Want to recieve exclusive news, videos, tournament highlights, golf important tips and more ?
Want to recieve exclusive news, videos, tournament highlights, golf important tips and more ?
The Queensland Golf Industry is excited to bring you their very first ‘virtual’ Golf Industry Awards to be broadcast on Tuesday 14 July.
The PGA of Australia, Golf Australia, Golf Course Superintendents Association of QLD and Golf Management Australia will come together to celebrate the achievements of the QLD Golf Industry in 2019, highlighting the contributions of the sport’s finest athletes, volunteers, administrators, staff, courses and facilities across the state.
Joining the broadcast will also be defending Australian PGA Champion and world number 10 Adam Scott who will give us an insight into being back in the Sunshine State during restrictions, and where we might expect to see him for the remainder of 2020.
We hope you will join us as we go live on YouTube and on PGA TV from 7pm AEST. Join the conversation and upload your celebratory snaps on your social channels using the hashtag #QGIawards.
Date: Tuesday 14 July, 2020
Time: Tune in live at 7pm (AEST) via the video link below
Where: Your home, golf club or with a group of friends anywhere via the pga.org.au on your phone, tablet or PC
Dress: Formal up top, casual down the bottom
A full list of all of the finalists can be found by clicking here with the below additional awards also being presented during the broadcast:
The Victorian Government has announced the tightening of restrictions in metropolitan Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire from 11.59pm on Wednesday 8 July.
Those areas will return to stage 3 restrictions. A list defining the Melbourne metropolitan area is located here.
Pleasingly, golf will continue to be played during this time, subject to conditions.
The Premier of Victoria, Daniel Andrews, has announced that golf can continue to be played in areas that will be covered by stage 3 restrictions in 2-ball groups from Thursday 9 July.
Clubhouses must also close as of midnight 8 July, for all services other than take-away food and beverage.
The PGA of Australia and Golf Australia will communicate further information as it relates to facility operations, including coaching, Pro-Shops, driving ranges, warm-up areas and other related activities as soon as possible.
We are continuing to work with the government on understanding further ramifications of stage 3 restrictions on golf clubs/facilities.
State borders may still be closed but Sanctuary Cove will this week reopen its facility to the public in another sign life is slowly returning to normal.
When the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world to a standstill and forced the majority of Australian golf clubs to close their doors even temporarily, Sanctuary Cove Golf and Country Club management devised a way to provide their members with an outlet while in lockdown.
The decision was made to make both The Pines and The Palms golf courses – currently ranked No.44 and No.71 in the country respectively by Australian Golf Digest magazine – purely members only.
Health and safety protocols were put in place to ensure members were protected as best as possible and maintenance procedures continued at their normal operation to deliver a playing experience that few facilities in Australia can match.
Although they have been kept on the outside looking in for the past three months, social golfers can now return to play The Palms course from this Thursday where they will find the 2011 Ross Watson redesign at its pristine best.
“If I was a member of the public, I’d be taking advantage of playing The Palms this week for sure,” says Sanctuary Cove Executive General Manager and PGA Professional Paul Sanders.
“It’s in outstanding condition, the best I’ve seen it in eight years. Full credit to Course Superintendent Paul McLean and his team. The way they have got this golf course to mature over the past eight or nine years has it at its absolute peak.
“The TifEagle greens are absolutely amazing.
“Anyone that plays there during this period is going to have a great experience.”
Spoiled by having unfettered access to both golf courses since mid-March, membership numbers at Sanctuary Cove have never been stronger.
The club reported a June intake the likes of which they have not witnessed in many years and Club President Mick McDonald last week unveiled a sculpture of Arnold Palmer by acclaimed artist Liam Hardy that now welcomes golfers to the first tee on The Pines.
As golf has proven attractive to people unable to participate in other activities during restrictions, Sanders, the management team and board have ensured that it has never been a better time to be a member at Sanctuary Cove.
“Word is out that it’s members only here,” Sanders says of the surge of interest in membership.
“The golf courses are both in outstanding condition and we’re investing heavily into our facilities including a $1.8 million irrigation project at The Pines. We’re very fortunate that through a really strong strategic plan that we’ve had in place for the past 60 months that we’ve been able to do that.
“What’s been great about the decision of the board to make it members only during this COVID-19 period is that it has really given the opportunity to members to make full use of the facilities.
