England Golf’s commitment to growing the game has strengthened thanks to three new partnership agreements with companies operating in the sphere of junior golf.
Golphin, Golf Access and Factory Eleven GolfParc have come on board to play their part in supporting a nationwide drive to encourage clubs to develop and grow their junior programmes and increase the overall numbers of young people getting into golf and keeping up their interest after initial taster sessions. The partnerships will enable affiliated clubs to access resources and products that can impact on the way they engage with young people.
All three partnerships will help England Golf roll out its aims as stated in a national children and young people plan, “Growing the Game for the Future.”
Golphin’s involvement comes in the form of discounted access to their MyPathway2Golf structured learning programme. It was developed and tested at clubs in Scotland and is now being used in the UK, USA and Europe. This programme provides clubs, coaches, junior organisers and volunteers with a comprehensive set of resources to inspire children in the age bracket of 5-12 get into golf and develop their skills.
Golf Access will provide expertise in the field of recruiting younger players as well as offering a structured route from the beginner level to that of regular golfer. The programme, which is delivered on course from shortened tees, takes golfers through nine, fun stages of development from complete novice to the final level which would allow them to move from the range to the course and play confidently off standard tees.
Factory Eleven GolfParc is a portable golf hole that has been designed to help develop the key fundamental skills of golf and an understanding of playing the game. The GolfParc equipment gives participants the experience of navigating the hazards of a golf course in a fun and engaging way wherever you want to play. GolfParc has already been utilised by a number of golf professionals, teachers and club organisers in their work engaging juniors and creating family participation at golf club facilities and in community settings.
Partnerships such as these, aimed at growing participation in golf, are part of a wider range of actions that will see England Golf working more collaboratively with public and private sector business across the industry to help them achieve their vision of growing the game of golf for the future.
Lee Dolby, England Golf’s National Young People Manager, is happy to have the three new partners on board. He said: “We are so pleased to be formally working in partnership with all three companies. We hope that affiliated clubs will take advantage of the new resources to support development and continue to grow the game for young people across the country. If we are going to create a meaningful impact on participation levels of young people, we need to be working with a greater number of partners that can innovate and educate. We cannot do it alone and that is why I am so pleased to be working in this way with three new partners.”
Calum McPherson of GolPhin added: “Our goal is to help golf clubs focus on the recruitment and retention of younger kids into their facilities. Embracing and applying new technology when thinking about attracting kids and their families is essential in today’s high-tech environment. Our products and services are all geared towards making golf fun, engaging and progressive in an age appropriate way. We are very excited to be working with England Golf and seeing a significant turnaround in the numbers of young people discovering the great game.“
Simon Wood, Director of Golf Access, said: “Golf Access is delighted to agree a partnership with England Golf. Golf Access is a new and exciting development initiative designed to bridge the gap for new golfers from never hitting a ball to progressing onto regular participation and golf club membership. It allows beginners to learn the game on the golf course and the unique colour-coded scoring system provide the new players with not only a fantastic and enjoyable experience, but also rewards a player for every level they attain. There are already over 100 golf clubs successfully embracing the Golf Access scheme and we look forward to working with England Golf to help golf clubs to grow the game and increase membership numbers all over the country.”
Peter Gray from Factory Eleven said: “We are proud to be working in collaboration with England Golf supporting their junior participation plan. We designed our GolfParc equipment to create a positive, fun introduction to golf ‘wherever you want to play’ and it has been exciting to work with a wide range of our customers over the years to make impactful local golf programmes happen. We are looking forward to working with England Golf and their county networks, giving more coaches, teachers and volunteers the opportunity to deliver engaging golf experiences right across their local communities.”