Women in Coaching 2026 is a new development programme created to support and advance women golf coaches through leadership growth, mentorship, and practical application.

The programme is delivered by COACH+, in collaboration with the PGA of Holland, and supported by the CPG as part of its wider commitment to inclusive development and leadership within the global golf workforce.

Designed for women working across coaching, development, and performance environments, the programme brings together an international cohort of coaches for a structured learning journey that builds confidence, strengthens impact, and supports long-term career progression.

Click here to Download the Information Sheet

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WHY TAKE PART??

Women in Coaching 2026 is designed for women coaches who want to:

• Develop greater confidence and clarity in their leadership approach
• Strengthen their coaching impact on and off the course
• Learn through mentorship, collaboration, and real-world application
• Build an international peer network supported by leading golf organisations

By investing in their own development, participants also contribute to strengthening coaching capacity and leadership pathways within the wider golf ecosystem.

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📍 HOW THE PROGRAMME WORKS

The Women in Coaching programme runs from March to January, with a blend of virtual and in-person sessions designed to provide meaningful support without adding strain to coaches’ existing work and coaching commitments.

• Virtual sessions
• In-person 3-day gathering in the Netherlands
• Mentorship
• Live learning at the Solheim Cup
• Ongoing communication and support

Expect an average of 4–6 hours/month, with additional time during in-person events. Coaches are encouraged to apply what they’re learning in real contexts between sessions

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👩‍🏫 EXPERT MENTORSHIP TEAM

• Megan Cundari – COACH+ Educator and Women in Coaching leader
• Glenn Cundari – Founder of COACH+, with international experience in 27 countries across 19 sports
• Beth Barz – Award-winning global leader in Women’s Coach Development
• Jim van Heuven van Staereling – Head of Education for the PGA of Holland & CPG Lead Tutor

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SECURE YOUR PLACE

What’s Included:

• Participation in all virtual and in-person sessions
• 1-on-1 mentorship
• Ongoing support and resources from COACH+ and partner organizations
• Access to a pan-European network of women coaches and leaders
• Programme materials, facilitation, and group coaching
• Meals
• Note: Accommodation during in-person sessions is not included. Travel subsidies may be available based on funding

Total Cost: € 3500.

📩 For more information, please contact glenn@improveyourcoaching.ca

Click here to Download the Information Sheet

Click Here to Express Your Interest and Find Out more

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For more information the CPG Learning Institute, visit cpg.golf/cpg-learning-institute or get in touch via info@cpg.golf.

The PGA of Holland, in collaboration with the Dutch Golf Federation and delivered by Coach+, is proud to launch a groundbreaking Women in Coaching | Strategic Coach Education Program — a unique, multi-phase initiative designed to accelerate the growth, leadership, and impact of women coaches in golf.

Inspired by the success of the Canadian Women in Coaching program, this is a rare opportunity to engage in a structured development journey that combines leadership training, mentorship, and strategic dialogue with national and international experts.

WHY JOIN?

This program is designed for ambitious women coaches who want to:

• Strengthen their leadership skills and coaching identity
• Gain access to world-class mentorship and learning resources
• Build a supportive international network of peers and role models
• Be part of a programme aligned with the prestige of the 2025 & 2026 Solheim Cup

By investing in yourself through this program, you will not only elevate your own career but also help strengthen national coaching capacity and support the long-term growth of women in golf.

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📍 PROGRAM OVERVIEW

Phase 1: In-Person Education (Papendal, Netherlands | Dec 5-7, 2025)

• Establish trust and shared vision
• Define personal coaching philosophies
• Explore leadership aspirations
• Strategic dialogue with PGA & Federation leaders

Phase 2: Virtual Learning (Dec 2025 – Summer 2026)

• Monthly mentorship and targeted learning sessions
• Peer reflection and practical tools
• Topics: Coaching culture, feedback strategies, leadership identity

Phase 3: Solheim Cup Activation (Spain | Sept 4 – 6, 2026)

• On-site leadership workshop at the Solheim Cup
• Showcase of participant impact
• Strategic discussions on equity and retention in coaching

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👩‍🏫 EXPERT MENTORSHIP TEAM

• Megan Cundari – COACH+ Educator and Women in Coaching leader
• Glenn Cundari – Founder of COACH+, with international experience in 27 countries across 19 sports
• Beth Barz – Award-winning global leader in Women’s Coach Development

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💰 INVESTMENT

• €3500 (excluding accommodation), including:
  • 6 in-person training days
  • Course materials, lunches & dinners during sessions
  • 10 months of structured virtual mentorship and support

Accommodation: €130/night at Papendal (optional)

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SECURE YOUR PLACE

To run the program, a minimum of 11 participants is required. A final decision will be made on October 13th.

📩 For more information, please contact PGA Holland at jh@pgaholland.nl

Click Here to Register Now

Image used courtesy of Yas Links Abu Dhabi

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For more information the CPG Learning Institute, visit cpg.golf/cpg-learning-institute or get in touch via info@cpg.golf.

From the unique demands of Royal Portrush to the mental routines that keep a two-time major champion sharp, Ivar shares the behind-the-scenes lessons and practical insights that coaches can take straight to their own players.

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When you think of the absolute pinnacle of professional golf, the name Collin Morikawa is impossible to ignore. Winner of both the PGA Championship and The Open, Morikawa is the epitome of modern professional golf: technically refined, mentally strong, and leaving nothing to chance.

But how does such a top player actually prepare for a major like The Open, with all the unique conditions that a links course like Royal Portrush entails?

Thanks to the special collaboration between Ivar van der Moolen and Rick Sessinghaus, he was given an exclusive glimpse into Morikawa’s preparation.

Sessinghaus, Morikawa’s PGA coach for over twenty years and director of FlowCode Golf, and Van der Moolen, PGA of Holland Member and mental performance coach since 1993 and developer of MTP, have been joining forces for the past year and a half. Together, they share a deep passion: helping golfers of all levels perform better and with more enjoyment on the golf course by strengthening the mental aspect of the game.

The Collaboration: A Mental Masterclass

When Ivar van der Moolen joined Rick Sessinghaus’ coaching team 1,5 year ago, a fruitful collaboration emerged, focused on knowledge exchange and development. This resulted in a unique opportunity: experiencing Morikawa’s preparation for The Open at Royal Portrush up close.

“A fantastic experience,” said Van der Moolen. “It’s impressive to see how a player of Morikawa’s caliber prepares for a tournament of this magnitude down to the smallest details.”

For Coaches: the key takeaway is that mental readiness is not an add-on to technical training — it’s embedded into every decision, drill, and discussion.

Adapting the Game to Royal Portrush

Royal Portrush is not just any golf course. The wind, the rugged terrain, the thick rough, and the changeable weather make it a world-class challenge. For a player who has mainly experience on the American tour, that means serious adjustments.

• Morikawa paid close attention to studying the grass types around the greens — which are significantly different in Northern Ireland than on American courses.
• Putting on slower greens compared to the PGA tour also required adjustment, as did the choice of landing spots from the tee in relation to the bunkers.
• During the practice rounds, Sessinghaus and Morikawa closely examined the influence of the weather and the layout of the course. Nothing was left to chance. Every shot, every lie was evaluated with a view to the most likely conditions during the tournament.

For Coaches: Build adaptability into practice. Create sessions that expose players to variable conditions and require decision-making, not just repetition.

Mental Focus in a Busy Week

In addition to the technical adjustments, there is the mental aspect – perhaps the most important part of preparing for a major. “What struck me,” says Van der Moolen, “is how well Collin sets his mental goals, even during practice rounds. He’s not just hitting balls; everything is done with a clear plan.”

The public wanting autographs, journalists requesting interviews between training sessions, and the constant pressure of being a multiple major winner – these are all elements that can disrupt mental balance. Sessinghaus acts as an anchor in all of this. He ensures that Morikawa stays in his own “bubble” and maintains his focus.

For Coaches: Encourage players to set clear mental and technical goals for every round and training session. This instils intent and keeps practice purposeful.

Details Make the Difference

Nothing in Morikawa’s preparation is left to chance:

• During short game training, specific club choices were discussed and adapted to the circumstances.
• Putting was where the finishing touches were made: how hard should a ball be rolled on greens that are slightly slower than normal? How does the break change in combination with the wind?
• “Even the lesser shots during the practice rounds are analysed and evaluated,” says Van der Moolen. “Not with frustration, but with curiosity. What can we learn from this? How do we ensure that this does not happen during the tournament, and when it does happen, how do we deal with it?

For Coaches: Model this mindset with your students. Review both good and bad shots in training, focusing on “what can we learn?” rather than blame.

Dealing with Expectations

An important part of preparation is dealing with the expectations of others – the public, the media, and even your own team. For a player like Morikawa, with two majors already under his belt, expectations are high.

Rick Sessinghaus helps Morikawa turn that pressure into focus.

• Instead of thinking about winning, the emphasis is on the process and what you as a player and team have 100% control over: preparing optimally, making the right choices, maintaining mental calm, and remaining flexible under changing circumstances. The result is what ultimately matters.
• The process is a prerequisite for achieving the optimal result. And is therefore sacred.

For Coaches: Teach athletes to separate controllables from uncontrollables. Build routines that anchor them in the present task, especially under pressure.

How Coaches Can Apply These Insights

While your players might not be walking the fairways of Royal Portrush under TV cameras, the principles are universal:

• Plan with purpose — give every session a clear focus.
• Train for adaptability — change variables, conditions, and challenges.
• Build mental routines — protect focus in high-distraction environments.
• Normalise reflection — treat every shot as a learning opportunity.
• Focus on process — results follow from great preparation.

These approaches not only improve performance but also deepen player engagement and trust in your coaching.

From Tour Insights to Your Coaching Business

The methods used with Morikawa are scalable for all levels — from juniors to elite amateurs — and can be integrated into your own coaching with the right tools and frameworks.

The Mental Toughness Programme was built for exactly this purpose: giving coaches practical, ready-to-use mental skills resources that help players focus better, stay resilient, and perform with more confidence — while also creating new business opportunities through structured delivery.

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Utilise the Mental Toughness Programme With Your Students and Become an Affiliate Partner

Pay a one time €49,00 for your own lifetime membership, and when one of your students buys the program with your unique code, they will receive a one time €10,00 discount for their year licence and the Affiliate receives a one time €20,00 for every sale!

To learn more and become an MTP Affiliate, visit cp.golf/mtp.

As the conversation around physical and mental wellbeing gains traction, golf’s health benefits are more than just an added bonus; they’re a strategic advantage.

Here’s how you, as a golf coach, can harness the power of Golf & Health messaging to support your business goals, generate new revenue, and connect with wider audiences.

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1. Reach New Audiences with Purposeful Health Messaging

Golf is no longer just for the seasoned swing enthusiast. Its combination of low-impact exercise, outdoor exposure, and social interaction makes it ideal for:

• Older adults seeking an active lifestyle that supports joint health and mobility
• Beginners who may find traditional gyms intimidating or repetitive
• Health-conscious individuals looking for new ways to stay active and mindful

By positioning your coaching services as a gateway to these benefits, you open the door to new customer segments – many of whom may not have previously considered golf.

