The UK study found that most (72%) of coaches, teachers, and outdoor leaders are not properly trained on sun or heat protection, and 43% feel unsupported in protecting the young people they work with. Rising temperatures and increasing UV risks should raise concern and require action.

The Melanoma Fund conducted the research to mark Sun Awareness Week, 12th – 18th May 2025, and increase understanding of the challenges coaches, leaders, and teachers face around sun safety for the children in their care.

Key findings include:

• 72% of coaches, leaders, and teachers have never received any training on sun or heat protection
• Only 16% of organisations have a separate sun protection policy
• 43% of those working with children outdoors say they feel unsupported or poorly supported by their organisation
• Just 4% believe all the children they work with truly understand sun safety
• 80% of respondents would like access to free or discounted sunscreen
• Over two-thirds reported sun or heat-related incidents, including cancelled sessions, sunburned children, and heat exhaustion

“These findings are concerning, but unfortunately, not surprising. They highlight why we support this sector with free, practical sun safety resources. Although so many leaders are on the case and proactive, these findings are a wake-up call for everyone, including parents who entrust their children to organised outdoor activities,” says Michelle Baker, CEO of the Melanoma Fund.

“With over two-thirds of respondents reporting sun or heat-related incidents – including cancelled sessions, sunburned children, and heat exhaustion—it’s obvious that action is needed,” adds Michelle Baker. “We provide clear, practical solutions that can help address this issue, and ultimately, protect the next generation from skin cancer.”

Sun safety habits begin in childhood, as does melanoma. Just one blistering sunburn in childhood doubles the risk of skin cancer later in life. Melanoma is the most common cancer in young adults, which makes it even more crucial that we protect children from harmful UV exposure.

Parents also play a vital role in setting a good example for sun safety. By showing children how to properly apply sunscreen, rather than just smearing it on their faces, they help teach kids how to protect themselves effectively. This is crucial when children participate in outdoor activities.

Outdoor coaches and leaders are uniquely positioned to lead by example and instil sun-safe habits early on. But this new data shows that only 11% of coaches regularly apply sunscreen in front of children, and just 19% wear a sun hat consistently.

To help organisations and individuals address gaps in education, awareness, and support, the Melanoma Fund offers two key resources:

• Sunguarding Course: A free online course that offers accreditation and 3 CIMSPA CPD points, designed to help anyone working outdoors understand and manage the risks of UV exposure.
• Outdoor Kids Sun Safety Code: Aimed at empowering organisations to create and implement sun safety policies specifically for children in outdoor sports and activities, educating both adults and children.

Sport England is focused on increasing participation in youth sports and physical activity, with great success. However, UV risks in outdoor activities remain largely unaddressed. Backed by hundreds of national governing bodies of sport, the Melanoma Fund is pushing for more awareness and action, protecting young participants from these risks to prevent skin cancer in the next generation.

FIND OUT MORE AT MELANOMA-FUND.CO.UK

The Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh hosted the world leading scientific congress over two days of sessions, with experts in attendance from The R&A, Ladies European Tour, DP World Tour, G4D Tour, the Confederation of Professional Golf (CPG) and delegates from over 20 countries.

The conference shared insights on the health benefits of golf, with golfers enjoying a reduction in over 40 major chronic diseases, better well-being and length of life.

Dr Andrew Murray, Chief Medical and Scientific Officer for the DP World Tour and a Health Consultant with The R&A, was at the forefront of organising the event.

 

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Bigger than ever

“It was a Congress bigger than ever before, with more speakers too, which was fantastic,” said Murray, “It was a great opportunity to get together and then think about the health benefits of golf – how we can promote health through major events, how we can help people be at their best, maximising performance and decreasing illness and injury. Then it’s just about giving everyone the opportunity to play golf.

“I think everyone who attended is very passionate about golf and health, very knowledgeable as well, and I really enjoyed the two days.”

Stephen Gallacher, the Ryder Cup star and four-time DP World Tour winner, was among those who took part in the discussions as delegates learned about the mental fitness of competing at the highest level.

Gallacher, who played for 28 years on the DP World Tour, said, “The great thing about the conference was that it was all about golf, all about the positives of the sport for longevity of life. You can start at such a young age and you can still be playing at such a late age.

“It was important also to discuss how much the golfing world has changed, how much the health side has come into it. It’s changed a lot since I was a kid, like proper advice on nutrition, recovery and hydration. There is so much data and technology to plot their goals. As the home of golf in Scotland, it was also fitting to be in such a beautiful place to talk about it.”

Key topics

Attendees also delved into key topics like injury prevention and management, adaptations for disabled golfers, nutrition, strength and conditioning. Research presented from Finland, Sweden and Scotland highlighted that:

• Golf can provide health enhancing physical activity for people of all ages
• Regular physical activity achieved through golf can help prevent and treat more than 40 major chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart attacks, strokes, breast cancer, depression, anxiety and dementia
• Golf also promotes mental well-being, social connections and connection with nature
• Golf has additional benefits compared to walking

Fantastic opportunity

Maree Todd, Sport Minister at the Scottish Government, said, “Regular physical activity and participation in sport is one of the best things you can do for physical, mental and social health. The Congress was a fantastic opportunity to share knowledge and experience, to celebrate what golf is accomplishing and to understand barriers to participation and how we can work to remove them.”

Dr Julia Kettinen, researcher and Golf Exercise Medicine Specialist, added, “Our research highlights that golf can help people achieve the physical activity they need. Golf also kept senior golfers active during the pandemic and supported their quality of life.

“Even a single 18-hole round can offer significant cardiovascular and cognitive benefits, particularly for older adults, compared to regular walking. Globally, more and more people are playing golf – over 100 million now – which is great for both individuals and populations.”

Improving mental health

Although there is compelling evidence of mental health and wellbeing benefits through golf and other sports, life as a professional athlete can be incredibly demanding, with pressure to perform, much time away from friends and family, and at times intense and unwanted scrutiny in social media and in the media.

The golfing industry has recognised these challenges, and conducted research with the players to implement mental health and well-being toolkits, emergency action plans, mind gyms, and a network of specialists for the players, collaborating with tennis and Formula 1 experts who also have intensive travel schedules.

Dr Phil Hopley, Consultant Psychiatrist at Cognacity, who has been instrumental as Mental Fitness Coach with the McLaren F1 Team on their journey from midfielders to World Champions said, “I felt honoured to be at the conference.

“We’ve all got mental health, but it changes sometimes across the course of a week, sometimes during the course of the day. So we can be flourishing or can be mentally well, or we can be struggling a bit, have a mental health problem or a mental disorder.

Collaborative work

“There are so many mental and physical benefits to participating in sport, and we know how important the mind is to being at your best, be that on the Formula 1 track, playing in the Champions League, playing in a golf major or just in life in general.

“Cognacity are delighted to be working with The R&A and the DP World Tour providing psychology and mental fitness support to players, caddies and Tour staff. The untimely passing of top professional golfer Grayson Murray last year was a painful reminder of how challenging life on Tour can be. That is why the collaborative work that golf is prioritising with IOC mental health experts and the provision of industry leading facilities like the Mental Fitness Centre at the Dubai Desert Classic is so important.”

Alyson Mckechin, Head of Golf It! in Glasgow, was also among the speakers in the impressive surroundings of the Royal College, fresh from recently winning Coach of the Year at the Scottish Golf Awards.

Gallacher, the founder of the Stephen Gallacher Foundation which continues to blossom, summed the sessions up. “Our mission is to help and encourage golfers to live a healthy life and enjoy their golf,” he added. “This scientific Congress coming to Scotland was great as it helps us understand the health benefits, hear about how golf is even being prescribed now in Scotland and further afield, and also look at supporting the mental health of players.

“I have had some incredible highs like winning in Dubai, India and Scotland, and being on the winning side at the 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles, but life in professional sport can be lonely and tough, so the work on mental health is so important”.

CLICK TO FIND OUT MORE

• The conference will share insights on the health benefits of golf, with golfers enjoying a reduction in over 40 major chronic diseases, better well-being and length of life

• Delegates will also learn about the mental fitness of Formula 1 drivers and leading golfers, and the challenges of competing at the highest level.

• Delegates will delve into key topics like injury prevention and management, adaptations for disabled golfers, nutrition, strength, and conditioning

The 3rd International Congress on Golf and Health is set to return to the Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh on 31 March and 1st April.

The event celebrates the wide-reaching health and wellness benefits of golf with research from Finland, Sweden, and Scotland highlighting that:

• Golf can provide health enhancing physical activity for people of all ages
• This regular physical activity achieved through golf can help prevent and treat more than 40 major chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart attacks, strokes, breast cancer, depression, anxiety and dementia
• Golf also promotes mental well-being, social connections and connection with nature
• Golf has additional benefits compared to walking

Sport Minister at the Scottish Government Maree Todd said:

“Regular physical activity and participation in sport is one of the best things you can do for physical, mental and social health. The Congress is a fantastic opportunity to share knowledge and experience, to celebrate what golf is accomplishing, and to understand barriers to participation and how we can work to remove them.”

Dr Julia Kettinen, researcher and Golf Exercise Medicine Specialist, outlined:

“Our research highlights that golf can help people achieve the physical activity they need. Golf also kept senior golfers active during the pandemic and supported their quality of life. Even a single 18-hole round can offer significant cardiovascular and cognitive benefits, particularly for older adults, compared to regular walking. Globally, more and more people are playing golf—over 100 million now—which is great for both individuals and populations.”

Stephen Gallacher, 4x DP World Tour Winner, and founder of the Stephen Gallacher Foundation added: “Our mission is to help and encourage golfers to live a healthy life and enjoy their golf. This scientific Congress coming to Scotland is great as it helps us understand the health benefits, hear about how golf is even being prescribed now in Scotland and further afield, and also look at supporting the mental health of players.

“I have had some incredible highs like winning in Dubai, India and Scotland, and being on the winning side at the 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles, but life in professional sport can be lonely and tough, so the work on mental health is so important”.

Although there is compelling evidence of mental health and wellbeing benefit through golf and other sports, life as a professional athlete can be incredibly demanding, with pressure to perform, much time away from friends and family, and at times intense and unwanted scrutiny in social media and in the press.

The golfing industry has recognised these challenges, and conducted research with the players to implement mental health and well-being toolkits, emergency action plans, mind gyms, and a network of specialists for the players, collaborating with tennis and Formula 1 experts who also have intensive travel schedules.

Dr Phil Hopley, Consultant Psychiatrist at Cognacity, who has been instrumental as Mental Fitness Coach with the McLaren F1 Team on their journey from midfielders to World Champions shared:

“There are so many mental and physical benefits to participating in sport, and we know how important the mind is to being at your best, be that on the Formula 1 track, playing in the Champions League, playing in a Major or just in life in general. Cognacity are delighted to be working with The R&A and the DP World Tour providing psychology and mental fitness support to players, caddies and Tour staff.

“The untimely passing of top professional golfer Grayson Murray last year was a painful reminder of how challenging life on Tour can be. That is why the collaborative work that golf is prioritising with IOC mental health experts and the provision of industry leading facilities like the Mental Fitness Centre at the Dubai Desert Classic is so important.”

CLICK TO FIND OUT MORE & REGISTER NOW

CPG ANNUAL AWARDS SUPPORTED BY ROLEX

………………

The CPG President’s Award for Golf Development for 2024 has been awarded to the Golf & Health Project, acknowledging the visionary efforts of the Project’s leadership, in its ground-breaking role in highlighting the significance of the sport’s benefits, and sharing these benefits far and wide.

