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THE GOLF CLUB

MANAGER ISSUE 22 | JANUARY 2019

THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE GOLF CLUB MANAGERS’ ASSOCIATION

NEED TO KNOW

HANDICAPS: A YEAR TO GO

THE COUNTDOWN TO THE N E W S Y S T E M S TA R T S H E R E

: SPECIAL FOCEUCSH HOW TOP TOVE CAN IMPR MER YOUR CUSTONCE EXPERIE

INDUSTRY

PARK LIFE

S TO K E PA R K ’ S S T UA R T CO L L I E R O N T H E I CO N I C CO U N T R Y E S TAT E W H E R E G O L F I S J U S T O N E O F T H E M A N Y AT T R AC T I O N S

ED U C AT E | I N FO RM | I N S P I RE ‘

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CONTENTS ISSUE 22 | JANUARY 2019

GCMA

CAREERS

Highlights of the month

The latest jobs for GCMA members

The Principles of Golf Management course

What is the Committee for Golf Club Salaries?

NEED TO KNOW

GOOD PRACTICE

Getting to grips with GDPR

From the Helpdesk

The latest on the World Handicap System

INDUSTRY

GRASS ROOTS

We meet Stoke Park’s Stuart Collier

How top tech can help improve your club

How York’s refurbishment is paying dividends

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THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE GOLF CLUB MANAGERS’ ASSOCIATION GCMA Bristol & Clifton Golf Club, Beggar Bush Lane, Failand, Bristol, BS8 3TH Tel: 01275 391153 | hq@gcma.org.uk CHIEF EXECUTIVE Bob Williams - bob@gcma.org.uk COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER Mike Hyde - mike@gcma.org.uk GOLF MANAGEMENT RESEARCHER Jim Cunning - jim@gcma.org.uk EDUCATION COORDINATOR Niki Hunter - niki@gcma.org.uk FINANCE ADMINISTRATOR Shirley Edmondson - shirley@gcma.org.uk COMMUNICATIONS EXECUTIVE Marie Taylor - marie@gcma.org.uk MEMBERSHIP SERVICES Julie Knight - julie@gcma.org.uk PRESIDENT JR (John) Jones 2018/19 CAPTAIN Cameron Dawson BOARD OF DIRECTORS Gary Steele, Phil Grice, Eddie Bullock, Amy Yeates, Andrew Rankin THE GOLF CLUB MANAGER IS PUBLISHED BY: SPORTS PUBLICATIONS LTD 2 Arena Park, Tarn Lane, Scarcroft, West Yorkshire, LS17 9BF, UK Tel: 0113 289 3979 | info@sportspub.co.uk PUBLISHER Tom Irwin - t.irwin@sportspub.co.uk EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Dan Murphy - d.murphy@sportspub.co.uk OPS DIRECTOR Will Shucksmith - w.shucksmith@sportspub.co.uk EDITOR Steve Carroll - s.carroll@sportspub.co.uk PRODUCTION EDITOR James Broadhurst - j.broadhurst@sportspub.co.uk CHIEF DESIGNER Andrew Kenworthy - a.kenworthy@sportspub.co.uk DESIGNERS Vicky Jones - v.jones@sportspub.co.uk Becky Clark - b.clark@sportspub.co.uk Paul Barnett - p.barnett@sportspub.co.uk Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, but the publishers cannot accept responsibility for omissions and errors. All material in this publication is strictly copyright and all rights are reserved.The views expressed in The Golf Club Manager do not necessarily represent the views of the company or the editor. Every care is taken in compiling the contents but the publishers assume no responsibility for any damage, loss or injury arising from participation in any offer, competition or advertising contained within The Golf Club Manager. THE GOLF CLUB

MANAGER ISSUE 22 | JANUARY 2019

THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE GOLF CLUB MANAGERS’ ASSOCIATION

NEED TO KNOW

HANDICAPS: A YEAR TO GO

THE COUNTDOWN TO THE N E W S Y S T E M S TA R T S H E R E

SPECIAL FOCUS: HOW TOP TECH CAN IMPROVE YOUR CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

INDUSTRY

PARK LIFE

S TO K E PA R K ’ S S T UA R T CO L L I E R O N T H E I CO N I C CO U N T R Y E S TAT E W H E R E G O L F I S J U S T O N E O F T H E M A N Y AT T R AC T I O N S

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001 GCMA January 19 Cover.indd 3

20/12/2018 11:13

ON THE COVER: Stuart Collier

WELCOME

ISSUE 22 | JANUARY 2019

s another year beckons, wouldn’t we all love a crystal ball to see what lies ahead? How many of us would have predicted the summer of 2018, especially after the extremely damp start to the year? For us at HQ, 2019 will see the addition of at least two new Directors. Eddie Bullock and Gary Steele will sail off into the sunset after completing their terms of office. We wish them both well and take the opportunity to thank them for their help, commitment and support throughout their period. With the AGM at Coxmoor, in Nottingham, on April 15th, nominations for members wishing to serve on the Board will need to be received between March 4 and 18. As you have probably seen, we have entered into an agreement with Carolyne Wahlen, and her Golf HR team, to provide a dedicated helpline service for members seeking employment advice. Over the last two years I have been made aware that the legal expenses helpline was not overly well received, hence the decision to try and provide a much more personal service – especially at a time when you need sound advice. Looking ahead to the 2019 Conference, the planning team have once again met and are well into providing a most informative and inspirational programme. While we are always looking to improve the conference, one of the areas we would like to develop

this year is the interactive sessions providing you with an insight into how other members view the issues we all deal with. There will also be a small number of changes to the conference detail – these will be announced as the lead up continues. Hopefully you will be reading this before BTME. If you are in Harrogate, we are aiming to host an open forum from 4pm to 5pm on January 22. The aim is to get your views on the Association and what you would like to see in the future. There is no set agenda but a chance for you to sit around the table with fellow managers. Please call at our stand at BTME to find out more. Bob Williams – chief executive

“How many of us would have predicted the summer of 2018, especially after the extremely damp start to the year?“

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The month in

PICTURES

A full house of 20 attended our latest Principles of Golf Club Management course at Wyboston Lakes, in Bedfordshire, in November. The training course taught them the fundamentals of the position,

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including looking at social media, club governance and strategic planning. Putting in the time at the whiteboard are Rachel Jeffrey, Woodcote Park’s Mikey O’Brien, Simon Lyth and Pinner Hill’s Clair Lawton.

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It’s not just about what happens in the office. Learning about what happens in the greenkeeper’s maintenance facility are John O’Gaunt’s Nigel Broadwith, Simon Lyth,

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the GCMA’S Julie Knight, Lisa Simmonds, Rachel Jeffrey and Hugh Townsend. To find out more about the Principles of Golf Club Management course, check out our feature on page 10.

The golf course is clearly the club’s biggest jewel and getting a crash course in agronomy at Wyboston Lakes are Simon Lyth, Stevenage G&CC’s Sharon Hannah, Julie Knight, Andrew Seale, Hendon’s Gabriela Segal, Lisa Simmonds, Rachel Jeffrey and Hugh Townsend.

GCMA.ORG.UK | 9

Getting a head start

IN MANAGEMENT

ur Principles of Golf Club Management residential training courses are held three or four times a year, depending on whether the GCMA Conference is held. The next course, at Harrogate as part of BTME, will be the 97th the association has held since the

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inaugural course in Drumoig in 1991. The training course, which tours different venues around the country, is designed for either newcomers to the profession of golf club management, or an existing manager, secretary or assistant, who want to bring themselves up-to-date with current management practices. The

course is relevant for both private membersâ€™ and proprietary clubs. Much of the course is specifically designed for those already in post or wishing to make a career in golf club management. It gives a great grounding in the fundamentals of the position and offers context of how the office works and its challenges.

