your interests.

Over the last 6 years i have visited many countries and met some great coaches, players and made many new friends.

My most recent trip was to Chile where I was met by Edgardo Bello Lutter, a very passionate Argentinian who was dedicated to increasing participation figures in Chile.

Edgardo worked tirelessly for The Chilean Golf Federation, he set up seminars for the coaches, liaised with the secretaries of clubs to generate new members, looked after national players, and encouraged club players to continue with their memberships while inviting newcomers to the clubs.

I gave a seminar in Santiago and another in Concepción on impact factors and ball flights and also on development ideas that would help the country in their quest to raise the number of people playing golf.  The seminar was attended by a record number of delegates and the info was very well received.

To be perfectly honest it was a breath of fresh air to deliver a presentation without using the latest in technology.  More importantly, I think the coaches of Chile appreciated it as there is currently only one Trackman unit and force-plate in the country.

I think it is so important to pitch the level of info to the level of learner, and that’s what I try to do every time I step on to the lesson tee or deliver a presentation.

I feel the most important thing when working for golf in different countries is to ensure the advice you give is clear and concise.  Wherever possible you should make yourself available when you return home.  Going the extra mile for others can be the difference between success and failure of the sport.

A healthy marketplace can only exist when demand and supply are evenly balanced. Demand at the GOLF EUROPE is continuously growing so we are calling upon you to participate actively in your marketplace – make your presence felt at GOLF EUROPE!

High Demand on Golf Apparel

With a share of roughly 40%, golf apparel was among the top 3 products most in demand at last year’s GOLF EUROPE. The industry was glad to see adidas, Tommy Hilfiger, SUNICE, AUR, xfore, Wild Green and many more brands taking part.

Tread in their footsteps and introduce yourself at the only complete industry fair in Europe devoted to the whole B2B golf business. We have prepared a tailor-made all-round offer just for you as an apparel company ­- Contact us for offers!

Complement your presentation at the fair with our sponsoring and advertising area offers – the Augsburg Exhibition Centre offers varied and individual opportunities to present your company. We will be glad to help you with your projects!

Find out more facts and figures in our fact sheet and our visitor evaluation! Our exhibitors’ brochure provides you with additional information.

Fit for the Course – A New Exhibition Theme

What began as a bit of a craze has long since become a way of life for many golfers. Golf health and fitness is now focused on by many and particularly young, ambitious players have a passion for it. The new exhibition topic is a result of a high demand in previous past years!

Fitness, nutrition, personal coaching, sporting equipment and more are on the agenda for anything that will improve a player’s game. For members of this group, golf is far more than just a hobby – it’s an authentic passion!

Save the Date!

GOLF EUROPE 2015 will be held from Monday the 28th till Wednesday the 30th of September for the first time! Show times on Monday & Tuesday are from 10:00 to 18:00, and 10:00 to 16:00 on Wednesday.

Travel and Accommodation Options Available For You!

The best thing you can do is book your hotel room right now, because GOLF EUROPE will be held at the same time as the Munich Oktoberfest so it is advisable to book early. You will only be able to access the hotel block booking reserved for you via our booking link up to 28^th August 2015.

Special Lufthansa rates for flights to Munich will be available on an exclusive basis for you via the pro-golfhotels.de hotel platform. A free shuttle service will then be available to transport you from Munich airport or the city centre in Augsburg to the trade fair complex in comfort.

Lufthansa City Centre Domberger will be pleased to make all your travel and booking arrangements for you upon request: +49 (0) 821 502 250, E-Mail LCC@domberger.eu.

We shall be pleased to respond to all your queries concerning your attendance at GOLF EUROPE 2015 in person. Just talk to us – we look forward to hearing from you!

The city of Augsburg, our associates, the visitors to GOLF EUROPE and the GOLF EUROPE team are looking forward to welcoming you in September.

For more information on GOLF EUROPE visit www.GOLF-EUROPE.com, follow @golfeuropemesse on Twitter, like the GOLF EUROPE’s Facebook Page, and follow Golf Europe on Google+.

In association with Network90.com Luke Donald and GOLF EUROPE bring you the chance to join and win £50,000 in our Four Majors Competition, only available to the first 7500 members till the 7th of April 2015!

JOIN NOW – it’s a free network service for the B2B golf industry:

Go to: www.network90.com/golf click ‘ENTER VIP CODE’ in top menu and enter: N90GOLF

Your GOLF EUROPE team is also registered at Network90.com and is looking forward to add you as a contact.