Since 2016 the Project has worked to provide an academic backing and voice to the benefits that golf can bring and has been significantly driven by current DP World Tour and Ryder Cup Europe Chief Medical Officer, Dr Andrew Murray, his predecessor, Dr Roger Hawkes.

The Project’s pioneering work to evaluate existing research, identify potential gaps and opportunities for future research activities, and foster collaboration between the wide variety of health-related research projects taking place around the world.

But a primary objective of the Project has been to not only seek academic support of these benefits, but also to help communicate these benefits both in, and out of, the sport.

The promotion of the many psychological and physical benefits – such as golfers live on average of five years longer than non-golfers, and those who play better tend to live longer too – has helped to improve the sport’s image, the reasoning for taking part, and acceptance as a health-enhancing activity.

“I was sat with Dr. Roger Hawkes at breakfast during the 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles when Roger shared his thoughts and insights on the health benefits of golf and asked for my support of the project both personally and from CPG,” said CPG Chief Executive, Ian Randell. “I was immediately intrigued and delighted to offer our full support from day one and it is fantastic to see the impact that it continues to make in promoting our sport.”

The award was collected on behalf of the Project team at the CPG Festival of Golf at Saïdia Resorts in Morocco by Dr Omar Malik, Consultant Neurologist at Cromwell Hospital and Golf & Health Project co-founder and Board Member:

“We are absolutely delighted that the work gas been recognised, it’s amazing,” said Malik.

“Considering how important the work has been in terms of shifting the momentum for golf participation then it is so nice to have recognition. Much hard work was done particularly by Roger and Andrew, and we are so happy that it has been so well received, especially by golf’s national bodies around the world.”

The Project has also been a great example of collaboration across the global golf industry with the Project initially receiving significant support from the World Golf Foundation comprising of at the time The R&A, USGA, the world’s various male and female tours, the Masters Tournament and PGA of America, along with support from the Ryder Cup European Development Trust [RCEDT], EDGA and the CPG itself as well.

“We have a lot of people to thank around the world for their support of the Project over the past 8-10 years, both for their financial support that has made it possible, but also their philosophical support in getting behind the concept of Golf & Health and each playing their part in supporting and promoting the benefits identified,” added Murray.

“The ability for us to work together in this way has set an example for all sports and has also resulted in significant developments and activities as a direct result of our friends and colleagues’ efforts in this space.”

For example golf’s joint response to the COVID pandemic, and ultimately a key part of golf being able to get going again during lockdowns around the world, was due in part at least to the groundwork laid in proving the sport can be played in a safe, outdoor environment, combined with the connections already created with policymakers and stakeholders in governmental leadership positions.

More recently, projects are being developed where golf is being prescribed by health professionals as part of recovery and rehabilitation regimes. And in the professional world, much of this work has resulted in significantly enhanced provisions for players across the world’s tours that help to support their physical and mental wellbeing and performance.

To find out more about the Annual Awards and the Festival of Golf visit cp.golf/festival.

The survey is anonymous, takes approx. 10 minutes, and will allow the voices of PGA Members to be heard alongside other coaches from around the world. PGA Members that complete the survey will also be provided with information on the findings of the research when available.

PhD student, Callum Ferguson, said, “As part of this four-year project, my supervisors and I are working on a study that looks to understand how coaches perceive and respond to their players’ mistakes in practice. This is an important area of research, as previous studies have shown that the frequency with which players experience errors in practice can have lasting positive and negative effects on their game. As such, we are interested to hear PGA Members’ opinions on this matter that we are gathering through this survey.”

Find Out More and Complete the Survey at https://cp.golf/3ZvZm0j

…………………………

Dr Mark Bull: The relationship between the physical possibilities and impossibilities and the swing

When: 17 October, 2022 – 09:00 – 17:00

Where: Houtrak Golf, Netherlands

Price: €200 excluding VAT for PGA and GPA* members; €300 euros excluding VAT for non PGA and GPA Members. (This amount includes lunch)

Delivery Language: English

Mark Bull will visit Amsterdam on the 17th of October and will share his knowledge about the golf swing in combination with possibilities and impossibilities. He will spend the entire day working at Houtrak Golf with interested golf professionals and physiotherapists. You will be able to immediately apply the information that Mark provides in practice.

Topics that will be discussed include:

• Anatomical imbalances and how they affect how we move/sway.
• Understanding why we move the way we do within the golf swing.
• How we learn movement within the golf swing.
• Movements that may be related to pain/injury
• Movements consistent with clubhead speed.
• Use of case studies around player development, both in terms of performance and well-being.
• Understanding 3D kinematic data in addition to club kinetics and ground reaction forces.
• Exploring the story behind the data, what did the player do to produce the values we see on the screen…
• It will be a practical day where theory will alternate with practice.

Program:

• 09:00 reception
• 09.30 start program part 1
• 13:00 Lunch
• 14.00 start program part 2
• 16.30-1700 end of program

Prices:

• 200 euros excluding VAT for PGA and GPA* members.
• 300 euros excluding VAT for non PGA and GPA Members.
• This amount includes lunch; *GPA – Golf Physiotherapist Organisation

Minimum number of participants 10
Maximum number of participants 24

To Register Contact jh@pgaholland.nl

The event is a great way for any PGA representative or PGA Member that is interested in the area of golf and health and the wide array of benefits that it can bring, along with medical/scientific/research professionals, surgeons, doctors, sports medicine physicians, physiotherapists, sports scientists, researchers and students interested in golf, health and performance.

The 2022 edition will take place in Scotland, the Home of Golf, with the kind support of our platinum sponsor, Stryker, at a time where golf has been highlighted to have a wide range of health benefits. Major golf events will be held in Scotland in 2022 including The 150th Open, The AIG Women’s Open and many others. International consensus has recently been published on illness and injury in golf and there will be satellite events at each of the major Scottish tournaments this year highlighting the health benefits of golf.

ATTENDANCE

A range of fees are available to attend the event in person depending on which events individuals wish to join. A Virtual Conference Pass is also available for remote access.

Full information and booking process can be found at https://cp.golf/3QAAPmc.

PROGRAMME

A full programme of events for the two days can be downloaded from https://cp.golf/39DxoKO. Sessions will explore:

• Golf’s contribution to global health, and what is new in golf research
• Illness and injury in sport
• Analysing injuries in golf
• Rapid fire research updates in golf & health
• Mental health and well-being in sport
• Performance nutrition & sports science in golf
• Connecting primary care patients to golf for health
• Why the world should play golf

Please direct any questions you have to outreach@rcsed.ac.uk.

CLICK TO FIND OUT MORE & BOOK YOUR TICKET

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD FULL PROGRAMME [PDF – 0.6MB]

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD EVENT FLYER [PDF – 0.1MB]

Words by GEO Foundation for Sustainable Golf

Ben Hogan once famously said: “As you walk down the fairway of life, you must take time to smell the roses, for you only get one round”.

That sentiment has arguably never had more meaning nor more relevance to golf – perhaps also to wider society.

We all know that the pressures on the natural world have never been greater. There has never been a more important time to stop and think about the value we derive from the ecosystems around us – that we gain so much from – that, in fact, we depend upon.

For hundreds of millions of players, the wonders of the natural world are literally right in front of us, around us and under our feet.

We escape into greenspaces. We immerse ourselves in grasslands, forests, wetlands and coastlines. We expose ourselves to the elements on hillsides and clifftops. We socialise. We laugh. We breathe deeply. We strengthen our bodies and replenish our minds.

The product and experience we enjoy so much is determined by the climate, the availability of natural resources, the health of the soil – often more than golfers ever know, but facts that are not lost on those that manage our courses.

Our great sport also advertises versions of nature. Hundreds of televised events are beamed out through sports media outlets to hundreds of millions of fans. Top athletes stand in front of stunning landscapes on different continents. Landscapes that have provided the backdrop to the drama, the spectacle and the revenue.

We gain so much, and we can give so much.

Golf is better with nature

Isn’t it interesting that so often we celebrate the most natural courses as amongst the best courses. They are the ones we talk about, most want to play, remember most vividly.  That narrow tee shot through the trees, the iron that flies the wetland onto the green, the par three with the sand dune and ocean backdrop?

Nature gives us the richest stage.  It can give us focus, thrill and reward.

Texture, shape, character, atmosphere – the sense of time and place – are all enhanced by each course’s unique combination of plants and habitats. These being the things that transform a bland, homogeneous landscape into a unique and vibrant place with an abundance of life. So often an oasis of biodiversity in a wider context of intensive agriculture; residential and industrial estates; and rapid tourism development.

Communities are better with nature

So as golf embraces nature, and golfers enjoy a better experience as a result, wider communities also benefit.  Clean air, clean water, carbon storage, more pollinators, more birds, urban cooling, flood alleviation. If golf is an ecosystem, then it delivers ecosystem services to everyone. If courses also allow or provide some other forms of recreational function, then the benefits are even more direct and profound. This is golf as a force for good, spreading wider benefits to local people and families.

Time to reflect, time to do more

It’s not always understood just how much of golf already embraces nature and delivers this value to players and communities. Look more closely and you will see thousands and thousands of examples of how golf is already actively protecting and restoring ecological spaces. Add to that the growing movement in direct species conservation – whether it be birds, bats, mammals, amphibians, insects and pollinators – and the contribution of the existing 34,000 golf courses on an area roughly the size of Belgium is already pretty large.

However, the world is changing, we all need to do more, and if we’re honest in golf – we don’t always get it right.

Golfer’s demands often lead to manicured landscapes, pushing nature out and building resource consumption in. Like the slow creep into a diet with too much salt and sugar, our tastes have changed over recent decades and not necessarily for the better.

Think of the landscape, think of your surroundings, think of your watersheds. Think what you can do, this time, to capitalise on nature. Let it come in and add value and interest to the wonderful experience you offer. Let it push out costly maintenance and resource use. Let it even cut to the heart of your brand, marketing and customer satisfaction.

As we all need to do as much as we can to heal our one planet, let’s proudly demonstrate how your business, course and golf club stepped up and played its part.

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Words by GEO Foundation for Sustainable Golf

The pressures on the natural world have never been greater. There has never been a more important time to stop and think about the value derived from the ecosystems around us – that we gain so much from – that, in fact, we depend upon.

For golf, this sentiment runs deep and true. In fact, for the game’s ongoing growth and success it is now, more than ever, a crucial consideration requiring significant action from all parties.

So how and why is environmental sustainability important to golf, and who are some of the kay actors that can drive significant change moving forwards?

Experience

There are countless reasons why golf is such a special, unique and cherished sport. As golfers, we are fortunate enough to understand and experience these on an almost daily basis as we play and practice.

4-5 Hours of fresh air; exercise; prolonged social interaction all bring about an abundance of health benefits that continue to shine a light on the sport and demonstrate why it really is, and can be, a sport for everyone to enjoy and benefit from.

But it also brings everybody closer to nature. It strengthens that connection between us and the outdoors – the wildlife, the plants and the trees.

Inevitably however, the product and experience we enjoy so much is determined by the climate, the availability of natural resources, the health of the soil and the landscapes – from mountains, grasslands, forests, wetlands, sand dunes and coastlines. Each depend on it.

Golf is better with nature. So often the most natural courses are celebrated as amongst the best courses. They are the ones we talk about, most want to play, remember most vividly.

Nature gives us the richest stage.

Texture, shape, character, atmosphere – the sense of time and place – are all enhanced by each course’s unique combination of plants and habitats. These can transform a bland, homogenous landscape into a unique and vibrant place with an abundance of life, an oasis of biodiversity.

To drive sustainability in the sport and reduce the use of natural and harmful resource that facilities often depend upon, we will actually create a more valuable and cherished experience for everybody.

