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It wasn’t until Aaron Cox became the Head PGA Professional at Caboolture Golf Club at 26 years of age that he discovered the joys of coaching.
A former student at Kelvin Grove State College in Brisbane who would at times cross paths with a kid from Beaudesert two years his junior named Jason Day, Cox harboured the dreams of many junior golfers showing proficiency at a young age.
Yet his success in golf would come later, on the other side of the world developing a junior program that is now the envy throughout England.
Cox was named the Participation and Development Coach of the Year at the 2022 England Golf Awards in April in recognition of the establishment and flourishing junior development program at Blackwell Grange Golf Club in the north of England.
When he applied for and accepted the role in January 2019 it was to work 20 hours in the shop servicing the 750 members; how he filled the rest of his week teaching was entirely up to Cox.
With only two juniors currently engaged at the club and having spent the past 12 months conducting 15 junior classes a week at Golf World Stansted, Cox invested his time and energies into building what was at the time a non-existent junior base.
He offered free, four-week programs and e-mailed, called and visited local schools as a way of introducing kids to the game.
Of the 45 in his initial intake, 38 continued on with the program. Those numbers doubled in the second offering and within four months the club’s base of six juniors had expanded to 120.
He has since developed a seven-level junior development book, with a uniquely Australian twist.
“Each level was a colour but also an Australian animal,” Cox explains.
“Over here it works as a good little joke. Level one’s koala. Then you move to wombat. Then I threw in tiger for Tiger Woods. And then the shark for the Great White Shark, my hero, my idol, Greg Norman.
“My philosophy with junior coaching is creating a process and a discipline that they follow. I teach G-A-S-P-T-T-R and I’ve got six-year-olds who know what those letters mean. They’re the main structures of my discipline: G for grip, A for aim, S for stance, P for posture, T for triangle, T for takeaway, and then R for rotation. They learn about those words and what those words mean. I then use those seven letters as the core of their entire golf game.”
Yet as a trainee at Phillip Island Golf Club under Marcus Liberman who would twice Monday qualify for the Australian Open, coaching was initially a daunting proposition.
“Funnily enough, through my traineeship, I was scared out of my mind of coaching,” admits Cox, who coached rising amateur Justice Bosio in her formative years at Caboolture.
“I went through Q School and spent 12 months on the Australasian Tour in 2011 and realised pretty quickly that I was absolutely nowhere near good enough to play on tour.
“In 2012 I got the Head Professional role at Caboolture and that’s where I started getting my confidence to teach. It took me nearly four years to get 100 per cent confidence in my teaching ability and the information that I was giving out.
“And the rest, as they say, is history.”
Cox’s impact at Blackwell Grange extends far beyond engaging juniors with fun lessons that develop their core skills.
With the support of the club, he converted a spare fairway into a six-hole junior course – complete with flags and signage provided by a local sponsor – and conducts junior tournaments in line with professional golf’s showpiece events.
Starting with the Players Tournament in March, the series of eight, two-round tournaments for kids aged between five and 12 includes The Masters in April, Blackwell Grange Classic in May, the Tour Championship in June and the big one, the Junior Academy Open Championship in July, complete with its own claret jug.
More recently, Cox has established the ACED Academy (Aaron Cox Elite Development) and is guiding golf-mad teens down the same path he walked thousands of kilometres back in Australia.
“The fun thing for me is that I’ve now got a junior section at my golf club and I’m becoming the mentor for kids also looking to become PGA Professionals.”
There are numerous career avenues available within the golf industry. To find your pathway to becoming a PGA Professional visit www.pga.org.au/education.
Jay Simpson remembers clearly witnessing Jed Morgan break par for the first time. Morgan was 14 years of age and playing the family-owned Fairways Tavern Golf Club course at Hatton Vale 30 minutes west of Ipswich.
Eight years later, Morgan will make his major championship debut at this week’s storied US Open at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts, a world and 15,672 kilometres from where talent first saw possibility.
“There was a lightbulb effect at that point where he knew he could play the game,” says Simpson, PGA Professional at Meadowbrook Golf Club and the founder of First Swing Golf who is regularly reminded of finishing second to Morgan that day.
“He’d been knocking on the door, shooting even par or even a couple over for a long time and then one day everything clicked.
