The R&A Golf Development Programme
How Open Championship Revenue Aids Golf’s Global Spread
The ever-growing expansion of The Open Championship, as an annual multi-million income stream for the benefit of the world’s golfing community, has inspired many worthwhile initiatives, but none more far-reaching than the Golf Development Programme.
The close link between The R&A and the PGAs of Europe enables selected golf development consultants and tutors to travel to many outposts around the world where under-financed golfing bodies have appealed for help to establish a golfing culture and programme.
These countries lack the resources and/or expertise to achieve their aim. Consequently they look to The R&A for help. At St. Andrews surplus income from the Open Championship is set-aside in a development budget exclusively for this purpose.
Where aid is considered to be appropriate, contact is made with the PGAs of E and a Golf Professional is recommended to become that country’s Golf Development Consultant (GDC). The success they are achieving in spreading the gospel of golf around the globe is quite incalculable.
The Golf Development Programme story is too lengthy to detail here, but basically the PGAs of E recommend personnel to carry out the initial visits in order to assess the current situation and point the best way forward under the guidelines of their Education Committee.
On arrival the Golf Development Consultant meets the relevant officials, visits any existing golf courses, talks to those who currently provide the best service they can, meets the country’s most promising players, conducts golfing clinics and explores the possibility of state support.
Such countries need equipment, golf balls, clothing, training aids, anything and everything relevant to furnishing their education programme. The Consultant then returns home, submits his report and recommendations to The R&A and the PGAs of Europe. Steps are then taken to introduce a programme of regular visits to implement the recommendations.
During the last year Honduras and Israel have been visited by Golf Development Consultants and their specific needs assessed with a view to a structured and comprehensive programme of development being put in place.
For them, as with previous ‘young’ golfing countries that have received support in similar fashion, the Way Ahead begins here….
View our The R&A Golf Development Programme case studies to date...
- The Theme is ‘Education Sans Frontière!’ - 20 Oct 2010
- Glenmuir’s ‘Uniform’ Aid to Growing Golf - 20 Oct 2010
- Israel’s ‘Thank you’ for ‘Brilliant’ Input by Alliss and Hampf - 20 Oct 2010
- Development: Record number of visits by Consultants - 23 Jan 2010
- The R&A’s 50% Increase in Annual Grant - 23 Nov 2009
- Why golf in Trinidad, ‘will grow among the palms’ - 23 Apr 2009
- Global Golf Development Goes on…and on! - 23 Apr 2009
- Jordan’s Need to Turn ‘Grains of Sand’ into ‘Grass Roots’ - 23 Apr 2010
- Tunisia’s ‘Strong desire to grow golf…’ - 23 Feb 2009
- Gary Alliss Spreading the Gospel of Golf in Israel - 23 Dec 2008
- Support Needed for Golfers who ‘Play with Broken Clubs’ - 23 Jun 2008
- Jordan, Bangladesh in Development Programme - 23 May 2008
- Adding Golf to Trinidad & Tobago’s Attractions’ - 23 May 2008
- Growing Golf in the Caribbean Islands - 23 Mar 2008
- How Europe is Teaching the Coaches in Chile - 23 Nov 2007
- The Peek Report on Golf in Honduras - 23 Sep 2007
- Golf Roots Gives Every Kid a Chance - 23 May 2009