As golf embraces nature, and golfers enjoy a better experience as a result, wider communities also benefit.  Clean air, clean water, carbon storage, more pollinators, more birds, urban cooling, flood alleviation, spreading wider benefits to local people and families.

It’s not always understood just how much of golf already embraces nature and delivers this value to players and communities.  Look closely and you will see thousands of examples of how golf is already actively protecting and restoring ecological spaces. Add the growing movement in species conservation – whether it be birds, bats, mammals, amphibians, insects and pollinators – and the contribution of the existing 34,000 golf courses is significant.

PGAs and PGA Professionals

Inducing change is never easy. No matter what the challenge (or opportunity) is. It requires concerted action from a significant majority that are each pulling in the same direction.

To create a more environmentally-friendly sport, this principle doesn’t change. Golf’s workforce are the people on the ground who can make a difference. In fact, they have to be the one who make the difference. Club managers, driving range attendants, senior executives, food & beverage managers, head agronomists, directors, volunteers and golfers. They all will make the difference.

As spearheads for education in golf, national PGAs are at the forefront of developing the workforce for the game. They continue to be the organisations educating, championing and shaping the modern PGA Professional. It is those PGA Professionals, who number in their tens of thousands across the planet that we are looking to protect, that can be at the centre of inducing real and positive change.

The PGA Professional so often finds themselves at the epicentre of their facility or golf club, helping to shape the future direction of each respectively. They are golf’s key influencers – influencing golfers and colleagues. We are already seeing this with new and ambitious campaigns such as #CaringForCourses. As gatekeepers of the sport, their position is enviable yet crucial.

By informing, educating, supporting and leading, PGAs can shape a PGA Professional that continues to be considered the expert in the game and an influential figure at their facility, whilst also being more environmentally-conscious and increasingly sensitive to the impact that golf has on the ground and surrounds in which we grace.

GEO Foundation

GEO Foundation is the international not-for-profit dedicated to accelerating sustainability in and through golf. The organisation delivers programmes that help people on the ground to evaluate, improve and credibly communicate their work of fostering nature, conserving resources, strengthening communities and taking climate action.

GEO delivers practical guidance, tools and solutions through its OnCourse programmes for developments, golf clubs and facilities and tournaments all around the world, backed up with credible certification.

GEO Foundation is certainly the driving force behind change in this area. The organisation reaches millions of people and has the opportunity to be a catalyst by raising sustainability awareness and leading by example.

Concluding Remarks

Creating a sustainable sport is perhaps golf’s greatest challenge yet at the same time, its greatest opportunity. As universal attitudes and public perceptions shift towards creating and needing an environment that is better looked after, golf cannot afford to be left behind.

In fact, golf has the opportunity to shine. It has the opportunity to lead from the front. COVID-19 showed to the masses what the sport can bring to the table as a health benefactor, it should now be able to demonstrate to the masses why it is an activity leading the charge to create a sustainable future.

Like with COVID-19, the impact of creating such a positive perception and backing it up with action will create knock-on effects through increased demand and participation. People want to associate and identify with entities and activities that are doing their bit.

Throughout this vital Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, launched by the UN on World Environment Day in June, as we all need to do as much as we can to heal our one planet, let’s proudly demonstrate golf stepped up and played its part.

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VISIT GEO FOUNDATION

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The discussion about appropriate tee lengths for both adult and junior golfers has been around for a few years now. As I’ve been researching the topic recently, here are a few discussion points, ideas, initiatives and solutions that I’ve come across.

ADULT GOLFERS

The USGA and the PGA of America have been pushing forward their “Tee it Forward” initiative. The premise is very simple – we should encourage people to match up their abilities with the golf course length by letting them tee off closer to the green than the standard tee box, so that they can hit more-lofted clubs into the greens. This, as advertised by the golf agencies including The R&A, will result in faster play, more birdies and more fun. Data seems to be backing this claim, with golf clubs and golf associations saying that incorporating the initiative has resulted in increased participation and satisfaction of golfers.

This discussion has two aspects:

1. Getting rid of labelled tee boxes
2. Shortening the courses

The first point is pretty straightforward – golf clubs should stop using terms like “men’s tees”, and either mix up the colours used for the tees, or even get rid of all the colours altogether.

I’ve seen it done at PGA Sweden National club in Bara [Sweden], where there were no colours on the tees. Each of the 6 sets of tees were labelled with the length of the whole course played from those tees instead [like “53” for the 5,300m length]. Check out their scorecard here.

Although it seems like a simple solution, maybe this course is not the best example for the discussion – it’s clearly a championship course [where the Nordea Masters is often played], and even the shortest tees are not really short [4950m].

For participation purposes, creating more gender-less tees seems like a no-brainer to me. You’ll be able to take complete beginners on the course much sooner [playing in the same way as everybody else], it will speed up play, level the field and improve scores [potentially making people more likely to play more often].

Here is a really cool article that explains the logic behind playing from appropriate distances [“every golfer should have the opportunity to hit par threes in one shot, par fours in two, and par fives in three”] and comes up with a very easy equation that allows people to quickly calculate what tee length they should be playing from [it’s player’s driver distance * 28]:

JUNIOR GOLFERS

The exact same concept applies to junior golfers. Well, in fact maybe it applies much more to juniors than to adults. There is a great blog post by Daniel Coyle that explains how playing on a mis-matched field size in any sport affects the “fun” factor for the kids, as well as how the mere design of the playing fields affect junior’s behaviour [like their attention span].

Obviously this doesn’t apply just to golf, here are a few examples [taken from said blog post and elsewhere] that demonstrate what happens if we put junior players into adult-sized pitches, courts, courses [and using adult-size equipment]. It is mind-blowing to see the exact techniques and behaviours normally associated with young performers REPLICATED by adults when placed in the same [relative] environments:

If a similar video existed for golf, we can imagine what it would look like – Tour Players playing on ridiculously long holes [1000 yards PAR 4’s], and maybe even using long and heavy clubs. It would probably look the same as 8 year olds playing from ladies’ tees.

I have encountered a few very neat solutions to this problem, listed below.

US KIDS GOLF – FAMILY COURSES

Family Courses is probably the one initiative around shortened junior tees that has received the most attention in the golfing world.

Again, the premise is very simple: juniors match their driver carry distance to an appropriate set of tees on the golf course [ball-park distances are easy to check by a simple addition to a driving range].

The golf course is set up in a way that recreates the same shots / clubs used from every tee, starting with a Blue set of tees for those who are able to carry their driver 100 yards.

What’s crucial is that creating these additional sets of tees does not require a huge investment. US Kids are using reasonably-priced, simple and un-obstructive “Tee Plates” to mark the teeing location, allowing fairway mowers to ride over the tees with no problem, reducing the barriers for golf courses to invest in them.

JOLF – JOLF TEES AND “ONE-HITTES”

JOLF [a junior golf system co-founded by Neil Plimmer, a previous guest of the Participation Coaching Podcast] recommends a slightly different approach.

First of all, JOLF Modified Golf Courses have three additional sets of tees (JOLF Red, Yellow, White). As with all the previously mentioned solutions, the appropriate tee length is based on the distance that the player is able to hit the ball with their driver / 7 iron.

Holes’ lengths are based on a simple calculation – Red JOLF Tees are 20% of the white adult tees length, Yellow – 40% and White – 60%.

Quite importantly, the JOLF creators advocate for leaving the choice of what tees to play from to the children. Up to a point where children choose their own starting positions on each hole. As explained to me by Neil Plimmer, he would take a child onto the golf course and say something along the lines of “This hole is a one-hitter [par 3]. I want you to start it from wherever you think you’re able to reach the green in one shot” – For some children this may be just 5 yards away from the green.

OPERATION 36 – DIVISIONS

Matt Reagan and Ryan Dailey, creators of the Operation 36 programme [that’s getting some serious attention in the US right now!] have created a whole structure around playing from appropriate tees and shooting low scores [the general goal behind the whole framework being – shooting 36 shots across 9 holes].

As part of their weekly programme, Operation 36 coaches organise Matches that include juniors playing in various Divisions. There are 6 Divisions, and each corresponds to a set of tees, with Division 1 starting from 25 yards away from the hole, progressing up through Division 5 [200 yards PAR 4] and Division 6 [full tees].

Each participant starts in Division 1, regardless of their age and driving distance.

The challenge is for the juniors to shoot 36 [even par] for 9 holes from their Division. Having done that, they progress to a higher Division.

I find this concept very interesting. It provides a clear structure / framework for the juniors to progress through. From a performance standpoint, it also creates the additional benefit of making juniors comfortable with shooting level scores. The programme seems to be very competitive though, and I’m not sure what effect implementing such a rigid structure could have on more recreational, less ambitious or less skilled children. Especially knowing that reaching the highest accomplishment [hitting 36 from adult tees] is statistically, a feat available to just a few.

CONCLUSION

I have been thinking about the concept of shortened and gender/age-less tees for a while now, and I honestly can’t see too many downsides to this.

I mean, really, why don’t ALL golf courses create shortened tees? What’s stopping them from doing it? It is not the cost, as shown by US Kids. Is it just the “tradition” holding us back?

Shouldn’t we all be actively lobbying for changing the tee structure at our golf clubs?

If the whole industry takes on this change [e.g. allowing to obtain/update a handicap on a shortened course, like in New Zealand; organising competitions from appropriate tees; encouraging members, visitors, recreational players etc. to use appropriate tees etc.], I wonder what would its effect be on:

• junior participation
• adult participation
• adult retention (!)
• junior performance
• pace of play issues
• the state of the golf industry

The comprehensive evaluation is part of the continued joint effort to modernise the Rules by reducing complexity and ensuring the Rules effectively guide how the game is played today.

As part of a review process that began earlier this year, the governing bodies will seek the perspectives of golf’s stakeholders as an integral component of the review process, including elite amateur golfers, golf event organisers, national golf associations, professional golf associations and other industry partners.

The aim is to provide the golf community with a modernised set of Amateur Status Rules in late 2021, with the goal of an effective date of 1 January 2022.

Grant Moir, Director – Rules at The R&A, said, “We will be looking at the Rules of Amateur Status carefully and considering ways in which we can modernise them and bring them more into line with the way the modern sport is played. The code remains a fundamental framework for amateur golf and we will be listening to the views of players, officials and associations to give us a fully rounded view of how we can improve them.”

Thomas Pagel, Senior Managing Director of Governance at the USGA, said, “One of golf’s greatest benefits is that it can be played by all ages and played for a lifetime. It is our goal to ensure that the fundamental concept of what it means to be an amateur golfer is clear and retained to promote fair competition and enjoyment for everyone, while still addressing many issues that seek to protect the game. This is a forward-thinking approach and engaging golfers is a key component of doing what’s best for golf.”

In a separate move, with effect from 1 January 2020, The R&A and the USGA will introduce one change to Rule 3-2b of the Rules of Amateur Status, which regulates hole-in-one prizes. The Rules will no longer limit the prize an amateur golfer may win when making a hole-in-one outside a round of golf, including “stand-alone” and “multiple-entry” hole-in-one events. It is hoped the change will help to promote the game and cater to new audiences as well as eliminate unnecessary restrictions for event organisers.

New Rule 3-2b will read as follows:

Rule 3-2b. Hole-in-One Prizes
An amateur golfer may accept a prize in excess of the limit in Rule 3-2a, including a cash prize, for making a hole-in-one during a round of golf on a golf course.

An amateur golfer may also accept a prize in excess of the limit in Rule 3-2a, including a cash prize, for making a hole-in-one during contests held outside a round of golf, including multiple-entry contests and contests conducted other than on a golf course (e.g., on a driving range, golf simulator, or putting green) provided in all cases that the length of the shot is at least 50 yards.