“He knew in himself that he could actually do it.”
It has taken eight years for Morgan to become an overnight sensation.
A star amateur who counts the NSW Junior State Championship, Queensland Boys Amateur, Singapore Junior Championship, NT Amateur and 2020 Australian Amateur among his conquests, Morgan burst into the consciousness of Australian golf at the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship in January.
His 11-stroke victory complete with fist pumps and raucous engagement with Royal Queensland galleries bursting with family and friends broke a record-winning margin held by major champions Greg Norman and Hale Irwin.
It also gave him a virtually unassailable lead on the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit that would ultimately provide direct entry into the US Open field.
Many of our major champions come from humble beginnings and Morgan fits the mould.
The country upbringing and athletic prowess that made a career in rugby league a very real possibility gave the PGA Professionals he has worked with a great starting point from which to build.
“He had talent. He had a natural ability. His swing was fluent and he had the work ethic to go with it,” adds Simpson, who first met Morgan at Brookwater Golf and Country Club where Morgan would attend the Kookaburra Club clinics conducted by Simpson.
“I look at a nice solid set-up. If a player has got a very good set-up in terms of posture and stability, then you know he’s going to have a pretty good swing.
“He had the ability and flexibility to be able to put the golf club in the right places.
“The biggest thing that he lacked to start with was short game. He could hit the ball no problem – his ball-striking was mint – but he just had to learn to get around the golf course. He had to learn how to play.
“Once he honed those skills he was going to be unstoppable.”
Part of that education involved becoming familiar with bunker play, not an easy skill to practise at a golf course devoid of any sand traps.
Yet somehow even that learning curve was not too steep for Morgan.
“He’s always understood how it works, even without explaining,” Simpson adds.
“Even before he got into a bunker he’d been there before; it was as if in a past body he knew what golf was about and how to play it.”
With Simpson’s blessing, Morgan and his parents, Laurie and Julie, decided to move into Greater Brisbane with an eye to breaking into state junior teams.
He joined Gailes Golf Club and linked with Royal Queensland Golf Club Head PGA Professional Chris Gibson who guided the next phase of his development.
Amateur wins followed and he became entrenched in state teams run by Golf Queensland and the Queensland Academy of Sport, going through the 2018 Interstate Team Series undefeated.
It was his selection in state junior teams that first brought Morgan to the attention of Grant Field, his progression into the QAS squad bringing the pair together for the first time.
“He was just a really good athlete,” says Field, who took over as Morgan’s coach last August.
“He’s always been strong and athletic which makes it easy to work with.”
When Morgan rang “out of the blue” last year to ask whether Field would take over as his full-time coach, the man who has guided Cameron Smith to the top of world golf understood the areas where he thought he could help.
There was some short game work to tidy up and a miss left under pressure that Field thought he could eliminate but, more than anything, Field wanted to unlock Morgan’s personality on the golf course.
Despite Smith expressing afterwards his personal aversion to fist pumps, as Morgan built his lead at the Australian PGA Field continued to encourage his young charge to embrace the unique circumstance he found himself in.
“What we saw at the PGA was a combination of the situation but also being at home in front of friends and family,” adds Field, the 2021 PGA of Australia National High Performance Coach of the Year.
“You’re not going to see that most of the time. That was a little bit specific to that week and where he was and who he had around him. That’s not happening 51 other weeks of the year.”
Field certainly doesn’t expect to see many emotional outbursts at Brookline this week but rather the progression of a career still in its infancy.
He admits that there are elements to Morgan’s new-found fame the 22-year-old could have handled differently but that, like this week, they are lessons you can only learn through experience.
“It’s been a really good learning period for him,” Field said of the five months since Morgan claimed the Joe Kirkwood Cup.
“I just want him to keep getting better and more at ease at being in those types of fields.
“The more he turns up and feels like he belongs you’ll start to see the best version of Jed.”
As one of the premier golf clubs in Australia, there is a reputation that Kingston Heath Golf Club is expected to uphold.
A showpiece of the Melbourne Sandbelt, ‘The Heath’ is a place where the greatest of traditions of the game are observed and where the game of golf is celebrated.
