Our chat with golf course architect Kari Haug really made us reflect on our own assumptions about short golf courses, their objectives, how they are assumed to be the solution to increasing women's and children's participation and crucially....why this might not always be the case!
If you care about the growth of the game, or if you are a golf club or facility manager, you should find this to be a fascinating discussion with some questions to consider going forward in your career in the industry.
Gather member and research expert Sue Shapcott from SportsQuery joined us as Co-Host which made the questions even more insightful and practical.
Key discussion areas:
•\tAre short golf courses actually the answer to golf's participation needs?
•\tCan short golf courses potentially be contributing to the further marginalisation of women in the game?
•\tThe number one misconception about shorter golf courses
•\tWhat are the top questions that the industry needs to ask itself when considering short golf courses? (Either building new or retrofitting existing 18-hole courses to be more sustainable, inclusive and accessible)
•\tWhy do we still have public golf courses in the US that receive public money, when they are not really accessible to 50% of the population?
•\tHave resort courses got it right? Why is this and what can private clubs learn?
•\tWhat advice and considerations might Kari give to a golfing country where the game is still relatively young if they said they wanted to develop new facilities that are based around getting new people into the game?
•\tFrom a town of 600 people and a rudimentary golf course, to designing and modifying golf courses – how Kari's background shapes the way she approaches her work now
•\tWhat are the research gaps in this area and how might a different approach to research really help participation drives for more women
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