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A three-year business partnership between the Confederation of Professional Golf [CPG] and ESET has been announced, which will protect businesses in golf and support PGAs and PGA Professionals with crucial antivirus software and services.

As ‘Official Cyber Security Provider for the CPG’, ESET’s partnership with the CPG will involve the launch of a campaign to educate the organisation’s 42 Member Countries, their 12,500+ PGA Professionals and millions of golfers they interact with about cyber security, ensuring they are armed with the information and best-in-class solutions to protect themselves from the losses and disruption caused by growing levels of cybercrime.

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the world’s reliance on digital communication and accelerated our usage of digital and cloud-based technology by as much as up to five years. As a result, vulnerability to cybercrime and the awareness of the disruption and financial loss it can cause has quickly grown too, regardless of whether somebody is at a golf club, workplace or home setting.

Chief Executive of the CPG, Ian Randell, said: “Our new partnership with ESET comes at an important time for all of us, as we are constantly reminded of the threats from online criminals and cybercrime.

“In partnership with ESET, not only are we securing our own business but we are also striving to help our members, their PGA Professionals, business partners and wider networks to future proof their own businesses through the provision of tailored cyber security solutions.”

ESET is a global provider of cyber security and antivirus software solutions to businesses and consumers across more than 200 countries and territories. Their commercial client base ranges from SMEs and sole traders through to major blue-chip organisations such as Mitsubishi, Allianz, Cannon, T-Mobile and Detron.

ESET’s UK Managing Director, Malcolm Tuck said: “As golf businesses continue to streamline their operations through new technologies and online working practices, the need for tailored and comprehensive cyber security becomes increasingly important for their own and their customers’ peace of mind. We are looking forward to working with the CPG, their Members and Business Partners to address this issue”.

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For PGA Professionals and other individuals working in the industry, #CompCamp provides useful tips and advice on delivering successful golf tournaments and events.

Click the image below to watch the first episode.

In episode 1, the focus is on registration, detailing why the registration process is important and providing useful tips on how you can make registration contactless using the Golf Genius software.

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The extended three-year qualification process for the men’s golf competition at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games has been completed with today’s publication of the Final Olympic Golf Rankings.

With his US Open victory on Sunday, Jon Rahm of Spain became world number one and jumped Justin Thomas of the United States into the No. 1 position of the Olympic Rankings. Americans finished Nos. 2-5 with Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Xander Schauffele and Bryson DeChambeau, respectively. The United States is the only country with more than two qualifiers for the 60-player field, which will compete at Kasumigaseki Country Club from July 29-August 1.

The men’s rankings underline the diversity of the field with 36 countries represented.

The men’s qualification system for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games commenced on July 1, 2018 and originally was to have concluded on June 22, 2020, while the women’s was to have run from July 8, 2018 through to June 29, 2020. However, following the postponement of the Olympics to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the IGF and International Olympic Committee announced in April 2020 an adjustment to the qualifying system where athletes would accumulate Olympic Ranking points through June 2021.

The top-15 world-ranked players are eligible for the Olympics, with a limit of four players from a given country. Beyond the top-15, players are eligible based on the world rankings, with a maximum of two eligible players from each country that does not already have two or more players among the top-15. The host country is guaranteed a spot, as is each of the five continents of the Olympics.

The women’s rankings will be finalised after this week’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. The 60-player women’s competition will be held at Kasumigaseki CC August 4-7.

Once the women’s Olympic Golf Rankings are finalised, the International Golf Federation (IGF) will send confirmation of the men’s and women’s quota places to the National Olympic Committees. The NOCs will then confirm use of allocated quota places to the IGF by July 1 and the IGF, in turn, will reallocate all unused quota places before the Tokyo 2020 Sport Entries Deadline on July 5.

The IGF will publish a final entries list of 60 names for both the men’s and women’s events on Tuesday, July 6, which will ratify all the competitors for the respective fields at the Olympic Games.

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Words by Phoebe Torrance, Women’s Golf and Development Manager, Metropolitan Golf Club, Australia

Despite historical and well-documented gender imbalances in the sport, golf is booming across all ages, abilities and genders. In 2020, more women and younger people played golf compared to the previous year – a testament to the efforts and initiatives from organisations around the world working hard to further the game of golf.