🟢 Try this: Create a “Health & Golf Taster Session” aimed at beginners or older adults. Promote it through local wellbeing groups, walking clubs, or even local GP surgeries.

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2. Add Depth to Your Marketing and Communications

Yes, golf improves your swing – but it also improves your sleep, lowers stress, boosts brain function, and supports heart health. Those are benefits worth talking about.

Integrating these themes into your website, social media, and email campaigns can help:

• Tell a more holistic, values-driven story
• Differentiate your coaching business from others
• Encourage emotional connections with your audience

🟢 Try this: Share testimonials or short stories from clients who have experienced health benefits through golf, especially those who started for health reasons rather than competition.

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3. Align with Public Health Partners and Unlock New Funding Streams

Many local authorities and charities are looking for partners who can help deliver on community health and wellbeing targets. Golf – especially when led by qualified professionals – ticks a lot of boxes.

By aligning your programmes with these goals, you may unlock:

• New funding streams for health or physical activity initiatives
• Referrals from healthcare providers or local wellness campaigns
• Media opportunities showcasing your work within the community

🟢 Try this: Develop a short proposal outlining how your sessions support mental and physical wellbeing, and share it with local councils, Active Partnerships, or health charities.

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4. Position Yourself as a Wellness Professional, Not Just a Swing Coach

Incorporating Golf & Health messaging into your coaching doesn’t mean changing everything you do – it means reframing the value you already offer. You’re not just improving someone’s backswing; you’re supporting their overall quality of life.

That kind of impact builds stronger client relationships, long-term loyalty, and referrals that go far beyond the first tee.

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Final Thought

As a golf coach, you’re uniquely placed at the intersection of sport and wellbeing. By integrating Golf & Health messaging into your approach, you’re not just helping people play better – you’re helping them live better. And in doing so, you’re building a business that’s more resilient, more relevant, and more rewarding.

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Useful Links:

GOLF & HEALTH RESOURCE HUB

A key feature of the partnership is access to MTP’s Affiliate Programme, which allows coaches to introduce their students to the platform while earning incentives and embedding structured mental skills training into their coaching programmes.

While MTP is built with golf performance in mind, its impact often extends far beyond the course. By helping individuals build focus, emotional control, and resilience under pressure, the programme not only supports better play – but also promotes stronger mental health in day-to-day life. As conversations around wellbeing grow across sport and society, this partnership reinforces the CPG’s commitment to supporting PGA Members and their communities in all aspects of personal and professional development.

As part of the collaboration, the Affiliate Programme will be made available through the CPG Learning Institute Hub, providing PGA Members and their students across the CPG’s global network with opportunities to access proven tools for developing focus, confidence, and resilience.

“We created the Mental Toughness Programme to make high-quality mental training accessible to every golfer and every coach,” said van der Moolen.

“By partnering with the CPG, we can now support PGA Members across borders – helping more professionals embed mental skills development into their everyday coaching and supporting their business and revenue generation capabilities at the same time.”

The partnership will also see future collaboration on learning content and activities, supporting CPG Member Countries and their professionals with resources and insights tailored to both coaches and players.

To learn more and become an MTP Affiliate, visit cp.golf/mtp.

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For more information on the CPG Learning Institute, visit cpg.golf/cpg-learning-institute or get in touch via info@cpg.golf.

Held from 21–25 April at Ada Golf Club in Belgrade, the five-day programme marked the start of structured, professional coach education for five Serbian candidates: Aleksandar Flanđunis, Mihailo Dimitrijević, Branimir Gudelj, Lazar Pantelić and Puniša Plazina.

The camp was the in-person delivery activity for the CPG Apprentice Professional Course formerly Initial Professional Education – IPE], a comprehensive coaching-focused programme delivered in partnership with PGA Member Countries to prepare aspiring coaches with the knowledge, skills, and behaviours  to get them on the pathway needed for a successful career in golf.

The delivery was organised in collaboration with the PGA of Serbia, the Golf Association of Serbia, and Ada Golf Club, and led by CPG Tutor and Head of Education for the PGA of Holland, Jim van Heuven van Staereling.

“The candidates in Serbia have shown a strong foundation and motivation, and I look forward to continuing to work with them as they develop professionally,” said van Heuven van Staereling.

PGA of Serbia General Secretary, Nebojša Lazic, added: “The week was a big success for the students, but also provided a chance to have constructive conversations with Jim with a shared vision of supporting each other to bringing value to the sport.

“We talked about further development of current market trends in Serbia and how this could help focus coaches’ education on certain parts of the game, audience or groups, along with organising tournaments where we pair young players with the best amateurs and other ways to mix players to increase the quality and balance of knowledge and experience.”

Over the course of the week, participants engaged in both theoretical and practical sessions, including topics such as ball flight analysis, junior coaching, and group lesson delivery.

The live camp also marked the beginning of an extended, blended-learning journey, with participants now set to complete webinars, elearning, coursework, and practical assignments before final assessments later in the year – all delivered and administered via the CPG Learning Institute Hub Learning Management System [LMS].

The CPG extends its thanks to the PGA of Serbia, Golf Association of Serbia, and Ada Golf Club for their support in hosting and promoting the camp. The success of this delivery highlights the power of partnership in building sustainable, local pathways for professional golf development.

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For more information the CPG Apprentice Professional Course and the CPG Learning Institute, visit cpg.golf/cpg-learning-institute or get in touch via info@cpg.golf.

Central to this collaboration is Sweetspot’s innovative Academy product, designed to put golf professionals at the heart of the business, supplanting their existing driving range, golf club and simulator offerings.

Through online booking and purchasing functions, data-driven insights, and next-level course management tools, Sweetspot’s Academy suite makes it easier than ever to grow academies and support their students.

Under the new partnership, CPG’s network of golf professionals can access Sweetspot’s Academy product at an exclusive discount – helping them streamline operations, reduce administrative tasks, save money and foster sustained growth.

“We are very pleased to be bringing Sweetspot into our partner family at this exciting time for the organisation,” said Ian Randell, CPG Chief Executive. “Their fresh approach to golf commerce and academy management aligns perfectly with our mission to support professionals and facilities in achieving sustainable business success.

“The collaboration not only brings direct benefit to our Member Countries and their individual Members, but by also harnessing the power of the data generated by the Sweetspot user base, helping to facilitate a more data-driven approach to help develop our activities and products moving forward, whilst also raising standards throughout the golf community. This partnership again supports our goal to provide valuable opportunities across the CPG network.”

Sweetspot’s CEO and Founder, Henrik Ahlin, shares in the excitement, stating, “We are proud to partner with CPG to help golf professionals and facilities take their businesses to the next level.

“With our Academy product, we are providing a seamless way for professionals to manage lessons, bookings, and customer engagement, while also opening new doors for data-driven growth. Together with CPG, its Member Countries and the individual Members in the network, we aim to redefine how golf academies operate and help the industry thrive.”

In addition to exclusive offers, this partnership will also see Sweetspot and CPG working together to further refine solutions for golf professionals and their business needs. The business data and analytics at the core of Sweetspot’s platform will be shared with CPG Member Countries, equipping golf facilities with the insights required to optimise their services and create stronger player experiences across the board.

This partnership is another in a recent run of new additions to the partner family, but in particular marks another milestone in CPG’s ongoing commitment to promoting innovation, providing tangible value to its Member Countries, and enhancing opportunities for golf professionals worldwide.

By combining Sweetspot’s technological expertise with CPG’s extensive network and dedication to professional development, the partnership paves the way for a more streamlined, insightful, and profitable future for golf academies and facilities.

For more information about the partnership and to take advantage of the benefits offered, visit cp.golf/sweetspot.

As the Official Legal Partner of the CPG, JMW will offer a range of valuable legal services, practical resources, and educational support to CPG’s Member Countries and their golf professionals, leveraging their award-winning, full-service law firm that offers straight-talking advice for positive outcomes.

“JMW impressed us with their forward-thinking approach and broad experience, and we are pleased that CPG will benefit from JMW’s practical and commercial approach to providing legal advice and expertise,” said Ian Randell, Chief Executive of CPG.

“We also recognise that our Members need knowledgeable, dedicated legal expertise as the golf industry and world at large becomes ever more complex. By joining forces, we can address everything from new media platforms and AI technology to ambassador programs and event promotions, ensuring our Member Countries and their professionals are well-prepared for today’s challenges.”

“We are extremely excited to work alongside CPG and provide counsel tailored to the unique demands of the golf industry,” said Stephen Taylor Heath, Partner at JMW.

“Our goal is to combine expert legal advice with accessible, educational materials that golf professionals and their associations can use to protect and grow their interests. I was pleased to attend CPG’s annual conference in Morocco to see first-hand the exciting work CPG is undertaking and present to representatives of federations from around the world.”

JMW is an award-winning, full-service law firm established more than 40 years ago, renowned throughout the UK for its expertise in achieving positive outcomes for its clients, both businesses and individuals. The firm, and the individuals working within it, are recognised by the prestigious legal directories Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners. JMW has offices in Manchester, London and Liverpool.

The firm’s commitment to supporting the golfing world includes sharing example precedents, articles, and content focused on key legal issues that arise within the sport. These resources will be hosted on the CPG Learning Institute Hub, helping golf professionals stay informed and navigate potential pitfalls.

JMW also plans to collaborate with CPG on developing further activities to support legal and governance functions of the CPG’s Member Countries, ensuring accessible, up-to-date advice for Member PGAs. Moreover, the firm will act as a helpline for Member Countries, offering front-line assistance on emerging legal questions.

JMW has already brought its expertise to the CPG Festival of Golf event in January, presenting on legal considerations for utilising media platforms and AI across various activities, illustrating the firm’s practical, solutions-driven style and the proactive role it aims to play in guiding golf professionals.

This partnership aligns with the CPG’s ongoing commitment to delivering innovative services to its network. By securing JMW’s expertise, the CPG continues to empower its Members to excel in a dynamic sporting environment, confident in their ability to tackle the legal complexities of modern golf.

For more information about the partnership and to connect with JMW, visit cp.golf/jmw.

• How do I create an event?
• What if I want to set up a league/roll-up/community?
• Is there a simple way I can communicate with the players?

The answers to these questions can be found with Golf Genius. Through their industry-leading tournament management system that is fit to all formats and event types, you can take your customer experience to the next level and deliver a fantastic golf event.

What is a tournament management system?

Tournament management systems (TMS) provide options for you to plan and set-up a golf tournament. Quite simply, these systems are where a PGA Professional or tournament director spends all their time behind the scenes getting everything ready to run a smooth and successful golf event.

Golf Genius’ tournament management system provides PGA Professionals with a complete set of tools to manage a wide variety of golf events across your busy events calendar. It saves you time, allows you to deliver a great experience and can help generate additional revenue.

