BBC Star to Host Industry ‘Oscars' at the Home of the Ryder Cup

BBC sports presenter Dan Walker will be the compere when four-time Ryder Cup venue The Belfry hosts the fourth annual 59Club service excellence awards in February.

The culmination of a full day of seminars focused on the effects of good customer service on profit margins, the 59Club awards' evening - sponsored by Golfbreaks.com; teeofftimes.co.uk, Swatkins, Methven, Felicitas Media and Pro Shop Europe magazine - is regarded by many as the ‘Oscars' of the golf service industry.

Previous award winners include this year's host club The Belfry, 2010 Ryder Cup venue Celtic Manor Resort, The Vale Resort, Marriott, De Vere, Wentworth, Stoke Park and Goodwood, among many others.

Awards up for grabs include the ultimate golf experience; golf group of the year; golf operations team of the year; sales team of the year; and best retail experience, plus a number of individual accolades. And it will also be awarding the highly valued Gold Flags, for which only five venues in the UK managed the required standard in 2012.

Simon Wordsworth, chief executive at 59Club and a fellow of the PGA, explained: "It will be a big day for us, with an extensive day of seminars directed at staff and management and then the awards dinner in the evening. Having Gregg Patterson, one of the best speakers on customer service in the world, come over is really exciting. We have designed a programme directed at the key staff in the venue, those who actually deliver service on a day-to-day basis, and a separate programme for senior management, in conjunction with teeofftimes.co.uk, Felicitas Media and Sports Marketing Surveys.

"The evening then gives us a chance to celebrate all that's good in the industry while enjoying ourselves and meeting like-minded individuals.

"There are also a limited number of sponsor packages available for people who wish to feature - all of which will include four places at the awards dinner."

59Club, Europe's leading golf-specific mystery shopper service and a PGA Official Supplier, is fast becoming the industry standard for measuring and comparing customer-service levels and analysing all key revenue streams for golf venues, and is committed to the on-going development of club managers and PGA professionals.

The unique benchmarking and training service has already benefited hundreds of PGA members and golf course operators, who utilise the company's performance analysis tools to enable managers to compare their standards of customer service and facility offerings to those perceived as their main competitors.

The core service includes a series of mystery shopper recorded-enquiry calls and live visits, followed up with regular analysis and training to ensure venues can identify trends and improve, or maintain, service standards.

For further details of the 59Club's prestigious awards dinner, on Monday, February 24, 2013 visit www.59club.com

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