By creating positive change for all and taking a more collective approach to tackling the persistent, yet decreasing, gender imbalance in the sport, some of golf’s leading organisations are championing the phrase ‘actions speak louder than words’.

The R&A

Launched in 2018, the R&A Women in Golf Charter has been a catalyst for improving women’s representation within golf, not only from the perspective of participation but also as a mechanism to encourage more women to pursue a professional career in the sport, across all areas of the industry.

As signatories of the charter, golf clubs and organisations (which includes the Confederation of Professional Golf, the Ladies European Tour, European Tour and many amateur federations) recognise the need for positive change for women in golf, and have pledged their support to induce such change.

Whilst there is a focus on increasing the number of women playing golf at grassroots level, the Women in Golf Charter also places emphasis on organisations to incorporate into their thinking a drive to create further opportunity for women in the workplace as well.

Without greater female representation across the industry, which will provide a greater number of female role models, younger generations will inevitably struggle to see a future career in the golf industry. Furthermore, provoking a change in culture and attitude to inclusivity is significantly more achievable if more women have the opportunity to hold senior, decision-making roles in the industry.

Overall, the charter is a statement of intent that brings accountability to golf clubs and other organisations when driving this change. It will ultimately help to bring a significant number of people together, united by the goal of improving the game for women and girls.

Working alongside the charter, the R&A recently introduced their #FOREveryone campaign as a creative movement to help unite golf clubs through a common goal and encourage them to pledge their support to the Women in Golf Charter.

#FOREveryone provides clubs and facilities with knowledge, resources and a comprehensive toolkit that will help them to take further action and, in time, increase the number of women playing golf.

This movement is gaining significant and exciting momentum, with many golf clubs making their own pledges to the Women in Golf Charter. With further uptake and more golf clubs making substantial internal changes, the campaign has the capacity to change the face of golf and inclusivity in the sport significantly.

PGA of Canada

To ensure the game of golf is both diverse and inclusive, the PGA of Canada (a CPG Member Country) has taken a number of measures to highlight and further encourage diversity across its membership and organisation.

This has included some incredible content and storytelling that promotes women’s golf and female members of the PGA of Canada. On 1 June, the organisation saw Women’s Golf Day as the perfect opportunity to highlight female members across the country and produced a short video featuring 14 female PGA of Canada members, each discussing what golf means to them.

In addition, the CPG member country has taken a number of other measures that highlight and promote inclusion, including the addition of two new awards at their annual prize-giving: ‘The Brooke Henderson Female Player of the Year Award’, given to the top performing female player in national and regional events, and ‘The Lorie Kane Award’, given to the winner of one of the PGA of Canada’s National Championships.

Changes have also been seen at a structural level, with regulatory amendments being made in 2019 to ensure that women can participate in all of the organisation’s national championships (at a yardage of 86-88% the length of male competitors).

The Ladies European Tour

As the leading professional tour across Europe, the Ladies European Tour (LET) plays a crucial role in providing opportunity for elite female golfers to compete and showcase the sport to global audiences. In 2021, this will include a schedule comprising approximately 30 tournaments in multiple countries such as Sweden, Japan, the USA and Italy.

Aside from its main tournament schedule, the LET has also ensured that it provides a strong development journey for its member professionals with the introduction of its Ladies European Tour Access series (LETAS) in 2010.

As the equivalent to the men’s Challenge Tour, LETAS has provided aspiring women golfers aged 18 and above and with a handicap 2 or less with more competitive opportunities and a supported pathway onto mainstream LET events.

More recently, the LET has taken strong action in ensuring sustainability and stability was added to its schedule, announcing a ground-breaking partnership with the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA).

By coming together and collaborating with the LPGA, the two major professional tours have been able to combat reducing season lengths and create a thriving schedule for elite women to compete on a full-time basis.

The organisation’s visual rebrand and new slogan ‘Raise Our Game’, also hopes to inspire young women to achieve their goals and share its desire to continue driving women’s golf forward.

Whilst this strategy aims to inspire women and girls, it also acknowledges the importance of those who surround and support women in golf, including tournament promoters, sponsors, friends, family and the media, all of which play important roles in creating a thriving sport at the elite level.

PING

As an equipment manufacturer, PING have long been advocates and pioneers for encouraging greater inclusivity and the number of women playing and working in golf.

