Golf Club Talk UK

On our latest Trending Topics with England Golf, we explore two key areas of its operations, Championships where we're joined by James Crampton and Rules, with Sam Barker-Sabido.

England Golf run many Championships throughout the year at all levels.  James talks about what's involved in applying for an event, hosting an event and the benefits and positive side-effects that can come with hosting one of these tournaments.  Not all championships are at elite level and EG also host many handicap events.  Towards the end of the episode, we're joined by Simon Williams, GM of Sherwood Forest GC, to tell us what it's like to host an EG Championship.  Sherwood Forest have hosted many and Simon gives the inside view, from a club that has done so.

Sam Barker-Sabido also talks to us about the importance of his role within England Golf and stresses why clubs need to continually educate their members on the rules of Golf and what to know when holding competitions.  There are many initiatives to assist with Rules education both for Golfers and also those who want to take on a "Rules" role within their club.

https://www.englandgolf.org/rules-of-golf

https://www.englandgolf.org/2024-england-golf-events

https://www.sherwoodforestgolfclub.co.uk/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamescrampton122/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-barker-sabido-a39510153/

Episode 104 is a spotlight on a club that is doing things very well.  Stoneham Golf Club, near Southampton in Hampshire is an excellent club with a Willie Park Jnr designed course.  It's seen some rapid evolution over the last 5-10 years with a state-of-the-art practice facility designed and built, much work completed on the course and now a water storage reservoir being constructed.  Othe plans may follow including clubhouse renovations.  

More than jyst the physical work being carried out, much of the success of the club is down to good governance, but also the creativity and diligence of Matt Plested, Course Manager and Shah Bani-Sadr, General Manager.  We talk to them both, on site and hear the story and thought processes that have led to the evolution of the club.

Well worth a listen for anyone looking for inspiration on what is possible.

https://www.stonehamgolfclub.org.uk/

Thanks to our show partner - Kopplin, Kuebler & Wallace

https://kkandw.com/international/

Episode 103 is the second part of our "state of the industry" round table chat with 6 industry experts from different fields.  It was an extensive discussion and covered a wide range of crucial and relevant topics.  This is part 2 and features discussion on; communication to your members, financial planning and sustainability, investment in your facilities, industry challenges, collaboration in our industry, future innovations and sharing data across the industry.

Thanks to Alastair Sinclair of Play More Golf for coming up with the concept and setting up the session.

The panellists are:

Alastair Sinclair - Play More Golf

Matt Roberts - 59 Club

James Wilkinson - Albatross

Stuart Gillett - Legacy Golf Advisors

Rob Corcoran - Revenue Club

Darren Redwood - Your Golf Marketing

Please feel free to give us your thoughts or open up some debate on what was discussed.

[email protected]

www.golfclubtalk.uk

Thanks to our show partner - Kopplin, Kuebler & Wallace

Contact Michael Herd for any of your recruitment needs - https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-herd-2686598b/

It's the last of a series of four episodes on the recently launched - Advanced Management Programme, an exciting new education programme from the GCMA.  Leighton is joined by Tom Brooke for a quick introduction before we hear about the two certificate modules in this Award, and why people working in the Golf industry need to get involved.  The AMP can be complimentary to other forms of education and takes a deep dive into the key areas of managing a Golf Club or operation.  The interviews and guests are:

Building Resilience & Managing Mental Health - Charlotte Wiseman (Charlotte Wiseman Leadership & Wellbeing)

Advanced Leadership and Emotional Intelligence - Biddy Lloyd-Jones & Keith Maynard (Progrezo)

Everything you need to know, including how to register, is right here:

https://www.gcma.org.uk/gcma-amp-certificates/

https://www.charlottewiseman.com/

https://www.progrezo.com/

Episode 102 features a fascinating "state of the industry" round table chat with 6 industry experts from different fields.  It was an extensive discussion and covered a wide range of crucial topics.  Due to the recording lasting 2 hours, we are splitting the recording into two parts.  This is part 1 and features discussion on; the use of data for revenue generation, enhancing service standards in our industry, marketing, digital media and financial planning and sustainability.

Thanks to Alastair Sinclair of Play More Golf for coming up with the concept and setting up the session.