More information on the Rules of Amateur Status can be found at www.RandA.org and www.USGA.org.

The Rolex Series event, at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick has already gathered some of the world’s best golfers who will provide the entertainment on the course, and for those spectators following their favourite player there is also the added bonus that they can boost their health.

Spectators at the Aberdeen Standard Investment Scottish Open would likely not be confident of beating Rory McIlroy or the world’s best players assembling at The Renaissance Club for the Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open, but while they may not get close to beating Rory on the golf course, or win the event, they may get some of the same health benefits these leading players get, by racking up over 10,000 steps while out on the course. The European Tour’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr Andrew Murray outlined just some of the benefits from attending golf tournaments;

• Spectators rate gaining physical activity, fresh air and time with family as important reasons to spectate
• Golf spectators in UK gained 11500 steps while spectating, 85% meeting daily physical activity guidance
• Spectators, when given information are keen to become more active in daily life (Legacy)

Dr Murray – whose PhD is in Golf and Health from the University of Edinburgh, explains: “The Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open players will take 11,000 steps on average while out on the course. We know from the 2018 International Consensus on Golf and Health, (presented at recent World Health Organisation affiliated meeting) that golfers live longer than non-golfers, and can get well-being and physical health benefits from playing the sport.

“Our research at European Tour events in Scotland shows that spectators take an average of 11,500 steps, getting out and watching the golf. So, while they may not win trophies, this is well in excess of the 10,000 steps per day advised to improve health.”

So how do spectators keep tabs on the distances they walk at this year’s event?

• Maps will be available for everyone which provide details of routes around the 18 holes and the distances covered.
• Huge deckchairs will be situated throughout the venue providing photo opportunities and important health statistics
• Walk to the 5th hole and post your selfie for the chance to win a signed pin flag

It’s not just health professionals who are aware of the benefits to spectators, the players from the European Tour acknowledge that watching golf is a great way to stay fit and healthy. Richie Ramsay, Scottish European Tour professional said: “When you come to a tournament and you play golf obviously you’re walking around the entire golf course and you’re probably not realising how far you’re going and how much energy you’re using up and maybe not realising how good an exercise it is.

“I remember playing when I was younger and playing 18 holes a day for 6 or 7 days. And you don’t realise it but you’re getting a huge amount of exercise from it. Because at that point you’re growing. It’s just good for you, it’s good to be out there socialising and obviously the main thing is to get the exercise.

“I buy into this completely. I practice what I preach so I go out, like I said I played when I was a junior, you know I go to the gym at the moment. Any kind of exercise just makes you feel so much better. It puts you in a positive mind frame, and it’s good for your body.

Many other Tour players acknowledge the health benefits from golf:

• “Despite the frustration of missed putts, golfers overall live longer. A study from Sweden showed golfers live 5 years longer, regardless of age or income.” Henrik Stenson
• “Golf can put a big smile on your face. Research shows that golf can help improve self-esteem and provide a range of mental health benefits.” Padraig Harrington, Golf and Health Ambassador
• “I owe a lot to the fact that I was encouraged to be active throughout my life from an early age. I hope to encourage generations to do the same.” Gary Player, Golf and Health Ambassador

The Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open will once again be followed by the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open, which will be played over the same course, from August 8-11, 2019.

Fans can buy tickets to see some of the world’s best golfers – including official Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open hospitality packages – at www.asiscottishopen.com.

EDGA, the body that supports golfers with physical, intellectual and sensorial disabilities, is keen to use the opportunity provided by the European Tour to raise awareness and grow participation in inclusive golf this week during the Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open, at The Renaissance Club in North Berwick.

A number of leading EDGA players will also be present to encourage the spectators at the Inclusive Golf Stand in the championship village. EDGA is happy to work closely with Leuchie House, one of the tournament’s Official Charity Partners and Scotland’s only dedicated respite centre, which offers caring respite breaks to people with long term neurological conditions.

Scottish Golf has also got behind EDGA by ensuring the members from 11 golf clubs in the area have helped to promote the free golf lessons available during the tournament in the build-up to the event.

The European Tour and EDGA will also be conducting outreach programmes in the wider community. This will include a visit to Leuchie House in North Berwick on Friday to provide a modified golf session to patients and carers.

By encouraging people with a disability to try the game at The Renaissance Club and Leuchie House, EDGA is continuing to work towards its stated objective of introducing 500,000 people to golf.

Mark Taylor, Head of Development for EDGA and a qualified PGA Professional, said: “Thanks to all at the European Tour and EDGA’s partners, we have an excellent opportunity here to introduce many new people to golf, alongside our friends at Leuchie House, with Support from Scottish Golf.

“Golf is a wonderful sport for those of all abilities and we have seen so many people who have experienced disability, illness or injury, feeling better physically and mentally by playing golf, including finding new social and confidence-building opportunities, making new friends. We therefore look forward to saying hello to many new and established players with a disability this week, while family members or friends will also receive the warmest of welcomes.”

Find Out More @ www.edgagolf.com

You can find out more and meet the EDGA community across our social media platforms: Facebook: @EuropeanDisabledGolfAssociation, Twitter: @edgagolf, Instagram: @edga_golf

Physically, Andrea is an excellent athlete, having come through the US collegiate system. An experience which gave him a good strength base, as well as technical competency in a variety of lifts. As a result of Andrea’s prior training history, he was able to take to the programmes quickly, he required less supervision and coaching – allowing him to dedicate more time and effort to the work, and he was able to recover well from sessions, without excessive post-exercise soreness. For all these reasons, and more, we would encourage any young aspiring golfer to find a suitably qualified coach and to get in the gym and lifting as early as possible.

The ETPI have been supporting Andrea through the last 2 seasons, and during this time we have transitioned through a series of training focus’.

Andrea first approached us during the start of the 2018 season, and our initial focus was to develop good training habits, based upon programmes which would deliver improved strength during the in-season, but without causing excessive fatigue. Fortunately, due to his previous history, and his excellent consistency, we were able to quickly establish these habits, even despite his busy in-season schedule.

Over the course of the 2018 season and despite a busy competitive schedule, Andrea was able to increase his clubhead speed ~3mph, strength ~28% and explosive strength ~4%, following a largely strength focussed programme. We then continued to increase his strength over his short off-season.

At the ETPI, we typically measure explosive strength using countermovement jump net positive impulse and strength using isometric mid-thigh pull peak force. Andrea’s 2018 in-season improvements are shown below. We will put out a separate blog on our physical profiling approaches in the near future. However, these results clearly highlight the gains that are possible during a busy season of competitions.

2018 Progress

2019 Season

With a new year, came a new set of goals. Having established high levels of strength over our first season with Andrea, we began to move onto an explosive strength focus.

Explosive strength is of great importance in golf. Players are required to generate large forces through the ground, then transmit them through the kinetic chain, into the clubhead to generate speed. All within ~0.5 second window (the golf swing).

Clearly, being able to generate large peak forces is of great value, however if you cannot reach those peak forces within the imposed time-limit, they are not going to be of great use. This can be likened to a car in a drag race. You could be entering the 0.5 mile race with a car that has a top speed of 200mph, but with a 0-60 time of 10 seconds (this is the strong but slow golfer). You could also enter with a 100mph top speed and a 0-60 time of 3 seconds (the fast but weak golfer).

Developing a balance between these qualities is of high importance. In Andrea’s case, we had developed a high top speed over the 2018 season, and needed to shift the focus towards improving his 0-60 time.

The Programme

When working with golfers in-season, we usually use a daily undulating model. This means that we will typically change the training stimuli throughout the week, working towards different focus qualities (strength, explosive strength etc.) on different days. This is usually delivered as a 2-3 day per week programme, starting with more of a strength focus and developing into an explosive focus over the course of the week.

Volume is normally also reduced as the week goes on (especially in less well trained players). This method allows us to control for fatigue over the week, while still getting the hard work done.

Our approach also allows us to work around the lack of ‘out of competition’ time (something which is an inherent challenge in golf). At the highest level, with players competing year round, golf is not a sport which allows for a typical periodisation model, so blending all qualities together, but shifting the distribution and focus is how we work around this.

These points are exemplified in Andrea’s programmes [below] – the first programme shows a 2018 in-season week, with a strength focus. The second programme shows his current 2019 programme, with an explosive focus. It is clear that in both cases, strength and explosive strength exercises are included, but the percentage of time dedicated to each switches.

Andrea’s In-Season Training Programmes – 2018 Strength Focus:

Andrea’s In-Season Training Programmes – 2019 Explosive Strength Focus:

Whether you’re a professional, a serious amateur, or a recreational golfer, you are sure to have heard the phrase ‘golf fitness’ and have more than likely been advised that you should have a gym routine to help your golf.

Given the somewhat vogue status of ‘golf fitness’ at present, there is a large body of information around the topic portraying a complexity which for some creates a barrier to getting started. If you are a professional you are sure to have a busy schedule, and the typical amateur doesn’t have the spare time to devote to over-elaborate routines, so it is important allotted gym-time is used wisely; abolishing components which are unlikely to offer much return.

Herein we present a probability of performance-impact model which underpins the S&C service provided at the European Tour Performance Institute (ETPI). The aim herein is to add clarity to where a golf-impact will most readily be achieved, and reassure that gym programmes need not be complicated. The authors hope this will encourage players of all levels to make that behaviour change towards a healthier lifestyle and compliment their golf training with a no-frills gym routine.

Driving Distance

Sceptics of weight training for golfers will be quick to point out legends of the game who didn’t engage in such activities. Notwithstanding the evolution of the modern golf game (longer courses and more forgiving clubs), of course all this tells us is that it’s possible to be genetically blessed and get away with not engaging in additional physical work.

Despite this few golf coaches or analysts would contest the importance of CHS in modern day golf, research has shown that the faster you swing the club the lower your handicap (r=0.95) (Fradkin et al, 2004). Further, even subtle increases are associated with significantly lower scores on par 4 and 5 holes (Hellstrom, 2014).

Therefore, this is one avenue where a gym programme can have a direct performance impact. Indeed, from Mark Broadie’s (2014) revolutionary book ‘Every shot counts’, it is evidenced that a 20-yard increase in distance off the tee will incur 0.75 strokes gained per round.

As with most striking, hitting or throwing sports, the lower body is the engine (force generation) for the motion of the golf swing. This is why leg strength is a priority.

This is now supported by research indicating significant relationships between lower body strength, explosive strength and CHS (Wells et al, 2018a, Wells et al, 2018b). Most amateurs (and many professionals!) will benefit from increases in driving distance secondary to strength training due to their often ‘untapped’ strength potential. This is particularly true for females and more senior players who generally speaking are more likely to have lower pre-existing muscle mass and strength levels than their younger, male counterparts.

Once the force has been generated by the lower body, this then needs to be transmitted into the clubhead across the trunk and through the arms in a well-sequenced pattern. The trunk should therefore be developed to effectively transmit force, thus enhancing the efficiency of the engine (lower body). The latter is equally important, as otherwise the energy created by the lower body is leaked and not transferred into the clubhead.

Injury and Illness Risk-Reduction

Inherently as CHS increases so does injury risk, as the player has to sustain the increased forces associated with swinging faster. To counter this when we plan to upgrade the engine size we also need to build a well-balanced chassis. This means increasing the ability of the relevant tissues (i.e. muscles and tendons) and structures (i.e. bones) to tolerate load.

The force magnitude at the lumbar spine alone is worthy justification for the inclusion of strength training. Forces of ~7500N (equivalent to ~ 750 Kg) have been reported from elite players swinging with a driver (Hosea, 1990). It is therefore unsurprising that in a published injury audit from the PGA European Tour the lower back, along with the neck and wrist, were the most prevalent injury sites (Smith and Hillman, 2012).