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The Principles of Golf Club Management course provides an invaluable grounding in the industry, writes Mike Hyde

It is invaluable for understanding the industry, and the complexities, challenges and frustrations of the role. It also highlights the difference between running a golf club compared to other businesses. The course is usually delivered by a mix of serving managers with many years’ experience and industry specialists from outside of

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the association. All students will be issued with a certificate of attendance that is recognised by golf clubs, as they see the benefit of employing people who have attended courses run by the GCMA. The total cost, including all course materials and full board and accommodation is £995, which represents excellent value. The non-residential course, at Harrogate, costs £385. Course content includes basic agronomy and the golf course, health and safety, social media, course rating and handicapping, along with club governance and strategic planning, marketing and membership and social responsibility. Upcoming course dates are January 20 to 22 at BTME, March 11 to 15 at Wyboston Lakes, in Bedfordshire, and September 16 to 20 at Puckrup Hall, in Tewkesbury. Current presenters include industry experts Steven Brown (food & beverage), Carolyne Wahlen (employment law) and Sam Poole (digital marketing). Delegates on the course will be awarded 60 Continuing Professional Development (CPD) credits and Niki Hunter, GCMA professional development manager, said the course is a great way of identifying the next steps in a career. “Some people ask us whether they are better suited to the Diploma in Golf Club Management, or the Principles course,” she said.

“Everyone’s situation is different, but as a guide, the Principles course offers a great foundation to understand the role of a golf club manager – either as a refresher or an introduction. “It’s an intense overview of the numerous disciplines that a manager must have a working understanding of to run a golf club successfully, and the residential experience offers a fantastic networking opportunity – groups stay in contact themselves after the course, and our lecturers are always happy to take calls after as well.

“The Principles course is also a good way to identify the next steps in one’s professional development pathway – perhaps onto the Diploma, or one of the three Certificates – while also getting a good grounding across the board” If you have any questions about our highly successful, enjoyable and educational course, or to book a place, please contact Niki on 07990 520173 or email niki@gcma.org.uk

GCMA.ORG.UK | 11

EDUCATE EXHIBIT EVOLVE BTME 2019 | 22â€‘24 January 2019 Harrogate Convention Centre | btme.org.uk

The turf industry is rapidly changing. Autonomous machinery, pioneering grass species and state of the art turf health products are redeďŹ ning how turf professionals achieve their goals. BTME, too, is evolving, and 2019 will see the exhibition expand into alternative facilities in the Harrogate Convention Centre providing visitors with an enhanced BTME experience.

Need to

KNOW All the relevant news, opinion, and expert insight from around the industry

Getting up to date with

HANDICAPPING

ou’ve barely got the new Rules of Golf bedded in and yet there is another huge golfing change coming up on the horizon. The World Handicap System is only a year away and it will only be getting more feverish as 2019 goes on and the countdown to the system intensifies. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the better part of 18 months, you’ll know that The R&A and USGA have been working – with the various handicapping authorities – on introducing a global system that is due to come into place in 2020. It should allow us to record scores for handicap wherever we are on the planet but there is still plenty to do before we all start testing our marks on the Old Course or Pebble Beach. England Golf recently held a series of workshops to update on the latest position and, if you were unable to attend, these were some of the main highlights… There are three different handicap numbers to consider This sounds more complicated than it actually is. Whenever you play a round, you might have to take note of your handicap index, course handicap as well as a competition handicap. Your handicap index is your actual mark, to a decimal point, and is much as it is now. The course handicap is that index adjusted for the slope of the

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layout you are playing and the competition handicap is the course handicap with any additions or subtractions laid out by the competition conditions. A cap will ensure handicaps can’t rise too severely One of the main concerns with using an averaging system is that handicaps could fluctuate massively given a player’s performance over

their last 20 rounds. The cap will put a limit on that. The maths is fairly complicated and there are two forms of the cap but, in short, it will look at the lowest handicap index a player has achieved over the previous year and they won’t be able to rise more than a maximum of five shots in that period. Think course conditions assessment not CSS

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The countdown begins in earnest to the introduction of the World Handicap System in 2020. Steve Carroll looks at the recent progress For players who have got some way to go before getting a fully developed handicap record – that is 20 acceptable scores – managers are being urged to get them to complete that in 2019 so their new WHS handicap can be as accurate as possible. What’s next? With the latest educational workshops having concluded, continued parallel testing of the new system will continue this year, with education intensifying. We should go into a WHS transition period, with many of us getting to know and being able to track what our new handicaps might be, later on this year before the launch of the new system in 2020.

What’s it all about?

This is the procedure that establishes the effect conditions of play on a particular day have had on the performances of players. That will now be a daily assessment and it will look at the impact of scoring for ALL players. So that’s not just those playing in your midweek Stableford. It will be anyone who puts in an acceptable score for handicap purposes. That could be a member’s casual

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round, or a visiting society. The calculation will be drawn up to be conservative in nature – removing some of the volatility for which people have criticised CSS in the past. It will include all eligible players who have a handicap index of 36.0 or lower and have a fully developed handicap record. Get your players to put in some scores

The World Handicap System will replace the six different formats that are currently used by more than 15 million golfers in more than 80 countries. It is being developed by The R&A and the USGA, supported by the world’s handicapping authorities – including CONGU – and will give players a global handicap they can use anywhere in the world. It will utilise course and slope rating, will see both competitive and recreational scores count for handicap and will be calculated from an average of the best eight out of 20 recent scores.

GCMA.ORG.UK | 15

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INDUSTRY The latest news, insightful opinions and in-depth features from the golf industry

In the

LOOP 1. The R&A announces £2 million funding to boost junior golf What’s happened: The R&A have pledged to provided £2 million to the Golf Foundation over the next four years to help encourage more young people to play golf and stay in the sport to boost membership. What does it mean? Schemes like Tri-Golf and Street Golf have been successful in helping the Golf Foundation engage young people in the sport at schools, sports centres, parks and multi-use games facilities across Great Britain and Ireland. They are hoping that more than two million youngsters will now be introduced to golf through those schemes as a result of this funding, while around 180,000 will get the chance to receive coaching through the Golf Roots Centres, which are junior friendly clubs that provide taster sessions in schools and sees the coaching delivered by PGA professionals. The Girls Golf Rocks programme, which the Golf Foundation runs jointly with England Golf, will also give girls more coaching opportunities and will see those

The news you need to know from the last month in the golf industry…

participants mentored by existing volunteers who already work in junior golf. Stephen Lewis, Golf Foundation chairman, said:“The R&A’s continued support is fantastic from GolfSixes League through to The Open – it is an outstanding commitment. “They are backing this charity to ensure golf is fresh and exciting for the next generation.” Duncan Weir, The R&A’s executive director of golf development and amateur events, added:“We

are very supportive of grassroots initiatives that aim to grow the sport by inspiring more youngsters into playing golf and encouraging them to go on to become members of golf clubs. “The Golf Foundation has a proven track record of delivering innovative participation programmes together with our affiliates in Great Britain and Ireland and we are excited by its ambitions to grow participation in junior golf over the next four years and beyond.”

@GCMAUK Congratulations to GCMA members Stuart Leech from Formby and Stuart Gillett from Golf at Goodwood as well as Dudsbury on your awards at Club

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Mirror @GCMAUK

about the future of golf @EIGCA

Fascinating talk by Phil Grice of @ RoyalNorwichGC and @GCMAUK

Last week our beneficiary John Connelly completed a week

ED U C AT E | I N FO RM | I N S P I RE

We want to hear from you! Send your correspondence, on any subject, to letters@gcma.org.uk

2. And five more counties sign up for Girls Golf Rocks in 2019 What happened: The programme, which aims to get more girls playing the sport, will return and spread the recruitment programme even further across England. What does it mean? Cornwall, Hampshire, Lancashire, Lincolnshire and Worcestershire have joined the successful England Golf programme, bringing the total to 26 counties who will be running Girl Golf Rocks events. These will consist of free taster sessions, starting in May, followed by coaching courses with PGA professionals. Last year, more than 1,650 girls attended taster sessions with 1,200 of those taking on the coaching courses.

them to but, having asked 218 golf clubs from 17 different towns and cities in England and Scotland, it is interesting to note that an overwhelming number – 161 (or 74%) did not have a single corporate membership option for businesses in their pricing structure. They then surveyed 258 businesses across the two countries, in a variety of different industries, and discovered that 165 of those would be interested in a corporate membership scheme to entertain clients or treat employees. Is the survey size simply too small, or is the idea of golf as a place to do business something that no longer applies? Whichever it is, it still seems a surprise more clubs aren’t catering to a potential market.