Just last year, PING announced Lisa Lovatt as the new Managing Director for its European division. Having been at the organisation since 1994, Lovatt is now responsible for driving the company forward and becomes one of the leading female figures in the industry.

Another of PING’s most significant contributions has been its relationship with the Solheim Cup – the women’s equivalent to the Ryder Cup, named in honour of Karsten and Louise Solheim, the founders of Karsten Manufacturing Corporation, which makes PING equipment.

The Solheim Cup combines the game’s traditions with passion for one’s country and continent. This biennial, transatlantic team match-play competition features the 12 best European players from the Ladies European Tour (LET) and the 12 best US players from the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour.

Since 1990, both teams have come together over three days of competition to provide audiences with a mix of fierce rivalry, shot-making skills and significant exposure for the women’s game.

But the opportunities for women do not stop at senior level. To ensure girls under the age of 18 are provided with the same level of experience and opportunity, the PING Junior Solheim Cup was introduced in 2002. Like the Junior Ryder Cup, this has enabled the event to take full advantage of its position as the most coveted trophy in women’s golf and foster further appetite and desire for girls to enjoy the game.

Changing the Face of Women’s Golf

The impact many leading organisations are having on inclusivity in golf is clear to see.

Historically, golf has come under fire and faced many challenges when it comes to the point of inequality. The sport is in a completely different position now thanks to pioneering organisations such as PING, the Ladies European Tour and the PGA of Canada. As a collective, they are positively showcasing the game to far greater audiences and are bringing about fundamental changes for women to play and enjoy the sport in greater numbers.

As Chief Executive of The R&A, Martin Slumbers said at the launch of the Women in Golf Charter: “We are changing the face of golf across the globe, for the betterment of our sport”.

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It is a hot topic. It is a key talking point. It is a focal point of many. But it has to be more than just talk. Bringing more women and girls into golf and making the sport more inclusive in general must be a fundamental thread of any golf stakeholder’s activity.

Together, the CPG and its Member Country PGAs are fully committed to working in a variety of ways to achieve this and are proud signatories of The R&A’s Women in Golf Charter that aims to inspire an industry-wide commitment to developing a more inclusive culture within golf.

Furthering inclusivity in golf is important for multiple reasons. From a moral standpoint, it fosters better and more equal opportunity for all, removing the barriers to entry that are often faced by women and girls. From a social perspective, it enables more women and girls to benefit physically, mentally and socially whilst playing golf. And from an economic perspective the maths is simple: more women and girls playing golf = more players playing golf = further revenue and growth.

The CPG is an individual signatory of the Charter, whilst a number of PGAs have committed one step even further by creating their own tailored charters, specific to their markets and their activities, that will inform and direct their strategies and activities in the future.

As part of the CPG’s own charter, and acting as core threads within individual member Country PGA charters, there are five key areas of commitment and action.

Benchmarking and increasing numbers of female PGA Professionals

Understanding where we are right now is as important as understanding where we want to get to – Member Countries have been measuring the demographics of their memberships for a long time and the data shows that on average 7.8% of PGAs’ memberships are female.  This is trending up, but until recently has been very slow.

A number of countries are seeing an increase in female membership following conscious efforts to make the profession a more attractive and relevant career path for women and in highlighting the experiences and work of existing female Members.  The PGA of Nigeria recently saw its first ever female Members join; the PGA of Poland previously had four female members for a number of years but currently has six women in training; the PGA of Ukraine also has four members currently but are committed to doubling this by 2024 as part of their strategic plan and regularly showcase their female Members across social media channels and media activity.

Supporting and promoting programmes for female participation

Member Countries are committing to work with the CPG and various other stakeholders on the delivery / activation and promotion of programmes that encourage female participation in golf in general, as well as those that look to increase the number of women in leadership roles in the sport.

The PGA of Poland has an official cooperation with the national Polish Women’s Golf Association to work with them on initiatives; the PGA of Ukraine and Ukrainian Golf Federation work with the National University of Physical Education Kiev (NUPES) which helps in part to expose golf as a career path to women and girls through an academic route; and the PGA of Belgium and PGA of Holland have each requested information and knowledge directly from their memberships to better understand the activities that are taking place across the countries.