Whether rightly or wrongly, that can be an intimidating place for new golfers to join but under the guidance of club management, the board and Director of Golf Justin Burrage, a new wave of members are being welcomed with open arms.
The construction of the highly anticipated short course will cater to beginners, juniors and the club’s low-markers alike but it is the establishment of the Women’s Heath Gateway Program that has had an immediate impact.
Conducted by PGA Teaching Professional Tom Corker (pictured), the program has proven so popular that after three iterations there is now a waiting list for the fourth.
A total of 105 women have taken part, 35 have already progressed to full membership and it is expected as many as 15 more will join once the third program is completed.
Named the Victorian PGA Club Professional of the Year in 2021, Burrage says the Women’s Heath Gateway Program is just one way in which Kingston Heath is opening its doors to new people.
“It’s essentially a try-before-you-buy program where the women will come in for inductions to golf and the club, go through a series of clinics which have been brilliantly run by Tom Corker and then participate in some social activities,” Burrage says.
“They then have the option to take up a trial membership for a period of six months which provides some access to the golf course and to competitions and some more one-on-one coaching with Tom.
“We’ve developed to a point where it’s actually achieved its goal in getting more female members and a female membership that is slightly younger than what the traditional club has been. It’s ticked a lot of boxes in actually filling the demographic that we were hoping to fill.
“There could be a slight intimidation factor of joining a club such as Kingston Heath so one of the key components was making it about friendship and creating the right atmosphere that we all see that the club has anyway.”
A large intake of the women taking part in the program has come via family members who are existing Kingston Heath members and Burrage expects the short course to have a similar impact on junior numbers.
Designed by the team of Ogilvy Cocking Mead, the nine-hole course will feature holes varying in length from 75 to 130 metres that will also help to foster the feeling that Kingston Heath is a place for the whole family.
“This is a family and we want people to feel part of the family as soon as they walk through the door. That this is their home away from home,” said Burrage, who is coming up on 20 years at the club.
“That’s something that I’ve encouraged my team to really, really work hard on; making sure that everyone that walks in the door feels like they are part of the family, even if they’re only here for four hours.
“I think the short course is going to be phenomenal. It’ll be a great place for nurturing and growth of interest in the game, whether it’s for juniors or for just new people into the game of golf.
“We’re putting that spare land into purposeful use for the betterment of golf, for the betterment of members and for the betterment of members in the future. It’s great to see that the committee and the members have been brave enough to do that.
“The Women’s program with the wonderful support of Women’s Captain Nikki McClure was also a brave thing to do that wouldn’t have happened 15 years ago.
“As one of the people involved there are a couple of decisions that have been made that makes us quite proud to be part of a club that is thinking progressively at this point in time.”
PGA Professionals throughout the country offer programs for all members of the family to get started in golf. To find the nearest PGA Professional to you and your family visit www.pga.org.au/find-a-pga-pro.
Those wanting to lose weight or get fit know it takes more than one session in the gym with a personal trainer. Budding musicians who want to play the guitar or piano understand that learning the basic chords and frets is just the beginning. So why is there an underlying expectation that one golf lesson is enough to achieve your goals on the golf course?
Jack Macleod is so focused on developing long-term relationships that deliver continual improvement that he has changed the vocabulary with which he offers his services.
He has steered away from the coach/student description and adopted a moniker as a golf trainer.
In an age where people have embraced monthly subscription services for their workouts and entertainment alternatives, Macleod offers a range of golf training subscriptions starting from $60/month that establishes a routine of constant engagement.
“I say this to the guys at work when they’re recommending my service, it’s just like training with the pro,” says Macleod, who is based primarily at X-Golf Mentone in Melbourne.
“Instead of saying ‘He’ll give you a lesson,’ rephrase it to say, ‘Jack trains with a lot of players and they really improve.’ It’s almost like a cooperative wording of, ‘He’ll train with you to help you get better.’
“That’s my business model anyway, try to engage with people that want to improve.
“Hopefully they’re nice people and we get along really well and we share the journey together. And have a bit of fun along the way.”
Key to that cooperative approach is a focus on goal setting.
When Macleod takes on a new client the first session is typically spent defining goals, the areas of improvement they are looking for and the first steps necessary to achieve those goals.