Welcome to our newest GCMA members Emma Goddard, at Macdonald Portal Hotel, Golf & Spa, in North West region Christopher Hayes, at Shifnal, in Midland region Martin O’Sullivan, at Reigate Hill, in Surrey Paul Wareing, at Heysham, in North West region Karen Woodrow, at Barnham Broom, in Norfolk region

3. Does your club offer corporate membership? What happened: A survey from golfing retailer, GolfSupport. com, revealed that more than 70% of clubs have no corporate membership options for businesses. What does it mean? Surveys can often say whatever you want

long @GCMAUK Principles of Management Course. This is yet another step towards John becoming a golf club manager, previously having had a

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work experience placement. #charitytuesday #recoverythroughgolf #golfcareer @OnCourseCharity

GCMA.ORG.UK | 19

This GCMA club is famous for…

BAMBURGH CASTLE This Northumberland course, run by manager Barry Walker, could well be Britain’s most scenic

old claim this, but from which other course in these fair isles can you see four castles on a good day? Bamburgh Castle may well be one of the most beautiful courses in Britain – never mind Northumberland. With views of Lindisfarne, the Farne Islands, the Cheviots and, naturally, Bamburgh Castle itself, it’s a pretty stunning links track to play. Stand on the 14th tee and you can bask in an exhilarating view of the sea on three sides, alongside miles and miles of unspoiled beaches. The castle, the core of which dates to Norman times, has a longer history that dates back to the 5th century. It’s more famous these days for its depiction on screen. Ivanhoe, El Cid, Elizabeth and the latest incarnation of Macbeth are among the blockbusters that have used the castle and its grounds for filming. But even those illustrious feats take second billing to the course, which isn’t just stunning to look at. It’s fun to play. There can’t be too many layouts that start with back-to-back par 3s and are followed immediately by two par 5s. You’ll hear the usual

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things about a par 68 that’s 5,645 yards off the back tees. Don’t listen. Thought provoking and fun, there are six par 3s in all, and you’d hope to celebrate a clutch of birdies. Wander off the beaten track, though, and trouble awaits. Take the 17th, for example. At 257 yards off the back tees, this par 4 is as much about keeping it in play as entertaining thoughts of driving the green. Played from an elevated tee – a lot of the holes are but why wouldn’t you show off the views? – you have to negotiate a path between out of bounds

tight down the right and a small mountain on the left. The charm doesn’t end on the course. The century old clubhouse has a wood panelled bar and, of course, those epic views of Lindisfarne. Bamburgh Castle is a true links experience that must be enjoyed. What is it that makes your club special? Every club has something that makes it unique, that sets it apart from everywhere else. Why not let us know what it is? Email s.carroll@sportspub.co.uk

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The interview...

STUART COLLIER Stuart Collier leads the golf experience at Stoke Park, one of Europe’s leading resorts. He talks to Mike Hyde about balancing the needs of customers and the course’s three-year renovation programme…

ED U C AT E | I N FO RM | I N S P I RE

GCMA.ORG.UK | 23

ow does golf fit into the bigger picture of the Stoke Park business? If you look historically, we have made that journey from a private members’ club to a proprietary business. In 1993, when the King family bought the club in its entirety, it moved from the members, committee, captain and president deciding what the policies were and the direction the club was going. We’ve been on this long journey of reinstating it back to its former glory and adding facilities. How does golf fit into that? The golf business is growing but it’s a smaller part of the club business than it was – because it was just a golf club going back to the Stoke Poges days. Now we’re a country club environment so you do

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have to understand and see how you fit within that wheel. One of the primary focuses for me, and something I work really hard on personally and with the team and the members, is to still keep hold of that members’ club feeling. I would describe us as a hybrid. We’ve got a 100-plus-year-old Harry Colt course and the fantastic clubhouse that is world renowned but we are run completely as a proprietary club. So we do have a golf committee, but there are only four meetings a year and it is very much an opportunity for the captains and vice-captains (the men’s and ladies’ are the four people who sit on the committee) to feedback to us what’s happening with the membership. They are not really involved at all in any decisions or policy so we are

very much left to run the business and get on with it. But we are running it for them. It is their club and we’re running the business. If we do that well, the business will be successful and if that is successful then they are going to see more investment and they are going to have a better environment to play in. It’s an interesting model and it’s something quite unique. Tell me about the support you receive from your captains and other volunteers I generally have a very positive relationship with the club’s captains, perhaps because I think of their role slightly differently – as a help to the organisation, rather than a hindrance. I can understand that captains could be seen as interfering when

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they only serve a short term, but I embrace that, thinking of them as consultants who I can work closely with and pick up ideas from during their tenure. When you think about it, many of these people are very successful business people in their own right and, handled in the right way, can be an invaluable asset to the golf club. When I look back at my time here, and add up what some of the advice I’ve received would have cost us in management consultancy fees, we’re definitely in profit. That said, I am always actively involved in the selection process, so I try and have a guiding hand on who I think would make the most positive contribution to the club based on the upcoming priorities of the business.

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How do you balance member play and expectation with delivering a high-end resortstyle experience for visitors? What’s important in the members’ understanding of what we are doing is that we are clear on our communication of how we are going to run the business. They are fully aware that we cannot provide everything we do here, on and off the golf course, based on the revenue from golf members only. The non-member revenue, certainly from a golf course perspective, is absolutely vital for everything that we do. We are very transparent with what events are on, what the demands on the tee sheet are like, that there are corporate events on, that we’ve got charity days here and that

there is casual play and resident golf. It is trying to manage that mix carefully and using your experience, your gut feeling at times about what’s manageable, and making sure you have got good relationships with the key organisers in each of the sections of the club so there are no surprises for them. If we are busy on a certain week, we ensure that provisions are made for members’ times to fit in around what’s going on but they do understand and appreciate that we are running a business and that the business has got to be profitable. For us to do that, we need to have a lot more things going on than just a nice quiet golf course for the members to rock up and

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“The culture of this business has always been to look forward and to think how we can improve. So when you wind the clock back from where the King family purchased the club, to where we are today, everything has been improved and upgraded”

play whenever they like. The course has been through a three-year renovation programme. How did that come about and what were you looking to achieve? Like any business, you are always reviewing how you can improve. Having spent the best part of 20 years in a role here, it certainly hasn’t been an experience where each year we are just trying to produce the same things. You can see what the family have done. The culture of this business has always been to look forward and to think how we can improve. So when you wind the clock back from where the King family purchased the club, to where we are today, everything has been improved and upgraded. The course is a fundamental part of the business and when you got into more detail about the course,

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for us by far the weakest element in terms of playability, in terms of presentation and consistency, was probably the bunkering. I’ve spoken to a lot of golf club managers and course managers. It’s probably the hardest challenge because the expectation of the golfer versus reality is very different. There are lots of different things you have to take into account. But I’m active as much as time allows, in terms of being on the golf course. I spend a lot of time getting feedback from members. We work with 59Club and we see the feedback from that. We have carried out regular golf course surveys and we will review the different elements of the course and take into account individual comments from members. By far, the bunkering was the weakest part. That really gave us the opportunity then, collating all

of that information together, to sit down with the owners and say ‘if we have an opportunity to spend some money on the golf course then that’s the place we are going to begin and look to have the greatest impact on an upgrade’. That was the route we went down and we were fortunate, having a 27-hole facility, that we can close nine holes each winter. We worked through each of the three loops of nine through a three-year period. The utilisation of the course was such that we could cope with having 18 holes open over the winter months. John Greasley, who came in to do the work, could just crack straight on with it. Was the build the prime driver or was there any architectural idea of trying to take it back to how it was originally? It is interesting. We looked at

