Golf Club Talk UK

Golf Club Talk UK welcome Harriet Shephard and Kim Wild who head up, Women and Golf magazine, UKs leading golf magazine for women. The magazine has recently made the transition to purely a digital platform, Harriet and Kim share their vision moving forward and why clubs need to embrace the female community. Visit https://womenandgolf.com/ to check out the magazine. Leighton speaks to Chris Duffy, formerly GM of Huddersfield Golf Club but currently exploring opportunities. Chris and Leighton talk about redundancy, Chris' previous business venture, lessons learned from over 120 Golf resorts around the world, the industry in general and what's ahead for Chris Duffy. Chris can be contacted on Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisduffygolf/

Leighton and Eddie have a catch up discussing among other things, the reopening of Clubhouses, Bryson De Chambeau and the European Tour recommencing. On the back of this, Leighton interviews Gavin Robinson, Personal Development Manager of the GCMA. Gavin has been playing a pivotal role in keeping members informed throughout the COVID-19 crisis. He explains how he has done this and talks about some of the challenges that Golf Club employees have faced. Gavin also talks about some of the education offerings through the GCMA. Gavin can be reached via email: gavin@gcma.org.uk

Leighton and Eddie have a general chat on Episode 24. They explore many of the issues that have come out of the COVID-19 crisis. They delve into areas such as what they've both been up to, new members and the spike that clubs have seen here, 9 hole competitions, club culture, tee time bookings at members clubs, innovation and technology and much more. Many opportunities have arisen out of COVID-19 and now is the chance for the industry to seize some of these opportunities for their future benefit. Clubs will no doubt be looking at their business models and is it time to reset?? Please share your ideas, experiences and thoughts with Eddie and Leighton on Twitter @golfclubtalkuk or email golfclubtalkuk@gmail.com

As the pandemic hit, many golf businesses were scaling their preparations for the return. We wanted to talk with golf leaders and gain first hand knowledge what is happening in other countries around the world of golf , and how they view the unexpected problems presented and the effect within their respected golf businesses. Our ambitious plan was to bring everyone to the Golf Club Talk UK table at the same time, it's our pleasure to share with our listeners the thoughts and ideas of our international guests. Welcome to: Richard Sorell : Chief Executive - Golf de Vidauban , France Chris Bentley: Chief Executive - Royal Johannesburg & Kensington Club , South Africa Miguel Franco de Sousa: President - Portuguese Golf Federation Kevyn Cunningham: Director of Golf- Half Moon Golf , Jamaica Marco Aquilino: General Manager -Royal Park Golf Club , Milan, Italy John Caven: Chief Operation Officer - Oakdale Golf & Country Club , Ontario, Canada

Another round table episode this week focusing on the role of the Chairman through a crisis like this. Eddie and Leighton are joined by 5 Chairs from various clubs in the North and South of the country. Our geusts were: Emma Brereton - Chair : Cirencester GC Janet Thacker - Chair - Highwoods GC, Bexhill -on - Sea Rick Weights - Chair - Fulford GC, York Jim Titley - Chair -Broadway GC David Ham - Chair - The Nevill GC, Tunbridge Wells These people bring huge experience and knowledge to their roles and they discuss what they have been doing to help mitigate the COVID-19 crisis. There's some really valuable information with an emphasis on staffing, membership subscriptions and where to from here. Apologies for any sound issues that occur during this interview.

A special episode this week where we discuss COVID-19 and its effect on the industry with 7 industry experts. It's an open discussion looking at the impact it will have on people, finances and the future of Golf Clubs and the game itself. The panel is made up of Managers, Association representatives, Driving Ranges and even a view from Denmark! Tune into this episode to listen to what others are doing already but also what planning might need to take place. For more information on COVID-19 and the Golf industry, see these links: Government update on status of greenkeeping Latest: Coronavirus - GCMA

Enjoy this fascinating conversation with two UK golf club leaders, Amy Yeates and Rebecca Prout. Amy Yeates, CEO of Moor Park golf and tennis club. Previous winner of the GCMA manager of the year award and PGA Professional. Amy's previous clubs include Fairmont St Andrews, Goodwood, The Belfry and Mannings Heath. Rebecca Prout is the General Manager of Highwoods Golf Club

First up this month, the show takes on an International flavour with Leighton interviewing Rod Morri, Journalist and host of several well-known podcasts in Australia on the Talkin Golf Network (https://talkingolf.com/about/). Rod is a journalist by trade, now writing for Golf Australia magazine, but more lately has expanded his Podcast network which includes shows such as The Good Good Golf podcast, State of the Game and Feed The Ball. As well as this Rod talks to us about some trends in clubs in Australia along with some things that are working well and things that are not. There's also a chat on the importance of Community in Golf Clubs. Leighton also speaks to Deana Rushworth (Golf Lessons, Witney, Oxfordshire - Deana Rushworth PGA Golf Pro & Mind Factor Coach). Deana recently gained the "Advanced PGA" status and this is a testament to her time in the industry and contribution to teaching. The discussion moves from Teaching to how perhaps clubs can introduce more ladies to the game and even the "Mind Factor" seminars that Deana delivers to Golfers on Golf psychology. Originally from Yorkshire and now teaching out of Witney Lakes Golf Club, Deana is an engaging character who has a lot of energy and a lot of great ideas.

This week Golf Club Talk UK are delighted to share some time with "the voice of golf" - Peter Alliss . Peter has always shared his direct views and has much during the programme to surprise our golf listeners. Enjoy the stories .

Alan Tait is renowned in Scotland - having represented his country and in 1994 came to golf prominence as holding the course record at Carnoustie while also partnering Tiger Woods . He has since developed his skills into golf management and is a regular presenter on BBC Radio Scotland as their man of golf, while also recognised as a prominent after dinner speaker. His passion for the game has seen him recently become an ambassador for Golphin delivering participation into golf for children. Gabe Aluisy also joins us. Gabe's company the Private Club Agency (http://aluisy.com, http://privateclubagency.com) has recently become a sponsor of the show and Gabe talks to Leighton about Membership Marketing and Strategy into the 2020's, particularly about how to tell your story as a club. Gabe will presenting this in much more detail in July at the CMAE England seminar at Villa Park - https://www.cmae-england.uk/ Get in touch with Leighton or Eddie from GCTUK: email - golfclubtalkuk@gmail.com Twitter - @golfclubtalkuk