Four keys points that should be kept in mind by the pro-shop manager of a golf club

Quinta da Ria Golf Course. Four keys points that should be kept in mind by the pro-shop manager of a golf club

Four keys points that should be kept in mind by the pro-shop manager of a golf club

Pro-shop manager of a golf club: As a player and great golfer enthusiastic I like to travel and play on different golf courses and, of course, visit the pro-shops. Unfortunately, in many cases the pro-shop is a sad image of the club. My question is: why is it so complicated to have a pro-shop in a condition and generate more profits for the club? Well, it’s not complicated at all. But you have to put in charge a suitable person to take care of the pro-shop, a person specialized in retail. As a greenkeeper for the greens, as a receptionist to sell greenfees and make reservations, as a waiter to serve a drink and something to eat before or after the game.

The most important thing is the purchase
For that you have to know everything about quality, keep up to date with market trends and activities of competitors, know your customer (sizes, age, taste) and carry an adequate stock to meet sales objectives.
Preparing before a visit from a supplier or before visiting a fair is very important, you should know what is in stock, know what is pending and what you have to order for the next season to satisfy your client and, more importantly , to reach your goal. There are very good suppliers who have a lot of experience and that can help you but it is always preferable that you are in control. Every pro-shop is different!
You don’t have to be afraid to buy colors or prints. Today’s player follows the trends and will ask you for a polo shirt they have seen in tournaments on TV. You should always keep a proper stock with a good basic in neutral colors, and don’t forget merchandise with your logo, both in famous Golf clubs or in member clubs! It is advisable to have a members corner in the pro-shop exclusive for members or companies where they can choose their garments and merchandise with their logo. It is important to have lists prepared each season where you write their name, size and color to avoid complications at the time of order.

Vilamoura Old Course. Dom Pedro Golf Collection

Vilamoura Old Course

Sale is an art
Always standing with a big smile and earring of your customers. You need to know exactly what you have in the pro-shop and know where the merchandise is for efficient service. Watch your client and interpret their preferences, just by looking at which brands he wears, you already have to know what you can offer him. If they are regular customers it is important to greet them by name (and in their language in clubs with many tourist visitors). Remembering which brand they usually buy and what size they wear are details that customers appreciate very much. Golf knowledge is recommended to have a dialogue about your game, the other day match, an important tournament or recent news.
The decoration of the shop and the mannequins always updated is essential. You should check in advance which important groups come to play to have the pro-shop prepared. And if they play again in a couple of days change the mannequins and make sure you present a new experience every time they enter the pro-shop.
The reception is also the point of selling all kinds of accessories. It is important for the person selling the greenfee to ask if the player needs balls, tees, gloves, marker, ball fishing, etc. Sales of accessories with a greenfee represent a very large amount in the total sales of a pro-shop.

Pinheiros Altos Golf Course. Dom Pedro Golf Collection

Pinheiros Altos Golf Course

Administration
Maybe it’s the most boring part, but it’s not the least important. A pro-shop has to carry out good management to ensure a good functioning and always keep up with the numbers when it comes to meeting sales objectives, adequate stocks of merchandise, ordering replenishments, checking orders, billing control, prepare budgets, prepare purchase and sales reports (monthly, quarterly, annual).
You must ensure quality compliance, customer service, health and safety in the pro-shop. Promote pro-shop in newspapers, magazines, social networks. Calculate and set prices with commercial margin. Set seasonal rebates and discounts for regulars. Manage problems with merchandise, complaints, comments and customer questions. Implement commercial policies and operating procedures for the store. Plan and organize activities in the pro-shop or for a tournament. Maintain good contact with suppliers.

Amendoeira Faldo Golf Course. Dom Pedro Golf Collection

Amendoeira Faldo Golf Course

The stock of a pro shop is an investment
We must work in collaboration with management and provide information necessary to establish an investment amount. Provide information on merchandise, procedures, performance, new initiatives, promotions or special events, forecasts, prepare budgets. It’s a delicate point because in many golf clubs they don’t want to invest a lot of money in the pro-shop. But with a good report on forecasts, performance and results you can get the pro-shop ahead in any club.
These are the points that I think are the most important. Of course there is much more like where to place the pro-shop, how to design it, etc. We could go into more details because managing a pro-shop correctly requires your work… but it also brings a very big benefit to the golf club.