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a few different options and there has certainly been a trend of restoration in golf courses and people looking back and architects wanting to recreate the course as it was. We felt that the changes in technology, of how golfers are playing the course, and the expectations now in terms of look and presentation were completely different and that wasn’t the route we wanted to go down. This is very much a club and business that respects our traditions. We’ve got a huge amount of history but we are always looking in a forward direction. For us, the option to put it all back didn’t really fit with where we were as a business. The changes that were made were probably more about future proofing the golf course and making the bunkering more relevant to the current player

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than to how it was when the golf course was built. Bear in mind the golf course now is very different to when it was laid out. There was a different pattern of play, there were other holes on the estate, and so to go back to having a mission of creating that original course just isn’t possible with the infrastructure of the whole estate. Were issues like driving distance taken into account? It was and I think we had probably had 100 years’ worth of tinkering with bunkers. There were very few out there that were originals. It was a case of reviewing every hole and we had so many different shapes and styles and looks that there was no consistency at all. Our remit was to make sure there was a consistent theme – that the playability was consistent, that the look was consistent. Getting into the question of distances and

how we set that up, it was actually very penal for the golfer that hits it 220 to 250 yards. Someone who is carrying it 260 and 270-plus could just bomb their way through everything. It is a very big golf course in terms of scale. The fairways are wide and broad and there are a lot of big trees out there and a lot of room. We wanted to ensure that, for the bomber who didn’t have to worry about anything, there was a test. The 6th is a good example. On the right-hand side there were two fairway bunkers at 220 yards and, probably, 245. The latter has stayed but the 220 bunker has moved and is up at 270. It’s a challenging hole anyway. It’s stroke 5, a long uphill par 4, it’s got an incredibly tricky green. So, for your club golfer, it was extremely demanding. But, for your longer hitter, you could take all

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Who is Stuart Collier? Stuart Collier began his career at Flackwell Heath and Burnham Beeches before moving to Harleyford. Stuart joined Stoke Park in April 1999 as head professional before being appointed director of golf in 2002. He’s steered the resort ever since and oversees the 27-hole complex as well as the academy and retail offering. Stoke Park Stoke Park is one of Europe’s leading golf resorts and country clubs. The iconic clubhouse has featured in a number of films including Goldfinger, Layer Cake and Bridget Jones’ Diary. Harry Colt designed the 27-hole complex with the three nines known as the Colt, Alison and Lane Jackson respectively.

of that out of play and pitch it on the green. The longer hitter now doesn’t have driver in their hands all the time where, previously, they could just blast away. We set the golf course up to ensure it’s enjoyable and playable for people. There is no high long grass out there. The rough is cut at a pretty reasonable height so you can always find your ball. There is no high rough under trees. It’s a busy golf course. There is member play, corporate play, and we work hard on trying to keep people getting round. People are out here to enjoy themselves. You don’t want to come off feeling like you’ve spent your day looking for balls and you’ve been beaten up completely. There are enough challenges out there with the layout and the green complexes to not need to trick the golf course up. On the visitor side, what are the

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key principles of that customer experience? One of the resounding messages we get from people who come into the club – visitors, corporates, guests of members and even members at times – is that the drive up and through the estate and the appearance of the mansion house has got a real wow factor about it. Your expectation, knowing the golf industry, is ‘I bet I am going to need to tread carefully today, and be careful where I can go and what I can do’. But we’ve created such a warm, friendly, environment. The staff are extremely engaged in the visitors and they understand how the business is made up and the importance of those golfers. We need them here. We want them here and they form a key part of our business. They are made to feel extremely welcome. We have a five Red star

AA rated hotel. With that level of service, the staff are very well trained – from a house perspective and on the golf team. As I said, we work with 59Club, so the minute you pull up in the bag stop you are given a warm welcome and a greeting. You know where to go, you know the journey through to the pro shop, into the changing rooms and up for breakfast. There is a consistency of service throughout that and the interest and friendliness of the staff probably takes people by surprise – because of their expectations within golf. People have said to me ‘the club has always got a smile on its face’ and that isn’t always the case everywhere. But the staff and team know the importance of those visitors, and what they mean to the business, so there is a focus on welcoming them in and ensuring that individual is having their dream day out.

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How technology has delivered

BETTER SERVICE

Jonathan Lupton puts Toptracer through its paces at Close House

echnology is all around us and the options in front of a golf club manager can seem overwhelming. Which system is right for your club, and which – crucially – will add value to membership and the customer experience? We talked to four GCMA member clubs: Close House, Maxstoke Park, Hesketh and Prince’s. They occupy different parts of the golfing

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market, and their customers each have different needs and desires. We asked them about the tech choices they have made – a different one for each – and looked at how their investments have paid off in terms of enhancing what they can provide to those who use their facilities… Toptracer Well known already to viewers who watch the top players

bombing it on the PGA Tour, Toptracer is becoming an increasingly popular way for clubs to increase footfall at their driving ranges and academies. Jonathan Lupton, managing director at Close House, had the shot tracking technology installed at the British Masters venue in October. The versatility it has given members and guests in practise – whether that is playing a nearest the pin challenge or competing

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We ask those in charge at four GCMA clubs how they have utilised high tech solutions to improve the experience for members and visitors

over a virtual Pebble Beach – has been important for a club that is always trying to “take the next step”. “My first role at Close House was head professional and the academy was the first area I developed,” Lupton said.“It’s something that I love. I love the building and everything about it. I have been looking for a USP for it. “For a while we were the only place in the region that had PowerTees and that was a nice selling point for a bit. “Could we do something a bit different that would generate a little bit more footfall and revenue? We thought we needed something to bring people in from a little bit further afield.” Lupton wasn’t cold called by a Toptracer agent. He contacted them himself and then mystery shopped the system at Mearns Castle Golf Academy, in Glasgow, to see it in action. “I went up with Jonathan Greenwood, who is general manager here, on a Bank Holiday.

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There were 25 people in 20 bays on a Monday afternoon,” he added. “We looked at each other and thought ‘we’ve found what we need to be doing’. “We had one of the most enjoyable hour’s practising. It has been great. “If you’ve got Toptracer and you’re on a range, with a decent range ball, you actually see that the golf ball is doing what it says on the screen and you buy into it more. “It can be fun, it can be informative, it can be whatever you want it to be. I understand the benefits of skills testing from my coaching background.