Increasing involvement in workforces and governance of organisations

Highlighting the possibilities for women to not just be a part of workforces, but in fact leaders of golf workforces is vital. As tennis legend, Billie Jean King, put it “You have to see it to be it” showing it is hugely important to foster those who have the desire to be in leadership positions and ensure that their examples are shown and promoted to future leaders.

The CPG and its Member Countries are passionate about identifying and shining a light on these individuals whilst ensuring

The PGA of Belgium has had at least one female Board Member since 2012 and PGA Professional, Sophie Leten, was the first ever President of their PGA from 2017-19; The PGA of Holland have always had at least one female Board Member since 1995 and are seeking additional representatives; the PGA of Ukraine aim to have at least one Board Member by 2024 but already have three women on the Board of their sister organisation, the Ukrainian Golf Federation, with 9 women on various committees as well.

Sophie Leten, 2017-2019 PGA of Belgium President

Educational activities sharing good practice and fostering environments

Education is key in encouraging more women and girls to play golf, to create welcoming and enjoyable environments and in ensuring good practice is shared. The CPG and its Member Countries are addressing this in various ways through the addition of related content within education programmes to the creation of specific Continuous Professional Development [CPD] events and activities.

The PGA of Poland have partnered with love.golf for a pilot of the popular programme and proven approach to women’s coaching that is backed by research to help educate their Members and create new opportunities to bring women and girls in to the sport; the PGA of Belgium have already hosted webinars on coaching women and girls and, similar to the PGA of Holland, have made conscious efforts to create communications campaigns around this topic for Members to engage with and learn from.

Enhancing playing opportunities for female Members

For many years PGA events have often had mixed components allowing male and female PGA Professionals to compete against each other on an equal footing.  The CPG’s own events are played with the commonly-agreed standards of a course of 10-14% shorter length for female PGA Professionals to ensure they can compete for the same prize fund as their male counterparts, with most Member Countries following suit.

For example the PGA of Sweden and PGA of Nigeria, like many, operate open golf events allowing male and female Members to compete alongside each other, often with events including amateur golfers as well helping to build their experience; the PGA of Belgium operate both mixed events as well as those specifically for female Members to compete in; the PGA of Holland again allow male and female members to compete together and in the last few years PGA Professional, Marjan de Boer, won the Senior PGA Championship, its first ever female winner.

Whilst these five broad areas show significant efforts and steady progress there is clear understanding and commitment from across the CPG’s network of 42 Member Country PGAs that more should and will be done to create better playing, learning and career opportunities for women and girls.

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On World Environment Day last week, the European Tour launched Green Drive – a strengthened commitment to sustainability with a vision for the Tour to become a showcase for social and environmental responsibility, delivering net positive impacts around the world.

The Green Drive underlines an intensified approach towards priority issues such as climate change; biodiversity loss; air and ocean pollution; and sustainable and ethical procurement. It also sees the Green Drive take a formal position within Golf for Good, the European Tour’s overarching Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme.

Implementation will encompass all aspects of the business including operations, partnerships, technology, tournaments, TV production and venues (including European Tour Destinations) across the Tour community, which typically involves staging, promoting and sanctioning over 100 tournaments in over 30 countries each year over the European Tour, European Challenge Tour and Legends Tour.

The Green Drive extends to European Golf Design, the golf course design company of the European Tour, and the ethos will be encompassed within projects for new courses and redesigning existing member and resort courses to host tournaments and The Ryder Cup.

The Green Drive will be delivered with support from the GEO Foundation for Sustainable Golf (GEO) — a non-profit organisation dedicated to inspiring, supporting and recognising sustainability in and through golf around the world.

Keith Pelley, Chief Executive of the European Tour, said: “As an organisation that celebrates the best of professional sport in a diverse range of environments and cultures around the world, we want to both respect and enhance communities wherever we travel.  That means we need to act responsibly as a business and find new and innovative ways to deliver tournaments with lighter environmental footprints, and even greater social value.

“Under our Golf for Good banner we are committed to using the game we love as a force for good, whether that is through charitable endeavours, promoting health and wellbeing, or environmental and social responsibility.  We launched Golf for Good in 2020 during a challenging time for our sport and the wider world, but we see it as a central part of the Tour’s service to stakeholders and society in the long term – making a difference on some of the priority issues of our time; providing a platform for our many valued venues and partners around the world; and helping to advance and grow golf.  We believe all of those things will also make the Tour stronger.