Whether the client is training with Macleod weekly, fortnightly or monthly, there is a WhatsApp connection that not only enhances accountability but provides a constantly open line of communication.
“My point of difference over a lot of other coaches is I do a training program for my clients,” Macleod explains.
“Whether they’re training in X-Golf or go to a range, I give them just a little sheet to work off, similar to that of a personal trainer.
“They provide the list of exercises and how to do the exercises. Say there’s a focus on driving, I’ll give them some exercises to do on the range, whether it’s getting 70 per cent of swings through the target and then try the same at 100 per cent. Whatever the fault is, we try to give them some games and things to play.
“And when they play, I ask them to send me their stats using WhatsApp.
“Just to try to keep that conversation thread going, but also just to make that goal a bit more tangible because they’re a bit more dialled in when they’re training.
“Over the weekend I might get 30 or 40 WhatsApp messages come through and at some point I’ve got to write back to them.
“It is a lot of extra work but that’s trying to be best practice of being a coach.”
A PGA Professional since 2009 who boasts a Diploma in Sports Coaching and is graded by the PGA of Australia as an Advanced Level Coach, Macleod is adamant that his approach is beneficial to both he and his clients.
“It would be a very clear number of people that engaged really closely with their drills and their training program and have an eye on their stats that they’re poor at, train for that and improve it. They would improve tenfold than someone that wouldn’t do that,” Macleod says.
“And a lot of that’s the lesson follow up. A bit of a training program and just having those all based around the player’s goals really. It all starts and ends with the goals.
“The general engagement absolutely has to lead to retention. Certainly in my experience, when I’ve just taken a bit more time to engage with my customers, it just improves tenfold.”
To connect with the PGA Professional who can help you to achieve your goals in golf, visit www.pga.org.au/find-a-pga-pro/
The back-up plan was to work as a greenkeeper at Bathurst Golf Club but such was Peter O’Malley’s talent as a golfer that the fallback was never required.
O’Malley was honoured with Life Membership of the PGA of Australia, an honour that has been bestowed on just 50 people in the association’s 111 years.
O’Malley emerged from humble beginnings and would go on to establish one of Australian golf’s most accomplished and under-rated careers.
Known best for his 1992 Scottish Open triumph where he played the final five holes in seven-under par – eagle, birdie, birdie, birdie, eagle – the man affectionately known as ‘Pom’ won three times in Europe, five times on the PGA Tour of Australasia and twice finished inside the top 10 at The Open Championship.
He spent eight years as a Director of the PGA of Australia and two as Chair, yet if not for a stellar amateur season in 1986 may very well have spent his working life preparing golf courses for others.
“I did an apprenticeship as a greenkeeper but I didn’t finish,” O’Malley says.
“I worked for four years but only two as an apprentice because I started to play too much golf.
“I kept working at the golf club and took time off without pay to play golf and in ’86 I had 26 weeks off so thought it was a good time to turn pro.”
His accomplishments in 1986 alone represents a stellar amateur career for many, winning the Australian Junior, New Zealand Amateur, Lake Macquarie Amateur and New South Wales Amateur.
It was his New Zealand Amateur win that opened the door to attend the PGA Tour of Australasia Qualifying School and finish in a position that allowed him to join the professional ranks by gaining his first full-time Tour card.
Now 56 years of age, O’Malley’s earliest introduction to PGA Professionals was first through Ian Norrie at Bathurst Golf Club and then the legendary Alex Mercer once he was selected in NSW Junior and Senior state teams.
In conjunction with British PGA Professional and coach Denis Pugh, O’Malley’s association with Mercer would carry through his entire playing career.
“Alex was a huge influence from the time I started going to Sydney to play in the state junior team,” O’Malley explained.
“He coached me all through my first three years as an amateur and then 35 years as a pro and I couldn’t have done what I did without the guidance of Alex Mercer.
“It took me a while at first to work out how to take him because he was quite a scary person when I first met him.
“But he just kept things very simple. He could watch me hit five or six shots and pick something out and he just kept things so simple for me.”
O’Malley’s nomination for Life Membership was put forward by fellow PGA Member David Stretton, received majority support from fellow PGA Members and was then ratified by the Board, indicative for the regard in which he is held throughout the PGA.
