THERE was great excitement in North Queensland when former world number one Greg Norman dropped in for a “look around”. No one is saying why he was there, which begs the question: does the Great White Shark have plans to design and build a golf course in Townsville, invest in the city or was he […]
QUEENSLAND Club Professional of the Year Matthew King reckons he was destined for a career in the golf industry. When he was still in short pants, Matthew honed his skills out the back of the pro shop and on the course at Wynnum Golf Club where his father Paul King was the club professional for […]
IT’S hard to believe this year marks the 50th anniversary since the passing of one of Australia’s greatest golfers – an amateur at that. Ivo Whitton, who was born in 1893 and died in 1967 aged 73, was a legend in Australian golfing circles. In the modern game, it’s hard to imagine his golfing feats […]
AFTER 12 months at the helm, Tracey-Lea Tiley has settled beautifully in the general manager’s role at Links Hole Island Golf Club on the Gold Coast. As the leader of a multi-million dollar business, she revels in her work and happily puts in 11-hour days to ensure the club runs smoothly. “This is my second […]
CYCLONE Debbie’s destruction was never more evident than at Bowen Golf Club where wind speeds reached more than 250km/h tearing off the clubhouse awning and downpipes, bringing down huge trees, shifting concrete bridges and destroying sections of the golf course. The ocean side golf course was devastated and forced to close for at least a […]
WHEN Marcus Sullivan started as a golf shop assistant at Arundel Hills Country Club 20 years ago, not even he could imagine he would return one day as the club’s general manager. It’s been almost a year since Sullivan parked himself behind the GM’s desk and in that time he has overseen a number of […]
WATCH out Jordan, Jason, Rory and Adam – Dustin Johnson is on the prowl and he’s looking for a green blazer. Yes folks, it’s time for the US Masters. It’s when the dogwoods and azaleas are in stunning bloom and the best players on the planet line up for a tilt at winning the green […]
JASON DAY’S reign as golf’s World Number 1 came to a close this morning, with Dustin Johnson taking the top spot courtesy of his win at the Genesis Open in Los Angeles. With the win, Johnson becomes the 20th player to achieve the Number 1 status. It’s been just over 30 years since the creation of […]
Wendy Perry has a lot on her plate as general manager of Byron Bay Golf Club, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. Ms Perry, who has been at the helm at Byron Bay Golf Club for two years following a four-year stint as administration manager, has the club industry running through her veins. […]
THE Sunshine Coast may have lost the Australian PGA Championship, but it still jealously holds onto the Calvin Klein Queensland A, B and C Grade Golf Championships, which will be played at Noosa Springs from November 25 to 27. The event is open to all amateur golfers who have a registered Golf Australia handicap that […]
FOR the second successive year, a strong contingent of juniors from Pacific Golf Club in Brisbane jumped on the club’s bus to make the 90-minute journey to play in the Toogoolawah Golf Club Junior Classic. “Twelve Pacific juniors travelled as a team and once again enjoyed the experience of playing on a country course,” said […]
LONG John Daly is arguably the most colourful golfer playing the game today, but when it comes to eccentricity he’s a rank amateur compared to the late Murray Irwin “Moe” Norman. Norman was an eccentric Canadian golfer, who, like Daly, wore mismatched outfits and played fast – sometimes never stopping to line up putts. Australian golf […]
CALOUNDRA Golf Club has been one of the Queensland Sunshine Coast’s golfing institutions since 1951 and remains a traditional club with a healthy membership. The club’s general manager Jason Looker has been at Caloundra for a decade and, along with a strong management committee and staff, keeps the operation running like a well-oiled machine. Looker […]
WHEN builder Allan Wilson decided last year to move his family from Cairns to the Sunshine Coast to help make his daughter Sarah’s golfing dreams come true, he must have known it was a gamble. But it’s one that’s already paid off – and who knows what the ultimate dividend will be? Last month Sarah […]
JASON Day didn’t win a major in 2016, but his combined form in the four majors – the U.S. Masters, U.S. Open, Open Championship and U.S. PGA Championship – resulted in him finishing atop the leaderboard. After 16 major rounds, the 28-year-old’s 1123 total – nine-under par – saw him finish 12 shots ahead of […]
THE Safoz Schools Golf Challenge, an inter-schools old boys’ golf event, will be played at Parkwood International Golf Club on the Gold Coast on August 20. More than 20 schools from Australia, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, the United Kingdom and South Africa will compete for the Frames Trophy, which has a long and rich tradition […]
WHEN golf fans think of Baltusrol Golf Club, host of the US PGA Championship from July 28-31, they tend to associate it with the U.S. Open. That’s because Baltusrol has hosted seven U.S. Opens and just one PGA Championship in 2005. So what can players and fans expect? Will a U.S. Open-style course – which […]
NOBODY likes to hear of golf clubs closing their doors, but news out of the Sunshine Coast is that Peregian Springs Golf Club has shut up shop just 13 years after opening. Administrator Gavin Morton told the Sunshine Coast Daily’s Bill Hoffman the club had simply run out of money to operate. To many, the […]
FOR the ninth time in 93 years, the Open Championship returns to Royal Troon Golf Club from July 14-17. Founded in 1878, Royal Troon is renowned as one of the greatest links courses. The Old Course represents a stern golfing examination and, in particular, the inward half of Royal Troon is widely accepted as the […]
REIGNING US Open champion Jordan Spieth has suggested Oakmont, host to this month’s US Open, is arguably golf’s toughest test. “I know that if you win a US Open at Oakmont, you can go ahead and say that you’ve conquered the hardest test in all of golf because this is arguably the hardest course in […]