“Whether that’s practise, competition play, social play, it’s a great opportunity for members to not only play The Pines but play The Palms whenever they like.
“The members have really respected that the board have made it members only during this period and we’re having 300-plus players every day of the week.
“If you’re coming into the club at the moment, you have wonderful facilities that you can call your own.”
By tailoring specifically to their needs, Royal Perth Golf Club has established a reputation in the west for providing an encouraging environment for junior girls.
When you’re starting from nothing, anything is worth a shot.
Stuck in a cycle shared by a great number of golf clubs, Royal Perth Golf Club was desperately searching for a way in which to expand their junior base, particularly junior girls.
Recognising that girls as young as six didn’t respond well to mixed groups of juniors dominated by boisterous boys who simply wanted to swing driver as hard as they could, Head Professional Brad Logan worked with Ladies Captain Kerry Hardwick and Vice-Captain Lyn Cook on formulating a girl-friendly program.
‘Pretty in Pink’ was launched 11 years ago and set Royal Perth on a path to becoming regarded as the club in Perth where girls interested in golf could go to develop their games.
“We thought there were a lot of girls who might have found playing with the boys intimidating so we set up a coaching program after school on a Tuesday during the school terms,” Logan explains.
“We went from having nothing to having 30 or so girls on a Tuesday. We had to start breaking them into smaller groups and have extra people down there helping me teach them.
“We had ladies get their Working with Children permit and then their Community Golf Instructor qualification just so they could come down and help these girls get started in the game.
“It’s continued to grow and grow and grow and because of the structure around it now with the MyGolf program it’s got to the point where I employ a PGA Professional as a junior coordinator just to look after the juniors.”
Through Golf Australia’s Vision 2025 mandate to increase the level of influence of women in golf at every level, delivering a ‘girls only’ MyGolf program became a key deliverable.
As a result, the PGA and Golf Australia, through the MyGolf program launched the MyGolf Girls in July of 2018 as a way of creating a welcoming environment for girls showing an interest in golf.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that some parents prefer single sex options for their daughters playing sport and other sports throughout the country have seen significant increases in female participation by offering female only participation opportunities.
Since 1 July 2018, 95 MyGolf facilities have promoted MyGolf Girls only programs with girls making up 24 per cent of total MyGolf participants in the past financial year.
Of the 4,665 girls engaged in MyGolf between 2018 and 2019, 375 participated in girls-only programs, a number that should continue to grow as word spreads.
“We were like most clubs in that we had no real system in place, we dealt with what was in front of us,” says Logan, with Royal Perth offering girls-only coaching on Tuesdays, boys-only coaching on Thursdays and a mixed group on Fridays for older, more advanced juniors.
“Once we had one or two girls taking part they brought their friends along so it grew in that way.
“We’ve now got two girls pennant teams where seven years ago we didn’t have any and there is an awareness around Perth that we do now have a strong junior girls program.
“There might be a girl with a low handicap playing elsewhere but if they don’t have the numbers to form a pennant team she might decide to come across to Royal Perth.
“Not every girl at Royal Perth has come through the Pretty in Pink program but by starting it 11 years ago we have created an environment where girls know that they are welcome here.”
The Queensland Golf Industry is pleased to confirm the date for the ‘Virtual Awards Night’ to be broadcast on Tuesday 14th July.
Coordinated by the PGA of Australia, Golf Australia, Golf Course Superintendents Association of QLD and Golf Management Australia, the QLD Golf Industry “Virtual” Awards Night will acknowledge the achievements the finalists have accomplished throughout 2019.
Despite being postponed earlier this year, the QLD Golf Industry Awards Night will announce all of the winners of the respective awards of which will be broadcast at 7pm (EST) on Tuesday 14th July via www.pga.org.au.
With the success of the recent WA Golf Industry Awards Night which saw golf clubs and individuals gather to watch the evening, finalists are encouraged to watch the broadcast in groups (relative to gathering restrictions in place on this date) to celebrate their achievements. Physical awards will be presented to the winners of each award in the week(s) following the broadcast to assist in the additional promotion of their accolades.