He credits the likes of Rodger Davis, Peter Senior, Peter Fowler, Mike Harwood, Mike Clayton, Bob Shearer and Wayne Riley for the guidance they provided in his formative years playing in Asia and then Europe and was thrilled to receive this latest honour.
“You don’t go into a profession to get accolades but to be honoured with Life Membership is a statement from your peers that you have contributed to the game,” said O’Malley.
“It’s a huge honour to receive this Life Membership because your peers believe you have contributed to the game of golf, which is what we’re all trying to do.”
Peter O’Malley
Turned professional: 1987
Professional wins:
· 1992 Bell’s Scottish Open (European Tour)
· 1995 Benson & Hedges International Open (European Tour)
· 1995 AMP Air New Zealand Open (Australasian Tour)
· 1998 Canon Challenge (Australasian Tour)
· 2001 Compass Group English Open (European Tour)
· 2002 Holden Clearwater Classic (Australasian Tour)
· 2005 ING New Zealand PGA Championship (Australasian Tour)
· 2010 NSW Open (Australasian Tour)
Best finish in a Major: T7 1997 Open Championship
The PGA of Australia will be represented by Jamie Hook, TJ King, Matthew Guyatt and Murray Lott at the inaugural Four Nations Cup to be staged at the Kyalami Country Club in South Africa in September.
Originally scheduled to be played in Australia in September 2020, Team Australia will line up against PGA Professionals representing Canada, New Zealand and South Africa in what will now become an annual fixture.
Australia’s team consists of the top four finishers from the PGA Professionals Championship Final at Links Hope Island in January, adding a new level of motivation for this year’s state qualifying events that will commence soon.
Given golf was only re-admitted as an Olympic sport in 2016, opportunities to don the green and gold are extremely rare for professional golfers, the implementation of the Four Nations Cup turning childhood dreams into reality.
“I dreamed of playing for Australia as a kid,” says Guyatt, who is currently employed at Nudgee Golf Club but will soon move across town to Gailes Golf Club.
“For me it was cricket growing up and then I switched and had that golf focus.
“Even though I played well at Interstate Series and beat some exceptionally good players, I never made it into an Eisenhower Trophy team or anything like that so you feel in a sense that it’s gone.
“To now actually be part of Team Australia and be part of an Aussie four-man team is really cool.”
A highly respected PGA Professional based at Victoria Park Golf Complex in Brisbane, Lott’s career in golf is diverse having spent time on tour playing and caddying before channelling his energies into coaching.
The 2007 PGA Professionals champion, Lott has made an instant impact on the SParms PGA Legends Tour since turning 50 last year and says the chance to play for Australia is a significant moment in his career.
“I get teary listening to the national anthem when the Olympics are on and things like that. It strikes a chord for me,” Lott explains.
“It’s such a lovely, non-commercial thing to do, to represent your country.
“It is representing your country in a very pure way.
“To say that you are an Olympian or that you have represented your country is an incredible personal honour.”
Mount Coolum Golf Club Assistant Professional TJ King and Pacific Dunes Golf Club’s Head Professional Jamie Hook both grew up dreaming of pulling on the green and gold jersey of the Australian Kangaroos rugby league team.
Following a switch to golf, Hook earned selection in New South Wales Schoolboy team but never imagined he would one day earn a call-up for his country.
“I’ve been lucky enough to represent the golf club, district and state but never my country,” said Hook, who finished two shots clear to win at Hope Island.
“I’m looking forward to being a part of the team and bringing that trophy home.”
A recent graduate of the Membership Pathway Program, King has been advancing his game on the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia, culminating with a confidence-boosting tie for 16th at the recent Tailor-made Building Services NT PGA Championship.
“Learning each event I play, learning that it’s more between the ears,” said King, who qualified for the PGA Professionals Championship Final by winning the North Queensland qualifier at Mackay Golf Club.
“I’ve definitely taken a lot out of these events and making this team has given me more confidence, which showed at Northern Territory.”
The Four Nations Cup will be played over five rounds with three to be played as fourball matches and two as singles matches.
One point will be awarded per victory with all halved matches earning half a point. A total of 60 points are available across all the teams with a maximum of 30 points to be won by an individual team.