Brazil Goes Nuts for Footgolf

By Nat Sylvester

Craig Thomas introduced Footgolf to the South American country’s golf coaches during a teaching and coaching conference hosted by the Paulista Federation of Golf in Sao Paulo.

It went down well with delegates who will be looking to utilise the format, along with urban and street golf, to make golf more accessible as a sport.

Thomas, a Wolverhampton, UK, based PGA of Great Britain & Ireland Advanced Professional and Director of ‘The Golf Academy’ in Staffordshire, was representing The R&A at the two day conference as part of its Working For Golf project.

“My role was to look at alternative forms of golf to try and breakdown the barriers in Brazil that are stopping people getting into golf and bridge the gap,” explained Thomas.

“In Brazil they have a programme called Golfe Para Vida – Golf for Life – which develops golf in schools. Over 30,000 kids have received some golf coaching in schools and my role was to show how these kids can access golf outside of schools.

“We took urban and street golf and introduced it to the coaches so they could look at introducing golf in their communities because while a lot of kids would not be able to afford to join golf clubs, they would play nine holes of urban golf in the streets.

“We also showed the coaches Footgolf as a way of introducing golf to people who might be football fans and hadn’t previously considered golf as a sport they might try.

“It was a great experience to see how it worked and meet the coaches. There is no training programme for their coaches so they tend to be ex-caddies or players so it was a bit of a culture shock.

“It was a two day conference and the second day was showing coaches how they could get involved and set up street golf and Footgolf so they had the experience to take into the community.

“It went down really well and I’ve already had positive feedback with some of the coaches immediately looking at introducing urban and street golf into their communities.”

“We are very excited to be launching the fifth edition of the event since it was re-launched in 2011,” said Confederation of Professional Golf Chief Executive, Ian Randell.  “Our key individual event continues to grow in stature year on year and with the fantastic support of UniCredit Bulbank and the team at Pravets we are looking forward to once again seeing the best PGA Professionals from across our membership compete for a prize fund of €60,000 and the prestigious title.”

The Championship is the Association’s only full 72-hole individual strokeplay tournament and is the flagship event of a now 12 event-strong tournament calendar, the most comprehensive in the Confederation of Professional Golf’s 25-year history.

11 PGAs already have their qualifying events in place, and when complete, the leading players will qualify to compete at the Championship.

Along with the qualifiers from Member Country PGAs, the Championship will this year come with the added boost that the ‘Passport to Pravets’ banner provides – each of the eligible winners from the other Confederation of Professional Golf Championships and Sanctioned Events on the calendar will also qualify to compete.

PGA Professionals can contact their PGA to find out more on qualifying for the Championship.

2015 UniCredit PGA Professional Championship of Europe Qualifying Events

———————–

For more information on the 2014 UniCredit PGA Professional Championship of Europe visit the Tournament Hub Page, follow @PGAsofEurope and search #PassportToPravets on Twitter, or like the Confederation of Professional Golf Facebook Page.

I am very fortunate to be able to represent the Confederation of Professional Golf, along with Board Member and Chief Executive of the PGA of Holland, Frank Kirsten, and join officials from PGAs, Federations, Tours and other golfing bodies from around the world for a week that provides a great deal of opportunity to speak with golfing colleagues on the varying issues affecting the game and initiatives to assist its development.

And this issue of IGPN focuses on exactly that…Golf Development.

Golf Development is at the very heart of the Confederation of Professional Golf as we focus on advancing PGAs, advancing PGA Professionals and as a result advancing the enjoyment and playing standards of golfers and introducing many new potential golfers.

Last month I was pleased to be a part of GolfBIC (The Golf Business and Industry Convention) at the Forest of Arden in the UK not far from our Belfry Headquarters. The yearly gathering of British industry representatives was as insightful as ever and I enjoyed the back and forth with my fellow panel members during our discussions on key issues for the industry. Once again growing the game was at the forefront of discussions.

It is in just about every golf organisation’s interests to get more golfers playing more often and we are uniquely positioned to be able to share good practice across Europe and beyond through the network of some 21,000 PGA Professionals who make up the membership of our 36 Member Associations.