“We have had more footfall. We have had higher revenue through the range” “I can wholeheartedly say that if people come to the range and do the skills tests, and do them properly, their games will improve. But, as much as we’ve tried, we couldn’t get it to work. “With this we have the ability to make it measurable, informative, fun and it’s so far so good. “We’re still in the opening bubble but it has been good. We’ve had more footfall. We’ve had higher revenue through the range. Obviously it comes with a cost

and we’ve got to make sure that (this use) continues over a period of time.” Club Systems International With Maxstoke Park still using the old pen and paper tee booking system in the pro shop, it was clear the members needed the Birmingham club to get with the times. “It was causing a lot of unrest and was unfair on 80 per cent of the membership,” explained general manager Andrew Gibbins. “The club had a desire to get competition bookings online. We looked at various options and felt Club V1 was the best for what we needed.” Since installing the software, they have found it has not only transformed competitions but had a number of ancillary benefits. “It has freed up the pro to run his business rather than run our competition sheet all the time. “It has kept a huge majority of the membership happy that weren’t happy with the existing system. It’s given them the ability to book at a certain time that was maybe very difficult when it was just a piece of paper – because the same people always seemed to get the same times. “Now it is an open field for anyone to do so. It has also helped new members integrate into competitions because the ability to go onto the app and look at where tee times are has helped. “Everyone is aware of when they have booked in. That didn’t

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Maxstoke Park

happen with the old pen and paper. Even if your friend books you in, you now get told about it as well. There is no excuse for not turning up.” From point of sale, to the personalisation of communications, the changes have, in Gibbins’ opinion, ensured members at Maxstoke Park feel they are getting the information they need. He explained:“The new till system has helped improve margins and provide a bit better

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stock control. It saves us a lot of man hours in terms of the online top up facility. “It is a USP when you are selling membership. It says a lot about the way the club is being run that we are using some of the most advanced technology available. “In the old system, every email would have started ‘dear member’. You couldn’t filter and couldn’t send a mail communication just to the men. “With V1 you can send it age specific, handicap specific, gender

specific, category specific. That’s really good.” intelligentgolf Getting the basics – tee booking, competitions, communications – running smoothly was a challenge for Hesketh until they moved to intelligentgolf. The Southport club had been running a few different systems that “didn’t quite talk to each other,” said secretary/manager Martin Edge.“Bringing them all together has been a bit of a benefit.”

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Hesketh

Hesketh moved over completely to intelligentgolf at the start of last year and have made the website and app, provided by the firm, essential parts of the member experience. Added Edge:“They’ve got a central place to go and do quite a few things. So when the subscriptions are set and are ready to go, the bill appears online and they can pay it from home. “It has saved us quite a bit of time, from an admin point of view, where we don’t physically have to deal with 600 to 700 people

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paying their subs. We might only see a third of that who pop in still. “The members can top up online, they have got the app they can subscribe to that gives them push notifications when the course closes or if we’ve got some special news they need to hear about. “It’s a bit more inclusive because we can bring everything together. They can sign up to the club competitions on a Monday night. “It sends them an email with their time afterwards and they can then subscribe to a diary for their iPhone

that fills it up. It has been good.” Hesketh are also utilising intelligentgolf’s systems to help them organise social events, such as a night this month to explain the new Rules of Golf. It’s not about removing customer contact, though. It’s about tailoring it so members see what they want and need to, and aren’t bothered by the things they are not interested in. “Everyone was happy and it was relatively seamless,” concluded Edge of the transition.

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Prince’s general manager Rob McGuirk

Golf Genius Clubs don’t come with much more history than Prince’s – the hosts of the Open in 1932, won by Gene Sarazen, and a links treasure of the Kent coast. With 27 holes of golf, and accommodation and dining options in the Lodge, it is a busy venue for both members and stay and play visitors. That means lots of events, and lots of competitions to be managed –

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“Using Golf Genius saves our staff an enormous amount of time and makes managing the tournament...easier” including their popular Open Week, which involves five competitions over five days in August.

They brought in tournament software company Golf Genius to assist with their corporate and open events and have been thrilled with the results. “Initially we were a bit sceptical of Golf Genius and what it could do, but after a presentation from Craig Higgs and talking with other club managers who were employing the software we went for it and have been thrilled with the results,” said general manager

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You can easily record scores through the Golf Genius app

Rob McGuirk. What has impressed Prince’s has not only been the ability to co-ordinate different formats but also Golf Genius’ easy integration with other software platforms, which has allowed them to pull in rosters as well as CDH numbers seamlessly. Previously they would also have had to process more than 400 scorecards and results, and taking payment through the app

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has helped clear bottlenecks at registration and reduced stress on the club team. With roughly 100 guests at the club at any one time, the app has also kept them organised and informed about tee times and results. “Using Golf Genius saves our staff an enormous amount of time and makes managing the tournament a lot easier,” added McGuirk. “The presentation of the app,

website and printed materials is great and using the live scoring and leaderboards is a great point of difference to offer our guests and increases the excitement as groups come in off the course.” He continued:“We have been using Golf Genius for almost two years and I can confidently say that using the software is a must for clubs looking to save time managing a tournament. It’s simple, effective and affordable.”

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ADVERTORIAL FEATURE

A Zest for

CHANGE

ut simply, a new golf technology company is intending to live up to its name. Zest.Golf Technologies, based out of the Home of Golf and with tech partners in the Netherlands, is a fresh name to the industry and one already achieving early success. Their model is straightforward and effective – the first open golf technologies platform with a desire to do two things. Firstly, to provide innovative technology solutions demanded by the industry and, secondly, to enable golf businesses to take complete control of their golf technology solutions. “The golf industry is continually developing, with the game being played across six continents by an estimated 60 million people,” notes Oliver Dury, Zest.Golf’s Commercial Director, who works from their Dundee office, just a few short miles from the game’s cradle in St Andrews. “This evolution creates a number of challenges and many of those can be overcome through the adoption of golf technology solutions. “Our Channel Manager technology gives golf courses the

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opportunity to sell tee times to the market from one single platform, meaning anyone can become a partner or customer.” In simplistic terms, what is a Channel Manager? “The Zest.Golf Channel Manager provides a 100% open connection between golf courses, tee sheet providers and distribution partner platforms,” he continues. “It gives courses the opportunity to increase revenue by having more control – they simply choose which sales channels can sell their tee times and set the price and availability with each separately. Courses can sell times via any business that has a golfer audience; including golf websites, federations, media companies, local accommodation providers, tour operators and even airlines.” Established in 2018, Zest.Golf is making good progress. Over 100 golf courses and 24 sales channels have pre-registered, with the platform launching globally early in 2019. Partnerships have also been

struck, notably with the UK Golf Club Managers’ Association (GCMA) and global distribution companies Chronogolf and Greenfee365. “We would like to revolutionise the industry by transforming the global online tee time marketplace,” Dury adds.“We believe our customer focused technology can do this in much the same way channel managers have done for the airline and accommodation sectors – and literally connect a golf course’s tee sheet to the world. “We have partnered with Rotterdam-based company, Lunatech Labs, to develop the technology. Lunatech use the very latest tools and programming language, with offices in Amsterdam, Paris and Niort. “They also work with world renowned customers including Audi, ING and EuroDisney. Together, we have over 100 years’ combined experience in the golf and technology sectors.” There are no upfront costs or complex contracts for connecting to Zest, just a fixed €1 fee per player booked when the connection is used to make the booking. The Zest.Golf Channel Manager connects to current tee sheets, meaning golf courses

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Zest.Golf Commercial Director Oliver Dury provides an insight into the new technology company

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ADVERTORIAL FEATURE

are not required to change tee sheet provider to benefit. Zest.Golf are now part of the GCMA’s ‘Partner Network’ created to connect industry suppliers with the association’s 1,700 members. The network is designed to not only ensure GCMA members are kept up to date with the latest products and technologies, but also to share knowledge and expertise between members and partners, as well as to support the delivery of the association’s benefits and services. Zest have been fast tracked by Scottish Enterprise as an emerging small business and their offering quickly caught the attention of Chronogolf. Over 500 golf courses use Chronogolf’s software solutions across five continents, with over 16 million rounds booked on their tee time marketplace to date. In

2018, the company generated record sales and was successful in expanding into the US, Canada and Europe. Dury is often asked how the technology works for sales partners, like Greenfee365, who wish to intergrate with the platform. “Distribution or sales partners benefit by having a real time connection to golf course tee sheets, meaning they can develop revenue opportunities through direct consumer booking options on their digital platforms,” says Dury. “The connectivity provided by our channel manager can improve the way the industry operates as it allows tour operators to log into multiple tee sheets and book tee times simultaneously. “This saves a huge amount of time and resources when

compared to the current requirement of emailing and calling golf courses when pulling together an itinerary. “It is really interesting that there are a lot of new sales channel companies and technology driven companies coming into the market. “That has to demonstrate that there is a need or a pull factor in the industry. “We are looking to become almost the ‘voice’ for distribution, providing that one connection that can benefit courses, tee sheet providers and distribution partners.”