A full list of the award finalists can be found below:
Golf Club of the Year
Golf Club of the Year (Under 400 Members)
Golf Supplier of the Year
Junior Program of the Year Finalists
Volunteer of the Year
Game Development Professional of the Year
Manager of the Year
Coach of the Year
Club Professional of the Year
Management Professional of the Year
Golf Club Staff Member of the Year
Golf Club Board Member of the Year
Tournament of the Year
Superintendents Achievement Award
Metropolitan Tournament of the Year
Regional Tournament of the Year
Legends Tournament of the Year
PGA Trainee of the Year
Golf Course Turf Apprentice of the Year
Superintendents Environment and Safety Excellence Award
PGA IGI Excellence in Golf Education Award
Other awards announced on the evening include:
As the PGA TOUR prepares to resume, Adam Scott has completed a nine-hole shootout against an old mate’s son who in a short space of time has gone from fawning fan to star pupil.
Currently ranked No.6 in the world, Scott has chosen a cautious approach to when he will return to golf’s top echelon, instead preferring the more relaxed routine that has entailed games with old acquaintances throughout the Sunshine Coast.
One of those was at Maleny Golf Club against former Japan Golf Tour winner Wayne Perske, a match Scott dubbed ‘9 Holes With A Mate’ that he broadcast live on Instagram to his 228,000 followers.
Scott announced on Tuesday morning via his social media channels that he would be playing nine holes at Caloundra Golf Club on Wednesday afternoon against Bailey Arnott, a first year at Iowa State University and the son of Caloundra Head Professional Tom Arnott.
Three years Scott’s senior, Arnott would allow Scott to tag along in early morning matches as juniors at Royal Queensland and during this COVID-19-induced hiatus has seen first-hand Scott’s generous nature.
Not only has he taken 18-year-old Bailey under his wing with regular rounds and a one-on-one training session at his home, Scott has spent time at Caloundra visiting with juniors and conducting clinics as well as providing a boost to a club member doing it tough.
The junior club champion in 1995 and a hard-hitting all-rounder in local cricket, Craig Grant suffered a severe stroke five years ago that makes verbal communication impossible.
It hasn’t stopped him however from establishing the Craig Grant Junior Golf Fund to help pay for junior clinics at the club and Scott popped in with Arnott in part to boost his spirits, and also to say thanks.
“Craig had a massive stroke five years ago,” Arnott explains. “He’s got two daughters, used to play off 1 and 2 and still sponsors my junior program.
“He is in full-time care now and Adam and I turned up at his house and spent 45 minutes with him having a chat.
“He can’t talk but to see the look in his eyes… he knew who was there and what was going on.
“It was really special.
“When the whole COVID-19 stuff started happening Adam offered to come and wash carts for me.
“We had to put half the staff off but we had two-balls, members only, and you could not move out here. It was check-in from 6am until 4pm.
“He rang to see how I was going and genuinely cared about what was happening.
“As the COVID stuff started happening, he rang me to see whether Bailey had been able to get back from the US in time because he was going to offer to fly him out if he was still at college.
“That’s just the type of guy he is.”
Despite the generosity that has been on show throughout his extended stay at home, Scott has been less than giving in regular matches with his former junior sparring partner.
Arnott estimates that they have played together two or three times a week over the past two months and despite all his riches, Scott has no hesitation in putting out his hand at the end of a round.
“Everyone says how nice he is but they’ve obviously never played golf against him,” Arnott jokes.
“He took $5 off me the other day. I got it out of my wallet and said, ‘You want this don’t you?’ And he said yeah and pocketed it.
“He and I played against (Ladbrokes Legends Tour regulars) Brad Burns and Glenn Joyner the other day and they beat us 2&1. They came ready to play, don’t worry about that. I think I let the team down that day.”
As for the lasting legacy Scott’s visits will have on the club, Arnott has no doubt the juniors will talk about the time they got to spend with one of the best players in the world for many years to come.
“It creates a whole new vibe amongst the golf club because he has been out here quite a bit,” said Arnott.
“The kids look up to me as the PGA Professional but it goes to another level when they know you’re mates with Adam Scott.”
From lounge rooms across Australia, the golf industry has come together to celebrate the achievements of the Western Australia Golf Industry at the 2019 ADH Club Car Western Australian Virtual Industry Awards Night.
Hosted by Kim Felton and Gary Thomas, the Thursday 4 June event acknowledged the triumphs of industry representatives, participants, volunteers and supporters from all over the state.