What does the Golf Genius tournament management system involve?

Player Portals
For each event or league/society/roll-up, PGA Professionals can easily create a bespoke tournament portal to communicate information directly to players, including tee times, pairings, daily results and live leaderboards.

Online Registration
The Golf Genius Club Premium has one of the very few registration systems in the industry built exclusively for golf. This allows players and teams to register for an event online or on their mobile devices, in a matter of minutes.

Email and Text Messaging
When using Golf Genius’ tournament management systems, PGA Professionals can send customised email and text messages with information specific to each pairing and player.

Managing an Event
Golf Genius provides a streamlined process to handle single round events on a single course – with the quick event setup feature. It also allows each event to have any number of tournaments, multiple tournaments in a round or tournaments over multiple rounds.

Player Rosters
The Golf Genius TMS provides a Master Roster (containing all players at a particular club or facility), an Event Roster (the set of players participating in each event), and a Round Roster (the set of players participating in a particular round of a multi-round event or league).

Golf Courses
Golf Genius includes the ability to search the USGA Course Rating Directory and download courses with basic course information along with the ability to fully manage all course and tee details.

Pairings and Tee Sheets
Creating tee sheets to suit your goals. Golf Genius can satisfy virtually any scheduling objective sought by a tournament organiser.

Tournament Formats
The Golf Genius TMS can support an array of tournament formats, such as Cha Cha Cha format, Skins, Gross/Net Bias or 2×2 scramble.

The process of creating an event:

 You can make your next golf event your best yet, with support from Golf Genius. Find out more about the most widely used and fully featured Tournament Management System available today at GolfGenius.com/tm and get in touch at intlsales@golfgenius.com to get your Golf Genius account.

First off – what do we mean by personalisation?

personalisation
/pəːs(ə)n(ə)lʌɪˈzeɪʃ(ə)n/
noun
1. The action of designing or producing something to meet someone’s individual requirements

In our context then this basically means creating a tournament experience that is tailored to its specific requirements and as relevant to its organisers/administrators as possible – all of which results in a more valuable and tailored experience for the event’s participants as well, understanding who they are and what they want.

Every event is different – even a typical 3-round Pro-Am can have a huge number of differences to another, which is exactly why personalisation is at the heart of Golf Genius’ TMS, with the capabilities to customise any event, anywhere, at any time.

WHAT CAN BE DONE TO PERSONALISE THE EVENT TO THE ORGANISER’S NEEDS?

Event App
This is the participant-facing app. Golf Genius allows for this to be customised on an account-by-account basis – where the layout, design and menu can be unique to each event and its organisers [and therefore to its participants].

Event Portal
This includes a website that is generated for each event, allowing customers to create their own custom web portals. Common content you would see on here are results & live leaderboards, tee times, registration, photo galleries, news feeds and more, all of which are customised to an event’s needs.

Mobile app pages
When using live scoring, an organiser can create up to 18 different pages (adverts) that can appear once a hole is finished. It allows users to advertise promotional offers and events within their organisation, as well as on course tournaments – such as longest drives and nearest the pins. Organisers can even monetise this system by using these spaces for commercial partners’ adverts.

Scorecards
Golf Genius gives the user the flexibility to produce both physical and digital scorecards for any type of format – individual, pairs, scramble, 6/6/6 – you name it! Once a customer designs their scorecard, GG will save it in their tournament library to be used time and time again. Scorecards are a great place to add logos and colours to help brand golf events – front and back, whilst digital scorecards give participants a full, contactless, live scoring experience.

TV Leaderboards
TV Shows allow customers to upload their own content that will run parallel to their competition leaderboards that can be displayed on any internet-ready device or TV, and can include adverts, YouTube videos or pictures.

WHY IS THIS BENEFICIAL TO THE ORGANISER AND THE PARTICIPANT?

1.
Love your customers and they will love your events – A system that is personalised and relevant to your needs as an organiser will only help increase the recognition and loyalty of your participants as you can make every element perfect and relevant to them.

2.
Customers expect it – In this day and age your participants will expect to have something tailored to their needs. Increase engagement and ‘stickiness’ – the ability for organisers to tailor everything to their and their participant’s needs will help foster engagement with participants before, during and after events, plus will increase how sticky the system is – i.e. help keep them coming back for more.

3.
Create a frictionless experience – Reducing the time and effort for the participant with personalisations relevant to how they use the system will increase their satisfaction overall – in fact over 50% of consumers agree that their satisfaction improves when experiences are personalised to their needs.

4.
Increase conversions [entries] – A well designed and personalised user experience could increase conversions from purely interest to actual event entries by anything up to 200-400% helping to make your events more viable and valuable.

Find out more about the most widely used and fully featured Tournament Management System available today at GolfGenius.com/tm and get in touch at intlsales@golfgenius.com to get your Golf Genius account

With an unrivalled set of features, innovative technology, and outstanding support, Golf Genius helps organisers offer outstanding branded tournaments, while delivering the back-end functionality to dramatically reduce set-up time and laborious tasks.

Golfing Days and NGL Golf, two of the leading specialist event providers in the market, have utilised Golf Genius’ software to organise and manage their corporate events, pro-am’s and society golf events for their portfolio of clients.

Mark Hatton, Founder & CEO of Golfing Days, commented: “We offer all types of events to avid golfers, from holidays, to pro-am’s, open events, corporate golf and more. We’ve built our reputation on delivering exceptional, tailor-made golf events, here in the UK and overseas, and for us, the Golf Genius system is a game-changer.”

“In the immediate aftermath of the pandemic, we were cautious about how events would work, but with the support and innovation of Golf Genius, we were able to keep our roundage high and deliver some of our most notable events like The National Golf Club Team Championship.”

Director of NGL Golf, Rob Cooper added: “As one of the earliest adopters of technology within corporate golf events, Golf Genius has been the perfect fit for us. We were amongst the first to bring in Golf Genius and have developed a very strong relationship in the years since.

“We are passionate about creating industry-leading events for our corporate golf clients and Golf Genius supports us with our event management, registration portals, branding, scoring and our unique Electronic Scoreboard Tournament Office, which also integrates seamlessly with the software.

“There is still some hesitation in the market about returning to corporate golf, but with Golf Genius we have the offering to make it easy and deliver great experiences that keep our clients coming back.

Craig Higgs, Managing Director of Golf Genius International commented: “Running great golf events is all about delivering over and above on client expectations.

“With continual product development, we’ve been able to bring in new technology on our roadmap to digitisation and offer a product offering that can support event providers in running any type of event.”

If you are interested in finding out more about Golf Genius, contact the international team at intlsales@golfgenius.com.

Faergemann, a Danish native, brings a wealth of golfing experience to his new role with Golf Genius including 17 years at GolfBox. With his background in golf management software, he will bring expert knowledge and new ideas to the company.

“We are thrilled to welcome Christian on board our international team. Christian will bring his proven experience of the industry to Golf Genius, specifically as we look to expand our operations in EMEA and internationally,” said Craig Higgs, Managing Director for Golf Genius International.

“Our opportunity is to expand our customer base in the core products of Tournament Management System and World Handicap, as well as open new product markets internationally. We will be looking to Christian to help us do this in all of our growing international markets,” continued Higgs.

Golf Genius currently operates across 62 countries, serving private clubs, public courses, national associations, and tours worldwide. With recent product launches, such as integrated event marketing tool, Golf Hub, Golf Genius continues to push digital boundaries and leads the way in providing the most efficient solution to help run golf events.

Commenting on his new Senior Advisor role, Christian Faergemann said: “I am looking forward to joining the Golf Genius team. I have always seen software and data as one of the critical factors for growing this great game and Golf Genius has this as its core. I am excited to be a part of their continued growth.”

If you are interested in finding out more about Golf Genius, contact the international team at intlsales@golfgenius.com.

Private clubs, public courses, and resorts are now able to seamlessly create a promotional Golf Hub landing page for any competition, open event, league, or clinic, with optional online registration and payment as required.

Golf professionals and administrators can then embed these professional-looking pages into their club website, email campaigns, and social media posts to amplify promotional efforts and drive increased participation.

Golf Hub pages are customisable, allowing clubs and resorts to showcase their sponsors by embedding their logo and linking directly to their website. After an event is complete, the Golf Hub Page automatically shifts to display the tournament results and leaderboard.

“We are excited to launch Golf Hub, which can be used as a tool to support and promote any type of event,” commented Craig Higgs, Managing Director for Golf Genius International.

“While sophisticated player registration and online payments have been important features of our offering for several years, Golf Hub combines this concept with automated marketing to provide powerful promotion to our customers.”

Another feature of Golf Hub is the ability to automatically aggregate your event pages into your Club Hub, a single page that showcases the playing and learning opportunities at your facility.

Easily embedding into an existing website, Club Hub allows golfers to see all upcoming events. They can click on any individual event to visit the Golf Hub Page to see more information, register, and view tournament results.

If you are interested in finding out more about Golf Genius, contact the international team at intlsales@golfgenius.com.

Within their familiar Golf Genius TM experience, golf professionals at private clubs, public courses, and resorts will be able to instantly create a promotional landing page (a “Golf Hub Page”) for any event, league, or clinic, optionally enable online registration and payments as needed on each Golf Hub Page, and automatically create aggregated pages (“Hubs”) to showcase the playing and learning opportunities at their facility. Golf professionals can then embed these Hubs into their club website, email campaigns, and social media posts to amplify promotional efforts and drive increased participation.

“Last year, over 750,000 events such as golf leagues, outings, and tournaments were managed by the Golf Genius TM user community,” stated Chris Kallmeyer, Co-CEO of Golf Genius. “We realized that in the vast majority of cases Golf Genius TM users were spending additional time to create promotional marketing materials and collect registrations by paper or phone. We’re always looking for ways to save time for golf professionals while helping them deliver a superior golfer experience. Golf Hub achieves this by automating the creation of highly professional digital marketing materials and streamlining the promotion, registration, and payment process.”

While sophisticated player registration and online payments have been important features of Golf Genius TM Club Premium and Golf Genius TM Association for several years, Golf Hub combines the concept of registration and payments with automated marketing pages and hubs to provide powerful marketing services to the entire Golf Genius TM community, which includes over 10,500 private clubs, public courses, and resorts in more than 60 countries. Golf Hub will be especially useful in promoting leagues, clinics, and outings.

“We are particularly excited about helping public golf facilities market leagues and clinics to their current and potential customers. Leagues are a key source of revenue for public facilities, and clinics are a perfect way to introduce new golfers to the game and convert them to golfers for life,” added Golf Genius Co-CEO Mike Zisman. “Today, Golf Genius services over 12,000 golf leagues around the globe, and Golf Hub will be a tool of great value to every one of these league managers by saving time and automatically generating high quality digital marketing materials.”

In a recent blog I wrote, I focused on the ‘COVID-19’ consumer and how golf clubs can take advantage of increased expenditure, rounds played and engagement from those people who decided to take up golf in the aftermath of national lockdowns.

