Why Should Golf Clubs Donate?

BACKGROUND

The Golf Foundation is a charity which has been committed to the sporting and social development of young people through golf across the British Isles since 1952 (www.golf-foundation.org). Through its national initiatives, it supports the development of grass roots junior golf through school and community projects and directs youngsters to the programmes run by clubs.

Underpinning the Golf Foundation’s work is the concept of ‘Skills for Life’ which is based on the belief that children and young people are able to develop playing skills and personal skills through the Foundation’s development initiatives that will benefit them for the rest of their lives.

Encouraging children and young people to learn and practice the basic golf skills – putting, short game, long game, playing and the golfer’s code – will lead to the psychological and physical benefits associated with improvement, personal achievement and life-long participation in sport.

Golf places strong emphasis on standards of behaviour and, therefore, is an ideal medium through which children and young people can develop six core personal skills – honesty, respect, co-operation, perseverance, concentration and self-motivation – which will help them through their youth and into adulthood.

Through the application of ‘Skills for Life’ the Golf Foundation is helping to generate committed young golfers and mature young individuals.

RECENT ACHIEVEMENTS

Through 2007, the Golf Foundation has supported many projects which link school-based activity to follow-on coaching at a golf facility.

Below is a list of the most notable achievements from 2007:

• The Golf Foundation established and maintained links with 307 major School Sport Partnerships and was able to stimulate golf activity in just under 7,000 schools.

• At the primary school level, 206 Tri-Golf workshops were held through which 3,183 ‘Tri-Golf Activators’ were trained.

• At the secondary level, 1,112 individuals (mainly teachers) attended one of the 91 Golf Xtreme workshops that were held.

• The 2007 School Sport Survey undertaken by the Department of Children, Schools and Families reported that the number of schools delivering golf has more than doubled in the last 4 years.

• 11 Junior Golf Leaders workshops were organised with 156 individuals receiving training.

• 164 official ‘Community Links’ venues offered coaching sessions for young beginners.

• The Golf Foundation’s inner city project – Golf Roots – took golf into 7 major cities in 2007 and reached hundreds of children who would not have been exposed to golf otherwise.

The last EGU/EWGA survey reported that junior membership has increased by 7,500 over the last two years, which equates to £750,000 of additional subscription income. It also confirmed that the Junior Golf Passport is the most widely used junior golf learning programme in England.

WHY SUPPORT THE GOLF FOUNDATION

Whilst golf clubs are separate entities, there are a number of issues that apply to all clubs, grass roots junior development work being one of them. The elements required for a successful junior recruitment programme will be the same at almost every club:

• Outreach work in schools

• Appropriate equipment for young children

• Training for leaders and volunteers

• A scheme that will structure learning, monitor progress and reward achievement

If each club was to tackle these issues on its own, the sport would be re-inventing the wheel hundreds of times over. Therefore, there is a strong argument for an organisation to fulfil the central role of developing schemes and initiatives that can then be used by PGA Professionals and Junior Organisers at a local level. This is not only the most efficient way of developing the sport, but it also demonstrates to both the golfing and non-golfing communities that golf has a clear vision and a co-ordinated approach. The Golf Foundation has been successful in this central role focussing on grass roots junior golf issues.

Tri-Golf and the Junior Golf Passport are just two examples of national initiatives developed by the Golf Foundation that have had a proven impact on the number of children playing the sport. Many of the youngsters participating in these initiatives will go on to be the adult participants and club members. It is difficult for Golf Clubs working in isolation to fund the development of initiatives on this scale.

The Golf Foundation has made great progress in the local authority and education sectors. For many years these sectors perceived golf as expensive, elitist, sexist, dangerous and dependant on proper golf facilities. The Golf Foundation has changed this perception to the extent that many local authorities now have golf development plans and the sport is now introduced in thousands of schools across the British Isles. Clubs operating in isolation would not have been able to change the perceptions of these sectors.

The Golf Foundation's Regional Development Officers supported hundreds of local community projects in 2007. The creation of local community projects for young people requires a detailed understanding of the sports development process and the ability to link the education and local authority sectors with the golfing community. The Golf Foundation staff have the experience and expertise to be able to establish and support effective local partnerships.

‘COMMIT TO JUNIOR GOLF’ CAMPAIGN

In order to generate the funds needed to support the ever-growing demand for its initiatives, the Golf Foundation has stepped up its annual appeal to raise the funds needed to bring more youngsters into golf clubs and protect the future of the game. The ‘Commit to Junior Golf’ campaign is aimed directly at members of all golf clubs in Great Britain. The Golf Foundation is appealing to clubs to introduce an optional £2 donation for the ‘Commit to Junior Golf’ campaign into their annual subscription and give members the opportunity to ‘chip in’ or opt out if they so wish.

Research carried out by Sports Marketing Surveys in 2002 found that 95% of men and 98% of women would be willing to make a small financial contribution to the work of the Golf Foundation. Therefore, it is expected that club members will be supportive of the campaign. To help the clubs to implement the scheme, guidance notes have been prepared together with standard wording to be used on the subscription renewal notices.

The campaign has been formally endorsed by the Golf Club Managers’ Association (GCMA), the R&A and the PGA.

The aim is to get 50% of golf clubs in Great Britain to implement an optional £2 donation within 5 years.

CONCLUSION

The Golf Foundation has firmly established itself as the leading junior golf development organisation in the British Isles and the evidence shows that the Golf Foundation has made tremendous progress over the last few years promoting and developing junior golf.

Many children and young people are now able to experience golf through school-based activity and this is resulting in more youngsters participating in club coaching programmes before progressing on to junior membership.

It is important to point out that much of the Golf Foundation’s work takes place at the stage prior to involvement with a golf club. Through its school and community initiatives the Golf Foundation is sparking an interest in golf amongst children and young people and creating a more receptive audience for clubs.

With the help of golf clubs, the Golf Foundation would be able to further develop its activities, which are proving to be so beneficial to the sport.

Thank you, in anticipation of your kind assistance.