In general, hosting an expo is necessary for introducing new services, products, ideas or concepts and exchange notes on the best and worst practices that are in place, globally.
Golf is no less a topic when it comes to knowing such crucial details. Readers will recall my column recently on the development of golf and the study commissioned by the R&A. While golf is, undoubtedly, spreading around the globe, there is an urgent need to exchange valuable information.
India is no exception – with 270 golf courses and ranking second in Asia in development, with 32 being built – and the Indian Golf Industry Association (IGIA) organised The India Golf Expo at DLF5, Gurgaon from April 15-16, 2015.
The IGIA, which positions itself as a not-for-profit industry association, seeks to promote awareness of Indian golf and desires to educate the golfing diaspora through conferences, targeted training opportunities and professional industry interaction.
Aakash Ohri of DLF heads the IGIA with Anil Seolekar of the Oxford Group, Pune, and current Vice-President of the Indian Golf Union (IGU) as a board member and immediate past President. Held for the fourth time, the 2015 edition of the India Golf Expo (IGE) was sanctioned by the Indian Golf Union, as the apex body for all golf in India.
The expo had five distinct segments: an expo, a symposium, the National Golf Academy of India (NGAI) teaching summit, the pro shop and the networking dinner.
The Expo
The expo, spread over two days, had numerous exhibitors featuring products and services of companies engaged in retail, real estate development, design, construction, maintenance and operations of golf courses. Some of the leading players like Club Car, DLF, Ernie Els Design, Jacobsen, Toro, Yamaha, Rain Bird, IPI, TaylorMade, Callaway, Malaysia & Thailand Tourism displayed their wares.
The Symposium
Numerous speakers from across Asia debated on issues of topical and critical interest. The session on ‘Water – The Lifeblood of a Golf Project’, is possibly the single-most important aspect in a country like India. When tiny nations like Thailand and Malaysia boast of 253 and 199 golf courses, there is little wonder that their representatives travel far and wide to promote golf tourism!
There were interesting sessions on increasing club revenues by attracting and retaining players, something that many closed-doors clubs in India need to revisit. The session on creating sustainable golf facilities was very close to the single-minded efforts of the USGA and the R&A, the apex bodies for golf in the US and the rest of the globe, respectively.
There was also a session on sound retail practices. Several years ago, The Hindu did a study on golf retail and I had opined then that the potential for golf retail in this country is as much as Rs 2500 crore!
Turf guru Micah Woods continued with his quality education on turf care management and his sessions were attended by some of the best green-keepers in our country.
The NGAI Teaching Summit
The IGU’s National Golf Academy of India held its teaching summit, led by Michael Hebron, one of America’s top 50 instructors rated by Golf Digest, and Donato Di Ponziano, President of the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) of Europe. More than 50 teaching pros from India were enthralled by this duo and surely took away a thing or two. The presentation by Claudine Foong, a fitness expert, former ice figure skater and Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) professional saw the theory of “you are not as fit as you thought you were” put to the test!
Awards Galore
The IGU was extremely pleased to present a Lifetime Contribution Award to Donato, the prime mover of the NGAI since its inception and author of our very first teaching manual. The IGIA presented Lifetime Achievement Awards to Pawan Munjal of Hero MotoCorp and Jeev Milkha Singh, a wonderful ambassador of Indian golf and a great human being. So, whatever we do in golf, Bob Hope summed it up for us: “If you watch a game, it’s fun. If you play it, it’s recreation. If you work at it, it’s golf.”
