Dear Members
On Friday evening 31 March 2023, the WA Golf Industry Awards Gala dinner was held at the Crown Ballroom with over 500 representatives from clubs and associations around WA. Our club was shortlisted in two categories:
- Outstanding Game Development Program of the Year
- Metropolitan Golf Facility of the Year
It is so pleasing to let you know that we won the award in both categories, a terrific achievement when considering the strength and depth of clubs in WA.
The ‘Outstanding Game Development Program of the Year’ is awarded in recognition of a significant contribution to increasing the development of golf. This may be through initiatives such as junior programs, indigenous programs, increasing female participation or general membership levels. In this category the MCC was up against quality contenders including Royal Fremantle; Cottesloe; Golf WA and Lake Karrinyup Country Club.
To win the award is a great recognition for the club, and in particular Craig Tapp (Tappie) who runs the Golf Development Program in conjunction with the MCC. In addition, key strategies developed by the Membership Committee and continuation of existing programs (e.g., Extravaganza) also made a great contribution to the MCC submission and the growth in our membership is a credit to all involved. As many would be aware, this year saw the inaugural junior girl’s pennant team and the junior committee are continuing to enhance the junior program.
To give you a snapshot of some achievements, the club undertook the following beginner or development golf programs:
168 Female classes
48 Men’s classes
48 Mixed classes
128 Junior classes
40 School classes of over 150 children (all in long-term programs, not just one-off classes)
Metropolitan Golf Facility of the Year is the ultimate accolade and recognition for a metropolitan golf club and is keenly sought after by those clubs. This year we competed against fellow finalists, Hartfield Golf Club; Links Kennedy Bay; Wanneroo Golf Club and the Western Australian Golf Club. For the MCC to win this award again, the third time in the past few years (previously won in 2017 and 2019) is a fantastic achievement and one that all members should take pride in.
Without knowing the full history of these awards, I think it is reasonable to assume that it would be unlikely any other club has won this major category on three occasions within such a short time period. It is noteworthy to add that the MCC also won awards for Superintendent of the Year and Apprentice of the Year during the same period.
To provide some context, there are 24 metropolitan clubs in Perth and to win this award demonstrates a sustained period of excellence. The club had to prove a high standard of performance across several key areas, including:
- Membership and retention and growth
- Financial performance
- Clubhouse Operations
- Golf Course Operations
- Contribution to the Community
- Participation and number of rounds
- Strategies successfully implemented through COVID-19
In addition, our submission provided detailed evidence of the MCC governance structures, processes and policies along with the strategic planning approach. In being assessed for this award, the Club went through a presentation and interview process with representatives from:
- Professional Golf Association
- Golf Management Australia
We are so fortunate to have excellent team led by our General Manager Grant Shortland-Jones and a special mention to Shareen Thompson who is often the first point of contact for new and existing members. I am so proud of our staff and the enthusiastic approach I see daily and openly state we have the best GM in the WA.
As evidenced in the photograph, the MCC was represented by Management Committee representatives Marc Crowe (Membership Chair), Dean Stewart (Greens Chair and Match committee member) and PGA professional Gary Colquhoun with their respective partners. Also in attendance was PGA professional Craig Tapp and wife Jo (a much valued member of the MCC pro-shop team) . ‘A picture tells a thousand words’ and their delight in winning the awards is obvious.
Our philosophy of continuous improvement cannot be achieved without strong governance processes and a willingness of members to serve on various sub-committees and stand for elected office. There have been many members who, currently and over many years, have made a significant contribution to our club and these awards are a worthy recognition and validation of their efforts
Volunteers are a big part of any club and we are so privileged to have many wonderful members who have volunteered their services over many years in so many ways. I would also like to sincerely thank our members, many of whom have supported this club for many years, some for several decades. A club thrives when the membership is supportive and are prepared to embrace change and work through challenges and we are fortunate to have such a membership.
As always, the challenge is to continue the momentum and the management team are committed to building on these achievements in the best interests of members.
Kind Regards
Ian Johnson, President