In the last three years I have worked as a pro-shop manager. As I wanted to continue growing in the world of golf I decided to start the road of CMAE in November 2017, where I have surpassed the MDP 1, MDP 2, Club Management Diploma, Course Management and finally the MDP 3 in May of this year in Dubai.

by Petra van Schelven

11th World Kids Golf

World Kids Golf - Peter Hov, the 2019 World Kids Golf Champion, and Custódio Moreno from the IPDJ Algarve Delegation- Photo by Ramiro de Jesus

Peter Hov, the 2019 World Kids Golf Champion, and Custódio Moreno from the IPDJ Algarve Delegation. Photo by Ramiro de Jesus

World Kids Golf

Peter Hov Champion 5 Portuguese Titles

The Portuguese players had a blast at the 11th World Kids Golf, with five Portuguese titles among the 11 trophies in play at the Amendoeira Golf Resort in Silves, but the Norwegian Peter Hov was the champion of the oldest junior international golf tournament in Portugal.

Francisco Reis (Under-9), João Crasi Alves (Under-12), Inês Belchior (Under-12), Tomas Mician (Under-16) and Filipa Capelo (Under-18) were the Portuguese winners in the tournament organized by the Amendoeira Golf Resort, featuring 80 players from 14 countries.

Francisco Reis (Under 9) scored 61 stableford gross points and his first round of 5 under Par of the O’Connor Course was the best result among players from the purple tees.

The young player of Orizonte Lisbon Golf is the current No. 1 in the Drive Challenge Under-10 ranking in the Tagus Region. Francisco Reis won the four tournaments he played in 2019 in this junior tour of the Portuguese Golf Federation. But this time he faced only foreign rivals he beat by 13 points the Englishman Luke Walton.

Joao Crasi Alves scored 1 under the O’Connor Course Par, on both the first and third rounds (37 stableford gross points), and he was the only one of the 22 Under-12 players to surpass the 100 points (107 total).

World Kids Golf - Eleanor, the Under-10 Champion, and Mark Lichtenhein. Photo by Ramiro de Jesus

Eleanor, the Under-10 Champion, and Mark Lichtenhein. Photo by Ramiro de Jesus

The Vilamoura Golf Club player is also No. 1 in the Southern Drive Challenge Under-12 ranking, with three titles won. But even better, on the Drive Tour, the main FPG junior tour, he is No. 2 in the national ranking, with a tournament won at Penina. In the World Kids Golf, João Crasi Alves beat the Portuguese António Trindade by 8 points.

Inês Belchior – who, besides being a golfer, is also a softball athlete – earned her second World Kids Golf title. The Quinta do Peru Golf & Country Club player had already the best at the U-10 in 2017. Last year she was runner-up in the Under-12 and now she has won the Under-12. On the second day she scored her best result, 9 over Par on the O’Connor Course, converting her only 2 birdies of the tournament.

Tomas Mician scored the best result of the whole tournament, with 11 strokes (gross) under the Faldo Course Par. His -8 second round was the tournament highlight. The Vilamoura Golf Club‘s Portuguese-Slovak played from the yellow marks and beat by 2 the Scottish Jamie Mann (-9), also from Vilamoura.

Nelson Cavalheiro, the PGA Portugal vice-president, said at the awards ceremony, regarding this boy’s Under-16 tournament: “These guys can really play.” And indeed, either of them played three consecutive rounds under Par!

Tomas Mician is the No. 1 FPG Drive Tour ranking in the Under-16, with titles at Penina, Ribagolfe and Belas. «I really wanted to win this World Kids Golf and it was a goal I wanted to achieve,» said the Portuguese with Slovakian parents.

World Kids Golf - Filipa Capelo U18 Champion. Photo by Carla Guerreiro

Filipa Capelo U18 Champion. Photo by Carla Guerreiro

Filipa Capelo said fairwell to one of her favorite tournaments. «It has a family atmosphere where I meet a lot of friends. My mother loves it because we stay here and she goes to the pool while I play. Here I can play, train and have fun, a combination that is not usual in other tournaments».