This exemplified a process of consumer segmentation – a marketing technique that allows us to tailor prices, products and promotions to various people based on differing characteristics. If we do this, we can encourage increased consumption and therefore, increased revenue.

So, how can we segment our consumers beyond that ‘COVID-19’ characterisation? Ordered from the simplest forms, all the way through to the very deep, ambiguous, subjective (and influential) ways, I list and explain some very simple ways that can help guide your own future marketing practice below.

01 DEMOGRAPHIC TRAITS

To breakdown a consumer down based on their objective, easy-to-identify physical traits would be to conduct a demographic segmentation. Such traits include:

• Gender – Female / Male
• Age Group – Teenagers / Young Adults / Middle-Aged / Retired
• Ethnicity
• Occupation
• Education

This is a very simple way of collecting data on consumers to then group and break down, and can be done through various ways such as filling in an online questionnaire or recording data through your tee time booking systems.

How does this affect tailoring prices, products and promotions? Well, consider the fact that men will most certainly choose to play 18 holes of golf together more than women; teenagers will consume easier forms of golf such as the driving range and mini golf; people of higher social classes with higher disposable incomes will spend more at your club and on specialist services such as golf lessons than those of lower classes; and people of white-ethnic backgrounds are more likely to consume golf in general than people from BAME communities.

We now have some valuable insights that we can then focus our marketing activities on to encourage behaviour and consumption. The downside of this form of segmentation is that it is rather generic – it doesn’t factor in individual differences (for example, people from the BAME community do choose to play golf, just less so than white ethnicities). We need to look deeper than demographic traits more often than not to gain more insightful and more influential data.

02 BEHAVIOURAL: CONSUMPTION HABITS

This form of segmentation focuses on the way in which your consumers interact with your brand. There are various ways in which you can do this:

• Frequency – How often do they play golf or have a lesson? Once a week? Monthly? Annually?
• Time – What times of the day do they play? Twilight? Full rate? Weekends? Weekdays?
• Occasions – Do they consume golf during set periods or special occasions? Such as bank holidays, Christmas, easter?
• Type – What product do they consume? Is it a 9 hole green fee? Some PING Golf Clubs? Golf Pride Grips? Junior golf lessons? Golf Carts?
• Spend – How much do they spend relative to the product / service type they are consuming? Low / Medium / High?

This will give you a very good picture of the consumer from a consumption point of view, rather than just who they are as a person demographically. This is more useful and influential, as it allows you to tailor and target key products and promotions to each individual.

For example, as a golf coach I might create a special Christmas offer with discounted golf lessons. There’s no need to send this to your regular pupils who have a lesson every week. Rather, send it to the people that you know buy golf lesson packages at Christmas, historically, and entice their spending with you again.

The only problem with this is it is a data-heavy form of collecting consumer information. Whilst you will build a pretty good picture of each of your customers (and is something worth investing the time in) it is just that – time consuming. If you can allocate part of your week to this task and focus on just the key areas you want to collect data on, then this might be a more efficient and effective way of segmenting based on consumption habits and your available resource. For example, if you just want to increase green fees, then focus on the green fee frequencies, times, occasions and types that are purchased…

03 BEHAVIOURAL: HUMAN IDENTITY

Human identity is perhaps the deepest, most subjective form of understanding consumer purchasing decisions and behaviour. It takes the previous behavioural form of segmenting based on habits to a much deeper level of understanding.

Consider this – those who identify as a male and those who identify as a female (ignoring the biological characterisation) will consume very different products and services. Males watch more gory, action-focused films, generally play heavier-contact sports, wear certain clothes and listen to certain music. Females will lean towards comedies and chick-flick films, play socially-focused sports and wear very contrasting clothes choices to males!

They do all of this to subconsciously –  to exert and portray their chosen identities. In other words, they watch the films they do, they eat the food they eat and they purchase the goods that they purchase to show that they are a male and show that they are a female. It is a complex social construct that we are not aware of most of the time but this form of segmentation looks at our decisions as consumers in a whole new, subconscious way. And that is why this is so influential and must be exploited, as leading golf marketeers.

Now take this premise, and apply it to the fact that there are endless facets and contributory variables that make up our overall individual identity, and not just the male and female role identities mentioned – in golf, there are those people who identify as ‘Golfers’, and those who identify as ‘somebody who plays golf’. You can already assume that there will be consumption differences between these two, right? But in what ways?

For my University thesis, I took this exact idea to try and better understand consumer behaviour in golf and identify the varying consumption habits of such types of ‘golfing identity’. What I found was insightful at the very least but could actually have influential implications for golf marketing practice. Some of the findings between these two forms of golfing identity included:

Golfers

• Travel abroad for golfing holidays
• Hold golf magazine and journalism subscriptions
• Listen to golf podcasts and various other online content
• Take regular golf lessons
• Value playing different courses in their local areas
• Plays at least twice a week
• Volunteer for clubs, counties and other golf bodies
• Value custom fitting and high-spend equipment

Somebody Who Plays Golf

• Usually play one key golf course, within very short driving distances to their homes
• Rarely take golf lessons
• Play golf once a month
• Generally use second-hand, value-focused equipment

So, by segmenting your consumers using these three different strategies, you have begun your journey to better understanding your consumers and in creating a system for targeting of your products and services. It is now a balancing act on how you decide to segment, based on some set questions – How much time do you have? What do you specifically want to find out? What goals do you have? These will all dictate your choices.

Then, ongoing data collection and analysis is necessary to ensure you are continuously understanding and improving your knowledge of everybody who wants to play golf at your venue, or have lessons with you, or buy those new sets of golf clubs and balls in your shop.

If you do, then you can effectively drive your revenue and returns.

In just a matter of months, COVID-19 has shaken and shaped the mere fabric of society. Both business and the golf industry has not been spared either. Local and national lockdowns caused the inevitable closures that we have seen and it is only now that we are beginning to realise the full impact and extent of what has been such a damaging period, not just to public health but also economically and socially as well.

As we begin to recover as an industry, the need to be at the top of our game has never been more important. Clubs, golf centres, driving ranges and other indoor golfing venues are taking the health and safety of their staff and customers very seriously for two good reasons.

The first is the obvious: because right now we have a duty of care to one another; to minimise the spread of the virus and protect each other.

The second is not obvious: because doing so is good for your brand.

Here is why COVID-19 health and safety guidelines and guidance have never been more important for you…

01 SAFETY

As mentioned earlier this is the very real, serious and obvious part as to why we do this. We have seen the devastating numbers off cases, serious illnesses and unfortunately deaths that have been used by the Coronavirus. It has made us all realise that we are not invincible and something so invisible can have a real and serious impact on our health.

It has also raised our awareness of how we behave, including maintaining good hygiene and social distancing to prevent the spread of the virus.

For businesses, this has also meant following and implementing various practices and protocols to reduce the spread as well. The CPG recently published its own forms of guidance to CPG Member Countries, and created a hub page with various information, links and documents to help advise and guide those who are perhaps a little overwhelmed by the situation.

These are by no means a magic bullet and they will never eliminate the risk of catching coronavirus – it is a fair assumption to think it is here to stay for the meanwhile and that whilst the chances are low, they are still real. However, what they do do is just that – they lower the chances and minimise the risk as much as possible.

I urge you to have a read and consider some of the points that are in there. Implementing them will not only help keep yourselves safe but also everybody who walks through that door into your club or golf business. I think it is fair to say we all have a moral obligation to do so.

02 BRAND CAPITAL

An inadvertent consequence of doing the above is that it might actually help drive sales and customer activity.

As the world is an incredibly inter-connected, digitally-driven place where conversations from continents away can be had in seconds, information (both positive and negative) spreads like wildfire. As a marketing concept, ‘Word of Mouth’ continues to play its part in the understanding of customer enticement. However, 21st century society has seen the addition of ‘Electronic Word of Mouth’ too and whilst it can be incredibly useful, it can also be incredibly dangerous.

As Marketers, we are constantly on the lookout for those comments, shares, reviews and observations made by customers over the Internet – it is probably the most powerful tool you can have to present your business in a way you want. However, just use the example that a COVID-19 case was traced back to a business who happened to have misjudged or even perhaps ignored some of the safety guidance. You can imagine what will happen next, right?

“Irresponsible” “Dangerous” “Lack of foresight” “DO NOT VISIT”

These are just some of the words I can imagine (and have seen) from customer reviews across the general business space related to COVID-19, and it won’t be going away anytime soon. However, flip this situation on its head to a point where your golf club has followed guidelines to the book:

“Fantastic and safe experience” “Really organised” “Safety-conscious”

I know which descriptives I would want my business to be associated with. This is not to say you will not receive the odd bad review. There will always be that one resistive (often younger) customer who complains and disagrees with what you are doing, and that you are infringing on their basic liberties. That is also happening everywhere else and there is not a lot you can do about it other than explain to them in a diplomatic manner the reasons why. Chances are, they will come round and see sense.

Therefore, acting in a responsible and safe manner and follow the guidelines and advice to the book (whether you agree or disagree with them), will help enforce a healthier and safer environment for everyone and in turn, a better experience for customers. I like to view this situation (as with most new customer-related situations and journeys) as a job interview or talent audition – customers are there to interrogate you and your business, and they want to know your strengths, your weaknesses and whether you can stand up to the task in hand of serving their needs and wants safely.

If you can’t, they will pick you up on it.

If you can…well…positive impressions are the most powerful tool you have in your armoury and they will thank you for it.

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“My lesson bookings have never been busier – how do I keep these customers moving forwards?”

“With long-term prospects and consumer confidence looking fairly low, we are not sure this high will last.”

It is an interesting conundrum, and one that most PGA Professionals and facility owners find themselves in right now. Golf courses, ranges, simulators and clubs are busier than ever with existing and new players to the game. So how can you manage this uptick in participation properly, whilst engaging, enticing and retaining their custom?

First I think we need to answer the question of: Is this going to last?

The answer to that, to a large extent, depends on our actions. If as an industry, we play this situation well by utilising resource effectively, managing our time and creating innovative solutions to meet the excess demand, I don’t see why this pent-up consumption can’t be turned into real and sustainable consumer spending in the years to come.

There is that key comment of “people have been unable to do other things and golf was there first…it won’t last” to deal with. For sure, a large proportion of this increased demand is made up of consumers who have been unable to fulfil their normal spending habits, such as watching their local sports teams (football, cricket, rugby, tennis etc.) and have therefore been on the prowl for something else to fill their time. During this search, golf has provided that short-term solution to satisfy a need but what happens once their usual spending habits reemerge? Most believe golf will be cast aside once more.

However, this isn’t and shouldn’t be a certainty whatsoever.

If we can focus on converting just a small percentage of those people into consuming golf as a more regular habit, say once a month for the next year, it can yield worthwhile returns. Here is an example taken from a local course, who have seen an average increase of 40 visitor green fees per day since lockdown restrictions were lifted.