Golf courses and sales channels can pre-register for the Zest.Golf Channel Manager now at www.zest.golf

Oliver Dury, Zest.Golf’s Commercial Director

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THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT

WHO ARE ZEST.GOLF TECHNOLOGIES? A new company that provides industry leading golf technology solutions that simplify processes and maximise tee time booking revenue opportunities.

WHAT DOES 100% OPEN CONNECTION MEAN FOR GOLF COURSES? It gives golf courses complete control to sell tee times via the sales channels of their choosing.

WHAT DO I NEED TO CHANGE TO WORK WITH ZEST.GOLF? Integration is easy; simply contact your tee sheet provider and let them know you would like to connect your tee sheet to the Zest.Golf Channel Manager.

HOW MUCH WILL IT COST ME? It is a fixed €1 fee per player booked using the Zest.Golf Channel Manager.

IS IT GOING TO TAKE UP MORE TIME? No, the technology does the work for you. All you need to do is set the rates and availability on the Zest.Golf platform and watch the bookings come in!

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WHAT IS A GOLF CHANNEL MANAGER? A platform that allows golf courses to manage multiple tee time sales channels from one place, setting the price and availability with each separately.

WHAT IS A SALES CHANNEL? An online channel that your course can sell tee times through. Zest already has a connection to 24 sales channels, with more registering all the time.

WHAT IF MY TEE SHEET PROVIDER WON’T LET ME CONNECT? This is unlikely given the tee times belong to your golf course, not the tee sheet provider. You own the tee times, meaning you have the right to sell these through the channels of your choosing.

HOW WILL IT MAKE A DIFFERENCE TO MY BUSINESS? Our customer focused technology will make your course visible to thousands of golfers in different markets, who can book tee times instantly via multiple sales channel platforms.

HOW CAN I SIGN UP? Golf courses and distribution channels can pre-register for the Zest.Golf Channel Manager now at www.zest.golf, with the platform launching globally early in 2019.

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Getting ready to face

THE FUTURE Golf Course 2030 aims to address challenges arising from our changing environment to make our courses the best they can be

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ur world is changing and it’s not just the pressures of climate change that means golf needs to change with it. Resource constraints, along with regulation and legislation controlling the products course managers can use, can have a direct impact on the condition of the course we see as golfers.

Golf Course 2030 is a vision of the environment we might face in just 12 short years. It aims to identify and tackle the challenges, highlight the opportunities and raise awareness to ensure playing surfaces meet the expectations of golfers – now and in the future. It is being led by The R&A and, in the first of a series of articles on the subject, the organisation’s director of sustainability, Steve

Isaac, introduces the project and explains its aims… What is Golf Course 2030? It is a process that will put together an industry roadmap to address challenges and present opportunities from the changing climate, resource constraints and regulation to secure optimal golf course condition and playability for current and future generations. Optimal condition and playability is a reflection of the potential of any site, and the impact of any limitations to meeting that potential, such as drainage, budget and staff resources. In the recently published R&A vision for growing golf, chief executive Martin Slumbers set down a challenge for the organisation to be inspired to play its part in driving forward the necessary change that will be required to ensure that golf continues to thrive in 50 years’ time. Golf Course 2030 is being initiated in Great Britain & Ireland – to develop the process and devise a blueprint to take it further afield. Why 2030? Golf Course 2030 is about facing up to current and future challenges. It is aligned with the United Nations’ 2030 Sustainability Agenda – hence 2030. That is only 12 years away, so it has relevance to most people currently engaged with golf. However, 2030 is not the time limit for the roadmap as this will be an ongoing process for as long as golf faces challenges and can take opportunities presented by the changing climate, resource constraints and regulation. Why are GCMA and The R&A involved? As golf’s global governing body

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GCMA | NEED TO KNOW | INDUSTRY | CAREERS | GOOD PRACTICE | GRASS ROOTS managers? “Any solutions or initiatives, arising from Golf Course 2030, will have true consequences for the management of golf facilities as they will directly affect revenue, labour, course condition and customers,” added Cunning. “Therefore, understanding and communicating these issues will be a requirement to ensure we retain well managed facilities going forward.”

outside of the USA and Mexico, it seems right that The R&A should play a leading role in an initiative that will impact on the future security of the sport and how it is played. The R&A will facilitate and manage the Golf Course 2030 process. The GCMA, and other industry stakeholders, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with The R&A, committing themselves to supporting and promoting the initiative. Jim Cunning, the GCMA’s golf management researcher, explained:“As these challenges will directly impinge on golf facilities and their managers it is imperative that managers are able to influence any solutions and initiatives brought about by Golf Course 2030. “The GCMA, as the leading

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authority in golf club management, is best placed to focus that influence and ensure the management of any solutions or initiatives is feasible.” Who else is involved? Twenty nine different organisations connected with golf course management in GB&I have been engaged and have expressed commitment to the project. This includes The R&A, the four national governing bodies in GB&I, course owners, club managers, greenkeepers, professional golfers (club and tour), agronomists, sustainability partners, course architects, researchers, education providers and commercial associations. Why is it relevant to club

How did it come about? The idea was driven by pesticide regulation and the loss of insecticides in the UK. While an emergency use authorisation has now restored limited supplies of a product, the trend of pesticides being removed from the greenkeeper’s arsenal, plus instances of lost revenue due to summer flooding and damage to courses during last summer’s drought, made The R&A realise that a collaborative and coordinated response from the golf industry was needed to address challenges and opportunities. Cunning said: “The GCMA, after attending the introductory meeting in September, also realised that the issues would need to be addressed in a collaborative manner. “It was felt that the GCMA’s involvement would be best suited as a member of the Working Party, which will assess and review action plans and priority projects. The GCMA will, therefore, bring a manager’s perception to the table when addressing solutions and initiatives.” Why now? The R&A has been advocating a sustainable approach to golf course management for decades, back to when ‘The Way Forward’

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An inside view from the fire officers, course manager and the club manager on when disaster struck at Burnham and Berrow GC in the searing heat of last summer.

Following last summer’s heatwave and the ensuing problems that many golf courses have encountered, we would encourage clubs to attend this session to gain an understanding of how they should be managing their disaster plans and ensure members are aware of the procedures should a crisis occur.

Learn how the Club had not only to deal with the fire but the concerns of the local residents, as well as the damage caused to the irrigation system and ensuring incorrect media coverage didn’t spread faster than the flames.

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was published in 1989. The establishment of The R&A Golf Course Committee in 2002 refreshed our impetus for such issues, with this Committee morphing into The R&A Sustainability Committee in 2016. However, although there was the threat of pesticide regulation and climate change back in 2002, there was no real evidence of their impact. We have now seen a number of withdrawals of important pesticides from the market and an increase in extreme weather events that have had a direct impact on course condition and playability. The timing now seems apposite to pose questions about the future of course management, and to put in place a process to find solutions. Everyone involved in the sport in GB&I must see that the

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challenges are real, though they may not always appreciate the opportunities they present. How is it structured? The intention is for industry stakeholders to identify priority issues that reflect the challenges posed and opportunities presented from the changing climate, resource constraints and regulation in securing optimal golf course condition and playability for current and future generations. These will then be subject to the development of Action Plans, to be undertaken by stakeholders, that will set out a clear pathway to provide solutions. Solutions might include greater uptake of existing knowledge and best practice, research, education and behaviour change. Behaviour change may be necessary for

everyone working at a golf facility and for golfers, who may have to accept a different look to the golf course. It should be stressed that this could well be for the better. What will it achieve? The intention of Golf Course 2030 is to contribute towards securing the future of the sport. This does not mean the sport will look exactly the same as it does now. When will we see results? The process will investigate priority issues in three-year cycles. Solutions may be uncovered over that time, if not the issue will continue to be considered a priority for investigation. Over that time other issues may become greater priorities and have Action Plans devised in relation to challenges and opportunities.