The 2018 World Kids Golf Champion at the Under-16, has now triumphed as well at the Under-18 level. It was Filipa’s third title of the year, after those achieved at Penina and Belas on the Drive Tour. It was, however, a tasty win, because only three weeks ago she returned from a four-month injuries to both Achilles tendons.

The player of Quinta do Lago may not comeback to defend her title at the Amendoeira Golf Resort next year: «I have been coming to this tournament since I was a Under-12 and had a 36 handicap. Now I have 4 and I will improve, but it is possible that I have been her for the last time. Next year I am going to play and study in the United States and so it is likely that the next summer I will have to take another tournament options, but of course I will miss it.

This year’s foreign champions were English Ffion Richardson (Under-9), Eleanor Lichtenhein (Under-10) and Aaron Moody (Under-10), Spanish Alexander Amey (Under-14), German Emilie von Finckentsein and Norwegian Peter Hov.

Ffion Richardson and Peter Hov came for the first time to the World Kids Golf; Aaron Moody had lost last year with his compatriot Jack Dirkin in the Under-9, and this time he beat the same rival and friend in the Under-10; Eleanor Lichtenhein had won in the Under-9 in 2017, in 2018 she cameback injured in one leg and could not play and this year took the Under-10; and Emilie von Finckentsein was the best in Under-16 a year after being the Under-14 champion.

The World Kids Golf champion is always the Under-18 winner, so the cup was handed to Peter Hov by Custódio Moreno, from the Algarve Department of the Portuguese Institute for Sport and Youth (IPDJ).

World Kids Golf - João Crasi Alves, Under-12 Champion. Photo by Carla Guerreiro

João Crasi Alves, Under-12 Champion. Photo by Carla Guerreiro

By winning the tournament – in a close challenge with Portuguese Lucas Lopes Azinheiro, who was only 2 strokes behind –, the Norwegian will show up for the first time at the World Amateur Golf Ranking. He will be able, as well, to play the Portugal Pro Golf Tour tournament which will take place on the Faldo Course in 2020. This €10,000 prize-money event will feature players from the Challenge Tour and other professional tours and it will be a unique occasion for Peter Hov to test himself against a much higher competition.

«It far above what I dreamed. I really wanted this first point in the world ranking and I am really going to try to comeback to play with the pros,» said the Norwegian, who intends to «play some more European Golf Association tournaments in the future».

The prize giving ceremony presented dignataries such as Mark Lichtenhein (Chairman of the Ladies European Tour), Ana Gabin (Director of the FPG Algarve Delegation), Custódio Moreno (Director of the Algarve IPDJ), Sérgio Duarte (General Manager of the Amendoeira Golf Resort), Tiago Francisco (golf director at the Amendoeira Golf Resort) and Nelson Cavalheiro (tournament director and local Pro).

The 11th World Kids Golf winners, after three rounds, were as follows:

Under-9, Ffion Richardson (England) with 38 stableford gross points (rounds of 9, 15 and 14) and Francisco Reis (Portugal) with 60 (23 + 17 + 21);
Under-10, Eleanor Lichtenhein (England) with 68 points stableford gross (24 + 22 + 22) and Aaron Moody (England) with 97 (31 + 34 + 32);
Under-12, Inês Belchior (Portugal) with 78 points stableford gross (23 + 28 + 27) and João Crasi Alves (Portugal) with 107 (37 + 33 + 37);
Under-14 Alexander Amey (Spain) with 222 strokes (73 + 73 + 76), 6 over Par;
Under-16, Emilie von Finckenstein (Germany) had 225 strokes (73 + 77 + 75), 9 over Par, and Tomas Mician (Portugal) with 205 (71 + 64 + 70), 11 under Par;
Under-18, Filipa Capelo (Portugal) with 230 strokes (76 + 78 +76), 14 over Par, and Peter Hov (Norway) with 222 strokes (69 + 75 + 78), 6 over Par

11th World Kids Golf

World Kids Golf - 11th World Kids Golf - 2nd Day

11th World Kids Golf – 2nd Day

World Kids Golf

Tomas Mician dominates the Nick Faldo Course

Tomas Mician signed the best round of the 11th World Kids Golf and the second best score ever in the history of the tournament held at the two courses of the Amendoeira Golf Resort in Silves, which in 2019 features 80 players from 14 countries.