As the sole member of the Ryder Cup European Development Trust as well as being service providers to The R&A in their Working for Golf Programme, along with many other activities, the Association, its PGAs and the PGA Professionals they represent should be viewed as experts at the forefront of the development of our sport carrying out much of the development work for both amateur and professional bodies.

The Ryder Cup and Open Championship are just two great examples of this and they are joined on weekly basis by other initiatives and investment across the globe. Just this week it is great to see the addition of the ‘Drive, Chip & Putt Championship’ to the start of the Masters. Operated by the Masters Tournament, the PGA of America and the USGA, it is another fantastic example of organisations working together to promote the sport and create initiatives that continue to stimulate its growth.

Enjoy the issue and we would be delighted to hear of any golf development initiatives that you are involved in. Please contact Aston Ward on aw@CPG.com with these and we will feature the best initiatives over the coming issues.

This article originally featured in International Golf Pro News. Visit the IGPN Page to find out more and subscribe for free.

Goldstein, 13, an eighth-grader from Las Vegas, became the first participant to win all three disciplines as she claimed the title in the Girls 12-13 division. Her two drives were measured at 233.4 and 243 yards. She holed her first 16-yard chip, and the second finished 4 feet, 1 inch from the cup. She also holed the second of her two putts – from 15 feet – to win comfortably. On the longer 30-foot putt, she finished 2 feet, 10 inches.

“I was really nervous,” Goldstein said. “I was shaking. When I stepped out there and I hit my first drive, I was nervous. But my second one, it was natural and it started to come to me. It just felt amazing to be out there. My chipping was really good, and it was me, the hole and the ball.

“Chipping is the best part of my game. Putter and driver are pretty good, too.”

Those skills will come in pretty handy next month, when Goldstein will join her partner, Veronica Joels, in the inaugural U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship (May 9-13) at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Bandon, Ore.

The second Drive, Chip & Putt Championship produced close finishes in many of the eight divisions – Boys and Girls 7-9, 10-11, 12-13 and 14-15.

The winners were greeted by Masters champions, among them Gary Player, Mark O’Meara and Trevor Immelman, who shared stories and offered advice.

“To be able to have something like this to shoot for at such a young age is such an opportunity,” said Immelman, the 2008 Masters champion. “Someday one of these kids may win the Masters and say, ‘The first time I came here was for the Drive, Chip & Putt Championship.’ What would that be like?”

Player, a three-time Masters champion, told the young competitors to work hard on the short game because that’s where champions are made.

Jay Leng demonstrated that his short game was solid. Leng, of Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., won both the chipping and putting skills to overtake the longer drivers in the Boys 7-9 division. His combined distance from the hole on two putts was 2 feet, 2 inches.

Other winners among the boys were: Jake Peacock of Alpharetta, Ga., 10-11; George Duangmanee of Fairfax, Va., 12-13; and Toby Wilson of Bartlett, Tenn., 14-15.

Wilson rallied from a poor drive to win both the chipping and putting competitions. His two putts finished a combined 37 inches from the hole.

Matt Camel of Greenwich, Conn., hit the longest drive – 281.5 yards – after missing the grid with his first attempt. He finished fifth in the Boys 14-15 division.

Others winners among the girls were: Effie Perakis of Glenview, Ill., 7-9; Lydia Swan of North East, Pa., 10-11; and Alexandra Swayne of Maineville, Ohio, 14-15.

Swan won the chipping competition on her way to the title in a group that included last year’s Girls 7-9 division champion, Kelly Xu.

Perakis, who made the 30-foot putt, relied on balance in the three disciplines to post her victory.

“I was very nervous,” she said, before giving a thumbs up.

In the Boys 12-13 group, two finished tied for the top spot with 20 points and three others were tied just one point behind. In the event of ties, the putting rank was the tiebreaker.

Duangmanee, who tweeted his participation in the Drive, Chip & Putt Championship, was greeted by Augusta National member Condoleezza Rice after his victory. He capitalized on a strong driving performance – 260.7 yards his best – to claim the title.

The Drive, Chip & Putt Championship is a free nationwide youth golf development initiative created by The Masters Tournament, the USGA, and the PGA of America.

Boys and girls ages 7-15, of all abilities, competing in separate divisions in four age categories. The competition focuses on the three fundamental skills employed in golf and taps the creative and competitive spirit of participants. The Drive, Chip and Putt Championship provides aspiring junior golfers an opportunity to play with their peers in qualifiers around the country.

Find out more here: www.drivechipandputt.com.