1. Average green fee charged: €20.00
2. Average number of surplus visitors (using pre-lockdown figures as a baseline): 40
3. Additional revenue per day: €800.00
4. Additional revenue per month: €24,000

Notice how the last figure was calculated for monthly, rather than annually. This is so that you can take into consideration that 40 extra golfers, like with your existing customers, will drop off significantly during the off-peak, winter months. However, it paints a picture of the potential increases golf courses can (and have) seen recently. Just converting 10% of these golfers permanently (4 players!) is worth a significant amount of revenue to your business.

01 BETTER UNDERSTAND THE SEGMENT

Perhaps you already collect consumer data of your visitors, perhaps you don’t. Understanding this segment to a degree is going to be important in order to effectively manage and exceed their expectations and retain their custom.

First you need to set up a system of data collection. This doesn’t even have to be a fancy, state-of-the-art cash register that requires an input mechanism for every player. It can be as simple as staff observations and reporting. Whatever it is, create a procedure or system that your team works with and can work well to, and gain an understanding of a number of things:

1. How often does this consumer play?
2. What points in the day do they play? (AM, PM, Twilight etc.)
3. Do they consume additional services aside from green fees? (golf carts, range, bar, restaurant etc.)
4. Simple demographic breakdowns (Age, gender, occupation, proximity to course)
5. Contact details and GDPR conformity!

02 TARGETING

This really should be with point 01 but it is easier to explain separately. This is because you can’t have a targeted campaign without the previous stage of data collection. The two go hand-in-hand. How you go about creating a targeted campaign is dependent on the data that you have about your consumer, and generating the data that you need is dependant on the campaign you want to create.

First identify a business goal of the campaign. Is this to acquire a set number of additional members? Is this to sell a block number of lesson vouchers? Is this to drive green fee revenue? Golf cart revenue? We will continue to use the example of increasing visitor green fee revenue.

Now that we have a goal, we can begin to narrow down our focus for data collection. We don’t need to find out more about our members as these are not visitors. We also don’t need to focus on our existing pool of regular pay-and-players (assuming you have a database for these golfers already as they will have booked countless of times already).

We need to focus our efforts on those new visitors that we have no data for. Utilising point one, begin to collate data (and therefore understanding) of this consumer, so that you have the information and direction you need on what needs to change or be focused on to increase this golfer’s experience moving forwards.

*As a side point, also ensure they provide GDPR consent to receive marketing information from yourselves when doing so*

Now you better understand them as people, you can provide these new ‘Post-COVID’ golfers with tailored products, services and offerings to entice and engage them for further consumption. Be creative with how you do this, you don’t need to just offer them heavily discounted green fees, mostly because they’ve been paying stated prices already with no complaints, haven’t they? Ask yourselves: why are these people enjoying golf? What is it about their consumption of golf that differs to our existing consumers?

You might find that they enjoy the social benefits of golf such as having a drink after playing, or that they want to try a new sport, or that simply enough their Saturday’s are now free and they need something to do. Well, how about streaming live sport in the clubhouse after? With some heavy promotion and communication to them about this, they will realise that they can now play golf and watch their favourite teams play at the same time…

This is not a magic bullet but the premise of the point is that tailoring your services to each individual better will improve their experience and encourage their future custom.

03 COMBATTING A CULTURE CLASH

A separate point, but nonetheless crucial to maximising your returns.

So often, we hear about the barriers to entry faced by many new golfers. This includes attitudes of existing members and players, strict club regulations and enforced rules on etiquette and behaviour. I am not for one minute suggesting these all need to be disbanded, in fact I would be extremely surprised if they could anyway – golf has been trying to remove them for decades and for various reasons, has failed.

However you view these points (Whilst I personally appreciate the etiquette of the game and standards of behaviour, I cannot understand why wearing a jacket and tie and not using your mobile phone in a clubhouse is still even a rule in 2020), the fact remains that these will no doubt dismay and dissuade the consumers you are trying to target here to continue playing. They are accustomed to freedom of choice, the ability to go where they want and when they want and quite frankly, golf doesn’t – it remains bogged down and unable to offer the same sort of atmosphere because of its traditional nuances.

This last point I am trying to focus on is about engagement – engaging both the new consumers you are targeting and engaging the existing members that you have to work with you in doing so. If you can encourage and create an atmosphere that furthers inclusion, reduces stigmatisation and promotes friendliness, one can be confident that new golfers and visitors will be far less likely to play, dislike the experience and the unwelcoming atmosphere and never come back.

One simple idea could be to create a ‘mentor system’ between guests and members, or have themed nights in the clubhouse that focus on socialising and fun. Even something as simple as how you arrange your clubhouse seating (COVID-19 complying of course) might encourage increased dialogue between different groups, rather than having uninteractive, unsociable bubbles.

By combing a renewed and refreshed atmosphere, with better understanding and targeting, the ‘COVID-19’ golfer might just realise that golf is for them, that it isn’t a sport for the affluent and that in fact they can have as much enjoyment from golf that they would have from other sports and pastimes…

Let us seize this opportunity, whilst we still have it.

59club’s ‘We are in this together’ Campaign, has seen the interactive Golftell Member Communication app and newly released survey templates that reflect the current situation facing the hospitality and tourism industry, added to their existing complementary offering, all free of charge through May 31, 2020.

“These are extraordinary times. Many managers are trying to figure what, if any, services should still be available, and what people will want when you re-open” said Simon Wordsworth, founder of 59club.

“Customers will remember those who took the time to touch base with them, to ascertain their needs and wants during the unprecedented time when they knew you were simply hoping to remain open, and latterly during the challenge of being forcibly closed.

“Navigating unchartered waters and relying only on substandard communication tools like social media and non-reply emails does a disservice to the manager, staff, their members and guests. We want our friends and colleagues in the tourism and hospitality industries to have everything they need to weather this storm.”

Please visit www.59club.com and follow the COVID-19 actions to instigate your FREE license, any additional support can be directed to your local 59club division who are waiting to help!

1. My59 Metrics

My59 Metrics is an analytical platform that provides comparable data around the industry’s operating rates, such as gross profit, turnover, membership revenue & attrition, purchasing rates, stock levels, average monthly sales, payroll, staffing levels – and many other variables.

All data entries remain anonymous to anyone other than the club’s sole key account holder. It is able to generate comparable data against venues of a similar nature, allowing you and PGA Professionals to make decisions around your financial operations. Venues can filter the results by business style (private, resort, etc), by county/region, by venue size (number of holes) and by course style (parkland, heathland etc). Additional functionality is available within a premium licence.

2. Golftell Communication App

The interactive Golftell Member Communication app creates a new channel for members to privately communicate directly with golf businesses’ management, with the ability to provide as much or as little feedback as the member wishes to supply. During times of closure, the app can be used to reflect on previous experiences and communicate on any matter relating to the organisation for when normality resumes.

The app channels member feedback within the following areas: course condition, food quality, general facilities and customer service levels, applying an average rating of great, good, average or poor which contributes towards the clubs own satisfaction rating as well as adding into the industry-wide data pool.

3. Survey Tools

The survey tools assist PGA Members to glean feedback from its customers, members and staff amid the current crisis at specific times when the facility continues its limited offerings, at times when the offering/operation is forcibly closed, during the clubs renewal process, when dealing with membership cancellations and in the run-up to the club/facilities reopening.

The templates contain a bank of pre-set questions already available within the platform, enabling adaptation of the survey to create tailored questions. Built in demographic filters, allow further analysis based on member age, gender, membership category and status, playing frequency and location, making feedback easy to manage and segment.

VISIT WWW.59CLUB.COM

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There is a well-known phrase: ‘people leave managers, not companies’. Ensuring your organisation is made up of leaders with the right characteristics, level of self-awareness, potential and ability is fundamental in fostering an environment of high engagement and high performance, both of which are key drivers of business success.

Leadership goes beyond the successful delivery of projects or achievement of strategic targets; it’s about engaging your people on the journey towards realising a vision. We surveyed over 200 HR and business professionals on their views on leadership, engagement and talent, and a host of recommended actions from industry experts that you can implement in your own organisations.

This whitepaper aims to reflect on the relationship between leadership and engagement, covering the following themes:

• The role of leaders in driving engagement and performance through team values
• Psychological methods of defining talent and measuring potential
• The impact of employee engagement upon performance

Click Here to Download the Free Whitepaper [ThomasInternational.net]

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Reuben Conibear

Reuben has worked in the Marketing team at Thomas for just over 3 and half years. As Marketing Executive, Reuben’s core focus is to ensure a high quality experience for Thomas customers at all times. In his spare time, Reuben enjoys kayaking, bouldering and spending time with his friends and family.

Maybe you’ll be surprised, but based on the numbers from a Player’s First survey, the primary reason why people would take more lessons is that their PGA professional is pedagogical and contributes to a positive environment in the club.

Mats Bjørkman, responsible for PGA education in Denmark:

“Carol Dweck describes the fixed and growth mindset, she proves that if you have a fixed mindset, you will tend to be afraid of failing, avoid challenges where you are not guaranteed success, and in particular, you obsess over not looking stupid. A person with that mindset does not book a lot of lessons, and if he/she does, the experience could easily be a fiasco.

“As a PGA Professional, it is a good idea to focus on using a growth mindset. Of course, you’re already doing it on behalf of your students. But it is a good idea to educate, describe and explain to your customers the difference between the two mindsets. If you are a good role model for your customers and colleagues, you are becoming a person that people would like to spend time with. A person’s mindset can be quite stable, but they are only built on beliefs, and they can be transformed through awareness and focusing on the right things.

“Like the research, my experience has repeatedly shown that a growth mindset promotes a healthier attitude towards training and learning. If you preach a growth mindset, your clients will become more open towards feedback and develop a better ability to handle difficult challenges. Last but not least – they will achieve significantly better results over time! And as we know from Players First the third most important reason for the player taking lessons is that they experience improvements in their game!”

Source: Players first; Carol Dweck: Development Psychologist and author of the book, “Mindset.”

At the global forefront of psychometric assessment innovation for over 35 years, and with a with a presence in over 60 countries, Thomas are passionate about empowering organisations throughout business, sport and education to make confident people decisions.

Their psychometric assessments are straightforward to understand, quick to use, but more importantly have scientific validity at their core and are provided in 56 languages.

Derek Redmond, Group Performance Director at Thomas International commented, “Thomas International are pleased to announce their official partnership with the Confederation of Professional Golf, to become the Official Supplier of Psychometric Assessments, where we will work closely with the Association to help support the development of their people and teams and ultimately, contribute to the continued success of the organisation.”

“We have already had the pleasure of working with Thomas International in the past couple of years as we continue to develop our own business and services,” said Confederation of Professional Golf Chief Executive, Ian Randell.

“The formalisation of our relationship with Official Supplier status will allow the great team at Thomas to take their work with not only our Association, but also our 38 PGAs, to the next level. These tools and services are going to provide the insight into what makes people successful, measuring areas such as behaviours, personality, high potential and engagement that will empower the PGAs and help them to advance their organisations and Members.”