Conducted via a live broadcast, WA PGA Chairman Rob Farley began the evening by honouring five PGA Trainee Program graduates who have gone on to become full Vocational Members of the PGA of Australia.
Farley wished Ethan Andrews, Michael Lewis, Courtney Martin, Jessica Speechley and Cameron Vale all the best for their careers in golf as they join their peers as full Members of the PGA in 2020.
The ADH Club Car Western Australian Industry Awards Night allowed the WA golf industry to formally recognise the successes of 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Champion and 2019 Greg Norman Medallist, Hannah Green, who was awarded the 2019 Outstanding Golf Achievement Award.
In addition to her two LPGA tournament victories in 2019 and new title as the first Western Australian to win a golf major, Felton and Thomas praised Green’s kindness, compassion and eagerness to give back to the sport in the wake of her most successful year yet.
PGA Life Member Len Thomas joined the illustrious list of winners of the WA Golf Industry Recognition Award for his enormous contribution to golf in WA over the past 60 years.
Congratulations to all of our 2019 ADH Club Car Western Australia Industry Award recipients.
| Hilary Lawler PGA Professional of the Year | Tristan McCallum (Sea View GC) |
| PGA Coach of the Year | Ritchie Smith (Royal Fremantle GC) |
| PGA Management Professional of the Year | Josh Madden (Wembley Golf Complex) |
| PGA Game Development Professional of the Year | Mark Tibbles ( The Vines Resort & Country Club |
| PGA Pro Am of the Year | Urban Quarter Dunsborough Lakes Pro Am |
| PGA Tournament of the Year | Nexus Risk Services Southwest Open (Bunbury GC) |
| GCSAWA Apprentice of the Year | Mitchell Clay (Mandurah Country Club) |
| Superintendent of the Year | Ashley Watson (Joondalup Golf & Country Club) |
| WA Golf Industry Recognition Award | Len Thomas (PGA) |
| Industry Outstanding Game Development Award | Mark Tibbles (The Vines Resort and Country Club) |
| Employee of the Year | Tony Howell (Mosman Park GC) |
| Volunteer of the Year | Mal Rigoll (Busselton GC) |
| Metropolitan Golf Course of the Year | Joondalup Golf and Country Club |
| Regional Golf Course of the Year | Bunbury Golf Club |
| Metropolitan Golf Facility of the Year | Mandurah Country Club |
| Regional Golf Facility of the Year | Bunbury Golf Club |
| Outstanding Golf Achievement Award | Hannah Green |
In its 11th year the ADH Club Car Western Australian Industry Awards Night was made possible by the hard work of the event’s stakeholders, the PGA of Australia, Golf WA, the Golf Managers Association – WA and the Course Superintendents Association, as well as event sponsors ADH Club Car, Bowra & O’Dea, Golf Car World EZGO, Miclub, McIntosh & Son and Jacobsen, Nexus Risk Services and Phenomenon Creative Event Services.
Collectively, their dedication to supporting and growing the game allows us to acknowledge the outstanding achievements of the industry each year. We hope to celebrate 2020’s achievements with you all in person in 2021.
If you were unable to tune in live the awards are still available to watch via the link below.
View the gallery from the evening below.
Sanctuary Cove PGA Professional Michael Jones never once considered cancelling his second annual ‘Morning Tee’ in aid of the Cancer Council in this age of COVID-19, he just had to find a different way to deliver it.
Jones and Oregon State University representative and Sanctuary Cove member Isabelle Taylor last week hosted three clinics for lady members at Sanctuary Cove Golf and Country Club on the Gold Coast, the restrictions on public gatherings keeping each clinic to a maximum of eight participants.
It’s a far cry from the 75 ladies who attended the inaugural ‘Morning Tee’ conducted by Jones last year but represents an opportunity to do some good as so many people are doing it tough.
“I had testicular cancer when I was 30 and went through the whole gamut of chemotherapy, the whole lot,” explains Jones, who in addition to his role as Golf Instructor at Sanctuary Cove has worked with tour players such as Brad Kennedy and Matthew Millar.
“The treatments have come a long way since then and that’s in large part because people have been able to help research by raising money.
“As a golf pro I thought about what I could do and so last year we had the first of our ‘Morning Tee’ clinics where we raised around $3,500.
