The inaugural PGA of Asia Conference has taken off and hectic plans are underway to stage this long overdue event in the exotic city of Bangkok in the royal kingdom of Thailand. The conference dates are locked in and the two-day event will be staged at the plush Centara Grand on 30 April to 1 May 2010.
“Why is this conference overdue? Well, if you look at the growth of golf in Asia, it’s really absurd that no one has taken the trouble to organize a knowledge-sharing event for golf coaches in the region,” rationalized Mike Sebastian, managing director of Asia Pacific Golf Development Conferences Pte Ltd, the owner and producer of this event.
This is the first time that a properly structured and organized conference is being held for golf coaches in the region. “We hope to be able to line up some top foreign coaches and together with the collaboration of associations that represent golf coaches, we will have a world class programme in place for the delegates who sign up for this event,” pointed out Sebastian
According to Georgina Wong, executive director of the company behind this conference, “Bangkok was selected for this important conference because it is very centrally located within the region and it has some 1000 professional golfers and coaches – reason enough to home-base the event in Thailand”
The PGA of Thailand will play host to this major conference and according to Wong, “Veteran Thai golfer, Boonchu Ruangkit will be the patron of the conference.”
Top Asian coach and the man famous throughout the region for his “Black Hat” golfing tips, Tony Meechai was elated with the news of the conference. He said, “This is awesome – finally, the coaching community is being recognized by the industry and this can only be good for all of us.”
The organizers are planning on an attendance of 500 delegates at this inaugural conference. “We need to give the coaching profession a real shot in the arm – if Asia is to assume its place at the very top of global golf, we need to invest in the development of our coaching community and we’ve got to do it now,” Sebastian explained.
“The first steps have been taken and based on reaction and initial response, this show is going to be a real knock-out!” declared Wong georgina.wong@golfconference.org
The Inaugural PGA of Asia conference will be staged in conjunction with the 2010 Southeast Asia/India Golf Merchandise Exposition which will also be held in Bangkok from 30 April to 2 May www.asiagolfexpo.com