The panellists are:

Alastair Sinclair - Play More Golf

Matt Roberts - 59 Club

James Wilkinson - Albatross

Stuart Gillett - Legacy Golf Advisors

Rob Corcoran - Revenue Club

Darren Redwood - Your Golf Marketing

Please feel free to give us your thoughts or open up some debate on what was discussed.

[email protected]

www.golfclubtalk.uk

Thanks to our show partner - Kopplin, Kuebler & Wallace

Contact Michael Herd for any of your recruitment needs

It's the third of a series of four episodes on the recently launched - Advanced Management Programme, an exciting new education programme from the GCMA.  Leighton is joined by Gareth Morgan for a quick introduction before we hear about two of the three certificate modules in this Award, and why people working in the Golf industry need to get involved.  The AMP can be complimentary to other forms of education and takes a deep dive into the key areas of managing a Golf Club or operation.  The interviews and guests are:

Health & Safety Management - Jason Peacock (ROSPA)

Employment Law - Carolyne Wahlen (Golf HR)

Everything you need to know, including how to register, is right here:

https://www.gcma.org.uk/gcma-amp-certificates/

ROSPA

Golf HR

It's the second of a series of four episodes on the recently launched - Advanced Management Programme, an exciting new education programme from the GCMA.  Leighton is joined by Gareth Morgan for a quick introduction before we hear about the two certificate modules in this Award, and why people working in the Golf industry need to get involved.  The AMP can be complimentary to other forms of education and takes a deep dive into the key areas of managing a Golf Club or operation.  The interviews and guests are:

Governance - Kevin Fish (CCL)

Strategic Planning - Keving Fish (CCL)

Everything you need to know, including how to register, is right here:

https://www.gcma.org.uk/gcma-amp-certificates/

Leighton provides a brief update on what's happening at Golf Club Talk UK, including it's expansion into more podcast episodes, hosting and presenting and the upcoming Educational Filed Trips for Managers.  These field trips will include two days of education, networking and a look at the Golf Course and the first one is scheduled to take place on Wednesday 26th and Thursday 27th March 2025 at Prince's GC and Royal Cinque Ports GC.  More details released soon.  We also mention Eddie's Leadership Institute.  For more information check out the GCTUK events page:

https://www.golfclubtalk.uk/

We also thank our show partners:

https://kkandw.com/international/

Contact Michael Herd for more details.

https://toptracer.com/

Contact Rob Saunders for more details.

A big thank you to all of our listeners and there's plenty more content to come.

It's the first of a series of four episodes on the recently launched - Advanced Management Programme, an exciting new education programme from the GCMA.  Leighton is joined by Tom Brooke for a quick introduction before we hear about the four certificate modules in this Award, and why people working in the Golf industry need to get involved.  The AMP can be complimentary to other forms of education and takes a deep dive into the key areas of managing a Golf Club or operation.  The interviews and guests are:

Food & Beverage Management - Kevin Fish (CCL)

Marketing Strategy - David Wheatley (Medi8)

Sales and Service Delivery - David Reeves and Matt Orwin (Promote Golf)

Golf Course Management for Golf Club Managers - Sami Strutt and Phil Helmn (Bernhards Academy)

For more information, visit:

https://www.gcma.org.uk/gcma-amp-certificates/

The latest episode of Trending Topics focuses on Sustainability but we do it through the lense of the recent England Golf Sustainability conference at Woodhall Spa.

Owen James and Caitlin Mcmillan rolled out a great day's education and thought leadership which included some key figures in the industry and this particular space. The event broke sustainabililty down into four main areas:

• Biodiversity
• Water Management
• Golf: Everyone's Game
• Innovation

Leighton and Owen run through the intent of the day and the episode is enhanced with contributions taken from panellists on the day.  These included Marie Athorn of the RSPB/R&A Partnership, Alyson McKechin of Golfit! and Dr Mark Bloomfield of the Transformation Tour.  Owen finishes by summarising some of the key outcomes.  

Sustainability doesn't have to be confusing or overwhelming and England Golf can be a great resource as a starting point or guide on your journey. 

https://www.englandgolf.org/sustainability/