Since its inception in 1981, Thomas has paved the way to achieving excellence with its clients to transform organisational, team and individual performance. Years of research drive powerful results to help organisations recruit, retain, develop and lead their most important assets –people.

The announcement coincides with Thomas International’s Development Consultant and Gold Medal-winning Paralympian, Naomi Riches MBE, and Global Account Manager, Jonathan Smith, hosting a workshop at the 2018 Confederation of Professional Golf Annual Congress at Costa Navarino in Greece.

The workshops saw representatives from across the 38 Member Country PGAs, along with other partners and suppliers, and various Federation and golfing organisation representatives, hear about the role that psychometric profiling played in Riches’ rowing career, helping her to understand more about herself, before delving deeper into the ways delegates can learn from this and assess its use in their own roles and organisations as a whole. .

For more information visit www.ThomasInternational.net

At present, there is a significant focus on the financial penalties that a business could incur should they have a data protection breach.

GDPR, what is it?

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will come into force on 25th May 2018. The legislation will impact on any golf and leisure business that is either based in, or do business in, the EU. Citizens will have great individual rights and controls, including rights to access, correction and deletion of personal data.

Do You Know What Personal Data your Golf Business collects?

One very early myth to bust is the belief that the GDPR does not apply to your golf club. If you collect, store and move personal information on members (including children), employees, patrons or suppliers in membership database(s), booking management systems, HR database(s) and paper; finance and accounting systems; health records (on employees and members), marketing systems (Customer Relationship Management system) and CCTV or other digital imagery, the regulation applies to you.

Who Should be Involved?

As you will have gathered already, implementing GDPR compliance cannot simply be the responsibility of IT or HR, it needs to be an organisational approach, one that has the full support of the management team, golf club committee and all levels of Directorship.

Where should I start?

A good first step is to complete the Information Commissioner’s Office online GDPR self-assessment (https://eur.pe/2r5wNXU). This will provide you a clear overview of what tasks you need to complete before 25th May 2018.

What other steps should I consider?

• Conduct a Data Protection audit to determine what personal data is held by your organisation and identify where it is located, justify your reason for holding it, how long you hold it for and how you would permanently delete the record.
• Raising awareness across the business and training your staff should be high up on your list of priorities. Consider engaging expert help and then start to develop processes and procedures which will ensure that your business is managing and protecting personal data according to the requirements of the regulation.

But should I quickly get my current customers to “opt-in” again so I’m compliant?

Stop!

There certainly is a lot of ‘hype’ surrounding GDPR and lots of advice coming from many different sources. What this appears to have created is almost a panic amongst some golf club’s – mostly surrounding their current database of customers and prospects. Group emails are flying out in an attempt to gain “consent” to communicate using this medium by asking customers to “opt-in”.

One club recently went through this very process and reduced their database by 99% – yes, only 1% of customers re-confirmed their consent to be sent emails from the club. However, it’s highly unlikely that 99% of customers were simply not interested in the club any more. It’s more likely that a high percentage just didn’t respond and that could be for any number of reasons, nothing to do with their desire to cease communications with the club via email.

Hopefully, seeking “Consent” in this way doesn’t amount to commercial suicide for some clubs – because in many cases it may not be necessary. The new legislation offers potential alternatives, including a legal basis for continuing to email customers called “Legitimate Interests”. The legislation goes further to even highlight some examples of what this may be, and Direct Marketing is listed.

If you would like to learn more about GDPR or want to train your staff on their responsibilities to the new legislation, Promote Training, in partnership with data-specialists Databasix, has launched two new courses that will help achieve this.

• GDPR in Golf
• GDPR for Staff

Promote Training are also offering ‘Confederation of Professional Golf’ readers a limited-time-only offer of 20% off these two GDPR courses. Use the coupon code “CPG1” during the online checkout. (Offer expires 31st May 2018)

Find out more www.promotetraining.co.uk/fundamental-principles-data-protection.

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As Thomas International continues to roll out the High Potential Trait Indicator (HPTI) worldwide, a vast amount of data is being collected and analysed alongside a great deal of data about workplace and leadership outcomes.

These results were presented in a symposium at the 2018 International Test Commission Conference in Montreal [read more about it here]. This represents one of the largest HPTI studies done to date, including nearly 10,000 participants.

One of the defining features of the HPTI is it’s optimal trait levels for leadership. The HPTI goes beyond identifying personality traits and provides clear guidelines for identifying high potential leaders based on their personality traits. The recent studies confirm and reinforce the importance of personality traits for leadership.

The Process

Good scientific research involves thorough testing to build on theories and collect large amounts of data. This helps to confirm findings and improve the knowledge and understanding of the topic under investigation. Thomas International have been testing and validating the HPTI with workers around the world to ensure HPTI results and reports are valid, reliable and useful in workplaces around the world.

This process ensures the HPTI is a scientifically validated tool, and allows the continuous development of additional knowledge and resources to improve the utility of the HPTI in practice.

One of the papers presented at the 2018 International Test Commission Conference in Montreal looked at the results from a study of nearly 10,000 participants. Alongside the HPTI, various workplace outcome variables were also examined. The results demonstrated that the theoretical underpinnings and psychometric properties of the HPTI are valid and useful for North American populations.

Key Findings

First, the items and personality traits tested by the HPTI can be used in workplaces in North America. This research also involves a localisation process for the HPTI, so population norms and optimal levels of traits tailored to North American workers, leaders and businesses.

Second, this is the largest study to date examining HPTI traits at different levels of leadership. The results show very significant differences in HPTI traits at the different levels of leadership. The results confirm the importance of HPTI traits for leadership, and show the importance of HPTI traits increases with leadership seniority.

The chart below show increasing levels of each personality trait in each leadership category. This is a clear pattern which shows how important optimal HPTI trait levels are in leadership, and senior leadership in particular.

The results also show a greater spread between some traits. For example, those not in leadership tend to have average Ambiguity Approach levels. Senior leaders show substantially higher Ambiguity Approach which is essential for the level of complexity and uncertainty they face in their work.

Competitiveness, on the other hand, shows a relatively narrow spread. Although Competitiveness rises slightly higher at more senior levels of leadership, the differences are relatively modest. This is consistent with previous findings that extreme levels of competitiveness can be counterproductive in leadership positions.

Overall, this clearly shows the importance of HPTI traits in leadership and highlights that the HPTI traits are even more important in senior leadership. As HPTI research is conducted around the world, the research results clearly and consistently demonstrate how important HPTI traits are for leadership potential.

Implications for Business

HPTI personality traits are incredibly useful in assessing high potential at work for three reasons (discussed in more detail in High Potential: How to spot, manage and develop talented people at work).

1. Personality is stable

Personality traits are relatively stable from early adulthood into later life. It is a consistent pattern of thinking, feeling and behaving. This means personality is a very useful early indicator of potential at work.

2. Personality is rooted in the brain and biology

Personality comes from neurological processes and structures. That means personality is essentially hardwired in the brain, and very difficult to change except in cases of extreme psychological intervention. Unlike factors such as motivation which can change day-to-day or year-to-year, personality is a useful long-term predictor of both performance and potential.

3. Personality traits interact

Personality traits do not exist in isolation. The traits interact to form a whole, overall personality structure. Having high or low levels of one particular trait will influence how all other traits are experienced and expressed. This means it is important to look at all the HPTI personality traits in combination. The research described earlier in this article reinforces how important all of the HPTI traits are for overall leadership potential.

Getting a full picture of a person’s personality traits provides important information about making decisions related to identifying, managing and developing high potential at work.

Read more about each of the 6 traits of high potential in leadership and how the HPTI can support you in recruiting and developing your (future) leaders.

To find out more about the real-life applications of the HPTI, please get in contact on info@thomas.co.uk or call us on +44(0)1628 475 366.

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Ian MacRae

Ian has been an organisational psychology consultant for over a decade and is the director and co-founder of High Potential Psychology Ltd. He is the co-author of High Potential: How to Spot Manage and Develop Talented People at Work and the High Potential Trait Indicator (HPTI), a measure of leadership potential, which is available to Thomas clients.

When team members work well together, there is little they cannot accomplish. Looking at the bigger picture when it comes to your teams, such as their behavioural and emotional preferences and the impact they have on each other, can greatly increase your chances of developing a high performing team.

Patrick Wright from the Rugby Business Network (RBN) uses Thomas assessments to do just that. Thomas tools allow them to gain a deeper understanding of an individual’s preferences, something the RBN have used to develop athlete performance, enhance transition programmes and ultimately deliver results.

Developing self-awareness in the USA 7’s Rugby team

Mike Friday, Head Coach of the USA 7’s Rugby team, has been working with Patrick at the RBN to embed Thomas assessments into the team’s training programme in the lead up to the Rio Olympic Games, in order to improve consistency in performance through greater self-awareness amongst team members.

As a high performance sporting team where effective communication is crucial to successful performance, the team needed to develop their understanding of each other. As a result, they implemented Thomas’ Personal Profile Analysis (PPA) to identify their strengths, limitations, motivators and communication preferences; helping team members and coaches to tailor communications to individuals, so as not to misinterpret them and stifle learning.

The PPA compatibility report was also used between players, coaching staff and the management team. The reports uncovered a number of potential challenges to effective team relationships, which allowed them to put timely strategies and development plans in place to help individuals to modify their behaviour to the preferences of others.

The players also noticed an immediate impact after implementing Thomas assessments. Madison Hughes, player and captain of the USA 7’s Rugby team comments, “The Thomas PPA helped the team take a different perspective on communication with each other. In particular, it helped us realise the different ways people see things and therefore that with each individual, different approaches are necessary.

Mike concludes, “it has been very insightful working with Thomas International. It has encouraged open communication within the squad and has created a foundation for us to create winning performances on the pitch and to be a more united squad off the pitch. I would highly recommend teams looking to find the edge in high performance to explore this approach.”

For more information, visit ThomasInternational.net.

Photos provided by Mike Lee/KLCFotos

What this example demonstrates is the power – and danger – of negative thinking. Research into negative thoughts has shown how they lead us to dissociate from the outside world and turn our focus to one thing only: the thing that is making us feel angry, scared or bad about ourselves. As a result, we stagnate.

Positive thoughts have the opposite effect, opening our minds to see a whole range of possibilities and therefore welcoming new ideas and perceptions. Barbara Fredrickson, a professor at the University of North Carolina and researcher of positive emotions, believes thinking positively can even have long-term benefits. In her ‘broaden and build’ theory she describes how the broadening of our sense of what is possible generated by positive thoughts can lead us to develop new skills and so progress in life.

For some of us, looking at things from the bright side is something that comes easily; others find it harder. That doesn’t mean all hope is lost, though: thinking positively is something that you can train yourself to do.

First of all, you’ll need to start making a conscious effort to not give in to negative thoughts. Recognise when you start dwelling on the bleaker side of things and put a stop to it by asking yourself what you could do to make the situation better. Then start setting actionable goals for yourself – reaching them will empower you.