“Even though we are in the middle of this coronavirus pandemic it shows that people are still trying to do things to benefit people going through cancer treatment, diagnosis and recovery.
“So many things are having to be cancelled due to the coronavirus and the restrictions but I just thought that if there was a way and a means of doing it, why not.”
Despite the country being in lockdown for much of the past three months, the ladies at Sanctuary Cove responded just as Jones expected they would when he announced that he and Isabelle would be conducting the clinics again.
“We sold out the clinics in about 45 minutes. It was like they were tickets to a U2 concert or something,” says Jones, laughing.
“We put on two clinics and they sold out really quickly, put on a third and that also sold out. We could probably have put on two more if we’d wanted to.
“There are a few ladies here going through breast cancer and ovarian cancer so the cause is quite close to them and they got behind it straight away.
“It’s another good example that while we’re in a bit of a holding pattern at the moment, if we can still help out some people who are doing it a bit tougher than us then why not.”
Given the number of members who are residents at Sanctuary Cove, demand for tee times and lessons has been high as Aussies have been forced to stay close to home.
And not only have existing members increased the frequency of their play, Jones is seeing some former golfers return to the sport in strong numbers.
“I’ve got a number of lessons this week with people who are getting back into golf. With all the restrictions people are genuinely looking at activities they can participate in,” says Jones.
“They might have played when they were a kid and because they can get out and play have dusted off the clubs and got back out there.
“The overwhelming feeling during this time here has been gratitude. The members at Sanctuary Cove have all been terrific in accepting the way they have had to play their golf the past couple of months and they all adhered to it really quickly. Like most courses, they recognised that something was better than nothing.
“Teaching-wise it’s been probably one of my busiest periods because whatever people are allowed to do, they seem to be doing a lot of it.
“We have a lot of elderly members here who might live on their own these days so if they don’t come to golf they don’t get the opportunity to talk to too many people.
“I’ve spent quite a few half-hour lessons just talking to people more so than worrying about hitting golf balls.
“In this current climate people are searching for something positive and to at least have the satisfaction that they did something with their day and golf has been able to provide that for them.”
If you would like to donate to the Cancer Council click here.
Deyen Lawson will use the framework of some of the best players in world golf as he makes a temporary return to the teaching ranks under Todd Sleep at The Glades driving range on the Gold Coast.
With the resumption of the European Tour schedule continuing to be a fluid proposition, Lawson has decided to put the traineeship he completed at Curlewis Golf Club in Victoria to good use, assisting Sleep in the shop and making himself available to give lessons.
With his first lessons booked in this week with Glades members and juniors eager to learn from a European Tour player, Lawson will highlight what the finest swingers of the golf club have in common and how golfers at every level can incorporate those elements into their own games.
“Being around a lot of really, really good players, none of them swing it the same but there are a couple of things in either set-up or impact position that 99.9 per cent of really good players do,” said Lawson, who earned a European Tour card at Qualifying School in 2018 and was tied for 10th at the 2019 Australian Open.
“If someone isn’t doing that I’ll try to see why they’re not doing that and keep it simple to try and get them in that position, whether it be through grip, set-up or something else and then take it from there.
“I’ve always been pretty good at communicating. I think I’m reasonable at reading people too and the way they like to learn when it comes to the golf swing.
“Some people are visual, some people are mental, some people like seeing their swing, some people don’t. I’ve had five years of being around coaches and some of the best players in the world and everybody is different.
“There are so many different ways to be taught and with the golf swing there is no one right way.”
Determined to return to life on tour as soon as it is safe to do so, Lawson will continue to work on his own game in between commitments at the TS Golf Academy.
Manning the shop on Sundays and available to give lessons during the week, Lawson said even with his practice schedule it is a workload that he is used to.
Having begun his traineeship under Drew Robertson at Curlewis, Lawson’s responsibilities grew prior to David and Lyndsay Sharpe buying the club and, despite the hours, now values what it taught him about the inner workings of a golf club.
“Ever since I was 15 I worked two part-time jobs or was doing my traineeship or played full-time so I felt like I needed to do something,” Lawson said of his decision to get back in the shop.
“Last year I was in Europe for 33 weeks and played six or eight events here and in between you’re practising. For me to go back to work one day and do a bit of coaching, it doesn’t really feel like that much.