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THE LOST ART

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OF PUTTING Introducing the Six Putting Performance Principles

“There’s a huge art in putting, touch and feel, The Lost Art is all about that. Get the book, enjoy it and have fun” – Darren Clarke, 2011 Open Champion “Do you want to improve your putting? Do yourself a favour and buy The Lost Art of Putting, it’s a great read and I know it’ll help a lot” – Andrew Coltart, Sky Sports Pundit and former Ryder Cup player

The Lost Art of Putting is available on

hardback priced at £19.95 and Kindle at £9.99

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CAREERS Advice and news for golf club managers. Plus, the latest jobs from clubs across the UK

GCMA RECRUITMENT

FOR MORE DETAILS ABOUT THE VACANCIES BELOW, VISIT GCMA.ORG.UK/JOBS

SOUTHWICK PARK ::: GENERAL MANAGER

Located in beautiful Hampshire countryside and close to Portsmouth, Waterlooville and Fareham, the club is ideally situated. Established in 1977 to provide sporting and leisure facilities for Royal Naval personnel, the club has progressively expanded and modernised to cater for all markets, including civilian golfers. The club seeks to appoint an experienced Golf Club Secretary/General Manager to work closely with the board in implementing the clubâ€™s progressive Business Plan. Please apply in writing, including a CV and details of your current remuneration to: The Assistant Manager: assistantmanager@southwickparkgolfclub.com Region: Southern | Apply by: 12 January 2019 | Salary: Competitive

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How much are you

WORTH?

National captain Cameron Dawson, and committee member for 10 years, explains the role of the Committee for Golf Club Salaries and how you can get involved

he Committee for Golf Club Salaries (CGCS) have been producing guidance on the salaries for golf club managers, secretaries and greenkeepers for many years, but have you heard of it? Do you know what it does? The CGCS is an independent committee including representatives from GCMA, BIGGA, England Golf, The PGA and Golf HR and it is hoped industry bodies will accept invites to join.

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It produces information and guidance on salaries for managers and greenkeepers with an annual statement and document detailing those recommendations. The documents have been used by some of our members but have, rightly, also been criticised for not being relevant for many of you. The stumbling block has always been providing relevant and accurate figures covering the quality, turnover, diversity, location and role of the manager or greenkeeper. The CGCS thinks it has found a way to be more relevant, but it needs your help. Soon all managers and secretaries will be sent a short survey with a series of multiple choice answers, and which should only take a few minutes to complete. The responses will be

completely anonymous and will only be used to set averages of actual roles and their respective salaries. Please help us to help you by completing the survey. Why do we need this? Last year I came up with a formula that, by clicking on just five drop down menus, came up with a guideline salary for individual posts. In practice this has been shown to work really well and, when tested by quite a few managers, was rated “very useful” by 93% of them. Where they felt it needed work was on the accuracy of the results. This is not surprising, as I had used a baseline figure from the old recommendations and my best guesses for the variances in region, level of club, turnover and qualifications. This formula has been welcomed by BIGGA, who have moved very quickly in gaining the data needed to produce accurate results for greenkeepers and are almost ready to go live with their version. So please visit the new CGCS web site when it goes live and have a look at a very early version of the calculator to see how it will work. We will then produce our own calculator. Please don’t forget to complete the survey. You may be worth more than you think.

GCMA.ORG.UK | 1

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PRACTICE Advice on golf club management issues â€“ from finance to clubhouse rules and employment law

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Have you got to grips with

GDPR?

Itâ€™s now seven months since the General Data Protection Regulation came into force. But have clubs done enough to comply?

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here was enough doom and gloom surrounding General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) to rival the hype that engulfed the Millennium Bug at the term of the century. But the new legislation came into effect at the end of May and clubs have been operating under the rules now for seven months. So what has been the impact and are we really getting to grips with our new obligations? Nick Holden, managing director of Nexus Protect, a company that has been helping organisations manage the new GDPR rules, answers our questions… It’s seven months since GDPR

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came in. How has the period since been for businesses? Where businesses process lots of data, it has been quite a serious reality and we are starting to see more of that through enforcement actions. Like the Millennium Bug, there was a lot of hype around it but there was actually genuine substance to this with regard to data protection laws. It is genuine legislation that organisations have to meet and it is now enforced. That’s where the lack of understanding is. It is no longer a tick box exercise. Companies will be caught out. You said there are already cases of enforcement action under the new legislation? There are. They are very pragmatic about their approach – if you can show you have done as much as you possibly can to do to meet it and be proactive about it. But they will be taking it seriously and, like any piece of legislation, it takes a bit of time for the engine to get going. There will be enforcement action but the biggest risk to businesses, and I would even say for golf clubs, won’t necessarily be the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). It will be potentially their own members taking civil action against them. We’ve already started to see adverts from solicitor’s firms asking ‘has your data been misused? Has your data been breached?’ That’s where the

genuine risk is going to come from for a lot of organisations. This is where we are going to see this PPI-type culture and it will start to occur within data protection. How big a risk is that for golf clubs, who would normally handle a lot of personal details about their members? At most golf organisations there isn’t a global income but it is not just about that. There are potential fines from the ICO, civil litigation but also matters of reputation. Some of the things we have seen, and we have only just started working with golf clubs, are that a lot of people are putting a sticking plaster on this. They have just done window dressing. We have already seen this with one or two clubs. I won’t name them but, even when they have put a privacy notice in, it has been linked to somebody else’s. Have they updated their membership terms? These are all risks for clubs. Have they updated the reference of terms so their membership are aware of it? Don’t forget, this information is passed to the members of the club so they can organise matches. But you have to tell them what they can and can’t do with that information and data. It’s not just the staff. It’s actually the members of the club. We already know that some clubs might issue a book each year with a list of members in and their details, or they might be able to access it on a club website. But you still have to inform those members how they can and can’t use their data. That’s one of the biggest risks for a club – members misusing that information.

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People see the bits and pieces of GDPR in the news but even a lot of organisations don’t really understand the nuts and bolts of this. They see it as a big administrative pain in the backside but this is an opportunity for clubs to take charge of their data – what it is, where it is, is it still relevant? They need to be working through that. One of the mandatory requirements is you have to list all your data activities. You have to be able to say ‘this is all the data we have, and use, and how we use it’. Do they share data with third parties? If they do, they have to look at the contractual requirements. It comes down to liability. If a third party supplier that the club gives the information to has a breach, where does the liability sit contractually? If you don’t make sure you get that area covered, the liability is going to start well and truly with the club, and not the supplier necessarily, because there is no updated contract. Clubs have got a lot of things to be thinking about. It may seem huge, and a massive amount of work, but our experience is that you just need to break this down into what your risks are, what the mandatory requirements are and start to work your way through a plan. If you have a plan, you’re working through it and you can evidence that, it’s less likely the ICO will take as much action against you. Until the club understand their risk they are going to be stuck where they are and it is like sticking a plaster on an arterial bleed. It just doesn’t work. The whole club should be assisting – your committee, your admin team.

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Don’t forget the other information a club holds – credit card information, financial information – how are they processing that? Are they doing that securely? There are lots of different areas of which they need to be aware. Is their IT infrastructure safe? Have they got people who can still access that IT infrastructure who left the club years ago? Unfortunately, this legislation is real, it’s active and it’s live. So what practical advice can you give to clubs who are wrestling with this and might not know what to do about it?

