In golf, as in life, the future of the game lies in the hands of the younger generation. Attracting and developing new players is key to ensuring the sport continues to flourish long after the current crop of top professionals and weekend hackers have walked their final fairway.
It’s a burning topic at the highest level right now, with European Tour Chief Executive, Keith Pelley, recently discussing plans to embrace new formats, such as six-hole tournaments, in an effort to capture the imagination of youth in the same way that the Twenty20 format has proved so successful for cricket.
A golf club in the UAE’s capital has similar intentions. A key part of Abu Dhabi City Golf Club’s mission statement is to “focus on the development of the next generation of golfers with a well-recognised Junior Golf Programme,” and they are achieving this goal in exemplary fashion with a dedicated and passionate team who are providing an environment that allows children to have fun whilst getting to grips with the game. Along the way, they also learn some valuable life lessons that will serve them well away from the course.
The Junior Academy is at the forefront of the Abu Dhabi City Golf Club operation, providing an exciting proposition for the future of golf in the region.
“As well as offering affordable golf lessons, a huge part of Abu Dhabi’s Golf Club focus is to open golf to the next generation of golfers,” says Rhian Lobo, General Manager of ADCGC. “We had over 300 children actively participating last season which proves the popularity of the Academy.”
The floodlit golf club, which was awarded best course under 500AED at last year’s Middle East Golf Awards, has the first ever two-tiered driving range in the UAE, an indoor swing studio and an expert team of qualified golf professionals who are impressively committed to their remit of nurturing new talent in the UAE.
Steve Johns, Head PGA Professional, explains why youth development is so pivotal at ADCGC. “The Junior Golf Academy is such a fundamental part of what we do. This is its 14th season coming up now and it has been one of the most successful in the UAE. I came out with Rhian about 10 years ago and even back then we had 250 students, which was fantastic. We coached over 300 children last year, 180 of those were in our school on a weekly basis for 32 weeks of the season. We coach expats and we have many local students. One of our local students is now in the national squad and we are extremely proud of this achievement.”
It’s not only the coaching which helps the children progress in the sport. They also get the chance to compete in proper junior tournaments on a regular basis, sponsored by a local member called Ahmed Abood who runs ‘Fast Rent A Cars’.
“Mr Abood invests a lot of time as well as money to sponsor the junior tournaments,” says Lobo. “All the uniforms that the kids are wearing are sponsored by him as well so it is a very proud association for us to have. He is very encouraged of the fact that we have several local Emiratis participants.”
It’s rare for a club to close its course for members during the day, such is the popularity of golf in the Middle East, but that’s just what happens at ADCGC once a month throughout the season in a move that gives the juniors uninhibited access in order to aid their development. “A real important thing is being able to get the children out there on the golf course,” adds Johns. “So we close our course entirely for eight weekly events so these kids can go and play and it is a fantastic experience for them. We certainly feel that this helps our coaching team as well because we find out the things that they need to work on to aid their development.”
Fellow PGA Professional at ADCGC, Dave Taylor, who works closely with the kids at the Academy, describes how the eight-week Junior Programme works and why kids keep coming back for more. “We are very proud of our junior school and we take great passion in trying to introduce as many kids to the game as we can,” admits Taylor. “We take them through the different aspects of the game in the eight-week programme. Therefore, we work on their drivers, irons, chipping and putting. In the events, we set the course into three different tracks – two hole, three hole and eight hole – so that it is challenging for different age groups and different abilities. We try to coach as many players as possible on the course and hopefully that will encourage them to keep coming back every week with a smile on their faces. It is fantastic to see them develop as golfers and also witness the new players finding their love for the game. We also encourage good etiquette, good sportsmanship and all these things that will hopefully help them not just in golf, but outside of golf as well.”
So get your kids into the swing of things this season by sending them down to Abu Dhabi City Golf Club’s Junior Academy.