“At the start of my traineeship I was doing Saturdays and Sundays from 6am-6pm.
“When Lyndsay and David Sharpe bought the club I went from doing Saturdays by myself from 6am-6pm with 200 in the comp to be able to do what a trainee should do.
“There was around two months where we didn’t have a manager or a Head Professional so I was kind of running everything and doing silly amounts of hours. It was good in the sense that I could see how everything at a golf club works.
“Then when Lyndsay and David took over, who have a lot of successful businesses, it was good to be able to see the way they operate and why they have so many successful businesses.”
As for taking on a position as a Head Professional himself in future, Lawson didn’t rule it out completely but has his sights set on a return to the tour, whenever that might be.
“I can’t imagine it,” Lawson said when asked whether he will return to Europe this year. “Maybe this time next year.
“Until players from every country can travel it’s hard to see how you could have an event.
“If you’re from Italy and you’ve got status but you’re not allowed to travel then you can’t really have a tournament. That’s not fair on them.
“I wouldn’t say no (to a Head Professional position) but at the moment I love playing and I love competing.
“I know where my game stands and there’s still a lot I would like to fulfil in playing.”
PGA Professional John Collins knows the important influence golf can have on people.
Desperate to find a way to ease the struggle on communities beset by drought in 2018, Collins packed up a ute sourced by the PGA of Australia, took Assistant Professional Chris Crooks along for the ride and gave nine remote Queensland communities access to a PGA Professional, if only for a day.
Like many, Collins’ regular workload as Head Professional at Brookwater Golf and Country Club near Brisbane has been impacted by the restrictions enforced amidst the coronavirus pandemic. The Brookwater driving range has been closed and the number of lessons he has been able to give limited but one day of teaching reminded Collins of the importance golf plays during such a stressful time.
The CEO of a private hospital needed the opportunity to think about something other than COVID-19; a 4-year-old unable to participate in junior clinics was desperate for a fix of his new obsession while another PGA Professional now devoid of tournaments to play in simply craved the benefits of some productive practice.
“It just hit me one day,” Collins says.
“For the CEO of the hospital, coming to see me was just as much a chance to clear his head as it was to improve his golf swing.
“He was being bombarded by all the coronavirus stuff at work so his lessons with me were a way to get his mind off that.
“The 4-year-old I had that day would normally be coming to the junior clinics which of course had to be stopped. His mum and dad decided that because he loves golf so much that a couple of one-on-one lessons would be not only be good for him but also give the parents a break for an hour or so.
“The third person I saw that day was another golf pro who would normally be playing for a living.
“The three lessons that I had in a row were so different but golf was the one common thing that they were all deriving some enjoyment from.
“Golf means quite a bit to many people but all in different ways.”
Collins too has had moments of realisation.
As many golf courses have struggled to keep up with the demand of people wanting to play first in groups of two and now four in most states, the driving range at Brookwater has for a number of weeks provided Collins with a vastly different work environment.
“The big difference for me has been the solitude at the driving range,” he explains.
“It’s only me and the person I’m giving the lesson to on the range so when I go and pick up all the balls it can be really quite eerie.
“Normally there would be a dozen, 15 people on the range and the noise that comes from them all hitting balls so for it to be completely empty has been really quite surreal at times.
“That’s when it hit me that this was a very different time.”
The steps that have been taken as a nation is allowing a sense of normalcy to return.
The staged relaxing of restrictions will allow for clubhouses to seat up to 20 guests in Step 2 with that number to grow to 100 in Step 3, the states left to determine when those steps will be taken exactly.
Golfers have become accustomed to playing with flagsticks in, tidying bunkers with their feet and skipping the post-round handshake and Collins believes it is difficult to predict what the ‘new normal’ will look like for Australian golf clubs.
“I can’t see how anything will change too much,” says Collins.
“What will be interesting is how quickly we will go back to shaking hands after a round with your playing partner.
“I wonder how quickly that will return.
“Also, will people continue to go straight from the 18th green to the car park or because they have been starved of it will they take the time to have a drink in the clubhouse when they’re finished?
“Perhaps they will value that a little more and do it more often.
“That could go either way.
“It appears that plenty of people have been able to play golf these past few months so hopefully clubs continue to be busy as things open up more and more.”
