What is a Director of Golf?
In the world of golf, there's a key player working behind the scenes to keep everything running smoothly: the Director of Golf. But what exactly does this title mean?
It's not just about prestige; it's about someone who oversees the ins and outs of a golf facility, making sure everything runs like clockwork and both members and visitors have a great time. In this article, we'll break down what a Director of Golf actually does, from managing operations to leading the team. Let's take a closer look at this important role in the golfing world.
PGA Professional, Pete Styles - Director of Golf, Trafford Golf Centre
In a golf facility, the Director of Golf wears many hats, serving as the backbone of operations. They're responsible for everything from managing staff and overseeing day-to-day operations to coordinating events and ensuring top-notch customer service. Beyond administrative duties, they're often the face of the facility, interacting with members, guests, and stakeholders. With a deep passion for golf and keen business acumen, they navigate challenges like fluctuating memberships and ever-changing industry trends. Their goal? To create an unforgettable experience for every golfer who walks through the door, driving the facility towards success, one swing at a time.
Pete Styles was appointed the Director of Golf at the Trafford Golf Centre 12 years ago. He now oversees 60 staff, including 12 Professionals, having been the person who gave Rick Shiels and Peter Finch their jobs at the hugely busy facility in Manchester. We spoke to him about his role and how the Director of Golf Qualification from The PGA helped his career.
What made you decide to do the Director of Golf Qualification?
I am a golf coach at heart, and I still love coaching today. The concept of assisting people to get better every day probably encouraged a bit of self-reflection in that I should be trying to get better every day also.
In terms of my continued professional development, this felt like the right thing for me to be doing. I’ve been doing the job of Director of Golf for 12 years, previously I had never passed a qualification for it, like a lot of people who end up in managerial positions.
You kind of find your way up there through hard work, through loyalty and longevity, but not necessarily qualifying for a different role as you go. To validate the job that I do and the qualifications that I have, I felt this was a great industry benchmarking process.
How long did it take?
It is as quick or as slow as you want it to be. It took me just under a year but there were periods where I wasn’t doing anything towards the qualification because it was a busy time of year.
I would then find a bit more time in the quieter months and move things forward fairly quickly. You could probably sit down and do it all in a fortnight but that would be quite intense. For me it was working through it at quieter times of the year.
Trafford Golf Centre
What are the benefits to you and the business?
There were elements of going over what I already do as I’ve done the role for a period of time, there were certainly times when I had to question myself about do I know this, or have I done this previously? I didn’t necessarily have to go away and bury my head in a book and learn a quantity of information for this qualification, it was more having to validate my knowledge.
My assessor Mansell Richards was very good, and he would ask ‘have you written a business plan?' or 'have you written a marketing plan?’ I was able to dig those things out, refresh them, bring them up to speed and use them as evidence to show that I had the skills and knowledge. I would suggest that my knowledge base conforms to the concept of being ‘a mile wide and an inch deep’.
A Director of Golf might need a broader appreciation of all aspects of golf plus marketing, accountancy, HR-related issues and legal facility compliance, particularly if you are going to start managing a large number of people. There is a wide spectrum of information there to be considered.
As a company we outsource some of that work to specialists, we have an accountant, a marketing manager and health and safety consultants, being the director of the facility you must have an understanding even if it is not an in-depth knowledge.
There were some great learnings that I had around leadership styles and questioning the types of leadership that I use daily. Do I use different leadership styles with different departments across the facility and different people across the facility?
How does the course work?
I completed the first module in a written format, my assessor asked for my feedback, I said that I really found the writing to be time-consuming and not a very efficient use of my time.
Mansell was very gracious, and he really worked with me, and we started to do phone interviews. On a Monday morning, on my way to work, I would ring him, and we would talk for half an hour or so. We would discuss the topic of the day that he would set me and sometimes he would set me some homework in advance where I could do my research. Other times it was just questions and then he would set me a written piece to say can you validate all the things that we have talked about?
Because I had done a lot of that work in the past, I was therefore just able to evidence base and drop information in. It would be questions like have you got a training plan for your staff, have you got a disciplinary procedure, can you share your health and safety policy? This was very beneficial and really reduced my time and I was able to impart a large amount of information very quickly.
Why is this qualification important for PGA Professionals?
I certainly think we are seeing a trend that the forward-thinking golf clubs are now understanding that they shouldn’t necessarily just be run by a committee but that it needs to operate within a framework of a proper business, and it requires proper leadership and direction.
The perfect person to offer that leadership is somebody who understands business and golf.
A PGA Professional with a Director of Golf qualification, is surely the ideal candidate. An experienced PGA Pro who has been in the industry for 10-15 years should want to develop their understanding more because if you don’t get this qualification, then somebody else will.
How will it help your career progression?
If I were ever to apply for another role then I would like to show that I have continued my professional development over the period and I haven’t become stagnant in the role that I am in. Within my role as Director of Golf at Trafford Golf Centre I feel I’m a more competent leader because of this qualification, it has made me think about things in the right way and it has given me the confidence that we are working in the most productive way.
The Director of Golf qualification comprises of three stages: Induction, PGA Certificate of Golf Management Theory and PGA Director of Golf. Trainee Assistants can attend the Induction Day, however they would need to qualify, be elected to Membership and also meet the requirements of the Certificate of Golf Management Theory to progress on to this stage. A candidate must be in a Director of Golf role (or equivalent) to be able to enrol onto the final phase of the qualification.