The PGA’s coaching vision ‘Right Coach, Right Place, Right Time’ has been well received by leading organisations within the game.
The initiative, which aims to recruit, support and retain coaches at the heart of golf and ensure they help golfers achieve their potential, was unveiled to delegates from across the industry at PGA headquarters at The Belfry.
Among the golf bodies represented were the English Golf Union (EGU), English Women’s Golf Association (EWGA), the Scottish Golf Union (SGU), Scottish Ladies Golf Union (SLGU), Golf Union of Wales (GUW), Golf Union of Ireland (GUI), plus Sports CoachUK, the Golf Club Managers Association (GCMA) and the British and International Golf Greenkeepers’ Association (BIGGA).
The day-long conference, organised by Jane Booth, the PGA’s head of coaching systems and developer of the vision, explained the core elements of RCRPRT along with examples of initial successes in the UK.
John Dinsdale, national captain of the GCMA, said: “It was interesting and thought-provoking and highlights the link PGA professionals and coaches have to the growth of the game.
“That was the first time I have heard that presentation. It was quite refreshing and it was nice to see an initiative which could have a lot of ramifications for the sport.
“It will be very interesting to see how it develops because we definitely have to grow the game, keep people in the game and try and increase numbers.”
Steve Paulding, performance manager for Scottish Golf added: “It was good to see practical examples from around the Home Countries being shared to drive forward what is a fantastic opportunity to grow the game particularly in this economic climate.”
PGA professionals are at the very heart of the game from coaching at grass roots level through to elite amateurs and touring professionals.
Richard Flint, development manager at the EGU, is aware of the RCRPRT initiative as the EGU is involved in the wider England Golf strategy along with the PGA and EWGA.
Flint said: “We fully buy into this. The important thing for me as a development manager is it underpins everything we do within schools, with adults and also elite performance players.
“We know we need to have the right coach in the right place at the right time. We work closely with the clubs and the coaches and getting both working closer together and understanding this is the next move.
“As part of England Golf we’re already with the PGA and we are already seeing what is happening inEnglandwith the County Golf Partnerships and know that there is already something tangible.”
The vision has also received significant praise from Sports CoachUK, which seeks to improve coaching across all sports.
Anne Green, coaching systems manager for Sports CoachUK, said: “I think it is fantastic that golf has established a real strong vision. It fully embraces coaching and the interest around the UK shows the strength of that vision.
“It is now about developing the vision through action, which is a real crucial phase, by getting more people involved in the vision.
“Based on this, golf is one the leading sports in creating a vision for its coaches and the engagement of partnerships will show the ability to bring it to life.
“Golf is one of those sports that understand what their customers want. Sports like golf are the ones that are going thrive as they are really looking where the business needs to go.”
Organiser Booth, who has spent two years developing and fine-tuning the programme, said: “It is fantastic that so many of our partners from across Great Britain and Irelandare committed to our vision for golf coaching.
“We all believe that if we can recruit, train, support and retain excellent coaches to meet the needs of all golfers we will have a massively positive impact on the growth of the game of golf and secure all of our futures within the game.
“This is just the start of this long-term vision and with all these organisations, PGA professionals and volunteer coaches working together I am confident that we will always deliver the right coach to the right place at the right time.”