The same report showed that 80% of these injuries were related to overuse, which according to a large meta-analysis and systematic review could be reduced substantially through engaging in strength training (Laursen et al 2014). Many injury resilience strength exercises may actually be the same as the performance enhancement solutions.

By way of example, the deadlift will not only increase leg strength to facilitate longer drives but it will also increase the tolerance of the back, trunk and wrist musculature, with particular supporting evidence that it is useful in the rehabilitation of lower back pain (Welch et al 2015). This is a real bonus as it makes for efficient programming.

Unfortunately, this is not the case for the neck which is insufficiently exposed in traditional compound strength exercises (i.e. deadlifts), so some additional, isolated neck specific conditioning is recommended.

Improving or maintaining mobility is another side effect of good quality strength training. Contrary to common belief, the lengthening phase of muscle activity in strength training exercises increase muscle length and overall mobility (O’Sullivan, McAuliffe, DeBurca, 2012).

Like cardio-respiratory and mobility development, strength training offer an array of health- related benefits which are well documented. Indeed, the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) now include (twice weekly) strength training as part of their recommendations for general health. Exercise is now often described as a vaccine to illness given its protective effects against an array of both acute and chronic conditions.

Injury or illness means time away from practice, and given that golf is a highly technical sport this is very likely to have a large negative impact on performance over time. Considering the significance of this, it becomes clear that perhaps the largest (albeit indirect) accumulative performance impact we can have is long-term injury avoidance.

Unlike with determinants of performance (CHS) where we can only suggest strength training may help, we are probably safe to insist that avoiding injury and illness will help performance. If we enable the player to take to the course, range or putting green as often as they like and miss very few practice days or tournaments, this is likely to accumulate into a large positive performance impact. This is a long process and not a sell that is likely to excite a player, but for the reasons discussed this is the primary goal of the S&C service we provide at the European Tour Performance Institute (ETPI) as reflected by our probability of performance-impact pyramid.

Transfer to Technical Ability

It is commonly accepted that a change in technique is a product of a particular activity, drill, practice design, or pedagogical strategy – this underpins the golf coaching process anyone who has had lessons will be familiar with. However, it is perhaps underappreciated how altering a physical capacity (i.e. strength, stability, mobility or control) can over time influence technique.

It is important for players and coaches alike to understand that although ‘golf fitness’ can certainly play an important part in helping a player make a swing change, the gym is not the place to rehearse the aspired movement pattern.

Rather, the gym should be used to drive changes in physical capacities (identified through a discussion with the swing coach) that may impact on the players ability to make the shapes their coach wants from them.

This is best achieved with de-contextualised exercises that don’t resemble the swing pattern, but carry the potential to remove physical barriers that are preventing a player from moving a certain way without loss of posture or compensations.

Changes in technique could then obviously have a whole host of secondary effects on CHS, injury risk, or consistency. For this reason transfer to technical ability shouldn’t be overlooked, but it is difficult to predict cause and effect within this training space due to the complexity of human movement variability and motor learning. The exercises used to impact technical ability will obviously be specific to the individual, but specialist input will be required to identify and implement this.

Even then, the true impact on technique is often unpredictable. It is therefore important that players don’t become perturbed by this area, and let this dominate their allotted-gym time. As a general rule of thumb, no more than 10-20% of the exercises in your gym programme should be designed with this in mind.

Conclusion

Prior to starting a gym programme, players are advised to seek the help of an accredited strength and conditioning coach (ASCC) or certified strength and conditioning specialist (CSCS). One or two coaching sessions under such qualified supervision would be sufficient to establish a gym programme which has a high probability of performance-impact through facilitating longer drives, promoting health and wellbeing, and increasing resilience to known injury sites. Many golfer’s lives are complicated, gym programmes don’t need to be.

References

Broadie, M. (2014) Every Shot Counts: Using the Revolutionary Strokes Gained Approach to Improve your Golf Performance and Strategy. USA: Penguin Random House.

Fradkin, A.J., Sherman, C.A., & Finch, C.F. (2004) How well does club head speed correlate with golf handicaps, Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 7(4) 465-472.

Hellstrom, J., Nilsson, J. & Isberg, L. (2014) Drive for dough. PGA Tour golfers’ tee shot functional accuracy, distance and hole score, Journal of Sports Science, 32(5) 462-469.

Hosea, TM., Gatt. C.J., Galli. K.M,, Langrana. N.A., & Zawadsky. J.P. (1990). Biomechanical analysis of the golfer’s back. In A.J. Cochran (Ed.), Science and Golf: Proceedings of the World Scientific Congress Of Golf (pp. 43-48). London: E&FN Spon

Lauersen JB, Bertelsen DM, Andersen L.B. (2014) The effectiveness of exercise interventions to prevent sports injuries: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 48(11) 871–877.

Smith, MF and Hillman R. (2012) A retrospective service audit of a mobile physiotherapy unit on the PGA European Golf Tour. Phys Ther Sport; 13:41–4.

Welch, N., Moran, K., Antony, J., Richter, C., Marshall, B., Coyle, J., Falvey, E. and Franklyn- Miller, A. (2015) The effects of a free-weight-based resistance training intervention on pain, squat biomechanics and MRI-defined lumbar fat infiltration and functional cross-sectional area in those with chronic low back. BMJ Open Sport and Exercise Medicine, 1(1).

Wells, JE, Mitchell, AC, Charalambous, LH,and Fletcher, IM. (2018a) Relationships between highly skilled golfers’ clubhead velocity and force producing capabilities during vertical jumps and an isometric mid-thigh pull. Journal of Sports Sciences, 36(16):1847-51.

Wells, JET., Charalambous, LH., Mitchell, ACS., Coughlan, D., Brearley, SL., Hawkes, RA., Murray, AD., Hillman, RG. and Fletcher, IM. (2018b). Relationships between Challenge Tour golfers’ clubhead velocity and force producing capabilities during a countermovement jump and isometric mid-thigh pull. Journal of Sports Sciences, 1-6.

O’Sullivan, KO., McAuliffe, S. DeBurca, N. (2012). The effects of eccentric training on lower limb flexibility: a systematic review. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 46(12): 838-845.

Find out more about the health benefits of golf at www.golfandhealth.org.

This special edition of the #ASK Podcast celebrates #GolfHealthWeek and its work to shine a light on the many benefits that golf can have.

We are joined by Dr Roger Hawkes and Dr Andrew Murray from the Golf & Health Project to get an overview of the Project’s progress so far, as well as a look into its future work, but also to discuss each of the #GolfHealthWeek themes looking at the research and activities behind them and what you can do to help spread the message:

• Day 01 – Fitness – 07:23
• Day 02 – Mental health – 11:16
• Day 03 – Disability Golf – 17:54
• Day 04 – Golf For Everyone – 23:23
• Day 05 – Club Level – 36:08
• The Future of Golf & Health – 44:06

Find out more about the health benefits of golf at www.golfandhealth.org.

Listen to the full interview and subscribe to more episodes from the Confederation of Professional Golf A.S.K. Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Anchor.fm, Podbean or Soundcloud.

The Confederation of Professional Golf is drawing the attention of its Member Country PGAs and their PGA Professionals to a fun and exciting campaign which is helping to raise awareness for golf as a sporting option for people with a disability.

As the first ever Golf and Health Week takes place from 15-19 April, EDGA is to show its support of golfers with disability through a unique and fun ‘pledge and PLAY’ day, completing some 2019 golf holes in 24 hours.

Golf and Health Week is a collaborative campaign, coordinated by The R&A, which will run across digital and social media channels using the hashtag #GolfHealthWeek and include content focused on highlighting the physical and mental health benefits of playing golf and projects being delivered by golf bodies and clubs.

EDGA is an international not-for-profit organisation whose mission is to help people with impairment to play, succeed and enjoy golf. The 17th of April is dedicated to golf for those with disability and EDGA is backing the campaign to raise awareness of golf being a viable sporting option for all.

A new EDGA driven ‘pledge and PLAY’ initiative is aiming for players, staff, officials, coaches, volunteers, and friends of EDGA, anywhere in the world, to play a grand total of ‘2019 holes’ on the 17th of April. Look out for #EDGAPledgePlay, before, during and after the 17th April, on social media.

There is no cost to get involved in ‘pledge and PLAY’, simply visit www.edgagolf.com/pledgeplay, pledge the number of holes that you intend to play, log your details, your name, the course you are going to play, the people you intend to play with, and if possible the starting time.

Tony Bennett, President of EDGA and former Director of Education for the Confederation of Professional Golf, said: “A huge thanks to the Confederation of Professional Golf for helping us to promote pledge and PLAY. Their team and members, like all at EDGA, want to see the sport becoming more inclusive. We hope all friends of EDGA will support our pledge and PLAY efforts to play 2019 holes together on the 17th of April, the day when we are marking the importance of the sport for existing and brand new golfers with a disability. Please help us to achieve our goal of 2019 holes – your support is crucial!”

EDGA will have a live ‘Hole Counter’ on the day and as holes are confirmed they will be added to the running total.

Focusing primarily on Great Britain and Ireland, Golf and Health Week will be co-ordinated by The R&A with the support of – along with EDGA – the European Tour, the Ladies European Tour, The Professional Golfers’ Association and the Golf Foundation, as well as national associations including England Golf, Scottish Golf, Wales Golf, the Golfing Union of Ireland and the Irish Ladies Golf Union. A number of other organisations have also expressed interest in supporting the week.

For those who wish to support pledge and PLAY (which is totally free) please visit www.edgagolf.com/pledgeplay now!

You can find #EDGAPledgePlay and meet the EDGA community across our social media platforms: Facebook: @EuropeanDisabledGolfAssociation, Twitter: @edgagolf, Instagram: @edga_golf

Professor Jenny Roe, environmental psychologist and Director of the Center for Design & Health, University of Virginia, says golf is one way of benefiting from a regular ‘dose’ of green space to boost psychological wellbeing and physical health.

“There’s a wealth of evidence, using robust, scientific methods, to show the benefits of ‘green exercise’ – exercise in the natural outdoors – compared to exercise indoors, including the gym,” says Prof. Roe [pictured].

“When you step into a green space, there’s a number of things that happen with both your physiology and your psychology. Your parasympathetic nervous system kicks in – the system that’s associated with relaxation – and your stress physiology actually changes. You literally manage stress more efficiently when you are in a green space.”

Prof. Roe’s insights appear in a new multimedia article titled ‘Golf Saved my Life’, published by the Syngenta Growing Golf campaign, highlighting golf and mental health issues and telling the story of young US golfer Sam Gerry, who reveals how playing golf saved him after depression left him suicidal at age 14.

Recent research from the USA and the UK demonstrate the widespread need for stress-reducing activities. A 2018 study* by the UK’s Mental Health Foundation revealed that in the previous 12 months, 74% of people had felt so stressed they had been overwhelmed or unable to cope. In the same study, almost 10% of respondents said they were stressed “all of the time”.

A Gallup poll** in the USA showed a similar trend, with only 17% of respondents saying that they rarely feel stressed.

Research also shows that women tend to report more stress than men, with one recent poll demonstrating a 78% to 66% difference***.

Syngenta’s worldwide research report, The Global Economic Value of Increased Female Participation in Golf, demonstrates that the very things that attract women to the game align with Professor Roe’s insights, as well as with general stress-relief advice from institutions such as the UK’s National Health Service and the USA’s American Heart Foundation.