Australia is scheduled to host the 2023 Four Nations Cup followed by Canada (2024) and New Zealand (2025).
The Womens PGA Cup will be played for the second time in late October in New Mexico.
Australian qualifying events have been conducted and the team will be formally announced in the coming weeks.
Joel Mercieca has students that he has been working with for almost a decade. He knows that if he doesn’t get better as a coach, he can’t hope to progress them to their full potential as players.
Ever since completing his PGA qualifications in 2011, Mercieca has been on a constant search for continual improvement.
Among his list of achievements in advanced study Mercieca has become a Trackman Certified Master, obtained his Titleist Performance Institute certification in Level 2 Golf Professional, Level 2 Junior Coach and Level 2 Power, achieved a K-Vest Level 2 certification in 3D Data and Biofeedback and earned Focus Band certification.
That – and the influence of some of the finest golf coaches both here in Australia and overseas – enabled Mercieca to achieve Australian PGA Professional Advanced Coaching recognition as he seeks to become the most complete coach he can be.
Currently based at Gainsborough Greens just north of the Gold Coast where he has his own fitting and coaching studio, Mercieca is forever seeking ways in which to advance his own education.
“You need to know how the body works, you need to know how the motion is supposed to work in regard to the biofeedback, you need to know how the club is affecting what the ball is doing,” Mercieca said of his interest in the study of biomechanics.
“That’s where the TrackMan data comes into it. The mental side of things is massive as well. If you want to have a well-rounded knowledge base of the entire game to be able to help people, they’re the avenues that you’ve got to go down.
“You just need to know that stuff. If you don’t know that stuff, then you’re going to fall behind, I think. And more importantly, you’re not going to get the message across to the student as quickly as possible.”
And therein lies the key.
While knowledge is indeed power, the way you disseminate that information to a range of students that includes tour players all the way through to 22-handicap club golfers, the application of that information is even more important.
“Don’t get me wrong, it’s a very technical sport, but having all of the knowledge and then being able to pass that information over in a way that’s easily digestible by the student is one of the keys to being a good coach,” explains Mercieca, who began his PGA training first under Peter and Lee Harrington at the West Burleigh Driving Range and completing it under Mark and Sean Bath at Gold Coast Country Club.
“There’s definitely a place for technology in coaching beginners but you’ve got to be able to get the message across concisely and in quite simple terms.
“Somebody who’s a little bit more advanced might want a bit more information about why they’re doing something or a bit more justification as to why they’re doing it. But even then, a lot of the time elite students don’t really want too much information either.
“You’ve just got to profile each person that’s in front of you and work out how you can make them better the fastest.”
Mercieca had planned on travelling to the US to complete his Level 3 TPI qualifications in coaching and junior coaching before the COVID-19 pandemic stalled international travel.
It will form part of the next phase of his development as a coach and equip him further to get the best out of whichever golfers come into the studio.
“I do think that it’s very important as a coach to be adaptable,” adds Mercieca.
“I don’t ever see myself giving the same lesson twice in a row, that’s for sure.
“Every single lesson is different, every person’s different, everybody learns differently so being adaptable and knowledgeable across every aspect of the golf swing is really important.”
PGA Professionals are the most knowledgeable and qualified people to help improve your game. To connect with your local PGA Professional and begin your journey to better golf visit www.pga.org.au/find-a-pga-pro/
Australia’s most influential golf business event, Golf Business Forum \ PGA Expo, has announced an exciting principal partnership with SHANX Mini Golf.
SHANX, who produce some of Australia’s best mini golf courses, has facilities at Regency Park Community Golf Course in Adelaide, Links Shell Cove on the New South Wales south coast and has just commenced construction of a new facility at Pacific Harbour Golf & Country Club at Bribie Island in Queensland.
“We’re thrilled to welcome SHANX Mini Golf as Principal Partner of Golf Business Forum \ PGA Expo 2022,” said Gavin Kirkman, Chief Executive Officer of the PGA of Australia. “SHANX provides a great way for Australians to play golf, have fun, and get them involved in our great game. Also, it provides a great commercial proposition for golf facilities and clubs to encourage the broader community to be involved. ”
Golf Australia Chief Executive James Sutherland said: “It’s great news that the Golf Business Forum \ PGA Expo has partnered with SHANX, an organisation that is doing a wonderful job introducing people to golf and providing great entertainment and fun experiences for golfers young and old.
