‘Most golfers don’t know what the pro does’

A major survey of golfers who work in golf clubs has found that they feel they get little recognition from club golfers about what work they actually do.

The Today’s Golfer poll of members of golf retail group Foremost Golf found that the role of a professional golfer has changed exponentially in the last decade, but that most members of clubs are unaware of this.

Historically, club pros made their money via selling equipment in the pro shop. However, partly due to the rise of golf superstores and online retailers, more than half say they now sell fewer than 10 clubs per month, which means money generated from these sales is no longer sufficient to sustain most pro shops.

As a result, professional golfers now tend to top up their income by teaching lessons and by helping their golf clubs attract more business, with many today involved in the club’s operations, marketing, business and course improvement decisions.

However, most pros feel that club golfers do not appreciate the long hours they work, the financial risks they take or the general administration they do for the club, according to the survey.

On average, a club pro works for more than 60 hours a week at a club, including two hours a day, six days a week teaching lessons. Most professionals also invest their own money in stock and carry out admin ranging from, for example, fixing electric trolleys to putting together newsletters to send to golfers.

Most club professionals like their jobs but the hours, moaning customers (particularly from members if the pro takes a few days off), people misunderstanding their role and a lack of respect were cited as negative aspects of what they do.

The research reveals that 97 percent of club pros offer free or discounted lessons for club teams or junior members and that nearly half of them play 18-hole rounds less than once a week during the playing season.

The poll also found that more than 70 percent of pros think that just 30 percent of golfers – or less – hit their drivers as far as they think they do.

The survey did reveal one positive trend however. There has been an increase in equipment sales in the last two years as pros have been able to compete with golf superstores and online retailers by, according to them, offering expert advice at the point of sale.