In the report, five of the top factors that piqued women’s interest in golf were:

1. Being outdoors
2. Relaxation or stress relief
3. It presents a mental challenge
4. Spending time with family or friends
5. It presents a physical challenge

Download the report: www.growinggolf.com/register

The R&A, one of golf’s governing bodies, is also highlighting the issue, and will launch the first Golf & Health Week (April 15-19, 2019), a dedicated campaign to raise awareness of the health benefits of golf for people of all ages and abilities. One day of the week will specifically concentrate on the game’s mental health benefits (April 16).

Prof. Jenny Roe adds: “I think to get out and play golf you are really helping manage your mental health in a very holistic way.

“Contact with nature allows us to recover from brain fatigue, reduces our stress levels and improves our mood. In turn, improved mood is linked to what’s called the ‘broaden and build’ hypothesis, with an increased capacity for creative thought and cognitive flexibility that can – potentially – lead to new thought-action repertoires on and off the golf course, and improved performance.”

For More Information Visit GrowingGolf.com

The first ever Golf and Health Week will take place from 15-19 April and will aim to encourage golfers, non-golfers and lapsed golfers into taking part in the sport.

A number of health-related themes will be promoted during the week of the campaign, including:

• Monday 15 April: Fitness – professionals and amateurs
• Tuesday 16 April: Mental health (including dementia)
• Wednesday 17 April: Disability golf
• Thursday 18 April: Golf for everyone – featuring various health projects (e.g. Parkinson’s, loneliness, stroke and other programmes that can benefit health)
• Friday 19 April: Club level – focus at golf clubs (e.g. fitness, food, drink, gym classes)

The collaborative campaign will run across digital and social media channels using the hashtag #GolfHealthWeek and include content focused on highlighting the physical and mental health benefits of playing golf and projects being delivered by golf bodies and clubs.

Focusing primarily on Great Britain and Ireland, it will be co-ordinated by The R&A with the support of the European Tour, the Ladies European Tour, The Professional Golfers’ Association and the Golf Foundation, as well as national associations including England Golf, Scottish Golf, Wales Golf, the Golfing Union of Ireland and the Irish Ladies Golf Union.

A number of other organisations have expressed interest in supporting the week, including EDGA (formerly the European Disabled Golf Association), the Confederation of Professional Golf and Golf Australia.

The campaign is also to be backed by professional golfers including Annika Sorenstam, Brooke Henderson, Padraig Harrington and Zach Johnson, who are ambassadors for the Golf and Health Project.

The dedicated week builds on the work of the Golf and Health Project, which since 2016 has studied the many and varied health and wellbeing benefits of golf, considered any risks and had research published regularly in international, peer-reviewed journals.

Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A, said, “It is important that we continue to promote golf as an activity that can be enjoyed by people of all ages and abilities and demonstrate that playing golf can provide significant benefits for the health and wellbeing of those who participate in the sport.

“We are working closely with our affiliated national associations and partners to produce an engaging and inspiring campaign which will drive interest in playing the sport and encourage people to take advantage of the health benefits that golf can bring.”

To drive interest and encourage activity in the days before the dedicated week, golfers will be asked to tweet their steps achieved and calories burned from any golf they play, again using #GolfHealthWeek. The week then finishes on Good Friday at club level, with golfers to be encouraged to head for the fairways over the Easter holiday weekend.

Last year, a global consensus amongst leaders in public health, public policy and sport backed golf in the race to tackle physical inactivity and the prevention of illnesses such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer of the breast and colon.

Evidence linking golf and health, commissioned by the World Golf Foundation and supported by The R&A, was presented at Westminster following research led by the University of Edinburgh and published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

Previous research has also highlighted that those that play golf live five years longer than those that don’t play, while the sport has been shown to have self-esteem and self-worth benefits.

Find out More @ RandA.org

Photo Credit: Getty Images

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.”

As the first ever Golf and Health Week takes place from 15-19 April, EDGA is to show its support of golfers with disability through a unique and fun ‘pledge and PLAY’ day, completing some 2019 golf holes in 24 hours. 

Golf and Health Week is a collaborative campaign, coordinated by The R&A, which will run across digital and social media channels using the hashtag #GolfHealthWeek and include content focused on highlighting the physical and mental health benefits of playing golf and projects being delivered by golf bodies and clubs.

EDGA, a supporter of #GolfHealthWeek, is an international not-for-profit organisation whose mission is to help people with impairment to play, succeed and enjoy golf. The 17th of April is dedicated to golf for those withdisability and EDGA is backing the campaign to raise awareness of golf being a viable sporting option for all.

A new EDGA driven ‘pledge and PLAY’ initiative is aiming for players, staff, officials, coaches, volunteers, and friends of EDGA, anywhere in the world, to play a grand total of ‘2019 holes’ on the 17th of April. Look out for #EDGAPledgePlay, before, during and after the 17th April, on social media.

There is no cost to get involved in ‘pledge and PLAY’, simply visit www.edgagolf.com/pledgeplay, pledge the number of holes that you intend to play, log your details, your name, the course you are going to play, the people you intend to play with, and if possible the starting time.

On the 17th, all EDGA asks is that you enjoy your game, confirm the number of holes you played and send a photo/video of you and your partners as you play the course. If you like you can send a few words about your day (you will have the option to upload a photo, video or short story to the EDGA website). EDGA will have a live ‘Hole Counter’ on the day and as holes are confirmed they will be added to the running total.

Tony Bennett, President of EDGA, said: “We at EDGA are delighted to be supporting Golf and Health Week. This dedicated campaign to raise awareness of the health benefits of golf is a wonderful opportunity for golf to send a strong message that golf is good for you. We hope all friends of EDGA will support our pledge and PLAY efforts to play 2019 holes together on the 17th of April, the day when we are marking the importance of the sport for existing and brand new golfers with a disability. Please help us to achieve our goal of 2019 holes – your support is crucial!”

Focusing primarily on Great Britain and Ireland, Golf and Health Week will be co-ordinated by The R&A with the support of – along with EDGA – the European Tour, the Ladies European Tour, The Professional Golfers’ Association and the Golf Foundation, as well as national associations including England Golf, Scottish Golf, Wales Golf, the Golfing Union of Ireland and the Irish Ladies Golf Union. A number of other organisations have also expressed interest in supporting the week.

For those who wish to support pledge and PLAY (which is totally free) please visit www.edgagolf.com/pledgeplay now!

You can find #EDGAPledgePlay and meet the EDGA community across our social media platforms: Facebook: @EuropeanDisabledGolfAssociation, Twitter: @edgagolf, Instagram: @edga_golf

Listen to the full interview and subscribe to more episodes from the Confederation of Professional Golf A.S.K. Podcast on Soundcloud or Apple Podcasts.

1. More Customers

The European Golf Course Owners Association (EGCOA) undertook a project that examined the future of European Golf – Vision 20/20. The report suggested that the industry has been short-sighted by ignoring women. Women make up 50% of the population who are potential golfers (https://eur.pe/2I9IUuB).

Women now hold more than 50% of managerial positions and account for over 50% of college graduates. Women are financially independent and will spend money playing golf if golf welcomes them.

2. The World is Changing and Golf Should Too

If golf wants to stay relevant, it needs to change with the times. Golf is more appealing to people, including millennials, when it is diverse.

This argument is made in Sweden’s Vision 50/50 project that aims to equalize the number of men and women playing golf (www.golf.se/klubb-och-anlaggning/vision-50-50). By creating a culture that is equitable and open, not exclusive, golf has a brighter future.

3. Funding

Sport is seen as a force for good that benefits society. Consequently, governments have an interest in sports. Funding of sports now focuses as much on diversifying participation as high performance. Therefore, if golf’s governing bodies want to receive government funding, they must increase female participation in the game.

——————————————-

There is no question that golf needs women participants. What is less clear is whether women need golf. This topic will be addressed in the next issue. By understanding why golf needs women, and why women need golf, the industry can start breaking down barriers that have discouraged women from playing the game.

Following great success in the UK, where it has pledged its support to the R&A Women in Golf Charter, the programme has drawn significant interest from international coaches wishing to engage potential female golfers in their own countries, including Spain, Sweden and Germany.

For the programme’s first venture into Spain, love.golf Head Coach and Founder Alastair Spink, supported by fellow love.golf coach Jo Taylor, demonstrated the programme’s methodology to a group of Spanish coaches, led by Head of Training for the PGA of Spain, Jose Perez, at Centro Nacional de Golf in Madrid.

Coaches were educated on the love.golf concept, which focuses on learning through playing on the golf course, rather than technical lessons on a driving range, alongside the need for the coach to ‘step back’ at various times to allow female participants to benefit from the group dynamic that the programme creates.

Reflecting on the pilot, Alastair Spink commented, “It’s thrilling to see that the desire to bring more women into golf is something that transcends borders, and that there is a universality to our approach that professional coaches in other nations feel they can connect to.”

Jose Perez said: “Our coaches have been inspired from what they have seen of love.golf and see it as a great opportunity to engage new female golfers in Spain. They are looking forward to putting what they have learned in Madrid into practice at their respective venues around the country.”

With methods based upon industry-leading research by Syngenta and academic study by Alastair Spink, love.golf removes many of the perceived barriers for women entering the sport, creating an engaging and unintimidating introduction to golf.

The programme, which is supported by the Confederation of Professional Golf as a Golf Development Partner, has seen significantly improved retention rates and has gained wide recognition for successfully challenging traditional perceptions and rewriting the standard model of women’s coaching.

For more information about love.golf, visit love.golf

Launched last May in London, the Charter set out to inspire an industry-wide commitment to developing a more inclusive culture within golf globally. It is designed to encourage actions that enable more women and girls to flourish and maximise their potential within the golf industry at all levels.

Over 100 organisations have committed to the #WomenInGolfCharter since its launch last May🏌️‍♀️

Find out how you can help The R&A’s drive to increase the number of women and girls participating in our sport👉 https://t.co/v8fRCFZv4R ⛳️ pic.twitter.com/2l7E78yNhB

— The R&A (@RandA) February 13, 2019

To date, 107 organisations have given their commitment to the Charter, pledging to build on current initiatives and develop new projects to increase the number of women, girls and families playing golf and becoming members of clubs, as well as giving women wider opportunities to enjoy careers and volunteering in the sport.

These include national federations such as Golf Canada – which held its inaugural Women’s Leadership Summit last year linked to the staging of the CP Women’s Open – Golf Australia; New Zealand Golf; the Italian Golf Federation; England Golf; Scottish Golf; and Wales Golf.

Other organisations who have adopted the Charter include the PGA TOUR; the European Tour; the Ladies’ European Tour; the Professional Golfers’ Association; the Golf Foundation; the Confederation of Professional Golf; the European Disabled Golf Association; the ANNIKA Foundation; IMG; VisitScotland and the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Golf.

Mastercard, the official card of The Open, is also the first R&A Patron to sign up. Various other organisations offering their support include the Association of Golf Writers and GOLFNOW.

Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A, said, “We are encouraged by the number of organisations who have recognised the importance of the Charter for the sport and pledged their support.

“It is a positive start but we need an industry-wide commitment to the Charter and support for measures that will foster a more inclusive culture within the sport and enable women and girls to reach their full potential.”

While achieving the commitment of national federations and organisations was one of the first aims of the Charter, the process for clubs and regional bodies to sign up is also now gathering pace.

Conwy, which will stage the 2020 Curtis Cup in Wales, is the first golf club to sign up to the Charter.

Boldon, based in Tyne & Wear, is the first English club to sign, followed by commitments from Open venues Royal Portrush, St Andrews Links Trust and Carnoustie Golf Links.

Fulford, venue for the Girls Under 16 Amateur Championship, has also committed, along with The Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, Blairgowrie, North Berwick and Royal Dornoch.