“SHANX continues to provide inclusive and fun experiences and it’s great to have them on board with us as we grow golf as a sport that offers something for everyone.”
SHANX Managing Director, Peter Vlahandreas, said: “We have long been advocates of innovation and change within the golf industry and now with SHANX Mini Golf we have an opportunity to deliver our messages and deliver that change. SHANX was born from a need to be different, do different and achieve new outcomes in our industry. The Golf Business Forum, when established, set out to do the same and now combined with the PGA Expo, in partnership we can truly deliver an innovative message and offer for the Australian golf business community.”
The event will attract more than 550 attendees from across the Australian golf industry and beyond, and will be held at CENTREPIECE at Melbourne Park from 12-13 October 2022.
Kirkman said: “So far, we’ve been delighted with the response to the commercial partner opportunities for Golf Business Forum \ PGA Expo 2022. In addition to SHANX, the six major partnerships have all now been confirmed — Mizuno, Acushnet (Titleist and FootJoy), American Golf Supplies (PING and Ecco Golf), Callaway, TaylorMade, and Srixon, along with a range of other category partnerships.
“There are still plenty of opportunities to join the industry, get involved, and partner with Australia’s most influential golf business event.’’
Learn more and download the partnership and exhibition prospectus via: https://www.golfbusinessforumpgaexpo.com/partnership
THE SHANX PARTNERSHIP 2022
A Q&A with SHANX Managing Director, Peter Vlahandreas
Interview by Martin Blake, Australian Golf Media Manager
1. How do you feel about this partnership, Peter? Do you think the Golf Business Forum \ PGA Expo is a good fit for what you are doing at SHANX Mini Golf?
SHANX was born from a need to be different, do different and achieve new outcomes in our industry. The Golf Business Form when established set out to do the same and now combined with the PGA Expo, in partnership we can truly deliver an innovative message and offer for our industry.
2. Has your organisation had this kind of involvement before with such a significant golf business event?
We have long been advocates of innovation and change within the golf industry and now with SHANX Mini Golf we have an opportunity to deliver our messages and deliver that change to the wider golf business community.
3. Tell us some more about SHANX Mini Golf? Where did it all start for you? How quickly is it growing?
SHANX Mini Golf was born from creating a need within the facilities that we manage at GreenSpace Management and providing golf facilities with a sustainable revenue stream whilst diversifying their demographic catchment.
We wanted golf to be more about fun than rules.
Our concept is unique to the Australian market whereby our mini golf courses are not ‘amusement based’ with clown heads, windmills and rocks in the middle of putting surfaces, but rather golf as we know it, miniaturised. A concept that caters for the pro golfer to the ‘never played before’ and everyone in between.
There is no mini golf product like SHANX in the Southern Hemisphere.
All work is undertaken in-house and we can provide clients with a turnkey service providing everything from feasibility, business modelling, design and construction through to operations and branding. That’s an appealing offer for facilities to be guided from day one on how to best optimise their investment.
4. It feels like with the new Australian Golf Strategy emphasising the need for the industry to connect with all forms of golf, that this is a perfect fit for 2022? Do you agree?
Absolutely! All golf is golf!
5. What is your feeling about where golf in Australia is at, particularly at the grassroots level where you operate? We all know that the pandemic has led to a boom in participation … have you seen that in your space and do you see it continuing?
Golf is in a renaissance – there is a lot of great things coming out of our industry right now. SHANX is one of many innovative new forms of golf within traditional golf-focused facilities; public access and private.
Entertainment based golf will continue to grow; and grow fast.
Its reach is well beyond the traditional golfer market and that for us is exciting – we’re tapping into the family entertainment market, young adults and every other cohort you can imagine. When the rules are broken, the barriers are lifted and the focus is on fun… we reach a broader audience and that’s exactly what our industry needs to do in order to continue its growth trajectory.
6. What should golf be doing to capitalise on the gains of the past couple of years?
Keep looking forward, evolve and adapt to a changing market.