The Slovakian family-born Portuguese is competing in the U16 tournament and is therefore playing on the Faldo Course, designed by former world No. 1 Nick Faldo, considered the most difficult and exhausting of the two courses. But today (Wednesday) the young Algarve resident defied the field in 64 strokes, 8 under Par.

«There was no wind and this allowed me to attack the flags much more, because the greens are soft. I also made 2 eagles which helped me a lot. In hole 3 I put the drive in the green and did 2 putts and the one in the 18 was thanks to a great second shot. I played solid, with very few errors and my irons were not just aimed at the greens, they were close to the flags. Some players score low because of the good putting but this is not my case. I’m not that consistent in putts, but today I had irons and wedges so good that I got short putts, ”explained the Vilamoura Golf Club player.

World Kids Golf - Calvin Holmes is WKG Faldo Course Record Holder. Photo by Ramiro de Jesus

Calvin Holmes is WKG Faldo Course Record Holder. Photo by Ramiro de Jesus

Tomas Mician leads the U16 tournament with a total of 135 (-9), 3 strokes ahead of Jamie Mann. This Scot, who won the Vilamoura Grand Trophy in December, could have been even closer to the leader had he not lost 4 shots in the 14th hole. But his reaction to the disaster was excellent, converting 3 birdies in the last four holes of the second round.

In 11 years of World Kids Golf, there has only been one better round than this one from Tomas Mician. Last year, the South African Calvin Holmes presented a card of 63 (-9). Holmes, however, received meanwhile the dual nationality and even chose to register for the tournaments as Portuguese. Calvin Homes won the under-16 in 2018 as South African, but this year already plays in the under-18 as Portuguese and shows up as 4th with 148 strokes, 4 over Par (75+73).

Tomas Mician is in a similar position to Calvin Holmes and dreams of playing for Portugal. The Luso-Slovak is in great shape. In this year’s Drive Tour, the FPG junior tour, he is the U16 # 1 ranked player with three titles!

World Kids Golf - Tomas Mician Leads Under 16 at 36 Holes. Photo by Ramiro de Jesus

Tomas Mician Leads Under 16 at 36 Holes. Photo by Ramiro de Jesus

«I started to train better and my mental approached has improved a lot. I no longer get frustrated after a mistake. Before I was really annoyed and that affected the next shot. Now I concentrate better on each blow. As it is summer, I am also training more and I have been working on my technique to be more consistent», he said.

«Mician is a Slovak name. But I was born in Portugal and have been livinghere all my life. I started learning Portuguese when I was 6 years old. It motivates me to know that I was born here and many of the tournaments I play are in Portugal, with Portuguese players. It made me think that it would be better to have dual nationality. I already have it and I really want to play for Portugal in the Portuguese national team, because I hardly play in Slovakia, ”he added.

World Kids Golf - Ines Belchior Girls U12

Ines Belchior Girls U12

The leaders of the 11th World Kids Golf, after a second round characterized by Gabriel Sardo‘s (under-12) hole-in-one in the 3rd hole of the O’Connor Course, are as follows:

Under-9, Ffion Richardson (England) with 2 points stableford gross (9+15) and Francisco Reis (Portugal) with 40 (23+17);

Under-10, Eleanor Lichtenhein (England) with 46 points stableford gross (24 + 22) and Aaron Moody (England) with 65 (31 + 34);

Under-12, Inês Belchior (Portugal) with 51 points stableford gross (23 + 28) and João Crasi Alves (Portugal) with 70 (37 + 33);

Under-14, João Iglésias (Portugal) with 143 strokes (71 + 72), 1 under par;

Under-16 Emilie von Finckenstein (Germany) with 150 strokes (73 + 77), 6 over par, and Tomas Mician (Portugal) with 135 (71 + 64), 9 under par;

Under-18, Filipa Capelo (Portugal) with 154 strokes (76 + 78), 10 over par, and Peter Hov (Norway) with 144 strokes (69 + 75), Par.