“Gaining the support of national associations and organisations was the first phase of our plan,” added Slumbers. “We have also worked closely with them to collectively agree a process to support individual clubs in adopting the Charter and gain real momentum.

“The national body is the point of contact and will directly liaise with clubs in determining commitments to the Charter should a club wish to become a signatory.

“We would like national associations, with the involvement of clubs, to set targets for participation and membership as we look to increase the number of women, girls and families playing the sport.”

Overview of Women and Girls developments in 2018

• In 2018, The R&A provided an initial three-year funding package of £375,000 to its affiliates in Australia, England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales to support the appointment of new development managers to work on increasing participation by women and girls
• The funding is part of The R&A’s plans to increase its overall investment in women’s, girls’ and mixed golf to £80 million over the next ten years, with the Charter underpinning this work
• In Ireland, junior girls’ membership was up nearly 1%, as was overall female membership – the first time the Irish Ladies’ Golf Union (ILGU) has seen an overall growth in membership since 2008. The Golfing Union of Ireland (GUI) and the ILGU recently agreed to form a new body, known as Golf Ireland
• Within England Golf, participation among women and girls increased from 15% to 17%, while the Girls Golf Rocks programme grew from 15 counties and 72 clubs in 2017 to 21 counties and 98 clubs for 2018
• Across Great Britain and Ireland, over 25,000 women and girls from over 1,100 clubs played in The R&A’s 2018 Coronation Foursomes
• In February 2018, Golf Australia’s plan to challenge female participation was launched – ‘Vision 2025: The future of women and girls in golf’
• New Zealand Golf has expanded investment into She Loves Golf – an initiative aimed at changing the perception of golf for women and inspiring participation
• Oman Golf launched a ‘Go Ladies’ beginner programme to illustrate the global appeal of the Charter in developing countries
• The British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association has launched a ‘Women in Turf Care’ programme to encourage more female greenkeepers
• The Professional Golfers’ Associations’ #WeLoveGolf campaign and TopGolf teamed up to drive women’s interest in trying out golf, with almost 100 women having the chance to hit their first golf ball in a fun and friendly environment
• Mastercard will partner with The R&A across various areas, including STEM Education to develop an evergreen golf version of their Girls4Tech proprietary curriculum that inspires girls to pursue careers in STEM
• Syngenta, one of the first organisations to sign up to the Charter, is taking actions centred around research, diversity and growing the game, particularly around boosting psychological well-being through golf
• A new and engaging golf campaign, aimed specifically at encouraging more women to travel to Scotland to play golf, was recently announced by VisitScotland. The #HerScotland campaign will be used to help raise awareness of The 2019 Solheim Cup
• On the European Tour, men and women competed side-by-side in 2018. The Trophée Hassan II and Lalla Meryem Cup were held simultaneously at the same venue in Morocco, while Georgia Hall, Charley Hull, Mel Reid, Carlota Ciganda and Catriona Matthew competed in the second edition of GolfSixes, the latter alongside Thomas Bjørn in a ‘Captains’ Team.’
• In addition, the men’s and women’s competitions ran side-by-side in the Vic Open in Australia last week. Furthermore, the European Tour is actively pursuing initiatives to enhance and promote diversity in their workforce.

Find out More @ RandA.org

Over 2017, ProPlanner captured data from 20,000 golfers who had booked one or more lessons through the platform. The captured data established a positive trend between number of lessons booked and the chance of lowering handicap percentage (HCP). GolfBox identified the correlation when they analysed the captured data against a control group sourced from the same geographical region.

The data uncovered golfers who undertook lessons from a professional had an improved chance of lowering HCP. The below table illustrates the chance of lowering HCP vs lessons booked.

Golfers who had 3 plus lessons from January to December 2017 were 48.8% more likely to lower their handicap, whereas golfers who had no lessons had a chance of lowering HCP by 25.6%. The above table notes that golfers who partook in 1 lesson per year had a 38.6% chance and golfers who participated in 2 lessons had a 41.7% of lowering their handicap.

When reviewing the dataset by Handicap Group it also showed a strong correlation between lessons booked and handicap performance. The below table shows golfers who booked 3 plus lesson increased the chance of lowering their handicap across all HCP groups, ranging from 38.5% to 48.8%.

Nick Thornton GM of MPower Golf from GolfBox’s parent company MPower MSL said “ProPlanner has been specifically designed for PGA Professionals to grow and manage their lessons and in turn generate additional revenue from lessons. We are very pleased that ProPlanner has generated 9 million dollars worth of lesson revenue for PGA Professionals since its inception. We will continue to work with our PGA partners in ensuring this is the lesson booking software of choice for the golf industry”.

GolfBox ProPlanner, the official lesson booking software for the Confederation of Professional Golf’ assists with the daily scheduling and management of a Golf Professionals’ business. Established in EMEA and APAC regions, ProPlanner has assisted in the booking of 155,000 lessons in over 24-month period globally.

“We’ve continued to increase forgiveness and optimise ball flight in the G410 Plus driver while adding more dimensions to driver custom fitting,” said John K. Solheim, PING President. “Our new, movable-weight technology provides the benefits of custom CG locations, including directional control, without sacrificing MOI or ball speeds which is what we’ve always seen with other non-fixed weight drivers. The G410 Plus offers golfers a simple, logical way to customise their driver and allows them to swing away on the tee box without fear of missing the fairway. It puts tour-level fitting into the golfer’s hands. We’ve also expanded the loft and lie options with a new eight-setting, lightweight hosel that further fine-tunes ball flight.”

Custom CG locations

In the G410 Plus model, three positions (Draw, Neutral, Fade) for the ultra-high-density tungsten back weight shift the centre of gravity (CG) location by 1/10″ in each direction from neutral to influence left or right shot direction approximately 10 yards (20 yards of correction between Draw and Fade settings). By positioning the weight on the extreme boundary of the clubhead, the moment of inertia increases compared to the original G400 driver – ensuring golfers enjoy the added distance and forgiveness required to hit their tee shots longer and straighter.

“Our engineering team took on the challenge of advancing driver fitting through custom CG locations without compromising the key attributes that ensure performance,” said Solheim. “It’s amazing how they’ve been able to deliver this new fitting element while also improving distance and MOI. The movable-weight technology clearly demonstrates the effects on shot shape and the ability to dial in your desired ball flight. This additional fitting element optimises a golfer’s trajectory – meaning they’ll consistently be further and straighter down the fairway than ever before.”

The G410 SFT (Straight Flight Technology) model is engineered with a fixed ultra-high-density tungsten weight positioned on the clubhead’s extreme perimeter and 50% more heel-side CG than its predecessor to ensure straighter ball flights. A lighter swingweight (D1) further influences direction by helping square the face at impact.

“There is still a large segment of golfers who will play better with a driver completely optimized for performance with the benefit of maximum fade correction,” Solheim added. “When we pioneered Straight Flight Technology several years ago, we wanted to provide a ‘slice-fixing’ driver without adding huge offset or just closing the face. The G410 SFT sits visually square at address and delivers all the performance benefits of the G410 Plus while ensuring a consistently straight ball flight.”

Dragonfly Technology Inside

A new “creased crown” design provides stiffening properties and combines with patented Dragonfly Technology to create an ultra-thin crown structure, which saves weight for optimising the CG location and increasing forgiveness. Together with more aggressive and efficient Turbulator Technology, the 455cc head’s crown design provides a clean, powerful and faster look at address while making alignment nearly effortless.

Forged, T9S+ Face

The unique forging and patented heat-treatment process of the T9S+ face powers a thinner, hotter impact area that is precision machined to elevate ball speed across the entire face for more flexing and faster ball speeds. The forged face and the internal geometry of the head are instrumental in producing the powerful feel and sound of the driver.

Trajectory Tuning 2.0

The new, patented lightweight and aerodynamic adjustable hosel expands from five to eight settings, offering loft (0, +1⁰, +1.5⁰, -1⁰, -1.5⁰) and lie adjustments (including up to 3⁰ flatter than standard) to optimise ball flight.

“The expansion of the loft options is a tremendous benefit for all golfers who can now further optimise their launch conditions, including increasing ball speed, with the guidance of a club fitter or through their own experimentation,” said Solheim. “The lie angle fitting option adds another layer of opportunity for expert club fitters to really fine-tune a golfer’s driver performance based on a more detailed analysis of their ball flight and launch conditions.”

New Counter-Balanced Shaft Technology

Continuing PING’s commitment to optimising the entire club system, the engineering team developed the next generation of the Alta CB (counter balanced) shaft as the proprietary option in the G410 driver. The higher-launching, lightweight Alta CB Red 55 is engineered with an eight-gram counterweight in the grip end of the shaft, shifting the CG higher and allowing for more head weight to increase energy transfer and momentum – resulting in more ball speed and greater forgiveness. The high-performance PING Tour 65 & 75 (lower launch, low spin, stable feel), Project X EvenFlow Black 75 (low launch, low spin) and Mitsubishi Tensei™ CK Orange 60 (mid-launch angle, low spin) are available at no upcharge and ensure a shaft-fitting option to match the launch conditions of all golfers.

G410 Plus and SFT Driver Specifications

• Multi-material construction: Cast Ti 8-1-1 body, forged T9S+ face, ultra-high-density tungsten back weight, lightweight aluminium/thermoplastic adjustable hosel
• G410 Plus loft options: 9⁰, 10.5⁰ & 12⁰
• G410 SFT (Straight Flight Technology) loft option: 10.5⁰
• Head volume: 455 cc
• Head weight: 206g (Plus), 204g (SFT)
• Swing weight: D3 (Plus), D1 (SFT)
• Std. length: 45 3/4″ (Alta CB Red 55); 45 1/4″ (PING Tour and aftermarkets)
• Loft adjustability: 5 settings: +-1.5⁰ (0, +1⁰, +1.5⁰, -1⁰, -1.5⁰)
• Lie adjustability: Up to 3⁰ (Std: 58.5⁰)
• Stock shaft option: PING Alta CB (counter-balanced) Red 55 (SR, R, S, X)
• No upcharge shaft options: PING Tour 65, 75 (R, S, X), Mitsubishi Tensei CK Orange 60 (R, S, X), Project X Evenflow Black 75 (5.5, 6.0, 6.5)
• Stock grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet 360 in six sizes (Blue -1/16″, Red -1/32″, Aqua -1/64″, White Std., Gold +1/32″, Orange +1/16″)
• RRP £450

For More Information Visit www.ping.com

Introducing the new #G410 family. Custom-engineered to bring more performance to your game, discover a new dimension in fitting: https://t.co/E9DmSUSH1C #FittingMatters pic.twitter.com/J7qficvRbB

— PING Golf Europe (@PINGTourEurope) January 21, 2019

“With the added distance golfers are enjoying in their drivers and irons due to all the advancements in technology, ensuring a set make-up that delivers the proper gapping is more important than ever,” said John K. Solheim, PING President. “Our G410 fairways woods, hybrids and crossovers offer golfers multiple options to transition from their mid-and long-irons into clubs that are easier to hit and provide tremendous distance while maintaining the necessary gapping benefits. They each provide varying performance features and launch characteristics. We’ve got everything from a low-spin 3-wood option, a 2 crossover all the way to a 6 hybrid. We encourage all golfers to undergo a thorough gapping analysis with an authorised PING fitting specialist to determine their ideal set make up.”

Maraging-Steel Face Technology

To maximise distance in the G410 fairway woods, hybrids and crossovers, PING has employed C300 maraging steel as the face material. One of the strongest alloys in the world, maraging steel is commonly used in the aerospace industry, where strength and flexibility are necessities. It’s those properties that also make it an ideal face material to deliver more flexing for faster ball speeds that launch shots further and higher.

