Beth’s Got Talent

19/04/2022

Beth Scott has described it as “very special” after being listed as one of four finalists for an England Golf award.

Scott, 25, is in the running for the ‘Participation and Development Coach of the Year’ thanks to her outstanding work at Old Fold Manor Golf Club and within the wider community.

In just over two years as the club’s ‘Junior Development Coach’, she has been a major factor in its membership for children and teenagers growing six-fold. Every Saturday from January to December she runs a programme aimed at kids from as young as four all the way up to 18 year-olds. Beth has also reached out to nearby schools in the Hertfordshire/North London area, trying to take golf to those who maybe haven’t had access to it before.

“I joined Old Fold Manor here in Barnet in February 2020 and we had 12 juniors,” says Scott. “We’re now up to 78. We’ve gained this from working quite closely with local schools in our area – two secondary schools and four local primary schools.

“I work quite closely with three foster families and quite a few autistic children, either regularly in weekly coaching or within the school coaching I do. It brings with it some challenges but, alongside that, makes it really rewarding as well – giving back to the community, offering golf out to children that wouldn’t necessarily play. So there’s lots of satisfaction.”

Much of Scott’s mind-set and coaching style has been shaped by her own experiences as a young golfer. From Buckinghamshire, she was introduced to the sport by her dad just before her teens and soon showed a natural aptitude for it. As a dyslexic person, sport was an area she began to consider seriously as a career – but encouragement to pursue such a path was not easy to find initially. “I was told as a child that golf is not a job and you can’t do it,” says Scott.

But Beth has proved that such an ambition is absolutely attainable, qualifying as a PGA professional in 2019, while working at the renowned Woburn Golf Club. She now has a pupil who is dyslexic and is keen to ensure there are no barriers should the boy wish to follow golf as his vocation. “Sport is his go-to ‘I can do this’,” she says. “I see myself in him and golf has got to be an option if he wants to do it.”

Coaching young people is clearly a great fit for Scott, who is a natural in the role with her warm and friendly manner. “I’m just really passionate about it,” she says. “I found very early on I like the fun side of it. Teaching adults is great, I just seem to get a lot more from children. That smile when they putt a ball into the hole – or whatever. It’s that connection, not just the golf side. It’s seeing them evolve as people; confidence, things like that.”

While Beth feels it’s “quite cool” to be nominated for a national award, she’s not one for sitting back and resting on her laurels. This year she is determined to do something about the lop-sided boy-girl ratio among Old Fold’s junior membership. To address it, she has got the England Golf ‘Girls Golf Rocks’ programme coming to Old Fold. Hopefully, it will help to discover and nurture many more girls with the same passion and enthusiasm for the sport as Beth Scott undoubtedly has.

*This year’s Awards’ ceremony will be streamed live on the England Golf YouTube channel on 20 April 2022.