courtesy: Golf WA The Board of Golf WA is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr Gary Thomas as the Chief Executive of Golf WA, the newly formed state body for men&aposs and women&aposs golf. Gary comes to the new role with a wealth of experience at all levels of golf including; General Manager of Lake Karrinyup Country Club Executive Manager of Royal Perth Golf Club Director of Golf at Singapore Island Country Club Junior Development Officer at the Western Australian Golf Association. President Golf Management Western Australia “We are delighted that Gary has accepted the appointment and his breadth of experience across all levels of golf will be real asset in the role, which has priority outcomes of ensuring the sport is inclusive for all participants and revitalises its community profile, particularly within the business sector” said Golf WA Chairman Max Hannah. “As the highest participant sport in the country, golf has a wide range of participants as players, employees and volunteers. It is a billion dollar industry and we wish to capitalise on this position to offer greater access to the community, support for our member clubs and local government, who provide such wonderful facilities for golfers to enjoy” said Hannah. There are over 110,000 people playing the game in WA, 30,000 of whom have a membership in one of the 240 clubs. Golf Australia has just launched a new national program for junior development, a community coach education program and are reviewing their national high performance structure ahead of golf&aposs entry into the 2016 Olympics. Golf WA has also secured support from the Department of Sport and Recreation and Healthway to support new programs in regional areas and to target disadvantaged groups in the community through to the end of 2011. This is a very exciting time for the sport and Thomas is expected to take up the role in early November.