Turf Matters

Did you know that 2020 is Visit Malaysia Year or VMY? Visit Malaysia Year has been held in 1990, 1994, 2007 and 2014. The next one will be 2020 with the tagline ‘Travel. Enjoy. Respect’.

This is the old logo that almost everyone hates, but since there’s no new logo as yet, here we are.

Tourism is a big income earner for Malaysia contributing up to 15% of the GDP. And as per the Tourism Malaysia Annual Report of 2016, page 43, golf tourism accounted for RM335 million in 2016 alone. So its nothing to be sniffed at. Don’t miss the boat. Don’t regret if your club does not catch part of the huge crowd of golfers next year (Ahem…).

But seriously, what are you doing to prepare for it?  I’d also love to ask what is the government doing to prepare for next year’s VMY but who am I to question those who can’t be questioned?

Since I’d like the Malaysian golf industry to thrive, question the industry-players I must. We can’t wait for the government to bring the visitors to our doorstep, we have to do our bit too. How and what to do, you ask? Well there’s a few suggestions I’d like to make.

But first some clarification is in order. Please do not restrict VMY only to foreign tourists, it also includes domestic tourism. Having cleared that up, the first suggestion I’d like to make is to advertise, to create some sort of interest in your club. What is different about your golf course compared to others?

And please… enough about caddies. Did you know that Malaysia was awarded Asia’s Best Golf Destination in 2014? Indonesia and Thailand had better caddies but we won. Its not about the caddies.

Fast greens are not enough an attraction anymore, many visitors can get fast greens in many other places. Of course, having slow greens is a decided disadvantage. Having dead AND slow greens is embarassing for your club AND Malaysia. Do not be surprised, I have seen quite a few of those.

Some of my suggestions:

1. Advertise. Get noticed. Get a write up done. Do something different, something outrageous. Be different.
2. A coat of paint. If not the whole clubhouse then the places where visitors most likely to visit. The golf centre, starter hut, half-way hut, the toilets, the changing rooms, the golfers’ restaurant and at the risk of repeating myself; the toilet. Oh don’t forget the course furniture and accessories too.
3. The signages. This could easily go to item 1 but I think it’s too important to risk putting it on a low priority. I am talking about signages from the outside of the club to the inside.
4. The trees. Yes, believe it or not the trees on the golf course. Back when the golf course was designed, the architect had already specified how many trees to be planted. Then along the way, as the trees were growing, more and more were planted until they grow big and too close together. Trim, cull, kill, transfer, the trees. Well… some of them anyway. Just send some workers and one guideline “Anything below five feet; cut” or “Anything within 10 feet of each other, kill the smallest tree”.
   

   Wayyy too many trees for the grass to survive. Wayyy too many trees for the machinery to manouever. Wayy too many trees for golfers to play through. In short; wayyy too many trees.

5. The greens. The greens are the heart of the golf course. Please grow more grass on the greens. In the quest for speed, too many golf clubs stress their greens by mowing very low losing grass to disease and algae in the process. Grow more grass, take care of your soil, then only think about speed. Asking you to hire me seems to be self-serving, so I won’t; go ahead and ask two or more suppliers about your greens. Then make a decision about what to buy. Or to renovate or to replant from the nursery. Just do something in the months that you have before 2020.
6. The fairways. The fairways are expensive if you want to install them with subsoil drains. I suggest you use spikers or slicers to cut tiny holes into the soil to allow water to flow into the soil and also for better circulation of air. It helps during the not so wet season. You’ll still be in trouble during the monsoon, but at least it won’t be so bad after every little bit of rain.
7. The tees. Most golfers who are regulars or are club members, insist on the tee markers being at the back of the back tee. Or the centre of the tee. Ends up that part of the tee is the most used and are balding. Train your staff to rotate the tee position by following the pin position. If the pin is at the back of the green (blue flag), the tee should be in front, and I mean all colour of tees should be in front.
8. Your frontliners. I once overheard a receptionist calling for a Mr. Brikjen, I happened to glance at the guy’s score card and he was a Brigadier General! His friend wrote his card as Brig Gen name and the receptionist thought that was his full name! How about a waiter with body odour? Or a scowling receptionist? I’ve seen them all and more.

There’s probably plenty more you can do the grab part of the RM350 million. Or you can continue complaining. And wait for something to happen. Anything.

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