The next step is to foster positive thoughts. Easier said than done? Not necessarily. While positive thinking creates positive emotions, this process also works the other way around. This means that doing things you love, that bring you joy, can help you to think more positively. Think, for example, of a time where you engaged with something you are passionate about: perhaps you went to a concert or saw a film you really loved. Did you feel inspired afterwards? Perhaps it even led you to actively pursue a goal related to that passion?

Or you can try something new. Meditation has been proven to help cultivate positive thoughts, while a study published in the Journal of Research in Personality showed that writing about positive experiences can have the same effect.

Thinking positively means getting out of your head and looking for solutions. It’s something you may have to practise to get better at, but ultimately it can open doors that you may otherwise have walked right past.

This content appears courtesy of Abintegro, experts in career management, transition technology & e-learning for today’s modern, mobile and technology-savvy workforce – Find out more at www.abintegro.com

Credit: Huffington Post; National Centre for Biotechnical Information

Composite Graphic Credit: iconicbestiary / Freepik

Evans’ vast experience of working in some of the world’s best golf facilities, including creating the hugely successful Centurion Club, make him a worthy winner of the award that acknowledges those who show the highest standards and achievements in the areas of expertise and activity they have been involved with.

[fb_plugin video href=https://www.facebook.com/PGAsofEurope/videos/1518494714883977/]

“I am very honoured to receive this award – to be accepted and recognised by your peers and colleagues is everything you work towards,” said Evans in his acceptance speech video shown to guests of the 2017 Annual Congress Gala Awards Dinner supported by Rolex at Costa Navarino in Greece.

“Receiving the award means so much to my family and I – there’s a lot of people to thank from throughout my career, young and old, past and present, who have been a huge help and support – I really accept this on their behalf as much as my own. It’s a tough business we’re in and I just wanted to be tougher than the rest…it comes from Scottish grit, determination and doing the best job that I can.”

Described as a great example for those working in golf management and a consummate professional, Evans joins the outstanding roll of honour that reflects the extreme merits, diversity and international nature of Confederation of Professional Golf 5-Star Professional Winners, which include Ryder Cup Captains and Open Champions since the award began in 1992.

Evans began his career training as a Civil Engineer and carried out his PGA training under the guidance of the much respected former PGA of Great Britain & Ireland Captain, Bill Watson, at Whitecraigs Golf Club until 1990.

He then moved on to work in the USA at the prestigious Tom Weiskopf-designed Troon Golf and Country Club in Scottsdale, Arizona, working alongside Weiskopf himself and also the creator of Troon Golf, Dana Garmany; a move that would prove to be the catalyst for his career in club management.

Evans worked in Arizona for two years, and by 1995 had also worked through the opening stages of Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club with Peter Downie, and Loch Lomond Golf Club with Paul Dellanzo.

In 1996 and at the age of 28 he moved onto Bearwood Lakes Golf Club in the UK where he was responsible for taking the project from the latter stages of construction through to the finished product. It was here he spent 10 years working under Ray Wilson of Southern Golf fame and seeing first hand the construction of some of Europe’s finest golf courses.

Adding another big name club to his CV, Evans moved on to the London Club as General Manager in 2005 where he was instrumental in turning around the fortunes of the club and creating an agreement with the European Tour that ultimately led to its hosting of two London Senior Masters, two European Opens and a World Matchplay Championship.

Moving back to Troon Golf in 2007, he then worked on many new European projects whilst becoming Managing Director of the La Quinta Resort in Marbella, overseeing its renovation whilst introducing the European Seniors Tour Benahavis Senior Masters.

In 2010, Evans continued his journey to where he is now with the development of the Centurion Club just outside London, where he recently received the award from Confederation of Professional Golf Chief Executive, Ian Randell [pictured above, right] and Confederation of Professional Golf Honorary President, George O’Grady CBE [pictured above, left].

Finding a piece of land just 30 minutes from central London was just the first step in a journey that, along with his Dutch business partners Bert Pronk and Andre Hendriks, has led to the creation of a club that is now famed for its forward-thinking approach, including an acclaimed golf course, a unique membership structure and, a modern club culture and facilities – such as a restaurant operated by the Michelin-starred chefs, the Galvin brothers – that are relaxing, comfortable and high quality in equal measure.

The club has also gained international recognition for becoming the venue of the innovative European Tour GolfSixes event that began earlier this year.  Centurion has been instrumental in the success of the revolutionary format of two-man teams from 16 different countries that brought over 9,000 spectators through the club’s gates, and also gave it huge exposure to millions of people around the world with its extensive TV coverage.

The development of the club is a great example of the dedication, drive and expertise that Evans has, having overcome many challenges, including the development of a successful and sustainable facility during one of the worst economic periods in our lifetime.

With this exceptional list of facilities and clubs that Evans has poured heart and soul into, he is more than worthy of being named a 5-Star Professional.

For More Information On All of 2017’s Award Winners Visit http://eur.pe/2017AnnualCongress

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For more information on the 2017 Annual Award Winners visit Annual Congress Hub Page (http://eur.pe/2017AnnualCongress), follow @PGAsofEurope on Twitter and search the hashtag ‘#AnnualCongress’ or like the Confederation of Professional Golf Facebook Page.

The Annual Congress Gala Awards are partnered by Rolex, Costa Navarino, the Ryder Cup European Development Trust, BMW and Aegean Airlines, and are supported by The Botanist, The Blue Beetle, Bulldog, G’Vine gins, Marendry apperitivo, and Fever-Tree Premium Natural Mixers.

 Here the Confederation of Professional Golf and PGA Professional, Mark Taylor, explore this underutilised area of management looking at where to start and what to think about when it comes to benchmarking your facility…

Certainly many factors influence a club’s reputation and performance including; perception of the club’s brand, the quality of the course, course activity levels, recognition of the bottom line value of guest play; to name just a few!!

Benchmarking is a tool that provides facilities and management teams a way to compare their clubs with peers.

Here’s what to consider when benchmarking…

Benchmarking is a process for golf operations seeking to compare financial performance and operating metrics to others in the same industry and re-align business strategies that have become unsuitable.

Through considering the results and practices of others in the same space, an enterprise can potentially improve its own understanding and management of processes and practices.

Information is crucial, and this is accessible from various sources:

• Competitor golf club websites and social media space
• ‘Mystery shop’ your local golf clubs
• Understanding trends in the market and adapting to meet those needs
• Golf Benchmark National/International comparisons and metrics (e.g KPMG)
• Benchmarking in local areas or regions

The factors that you may wish to consider in benchmarking competitors are:

• Membership numbers and fees
• Membership Retention
• Visitor fee prices
• Visitor packages
• Food & Beverage
• Golf Course reviews
• PGA Professional Golf services, retail, membership sales and coaching provision
• Is the PGA Professional active within recruitment & retention strategies?
• Where and how competitors are marketing?
• Are you comparing like for like products?
• Is your benchmarking SMART in each area of comparison?

Only by knowing the answers to these basic questions and understanding where you fit in the local marketplace, can you be realistic about what is feasible.

The questions you wish to ask competitors may also vary – for example, in European tourist weighted/seasonal destinations, the benchmarking process may need to be adjusted to identify different gaps in a business from a conventional ‘member’ golf facility.

For venues that either currently benchmark or are evaluating the use of benchmarking processes, there are several factors to consider:

Resource:

Benchmarking is an important resource that a club has at its disposal and should be considered both during budgeting and strategic planning.

Planning:

Benchmarking helps club committees/course owners and management teams deliberate about plans and operations in new and more intelligent ways. It may also help reduce input drawn from other industries that may not apply to golf clubs and facilities. The operating, financing, investment, marketing and governance practices of golf clubs all have their own unique characteristics.

Understand the Limitations:

The first thing to understand is both the goals and the limitations of benchmarking.  It is, after all, a tool and not an answer. Comparing your club to others of similar standing should identify disparities that are worth understanding.  It is not a case of right or wrong, it is just a process to help develop more thoughtful questions and a better understanding of the surprising intricacy of the golf business.

Be sure to benchmark against a comparable set of venues…

In selecting facilities to benchmark against, it is important to choose a peer set with similar amenities. Comparing a golf-only club against clubs that provide, for example, leisure club integrated golf/leisure membership or dual course options etc. would make the comparison less meaningful.

For the same purpose, simply selecting clubs in your geographic area may not produce the most meaningful result. Comparing yourself with clubs of your general revenue size and, to the extent available, other factors including number of golf holes, amenity offerings, F&B revenues, etc. will help produce more telling results.  Studies have proven that geography means far less than one might intuitively suspect…

In addition to financial data, benchmarking operating data such as golf rounds played; the financing of capital expenditures, member numbers, membership costs, joining fees, governance practices etc. can be very valuable.

Key personnel within the club, including PGA Professionals have the ability and knowledge to treat this level of information with the respect it deserves and use it to drive positive change, improve service levels and profits, both in their business or for their employing club.

While the business model of golf is often consistent from venue to venue, each individual business is unique and is therefore required to make decisions based on their individual needs.

Benchmarking should not be considered a one-off exercise… To be effective, it must become an integral part of an ongoing improvement process, the goal being to be informed of ever-improving best practices and implement the necessary interventions to close the performance gap.

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Mark Taylor is a Development Officer for England Golf, a Fellow PGA of Great Britain & Ireland Professional, as well as a PGA Tutor and an R&A Golf Development Professional.

Kelly Global Workforce Index – August 2014 (230,000 people across 31 countries participated)

• 57% people agree that career development discussions are beneficial in terms of the opportunity to acquire new skills
• Only 38% had these discussions with their employer in the past year
• Only 29% are satisfied with the career development resources provided by their employer

With global employment trends changing all the time, the need to keep and develop staff should be at the top of an organisations agenda.

Whether the organisation is a school, SME, Not for Profit or Corporate, many seem frightened to invest in the career management of their staff, they think staff will be unsettled, leave, or want more than they can offer. Some work very well with their staff, helping them manage their careers and reap the reward. The reality is that staff who feel valued and invested in are more likely to stay with an organisation and be motivated to work harder.


“Managing human capital is a misnomer. Humans are ‘beings’. We want to be known and valued for who we are, and our aspirations and ambitions recognised and seen as important. It’s a missed opportunity for an employer not to attend to these needs and thereby reap the productivity gains that accrue from more motivated, loyal employees”

The value an organisation can reap when investing in their staff:

Staff are more settled and less distracted as they have plans for their future

• Organisations can plan their future if they know what their staff want and plan to do
• Demographics
• Succession planning
• Recruitment
• In house development of staff
• An organisation planning what will happen with regards to its staff must be more cost effective
• Fewer surprises
• Less need for interim, agency or contract staff
• Better ongoing communication between staff and employer
• Staff more likely to say if they are looking for a new role
• Organisation able to deliver a more structured handover if they know a member of staff 
is/wants to leave
• Employers who cannot afford financial rewards/bonuses, can support the development and 
career management of staff, which can be a cost-effective reward process.

