Having started his professional golf coaching career under the guidance of Geoff Horley at The Oaks Golf Club in Surrey, Jon Woodroffe has now returned nearly 30 years later as the new Director of Golf at this busy 27 hole public golf facility on the outskirts of Sutton, South London.
In the ‘eighties Jon led a team of seven PGA professionals introducing hundreds of new people to golf through beginners group classes. As one of the only golf ranges in the area, the business was brisk. Fast forward 30 years and a decline in golf participation as well as many more golf ranges in the area has meant that by standing still the range at The Oaks has gone backwards.
In his first month in the role Jon has overseen the installation of 13 Power Tees in the 16 bay range as well as new bay dividers and a major redecoration of the range building.
With the upgrade of the range facility along with Jon offering free beginners group classes, the team at The Oaks are aiming to get more people starting golf and enjoying the beginner friendly atmosphere and facilities at this attractive family owned golf centre.
Jon has had a distinguished career and worked at some of the UK’s busiest facilities. Matt Foley from Power Tee® asked him his views on Power Tees and what are the main benefits.
Jon said: “Power Tees bring the most professional look to a driving range. It is without doubt the automated tee of choice. All of the ranges I have worked at have had Power Tees and the customers’ response has always been magnificent.
“The Power Tees themselves are easy to maintain and on a small range in busy periods we get more balls hit by more customers. After one week of full operation the figures were 60% up on the same period last year, so that’s a great start!
“Customer service is of paramount importance to me and by offering our customers the best mat to practice from which we do with Power Tees on site we reap the benefits of a happier customer base that wants to spend more time here and spend more money with us.
“During challenging times it is easy for businesses to see the cost of everything but the value of very little, we have created a great environment for our customers to practice in, and the immediate response has been fantastic from our staff and customers as it is equally important to demonstrate to our staff that we are wanting to offer more to our customers too.
“We have introduced longer opening hours on site so golfers can come early morning and hit balls from 7:30am and then use our restaurant for breakfast, and we remain open until 10pm Monday- Thursday with golfers yet again able to take advantage of the great fare we serve in our restaurant. We close at 8pm Friday through Sunday.
“With our revamped facility, rejuvenated staff, more flexible hours of operation, we are really providing a facility we can be proud of and our customers proud to use. I would recommend Power Tee to any range owner that is looking to provide a quality environment for practice and anyone looking to generate business growth.”
The Oaks Golf Club http://theoaksgolf.co.uk/
Power Tee www.powertee.co.uk