Golf Australia as announced the launch of a new club support resource portal: www.golf.org.au/clubsupport
Developed by Golf Australia in collaboration with key industry bodies including all State/Territory Golf Associations, PGA of Australia, Golf Management Australia, Australian Golf Course Superintendents Association and the Australian Sports Commission, the objective of the portal is to improve the capability, financial performance and sustainability of clubs.
Golf Australia Director of Golf Development, Cameron Wade said: “Clubs are now facing a number of challenges where consumers are time-poor and have an increasing number of other recreational pursuit options. Our research tells us that at least 50% of the 1,600 golf clubs in Australia are currently under some level of financial distress. Therefore it is vital that we lead initiatives to assist clubs and provide opportunities for them to improve their business and adapt in a very competitive sporting market.”
Designed specifically for clubs, the portal can be freely accessed and includes a comprehensive array of resources that can be adopted by any size and type of club. Areas covered include: Strategic Planning & Governance, Financial Management, Risk Management, Insurance, Membership & Marketing, Facility Management, Workforce Management, Participation Programs and Case Studies & Research.
Supporting the portal are also two important online tools – Club Health Check and Golf Club Benchmarking.
Club Health Checkis a diagnostic tool provided by the Australian Sports Commission and now adapted specifically for golf clubs. It involves a series of questions related to the various aspects of running a club. Once submitted, an instant report is generated giving a club feedback and providing an action plan on addressing areas that are critical to a club’s success.
GolfClub Benchmarking is a business intelligence tool developed by Golf Management Australia. With this tool, clubs can enter data such as revenue, subscription fees, and operational costs and generate reports to benchmark themselves against other golf clubs in Australia.
Golf Australia aims to have as many clubs as possible utilising the club support portal and on-line tools including sharing case studies. Wade added, “The resources have been developed through harnessing the knowledge and expertise of the entire golf industry which is very powerful. We are confident that the resources can provide real benefits to any golf club in Australia.”
State/Territory Golf Associations will also be providing dedicated club support personnel who will be available to assist clubs in improving their operations.
Stephen Pitt, Golf Australia’s chief executive, said the development of the portal was important for the health of the game. “Club health is a critical part of Golf Australia’s planning and also of our member states,’’ Pitt said. “For the good of Australian golf we need to help the clubs through the challenges that are confronting them. Whatever we can do in terms of governance and with the business of running golf clubs is very important.’’