“We are embarking on this important journey with our close partners, GEO Foundation for Sustainable Golf. Together we believe we can deliver world class sport and entertainment in a way that not only respects, but also helps to replenish the landscapes and communities that ultimately provide so much to us.”

GEO brings a wealth of experience, working collaboratively with golf governing bodies, associations, athletes and media over the last 15 years.  More widely, GEO has been highly active in the mainstream movement of sustainability, consulting with government agencies, NGOs, business and supply chain platforms to bring latest knowledge and insights to sustainability solutions for golf associations, tournaments, venues and athletes.

Jonathan Smith, Executive Director, GEO Foundation for Sustainable Golf, said: “The timing of this re-doubling of commitment and action by The European Tour could not be more important as we enter the UN ‘Decade of Action’, highlighting the need and urgency.  The Tour has a broad influence across its community and reaches and inspires millions of people all round the world.  With their leadership and ambition, and solutions in place for comprehensive yet effective delivery, we look forward to driving meaningful change, accelerating action and celebrating sustainable golf with the European Tour in the months and years to come.”

The key aims of the European Tour’s Green Drive are to: Lead by Example by integrating best practices into core operations, owned events and procurement, establishing Tour wide policies and tools, and activating new partnerships; to Support and Share by providing guidance and examples of best practice, fostering a growing community of collective action and results; and to Promote and Inspire by raising awareness, inspiring others and establishing a credible leadership position for golf in sustainable sport.

The Green Drive is aimed at contributing to internationally recognised environmental and social priorities, including many of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The approach to climate action is directly aligned to The Paris Agreement and the UN Sport for Climate Framework.

All carbon calculations are in line with the UN Greenhouse Gas Protocol; and offsetting will be carried out using GEO’s Sustainable Golf Climate Projects that are in turn fully accredited by The Gold Standard, and which are designed to also ensure additional contributions to the UN SDGs.

Golf for Good is the umbrella name for the European Tour’s overarching Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme. It involves three main pillars:

• Support for Worthy Causes: Which embraces all the charitable activity of the original 2020 Golf for Good initiative
• Sustainability: Which embraces the Green Drive focus around our operations, partnerships, technology, tournaments, TV production and venues, with a commitment to deliver net positive impacts around the world
• Inclusivity and Health: Which embraces our Golfers with Disability and golf for all messaging, in addition to promoting the wider health benefits of the game

For more information, visit et.golf/greendrive and sustainable.golf

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CPG Business Partner, Golf Genius Software, today announced a new partnership with the Professional Golfers Association of Japan.

Having administered the first several events on this year’s Japanese Pro Senior Tour, Golf Genius will handle the tournament scoring administration on the Tour for the remainder of the season’s schedule.

The PGA of Japan joins a growing list of professional golf associations around the world trusting their key events to Golf Genius’ TMS, including the PGA’s of America, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Portugal, Holland and New Zealand.

“We are very pleased to be working with the PGA of Japan”, commented Mike Zisman, Founder and Co-CEO of Golf Genius Software.

“We are dedicated to successfully serving the association and expect the scope of this agreement to expand in 2022 and beyond. We also look forward to growing our presence in the broader Japanese golf market.”

With over 2,400 courses nationwide and nine million active players, Japan is the second largest golf market in the world.

Masahiro (“Massy”) Kuramoto, Chairman of the PGA of Japan, said: “This agreement will greatly assist our tournament staff in the set-up, administration and digital scoring of our important senior tour events.

“We are very impressed with the capabilities of the Golf Genius TMS. The features of the system and the professional and responsive product support we have received have already provided significant value for our organisation.”

Craig Higgs, Managing Director, International, for Golf Genius Software, explained that a full translation of the Golf Genius TMS to the Japanese language is now underway: “This significant investment by Golf Genius in a Japanese language product is clear evidence of our commitment to serving both the PGA of Japan and the Japanese golf market more generally.

“We are very grateful for the trust the PGA of Japan has placed in our company and look forward to a strong and successful relationship going forward.”

If you are interested in finding out more about Golf Genius contact the International team by sending an email to intlsales@golfgenius.com.

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