“How can we create a golf society different from the others, of interest to golfers of all levels, and to those who live on or regularly visit the Costa del Sol? That was the question Barry Gill and Paul Aliados asked themselves at the end of 2009.
I know, let’s make the members pay no dues, give fantastic prizes, and play every course on the Coast for the next five years,” was the answer, which certainly seemed unrealistic.
The reality, however, as Golf in the Sun heads into its sixth year of existence, is that these three wishes have not only been fulfilled but have been complemented by many other surprises that seemed unlikely during the first five years.
How was this possible, we asked Barry.
“Well, let’s start with the free member situation,” he explains. “The idea at the time was to create a database of golfers as quickly as possible. Putting in an annual fee, as other associations do, would have hindered the speed of this process considerably. In five years our original membership has grown from 40 to over 1,800 golfers as of today, and we continue to sign up new members regularly with various initiatives to recruit them.”
-Why is it so important to have a large database of golfers?
-The reason is very simple: the bigger the database, the more likely we are to meet in a tournament at the shootout. This is very important for us, because all the players arrive practically at the same time at the prize-giving. This has worked very well for us in recent years.
-But surely, even with a database of less than 1800 members, they should have no problem getting 72 players to play in a tournament?
-I agree that it seems like a small percentage who actually play, but the reality is that while we have a regular contingent who live here and join us for most tournaments, a large percentage of players only want to join us when they happen to be here. Unfortunately, most of these members have returned to their home countries by the time we have any tournaments. So, in effect, we have to have a large database so that on any given golf day there are enough players here to join us. This is especially relevant in the summer months when many have returned home.
-That explains the reason for the free membership, but how can they afford to give out such big prizes, worth more than 800 euros in each tournament?
-Sponsorship is the key to the great prizes we are always able to offer at our tournaments. This was difficult in the beginning, as we had to ‘sell’ ourselves and our long-term plans to try to convince sponsors that supporting us would be beneficial to them in the long run as well. Now it is a little easier because, with a strong database that is growing considerably year on year, sponsors know that their profile reaches an interesting market, along with many other strong brands, through our website, email news, social media and local publications.
-How have golf clubs responded to Golf in the Sun?
-Over the years we have built strong relationships with most of the clubs on the Costa del Sol and have played most of them, including Vaderrama, Las Brisas, Aloha and Finca Cortesin. In fact, the only reason we haven’t spread our wings more is because certain golf clubs have members’ competition days on Saturday, which is our preferred day of play, so a shotgun start is impossible.
-Are there any other aspects that differentiate you from other golf societies?
-We always look for different initiatives throughout the year. On two occasions we have held €10,000 tournaments; in the last one, in 2012, we had an Audi valued at €50,000 as a prize for whoever managed a hole-in-one, and the best player every year has always won fantastic prizes of accommodation and green fees. In the last four years, these have been all-inclusive weekends at the K Club, Celtic Manor, Hotel Finca Cortesin and Iberostar Son Antem Resort, in Mallorca.
Our prize in 2015, however, will be even better, as we have partnered with Iberostar Hotel and Resort Group, who are sponsoring our ‘Race to Mexico Iberostar League’. This year’s top player will win an all-inclusive trip with a stay at the five-star Iberostar Paraiso Maya hotel near Cancun and the idyllic island of Cozumel in Mexico – not a bad prize! So we think we’ve come a long way in just five years. We were also delighted to be able to offer our members valuable stay and play prizes on the Costa de la Luz this year, with trips to Sancti Petri, Montenmedio and Montecastillo planned in the coming months.
Another aspect of Golf in the Sun in recent years has been our support for Ciudad de los Niños, an orphanage in Malaga. In addition to asking our players at each tournament to contribute to this charity, our last competition of the year is dedicated entirely to raising as much money as possible for that cause. We hope to add in 2015 more funds to the 25,000 euros we have already raised so far.
-What’s next for Golf in the Sun?
-I hope we can continue to offer affordable golf experiences for all our members. This has always been our main objective. We thank you for your loyalty and support over the years, always mindful that if we do not maintain this focus on profitability, we cannot expect this support to continue indefinitely. That’s it in a nutshell!
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