“A lot of people are putting a sticking plaster on this. They have just done window dressing”

The key thing is you have to know what data you have and how you hold it. That’s not just electronic, it’s paper files as well. At some of the older clubs, you can imagine their archives. They need to start to look at what data they have, where they hold it and who they share it with. Once you get a picture of that, you can look at how you protect it. It is about policies and process. Your admin team and your club secretaries need the right processes in place – because you have to evidence and document them. If you did have a breach you have got to be able to show you have these things in place. If you have that breach, however small,

you need to log it onto some form of incident sheet so you can say ‘we’ve had an incident but this is how we have dealt with it. This is how we’ve made sure we don’t need to report it to the ICO’. You can help clubs with this as well? We’re looking to work more and more with the GCMA regions and clubs that feel like they have a risk. Everyone has a risk, it’s just how far down the line they are. We’re here to help. We provide practical advice about how they need to deliver this and we’re working with over 100 different organisations. We can look at IT infrastructures to make sure they are suitable. We can look at disaster recovery and management and we’re offering a whole package to golf clubs. What is GDPR? If the earlier hullabaloo about GDPR somehow passed you by, the way in which golf clubs process data changed at the end of May. If your club isn’t complying with the new legislation, the penalties can be huge – up to 20 million euros or 4% of annual worldwide turnover. GDPR applies to all businesses that process and hold personal data and covers areas such as consent, the right to be forgotten and the requirement to notify when breaches occur. Who are Nexus Protect? Nexus Protect aim to help individuals, new businesses and established organisations protect their people, physical assets, intellectual property and profits. They identify potential threats and then provide “innovative, cost effective and sustainable solutions”. For more, visit nexus-protect. com

GCMA.ORG.UK | 59

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From the

HELPDESK This month: Can we put age limits on discounted subscriptions and... what about course courtesy? We currently offer those who have been members for 25 consecutive years a 10% discount on their subscription. The only addition to this is that they have to be 65 years or older. I just wanted to check that we could still do this legally and we don’t have to offer this to everyone who has simply been a member for 25 years... This is a fairly common discount in golf clubs and until someone challenges in the courts there is not a ‘legal’ answer at present. However, the GCMA believe this kind of discount will be difficult to defend if it does go to court. This is because the club has tied the discount to those who are over a certain age and are actively discriminating against those who are not. The only way it can be justified is if you have a deficiency in members over 65 and are seeking to actively promote that category. I have just received a request from one of our GCMA members for a courtesy when playing with a society. What is the accepted protocol here? It is entirely at the discretion of the club in question. The GCMA have a library document, which can be viewed at gcma.org.uk/

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library/7070/, which deals with courtesy requests. Our club committee recently agreed to remove the ‘against’ voting option for the election of committee members at the AGM. This was done to reduce potential embarrassment if a nominated person received very few votes or an overwhelming number of negative votes (which are then announced publicly to the floor at the AGM) and that by doing this it would promote a more positive atmosphere around voting and hopefully encourage participation. Members can either vote ‘FOR’ or not vote for someone at all. However, some members have said this could be ‘unconstitutional’ or even not ‘legal’. I would appreciate your feedback on this matter. I understand that some members will feel that this is unconstitutional, but I do not believe this is so. Essentially, when they vote for one candidate and not another, they are voting against the candidate they did not vote for. I wonder if you could answer my little query. In timely fashion,

I sent out GDPR Consent Agreements to all our members prior to the May deadline. I also distributed our Privacy Policy. Around 100 of the members have either not read the emails or simply haven’t clicked to consent. I don’t want to remove them from the distribution list, albeit it would appear they don’t care much for the communications! Can I now send an email stating that if they don’t respond, I’ll leave them on the distribution list, or do I have to remove them? I’m afraid that you cannot treat the no reply option as consent for including the members’ details in the distribution list. You should email them again informing them they will not be included if they don’t reply. If you still get no answer you can either remove them or include their name in the list with the words ‘no permission granted’ in place of the contact details. That may spur some of them to give a future permission. With new members, I presume you have that permission inbuilt onto their application form? An online helpdesk offers an advisory service. Visit gcma.org. uk/members

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Grass

ROOTS All the latest news, views and interviews from across the GCMAâ€™s various regions in the UK

My success story...

MIKE WELLS

Sponsors of My Success Story

York’s massive clubhouse refurbishment in 2017 did not come without risk. But, as secretary Mike Wells tells Steve Carroll, the investment is already paying dividends

he final mortgage payment had only just gone to the bank but York weren’t in the mood to bask in their newfound wealth. While many clubs might have been tempted to relax following the end of a significant financial obligation, the club instead put pen to paper on a £300,000 loan to completely renovate their clubhouse. It was a refit that was 20 years in the making, including new carpets and furniture along with fixtures and fittings. Internal walls were also removed in an extensive first floor refurbishment of the two-storey building, which was built in 1971. When the club decided to buy the golf course in 1997, the focus fell rightly on dealing with those commitments. So when that mortgage was finally paid, they had a clubhouse that had accumulated two decades of the usual wear and tear. “It desperately needed it,” said secretary Mike Wells of the renovation.“It was the old style clubhouse – wooden frames and wooden panels. It was nicotine stained from the days when

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people were allowed to smoke.” The renovations took two months and the new clubhouse opened to general acclaim as the season got under way in 2017. But it would only be as the months passed that they would know whether the expense had been worth it. “Yes it was a risk,” Wells added. “You never know whether it is going to generate extra business or not. Is it going to do it, or is it just going to be a nice new thing that we’ve done but it has cost us a lot of money? “We had just paid off the mortgage – literally. In the January of 2017 we made our final payment on the mortgage and then in the March we made our first new loan payment. It was rolling in from one to another.” With close to two years of

“Visitors just can’t believe it – especially the ones who haven’t been here since we did it. The members are also enjoying it”

hindsight on which to look back, Wells has declared the investment to be “the best thing we have done in years”. That’s not just been about the feedback, which was almost universally positive from the membership, but it is because it has helped add a new dimension to the traditional club. And with the ongoing work to the JH Taylor-designed course, which has seen architect Jonathan Gaunt remodel and reshape all of the bunkers, York have now been able to offer a package that has been hugely attractive to members, prospective members and visitors alike. Wells said:“What’s happened is that we have taken on 140 new social members, mostly from the local village of Strensall and others from the outlying villages as well.

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York’s renovated clubhouse has received much acclaim

“We held an Open Day that April, just after we opened. We said, ‘come along, have a piece of cake and a coffee and look at our nice new clubhouse’. “We’ve signed on a host of social members. They only pay £10. “They are not golfers but they are coming down and using the clubhouse. “It has helped us bring in some new people – maybe not as many as I’d like and I’d like to see it still busier. “We haven’t got to the stage where I can say, ‘I should be open until 11pm at night because I could be serving customers all that

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time’. But we’re competing with three pubs in the village and so it is difficult. “One of the things I’d hoped to get was the coffee shop people – mums dropping the kids off from school and popping in and people calling in because there isn’t a coffee shop in Strensall. “That has happened but, again, it’s a slow thing and it will take a while to build and germinate. “It’s making sure you are not closing yourself off to those options. “The feedback from members has been 99.9% good, to better, to fantastic, to brilliant.

“Visitors just can’t believe it – especially the ones who haven’t been here since we’ve done it. “The members are also enjoying it. We have got a new bar, with a new range of beers, and we are doing something like 30 to 40 per cent more bar turnover than the previous year and the year before. It’s been the best thing we have done in years.”

We want to hear all about the success stories at your club. Get in touch by emailing s.carroll@sportspub.co.uk

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November 2018

STATISTICS UK&I 10,029

Hole-in-ones made during November competitions

Total competitions recorded

GENTS:

LADIES:

6,571

3,458

296,482

total rounds of golf recorded

LOWEST EXACT HANDICAP

Gents

Ladies

-5.3 -5.3 188,123 Total downloads of HowDidiDo app

1,739

eagles or better

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97,004 birdies

923,297

Stats provided by HowdidIdo.com

pars

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