WELL, you can take US Masters champion Danny Willett off the list, but who will be the next player to join the elite “major winners’ club”? Ten years ago, a betting person would have backed Sergio Garcia, Luke Donald, Lee Westwood, Henrik Stenson, Brandt Snedeker and even natty dresser Ian Poulter to win at […]
WHEN golf historians blow the dust off the record books and go in search of great Australian golfers they will undoubtedly stop at the letter G and ink in one of the greatest – Lindy Goggin. Born and raised in Launceston, Tasmania, the extraordinarily talented Lindy stretched a stellar amateur career across four decades. She […]
Top award for WA’s Alex Monteath WEST Australian golfing stalwart Alex Monteath doesn’t like surprises, but he received one recently when Golf Management Australia (WA) honoured him with the WA Golf Industry Recognition Award for services to golf. “It was more of a shock than a surprise because I had no idea it was […]
ELEVEN Golf Management Australia (GMA) general managers attended the Club Managers’ Association of America’s 89th World Conference on Club Management and Club Business Expo in San Diego, California and returned home inspired and loaded with new ideas. The were: Aaron Muirhead (Nudgee Golf Club), Scott Wagstaff (Carbrook Golf Club), Barnaby Sumner (Oatlands Golf Club), Michael […]
MAROOCHY RIVER Golf Club general manager Charlie McGill still remembers having less than $50 in his pocket when he arrived from his native Scotland to start a new life in Australia. That was 33 years ago. Of course, today he has a few more bob in his pocket along with the Golf Management Australia (Qld) […]
AUSTRALIAN Katherine Kirk, a two-time US LPGA Tour winner and 2009 Ladies Masters champion, admits life on tour has been a struggle over the past 12 to 18 months. Still, if her form at the RACV Ladies Masters, where she finished as the leading Australian professional in a tie for 17th at one-under par, counts […]
BALLINA Golf and Sports Club general manager Mark Whiting was halfway through an interview with Inside Golf when he excused himself to answer a telephone ringing in the background. Soon he returned to apologise for his short absence. “The office manager had to take her dog to the vet so while I’m talking to you […]
IN-FORM Adam Scott already has one Green Jacket in his locker and will be aiming for a second when the US Masters gets underway on April 7. Joining Scott at Augusta National will be fellow Aussies Jason Day, Marc Leishman, Steven Bowditch and debutant Cameron Smith. Of course, Day, Leishman, Bowditch and Smith too will […]
FOR 27 years, RACV Ladies Masters tournament chairman Bob Tuohy has made a habit of introducing brilliant new talent to the tournament and this year is no exception. Last year Australian Su Oh wowed the galleries when she took on English sensation Charley Hull and experienced campaigner Katherine Kirk and won. The good news is […]
NOW that’s what I call a grand and inviting entrance! The drive into Coolangatta & Tweed Heads Golf Club off Soorley Street at Tweed Heads South stretches to about 1500 metres, winding its way past the lush fairways and manicured greens of the West Course – first of two first-class 18-hole layouts. It takes about […]
WHAT do St Andrews, Augusta National, Pebble Beach and Royal Melbourne have in common? They all use Tru-Turf greens rollers to produce perfect putting surfaces. The Gold Coast-based company has revolutionised the way greens are cared for and even has the US PGA Tour singing its praises. Mind you, it wasn’t always smooth rolling. “When […]
IN the mid-1980s, Mark Holland quit professional tennis to start a career that has led to managing some of the best golf clubs and resorts around the world. For the past 30 years, he has plied his management skills in the Middle East (Abu Dhabi and Kuwait), Singapore, Korea, Indonesia, Macau, Fiji and Australia where […]
TIGER Woods has been in and out of love a lot in recent years, but his love and respect for the Old Course at St Andrews, host of this month’s Open Championship, has never waned. Why would it? Tiger has won the Claret Jug at St Andrews twice – in 2000 and 2005. “I love […]
THIRTEEN young golfers have won their way to America after taking out their respective age divisions at the inaugural Australian Junior Age Division Golf Championship. Capricorn Resort Golf at Mercure Resort, Yeppoon played host to the three-day tournament on the specially configured Resort Course along with the renowned Championship Course. Mercure Capricorn Resort golf operations […]
IF you play golf and travel, chances are you’ve heard the news – golf in Western Australia is hot. Yes, the golf courses in Perth and surrounds and out to Kalgoorlie are sizzling hot. In the West, they weave intriguing layouts, quality resorts, soothing spas, gourmet dining and blend urban cool with raw natural beauty. […]
HEADLAND Golf Club general manager Ben Dobson has returned from his fact-finding mission to Melbourne’s Kingston Heath Golf Club armed with a plethora of good ideas. Dobson, who has been at the helm at Headland for seven years, spent three valuable days at Kingston Heath shadowing general manager Gregg Chapple. There, he was able to […]
IF golf course superintendent Phil Soegaard had a magic wand he would use it to predict the weather. Mother Nature, he says, is a superintendent’s biggest challenge. Of course, the weather is just of one the many challenges a superintendent faces in the day-to-day management of a golf course members expect to be in pristine […]
GOLF is not a team sport, but if you want to be a successful player you need to surround yourself with a team, says two-time US PGA Tour winner John Senden. The former Australian Open champion told Inside Golf he was able to reach the highest level (US PGA Tour) because he surrounded himself with […]
SOUTH Australia’s Gawler Golf Club promoted the game recently by participating in two Adelaide Fringe events. In March, four comedians entertained more than 70 people at the golf club. For two hours, the comedians had the audience in fits of laughter. The comedians also pulled the audience into their act with quick wit and frivolity. […]
NO golfer, irrespective of his or her handicap, walks off a green after a three putt feeling good about themselves. And while The Brisbane Golf Club cannot guarantee a golfer’s most detested deficiency never occurring on their greens, club captain Terry Campbell is adamant the probability has greatly decreased now the course has Ultra Dwarf […]