“With maraging steel, we have a material that allows us to go extremely thin with the face to give us the faster ball-speed gains we’re seeking for more distance and higher launch. The results have been amazing as we’re seeing face flexing equal to the thickness of the face,” said Solheim.

A Focus on Forgiveness

In the G410 fairway woods, a low-back CG and high-density tungsten weight positioned at the extreme boundary of the head provides greater stability and forgiveness. A larger profile and high-density tungsten back weight in the G410 hybrid drive the MOI higher to ensure golfers the forgiveness they require while launching the ball higher. The G410 crossover, which has been streamlined to provide more iron-like performance, relies on a 30-gram dual-density tungsten toe weight to maximise forgiveness.
“Providing the most forgiving clubs in the industry remains a top priority for us,” Solheim said. “The use of multi-material construction and high-tech manufacturing processes allow us to consistently increase the MOI and design clubs that fit the needs of all golfers. Whether they prefer the performance of a fairway wood, the reliability of a hybrid or the versatility of a crossover, golfers can always count on a certain level of forgiveness from our clubs.”

PING’s First Adjustable Hybrid Hosel

The addition of a patented, eight-setting adjustable hosel to the hybrid greatly expands the fitting options to ensure proper gapping for golfers who rely on hybrids as mid- and long-iron replacements. The lightweight and aerodynamic adjustable hosel, which is also in the G410 fairway woods, offers loft (0, +1⁰, +1.5⁰, -1⁰, -1.5⁰) and lie adjustments (including up to 3⁰ flatter than standard) to optimise ball flight.
“Loft and lie adjustability in the hybrids will greatly benefit golfers,” said Solheim. “It’s a technology our fitters have been asking for and we’re excited to bring it to them to help golfers fine-tune their ball flight and dial in their gaps. We’ve also expanded the colour code options in the crossover to further customise them for lie angle to better transition into an iron set.”

G410 Fairway Woods Overview

Powered by a forged, maraging-steel face, the G410 fairway woods are engineered to launch the ball easily and deliver faster ball speeds on a penetrating trajectory that maximises distance. PING engineers positioned the low-back CG slightly forward of the G400 model to deliver more energy from the shallower face while providing greater stability. Eight fitting positions in the new lightweight, aerodynamic hosel sleeve enable golfers to tune their trajectories through loft and lie adjustments. Three models (Std., SFT and LST) ensure an option to fit every golfer.

G410 SFT (Straight Flight) Fairway Woods

More heel-side weighting and a lighter swing weight help square the face to create right-to-left shot bend (RH golfers). The heads are slightly larger to drive the MOI higher, and lofts are 1.5˚ higher to produce easier launch.

G410 LST (Low Spin) 3-Wood

The all-new, slightly smaller head has a CG slightly lower and more forward than the standard head to launch shots higher with less spin, resulting in longer shots that get airborne easily for many higher swing speed and high spin golfers.

Specifications

• Multi-material construction: 17-4 stainless steel body, forged, C300 maraging-steel face, high-density tungsten backweight, lightweight aluminium/thermoplastic adjustable hosel
• Head sizes: 3W (171cc), 5W (162cc), 7W (148cc), 9W (144cc), 3 LST (159cc), 3 SFT (188cc), 5 SFT (177cc), 7 SFT (167cc)
• Lofts: 3W (14.5⁰), 5W (17.5⁰), 7W (20.5⁰), 9W (23.5⁰), 3 LST (14.5⁰), 3 SFT (16⁰), 5 SFT (19⁰), 7 SFT (22⁰)
• Loft adjustability: 5 settings: +-1.5⁰ (0, +1⁰, +1.5⁰, -1⁰, -1.5⁰)
• Lie angles: 3 (56°), 5 (56.5°), 7 (57°), 9 (57.5°), 3 LST (56°), 3 SFT (56°), 5 SFT (56.5°), 7 SFT (57°)
• Lie adjustability: Up to 3⁰ flat
• Std. lengths: 3W (43″), 5W (42 1/2″), 7W (42″), 9W (41 1/2″), 3 LST (43”), 3 SFT (43″), 5 SFT (42 1/2″), 7 SFT (42″)
• Std. grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet 360 six sizes (Blue -1/16″, Red -1/32″, Aqua -1/64″, White Std., Gold +1/32″, Orange +1/16″)
• Stock shaft option: PING Alta CB Red (counter-balanced) 65 (SR, R, S, X)
• No-upcharge shaft options: PING Tour 65/75 (R, S, X); Mitsubishi Tensei CK Orange 70 (R, S, X), Project X EvenFlow 85 (6.0, 6.5)
• RRP £275

G410 Hybrids Overview

Our first-ever adjustable hybrid allows golfers to customise their ball flight eight different ways through loft (+- 1.5˚) and lie combinations for consistently better results. Thinner and more flexible, the maraging-steel face generates faster ball speeds and higher launch. A larger profile and high-density back weight provide added stability and elevate MOI for more forgiveness.

Specifications

• Multi-material construction: 17-4 stainless steel head, C300 maraging steel face, high density tungsten back weight, lightweight aluminium/thermoplastic adjustable hosel
• Lofts: 2H (17⁰), 3H (19⁰), 4H (22⁰), 5H (26⁰), 6H (30⁰)
• Loft adjustability: 5 settings: +-1.5⁰ (0, +1⁰, +1.5⁰, -1⁰, -1.5⁰)
• Lie angles: 2H (58⁰), 3H (58.5⁰), 4H (59⁰), 5H (59.5⁰), 6H (60⁰)
• Lie adjustability: Up to 3⁰ flat
• Std. lengths: 2H (40 3/4″), 3H (40 1/4″), 4H (39 3/4″), 5H (39 1/4″), 6H (38 3/4″)
• Std. grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet in six sizes (Blue -1/16″, Red -1/32″, Aqua -1/64″, White Std., Gold +1/32″, Orange +1/16″)
• Stock shaft option: PING Alta CB Red (counter-balanced) 70 (SR, R, S, X)
• No-upcharge shaft options: PING Tour 85 (R, S, X); Project X EvenFlow Black 85 (5.5, 6.0, 6.5); Mitsubishi Tensei Pro Blue 70 (R); Mitsubishi Tensei Pro Blue 80 (S, TX)
• RRP £225

G410 Crossovers Overview

With a thin, maraging steel face for faster ball speeds and a 30-gram dual-density tungsten toe weight to increase the MOI, the G410 Crossover combines the precision and control of an iron with the speed and forgiveness of a hybrid. The G410 design is significantly shorter heel to toe and narrower in the sole than the G400. Available in 2, 3 and 4, the stainless steel head sets up square and offers a clean, premium look with the gearing properties of an iron to allow precision shot making. To ensure a solid feel and sound, the internal ribs are engineered to help stiffen the clubhead body.

Specifications

• Multi-material construction: 17-4 stainless steel head, C300 maraging-steel face, tungsten toe weight
  Lofts: 2 (17⁰), 3 (20⁰), 4 (23⁰)
• Available in all 10 color codes (lie angles): Maroon, Silver, White, Green, Blue, Black, Red, Orange, Brown, Gold
• Std. lengths: 2 (40 3/8″), 3 (39 3/4″), 4 (39 1/8″)
• Std. grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet in six sizes (Blue -1/16″, Red -1/32″, Aqua -1/64″, White Std., Gold +1/32″, Orange +1/16″)
• Stock shaft option: PING Alta CB Red (counter-balanced) 70 (SR, R, S, X)
• No-upcharge shaft options: PING Tour 85 (R, S, X); Project X EvenFlow Black 85 (5.5, 6.0, 6.5); Mitsubishi Tensei Pro Blue 70 (R); Mitsubishi Tensei Pro Blue 80 (S, TX)
• RRP £225

For More Information Visit www.ping.com

The multi-material iron is available for pre-order and custom fitting at authorised PING golf shops around the world beginning today.

“In the G410 iron, our engineers challenged the idea that you can’t make an iron smaller and increase the forgiveness at the same time,” said John K. Solheim, PING President. “They’ve developed a clean, highly appealing design with less offset and a significantly higher MOI when compared to the G400 iron. It’s the most forgiving iron of its size. It will appeal to a very wide range of golfers as it produces faster ball speeds, maximum forgiveness and amazing feel with a pleasing appearance – all the attributes they need to hit their iron shots higher, further and straighter.”

Re-shaping Distance and Forgiveness

PING’s engineering team created a face and cavity structure in the G410 iron that delivers faster ball speeds and saves weight to expand the perimeter weighting. The additional weight savings are concentrated in the toe and hosel to achieve an 8% increase in the moment of inertia (MOI) for more forgiveness and consistency.

The more flexible, free-moving face amplifies ball speeds for greater distance and higher max height, allowing golfers to hit less club into the green with the control and precision to hold the putting surface. This is achieved by de-coupling the weighting structure from the face to create a larger flexing zone, which performs like a hinge to launch the ball faster and higher with consistency and predictability. The next generation of COR-Eye technology powers the performance in conjunction with the cascading sole design and deep top-rail undercut.

“The G410 iron represents several exciting iron design advancements for us,” said Solheim. “Our innovations like COR-Eye technology have allowed us to re-imagine the way we engineer an iron. By increasing ball speed as much as we have in recent models, our irons launch much easier and higher than ever. As a result, we can experiment with the size and shape of the head while improving the MOI properties so critical to consistent performance.”

High Marks for Look, Feel and Sound

The clean, refined shape of the G410 iron results from a slightly shorter blade length and 10% less offset compared to the G400 iron, creating an inspiring blade-iron-style look with broad appeal. Its resilient hydropearl 2.0 finish provides an attractive appearance and contributes to smooth turf interaction. The full-cavity, co-molded aluminum and elastomer badge delivers a powerful, reassuring feel and sound.
“We all know the first impression of any club design is vitally important. It starts with the appearance at address and continues when the golfer solidly strikes that first shot,” said Solheim. “We’re seeing very positive results from our own data and hearing outstanding feedback from others about every aspect of the design and performance of the G410 iron.”

High-spin wedges

Using the same geometry as the Glide 2.0 wedge series, the grooves on the G410 PW, UW, SW and LW are precision machined with a sharper edge radius, increasing interaction with the cover of the ball at impact and creating more friction for improved spin and trajectory control.

“The fully machined grooves on all four wedges are an example of the added detail we’ve engineered into the G410 irons,” said Solheim. “For players who want a consistent look and feel throughout their set, they can now enjoy much higher spin and control in their scoring clubs along with all the other performance benefits of the iron’s technology.

G410 Iron Specifications

• Multi-material construction: Hyper 17-4 stainless steel head, tungsten toe/hosel weights, aluminum/elastomer badge, hydropearl 2.0 finish
• Available 4-9, PW, UW, SW, LW in 10 color codes (lie angle). Black is standard.
• Std. grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet in six sizes (Blue -1/16″, Red -1/32″, Aqua -1/64″, White Std., Gold +1/32″, Orange +1/16″)
• Stock shaft options: PING AWT 2.0 (R, S, X), Alta CB Red (counter-balanced) powered by AWT (SR, R, S)
• Aftermarket shaft options (no upcharge): True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 (R300, S300), True Temper Dynamic Gold (S300, X100), True Temper Dynamic Gold 120 (S300, X100), Project X LZ (5.0, 5.5, 6.0, 6.5), True Temper XP95 (R300, S300), Nippon Pro Modus Tour 105 (S, X), KBS Tour (R, S, S+, X) added spaces inside parentheses
• RRP £126 steel £136 graphite each club

For More Information Visit www.ping.com