Harbin: Don’t follow the dinosaurs

The earth is bereft of dinosaurs because they failed to adapt. Golf may not be heading the same way as the T-Rex but the need to adapt – and fast – was the over-riding message from US PGA master professional Cathy Harbin.

Harbin, the keynote speaker at this year’s England Coaching Conference, brought her vast experience to bear in an engaging session that while being realistic about the issues facing the game in terms of participants, ensured there was optimism for the future providing the sport and those involved in it take heed and change to the environment golf now finds itself in.

Change is not an easy concept, even writing your signature with your opposite hand to usual brings with it resistance and an uneasy feeling.

That’s why Harbin got every delegate at the conference to do it – to get a grip on what change feels like.

In an enthralling lecture, Harbin, vice president of golf revenue for ClubCorp in Dallas, focused on how golf professionals can use their knowledge and expertise to engage with the wider golfing community – and those with an interest but not playing.

It stuck rigidly to the conference’s theme of the recreational golfer, dissecting the various strands of recreational golfers and exploring what can be done to draw them in.

“The game is not sustainable the way it is,” said Harbin (above). “The days when people come to our courses without us having to turn to marketing to get them there are gone and they are not coming back.

“We’re not crazy about change but in order to make golf sustainable in the future and to continue to work in the industry and to give opportunities to others to work in the industry we have to do something now to make the game relevant or we are looking at continue decline.

“Golf isn’t broken so it’s a case of keep on doing the same things even though there’s decline in participation. The question is how painful is it before we change?

“The dinosaur didn’t adapt and they didn’t survive. If you can’t adapt and change how will survive?”

Harbin produced a four point strategy of PLAN, LEAD, EXECUTE and MONITOR. 

• Plan – set the targets
• Lead – have a champion for change and growing the game
• Execute – put ideas into action, keep going and sell to everyone
• Monitor – inspect results and start the circle again

Success across the Atlantic has seen a shift in emphasis to deal with the recreational golfer, who just wants to hit a ball and socialise with friends. That has led to the development of 18 tips, primarily for beginners, which have been supported by the USGA. These include, it’s ok to play the ball from where you want, to tee it up for every shot, to play from the 150-yard marker, it’s ok to play in trainers, it’s ok to count only swings that hit the ball.

Harbin explored target groups like families, and espoused initiatives that involved luring the family to the golf course, the fitness addict, the social golfer, and women – pointing that many women want to try the game but 50 per cent of current female golfers ‘do not feel welcome’ at their facilities.

Factors why people are not playing golf include time, cost, difficulty and having no one to play with.

Across the pond, ideas to overcome these have included ‘Nine and wine’, ‘90 minute golf’ and ‘singles sessions’.

Harbin, who extracted a number of ideas from the audience, is aware who can master this shift in emphasis.

“The golf professional is the person best placed to carry this out as they know and understand the market,” she concluded.

“Nothing happens by accident. The golf professional can grow the game as we are the leaders and at the forefront of the game when it comes to leading the change.”

Echoing Harbin’s message was PGA Fellow Professional Alistair Spink (below), in partnership with university lecturer David Haskins, and the successful ‘Here Come the Girls’ campaign.

Set up in 2011, Spink’s initiative to bring women into the game illustrated a change in approach to coaching and breaking down barriers that were seen as preventative. From an initial target of eight, the programme is now self funding with 300 women playing golf as a result.

The approach is relaxed, there are no issues over clothing, and the group ethos builds on the social aspect of the game for women as opposed to the more competitive element in men.

As a coach, Spink’s role was to watch and encourage and take a step back from over-coaching as the members of these groups want to hit balls and chat.

The day-long conference, which included presentations from PGA Master Professional Scott Cranfield, University of Birmingham Professor Kathy Armour, the PGA professionals from the Three Hammers Golf Complex, England Golf’s Chrissie Owens, the PGA’s Jane Booth and Sue Shapcott were well received by the ranks of PGA Professionals, volunteer coaches and English Golf Partnership attendees.

Reflecting on the conference, Jonathan Wright, coach education and development manager (England) said: "These are tough times for the golf industry and coaches, but we know that golfers who receive coaching play more golf and stay in the game for longer.

“This knowledge, along an approach of offering new and creative programmes such as 'Here Come the Girls' can provide us with a way to get more people playing and in so doing grow the game and safeguard the future of the industry.”