The importance of using additional funds over the past few years to future-proof operations with diversified revenue streams has never been more important. Facilities need another motor beyond green fees and membership to drive their strategic outcomes.
7. Overall, do you have any thoughts about how golf can grow and move forward in this country, areas of concern and improvements that can be made?
SHANX was formed on the basis to provide a golf amenity that is fun, family focused and entertainment based. There should be more of this. All golf is golf, and the more we can complement existing facilities with these kinds of amenities the more sustainable that facility, and ultimately our industry will be.
A slight adjustment to the lie angle. An impromptu lesson on the practice fairway. Free club-fitting for members with no obligation to buy.
These are the intangibles that Patrick Fairweather and other PGA Professionals provide that take the anxiety out of purchasing new golf equipment.
A club rich in teaching history given the influence of David Mercer and Greg Hohnen over many years, Killara had been limited in the club-fitting capabilities it could offer its members until only very recently.
The club has never had a dedicated driving range and it was only in 2020 that Head Professional Patrick Fairweather had a fitting studio built, a service that members can utilise free of charge.
But it was Fairweather’s decision to also provide an online portal at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic through his website (www.golfyou.com.au) that gave Killara members the full equipment experience.
Established as something of a ‘click and collect’ service when the COVID-19 restrictions prevented members from entering the pro shop or even coming to the club at all, Fairweather has seen a dramatic increase in sales based on the combination of customer service and convenience.
“Since I’ve put the fitting room in, we’ve seen a significant increase in hardware sales,” Fairweather explains.
“As soon as COVID hit, I had two staff sitting around doing nothing, so I said, ‘Right, let’s build a website.’
“We just jumped on Shopify, I bought a domain and then we just started watching YouTube tutorials on how to build a website.
“We just put everything we had in stock in the shop, put it together and off we went.
“It kept everybody engaged, staff wise. And it also made me relevant to the members.”
Given the teaching focus that has been predominant first under Mercer and then continued with Hohnen, Fairweather recognised that equipment sales and service was the area of the business most open to growth.
The construction of the fitting studio significantly increased the capacity of the self-proclaimed “tiniest shop in the whole of Australia” yet Fairweather believes it is the trust between the pro shop staff and its members that is the greatest sales tool of all.
“That’s the competitive advantage we have, is that we’ve got the ability to be able to take the members inside the studio and say, “OK, if you’re looking at that, let’s go and see if it works,’” says Fairweather, who began his PGA training under Mercer and Hohnen in 1997.
“We start the process off by asking the member to bring in what they’ve currently got and then we’ll look at every brand we have and see which performs best.
“Then we’ll send the member out onto the golf course with one of our demos that we think is exactly the right club for them.
“If we need, we can refit. That provides the confidence of knowing that they’re not having to commit to $1,000 on a driver that might not be right for them. And even if they did walk out and pay for it, they can always come back and we’ll always find a way of helping them.”
In terms of hardware Fairweather stocks major brands such as Callaway, TaylorMade, Ping and Titleist and has a full range of buggies, shoes, clothing, balls, bags and accessories, the majority of which have the prices clearly shown on the online store.
“You have to be competitive price-wise,” Fairweather says of being in the market with online and off-course retail giants.
“I can fit anyone for set of TaylorMade irons and within three or four minutes of walking out the door they’ll know what the best price on the market is. If I supply a bad price to start with, then I’m way off the mark.
“With the fitting room, we found a huge increase in volume so all of a sudden you can support the margins that might be a little lower than what they used to be.”
For trusted, expert equipment advice at a reasonable price, visit your local PGA Professional. Find your nearest PGA Professional at www.pga.org.au/find-a-pga-pro/
Yarrawonga’s Dale Crothers has extended his lead to six strokes after Round 3 of the PGA Victoria and Tasmania Associate Championship at Tocumwal Golf Club.
Crothers followed on from his course-record second round of nine-under 63 with a four-under par round of 68 on Thursday to takes his tournament total to 16-under par, six shots clear of Dylan Gardner from Queensland who is 10-under through three rounds.
The lowest round of the day was posted by Reid Brown of NSW with an impressive seven-under 65 which included eight birdies and one bogey.
The final round of the 72-hole championship will be played on Friday on the Captains course at Tocumwal Golf Club.