The ability to manage your career and future is a life skill, if organisations don’t invest in their staff to give them these skills, how can they then pass on these skills to the people who work for them and to the next generation who they might educate and/or influence.

There are many processes for managing careers and these can be integrated into a workplace environment, below is a cycle often used to develop process that works within different organisations, depending on what is needed and required by the organisation and their staff.

Often employees find it easier to have these conversations with someone external first.

“My volunteers felt better placed to plan an effective conversation with their manager once they’d been coached, which is a win-win for the organisation”

“Internally focused workplace development opportunities are likely to ensure that a particular employer realises investment in development for the organisation. Yet, the worker might not have the skills transferable to other organisations. This is in contrast with the premise of the type of ‘deal’ where enhancement of employability is the key value derived from the employment relationship by the worker. Instead, they may be receiving only the development that is relevant to their current employer, without the promise of job security.”

Jane Carter looks at the growing trend to put PGA Professionals at the heart of what is often a golf club’s biggest challenge: growing the business.

Too often conversations with golf club committees start with the words, “We have stopped the PGA Professional’s retainer. We just didn’t think we were getting value for money.” When you quiz them further it’s clear that, in their eyes, value for money is all about driving more revenue. Quiz them again on how they are expected to do this and ‘marketing’ is the buzz word.

A quick scan of the Situations Vacant pages reveals much the same: ‘Be responsible for a marketing strategy which covers all areas of golf operations,’ ‘boost membership,’ ‘increase green fee income’ and ‘improve the visitor experience’ are just some of the things clubs now want their PGA Pros to be responsible for.

Like it or not, the trend of putting a PGA Professional at the heart of revenue generation is a growing one, and what a fantastic position for you to be in. As I have written in this column before no one should know the business better than you. Are the members happy (retention?). Is the golf course busy? (Visitor/society business) If not why not? Is there a steady pipeline of potential new members? All of it revolves around the PGA Professional.

Many Professionals worry they don’t have the right skills but I guarantee that if you understand your golf club business, selling it is not that tough. You are already doing more than you think. The trick is to leverage that even further – and make sure the business knows you are at the heart of it.

However, the biggest issue facing the Professional when asked to market a golf club is simply whether the club really means it: I have seen enthusiastic marketing committees, newly recruited marketing managers and PGA Professionals buzzing with ideas to drive more revenue, suddenly hit a brick wall when it starts to actually happen. What started out as a happy collaboration can quickly turn to recriminations.

So if a golf club is turning to you to take the lead in revenue generation, here is my top ten checklist of the steps that you need to have in place:

• Check that the golf club is really signed up to increasing the business. They may say they want more visitors but when they start appearing do the moans start coming? Setting revenue targets is the best way to test that commitment.
• Know the business. Understand the green fee yield; course utilisation; membership attrition (especially in the newer member category); membership recruitment and how successful it has been in the past. Deal in facts not fiction.
• Sit down with the golf club committee and set revenue targets around visitors and societies. Be realistic and careful to manage the expectations and fear of committees about too many visitors. Interestingly, they never feel they can have too many members!
• Write a marketing plan. Perform one activity every week in the summer and less frequently but still regularly in the winter. It sounds a lot but consistency and repetition are the key.
• Pricing is crucial. Sit down with your committee and agree a green fee pricing matrix for all times of the day, week and year. You would be surprised how innovative you can be. Discounting is part of any price matrix but also look for revenue generation through better green fee yield, upselling and repeat business.
• Collect data. It will be at the heart of everything you do. Remember the old adage that 80 per cent of business is driven by 20 per cent of customers. It’s vital that you know and communicate with that 20 per cent on a regular basis…and your golf club will love you for it!
• Surround yourself with the right tools: a marketing plan, a pricing matrix; a easy to manage and segmented customer database, an email campaign system, a mix of offers and promotions and a spreadsheet to monitor results.
• Get ahead. Successful marketing happens because of successful implementation. Write your green fee marketing schedule for 2017 now. You know what is happening next year and the key events you can target. Don’t wait until they are upon you and probably at a time when you are at your busiest.
• Agree a commission structure. If the business grows (and it will) you want to be rewarded for your efforts. Make it performance related and set realistic and achievable targets. If the green fee revenue is currently £30k and you believe you can grow it to £40k ask for a higher rate of commission on that £10K worth of ‘new’ business.
• Tell them what you are doing and show that it is working. This is even more crucial in a volunteer structure where members don’t really see the day to day operation of their golf club. Set up a simple report covering the key revenue streams and send it round every month. Ask for a regular slot at the main general committee to give your report.

Building their trust in you to do a good job will take time and it’s important not to drive things too quickly. Green fee business is the simplest way to start but ultimately membership recruitment and retention are all significant revenue generators and as the trust builds so can your input in those key areas.

This article appears courtesy of Golf Retailing. For more information and to subscribe to the Golf Retailing Newsletter visit www.golfretailing.com.

Jane Carter is the Director of Golf Unlimited offering marketing strategy and implementation advice to golf clubs. She regularly delivers ‘Visitor and society marketing’ and Membership retention and recruitment’ workshops on behalf of England Golf.

For a full list of workshops now and in 2017 go to www.golfeducation.co.uk or contact her directly at jane.carter@golfconsulting.co.uk.

Coming up for two years in his job as director of golf for the world-renowned Perthshire resort, Silcock, 47, is able to reflect on a career which has already surpassed anything many of his contemporaries might achieve.

He is also in the enviable position of having two Ryder Cup venues on that aforementioned CV, though he wasn’t at either venue when they hosted the event.

Having qualified as a PGA pro in 1996 he secured his first position at the Home of Golf, St Andrews, working at the Old Course Hotel, Golf Resort & Spa, as a pro at the Duke’s Course. But he was always ambitious and, within a year, his head was turned by the offer of a head professional role in Portugal, at Parque da Floresta, where he was also golf operations manager.

He gained enormous experience during his five years on the Algarve, from designing and building a new golf academy to project managing the redevelopment of the golf course. That success made him a wanted man, particularly coveted by developers, and his next stop was India, at the Aamby Valley City gated resort, where he oversaw the pre-opening and then managed the floodlit course and PGA-branded academy.

His next port of call was a little closer to home, in Ireland, where, once again, he pre-opened a course: this time the PGA National Ireland at Palmerstown House. While undertaking a complete branding and development of the golf course and clubhouse, he also took on the responsibility of managing the sister property, the 36-hole Citywest Hotel, in Dublin.

In February 2006, he returned to the UK, as director of golf at four-time Ryder Cup venue The Belfry, where he stayed for almost seven years, before being lured to the sunshine at La Manga Club. There, as at The Belfry and in Ireland previously, he was responsible for three golf courses – plus two clubhouses and a Leadbetter Golf Academy.

Finally, he returned ‘home’ in March 2015 to the Gleneagles Hotel – again as director of golf, but this time in a position he readily admits is his ‘dream job’.

He explained: “When I went to The Belfry a lot of the reps, the people that I would chat with, they would ask me about my future; what did I want to do ultimately.

“And I would always say that my dream job was Gleneagles, so I’ve realised my dream. And Gleneagles is so big that I can still grow within it.”

For some, missing out on the 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles might be a regret, but Silcock is phlegmatic about the timing of his appointment – and of that at The Belfry, where he was in a not dissimilar situation.

He smiled: “I’ve missed both of them – at Gleneagles and The Belfry. The Ryder Cup was held four times at The Belfry, and what we did there was we managed to keep that legacy going for a long time.

“The Belfry is very much a tour venue as well, as is Gleneagles. It’s very much up there and it needs to stay there.”

As if to reinforce that point, Silcock points towards the hosting of the inaugural European Golf Championships in 2018, an event which is backed by both the European Tour and the Ladies European Tour which will be played over the PGA Centenary Course.

“You’ve got the two man team, you’ve got the two lady team and then you’ve got the male and female four-person team. And then, obviously, we have the 2019 Solheim Cup.”

After 20 years in golf, Silcock remains as enthusiastic and hands-on as ever, busying himself in the day-to-day minutiae that less-committed managers might simply overlook.

He continued: “I am the director of golf, so I’m involved in every facet of golf, including having an input in the food and beverage operation.

“As with sales and marketing, I’m not managing it, I’m not controlling it, but I am an influence in that decision process. Although I have the title director of golf it’s more general management.”

And management, and in-particular the business of golf is on the increase since hosting the Ryder Cup, with both turnover and revenue on the up.

“Since I’ve been here, our membership has grown ten per cent last year, and about seven per cent this year.

“We’ve done that in a different way to everyone else, in as much as we haven’t increased our prices – we’ve invested in the project and made it better. We’ve made it better value and we’ve also created a lifestyle, so here you’ve got really nice members, not customers.”

Gleneagles’ PGA Academy and its three golf courses have seen enormous investment over the last few years – most recently the King’s course which underwent a maintenance programme last winter, including a project to line the bunkers and return the course to Braid’s original design vision.

“We’ve invested not only in the courses and the clubhouse, but in the golf team itself, and we have an ever-expanding team, including a new golf operations manager,” said Silcock.

The investment in golf facilities is just one element of an ongoing multi-million pound investment programme at the five-star hotel. In 2015, Ennismore – a London-based developer of unique properties and experiences – purchased Gleneagles from Diageo plc, and since then, it has been making substantial investment across the estate to enhance the guest experience.

“We’ve already established a world-class reputation for our golf facilities, but what actually sets us apart as a golfing venue is everything else,” said Silcock.

“It’s the culinary offering, the five-star hospitality, the luxury spa and accommodation, and the ‘glorious playground’ of leisure activities and country pursuits we have on the estate – like shooting, off-roading, archery, falconry, fishing – that our golfing visitors are awestruck by when they come.”

After leaving La Manga in 2014, an opportunity to return to his homeland presented itself, and having travelled to Portugal, Spain and India, one might imagine, for all that Gleneagles is his dream job, he might pine for the sunshine. But Silcock’s having none of it.

He smiled: “I actually love the weather here – it showcases golf in the way it was designed to be played – so it’s good to be home.”

With such an impressive CV, Silcock’s name has appeared on many a recruitment consultants short-list when fresh opportunities present themselves.

Yet, despite his considerable experience and knowledge, Silcock has always remained fairly grounded and respectful to each role he has held.

“When I worked at The Belfry, I was very fortunate. Every single top job that came up in the country I was interviewed for, and I went through the whole interview process with a lot of them.

“It was Gleneagles, though, that I always had on my radar; the career move I had always been waiting for.

“I still enjoy playing golf, so it’s my leisure activity and it’s my work; that means on Saturday and Sunday I will come up here with my son, but I’m at work – ultimately, I am a golf pro.

“I still tutor in business management with the PGA which I have done for the past 11 years, and I really enjoy passing on my knowledge and experience.”

Gleneagles may well be his dream job, but with the possibility of another 20 years employment ahead of him, it’s quite feasible to imagine a few more golfer’s bucket-list venues being added to Silcock’s golfing CV.