Lincolnshire Club Backing Get Into Golf Drive

A Lincolnshire golf club has celebrated its 25th anniversary by receiving national recognition for its efforts to encourage the next generation of golfers.

Toft Country House Hotel and Golf Club has launched a new drive to open up the sport to beginners of all ages.

The club, which can be found near Bourne, is taking the sport out into the local community to make it more accessible than ever.

Now its work has been acknowledged with the award of GolfMark, an official seal of approval for beginner and child-friendly facilities which play an important role in the development of the game.

GolfMark and RangeMark are part of a national scheme that incorporates ClubMark and recognises golf facilities that focus on Coaching and Playing, Club Environment and Child Protection, and Duty of Care, all of which are extremely important to parents and children alike.

New head professional Mark Underwood will now use GolfMark as a platform to develop a wide range of initiatives to encourage more people to get involved with golf.

The club has forged an association with the neighbouring Bourne Golf Centre and has appointed Darren Game to the newly-created role of Director of Junior Golf.

Darren, a former junior at Toft himself who also worked on the club’s professional staff when it first opened in 1988, returned to work in the area when he opened the indoor centre at Bourne five years ago, which has itself since been awarded RangeMark status.

Adds Darren: “I know from my work at the golf centre that GolfMark and RangeMark demonstrates a commitment to delivering junior and beginner programmes that can help more people into golf.

“It is a bold statement that the procedures at the club have been brought up to the highest standards and it gives parents and potential newcomers to the sport the confidence that everything is in place to allow them to enjoy the experience of starting out in the sport.”

Darren is already working with ten schools in the area to offer taster sessions and follow up lessons at either Toft GC or Bourne GC, where the indoor facilities allow the coaching work to continue throughout the year, no matter what the weather.

He is also involved with local community centres and groups like the scouts and guides while junior coaching is also available at weekends at Toft.

Adds Darren: “Our SNAG (Starting new at golf) programme allows us to develop skills across all levels of ability, from those who have never held a golf club to single figure handicap golfers.

“While we are working hard with juniors, it is never too late to take up golf. It is a sport that can be enjoyed by mums to granddads, junior school pupils to students or those starting their first job.”

Says Shona Dickson, county development officer for the Lincolnshire County Golf Partnership: “Those involved in the GolfMark procedure at Toft have worked incredibly hard to achieve this status, which shows they are taking a proactive approach to developing a new generation of players.

“GolfMark means a parent dropping off their child or an adult taking up the sport at Toft knows they are in a positive, encouraging environment with the emphasis on the right care and responsibilities.”

For further information on Toft visit the website http://www.tofthotelgolf.co.uk/ or for Bourne GC visit https://bournegolfcentre.com/