‘Play More Golf’ Fund Launched to Boost Participation

England Golf has launched a new ‘Play More Golf’ fund, offering grants of up to £1500 for projects which encourage people to play the game more often and which promote club membership.

The grants, which start at £500, are available to all affiliated clubs and to driving ranges which have been awarded the RangeMark.

The money must be spent on activities, coaching programmes or offers which encourage regular participation and lead to club membership. They should include follow-on opportunities and could range from:

• Supporting new adult players or returners to golf to play regularly
• Sessions to attract women and girls, with emphasis on the social aspect of golf
• Regular, structured coaching, playing and competitive opportunities within clubs for juniors, both members and non-members
• Sessions to encourage disabled people to play golf

Richard Flint, England Golf’s Club Services and Development Director, commented: “We are making a substantial investment in this fund to work with clubs and ranges to attract more players and to encourage more members and stronger golf clubs.”

All activities will be promoted on the Get into golf website and ‘Play More Golf’ promotional materials will be available to download.

The ‘Play More Golf’ fund supports the emerging England Golf Strategic Plan which sets out to inspire people of all ages to make golf a part of their life. Its ambitions include reversing the trend of declining club membership.

The fund is also supported by the England Golf Partnership, which brings together England Golf and the Professional Golfers’ Association to grow the game with the support of the Golf Foundation and Sport England National Lottery funding.

The launch of the fund is part of an industry-wide drive to increase participation in golf which includes National Golf Month in May. This is a major campaign to offer opportunities to beginners and 100,000 lapsed golfers to try the game and offers in  England will be featured on the Get into golf website which directs visitors to great value coaching courses with PGA professionals. 

For more information and to apply for the ‘Play More Golf’ fund please click here. Applications must be made by 31 May 2014. All applications will be assessed on a number of factors including value for money and overall strength of project plan. Submission of an application form does not guarantee funding.

For more information visit www.getintogolf.org

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