It's funny how random, accidental conversations morph into something special. While returning from The 2024 PGA Show Demo Day in Orlardo on a shuttle bus, host Colin Weston sat beside someone and asked how his day went. That young man was Nick Darby, who was attending on behalf of Get Golfing which is a UK non-profit that acquires and revitalizes distressed golf properties. After an engaging bus ride conversation, Colin asked Nick if he would tell the Get Golfing story on The ModGolf Podcast. Fast forward and here we are. We hope you like this inspiring episode as much as we enjoyed making it.
"Here in the UK we have this issue which I don't see too much globally, where lots of our golf courses are either financially suffering while the land value is increasing. So many golf courses are being bought up, slabbed over with cement and housing estates are being built on them. We are on a mission to change this trend."
"So on the charity side of it, we reinvest and try to acquire golf courses that are going under and put money back into them, back into the communities and really get that golf course to prosper."
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"We took over these seven golf courses and we just looked at ourselves and said "Can we actually do this?" We thought "If we don't do this, these golf courses are going to be given to somebody else not necessarily to grow the game of golf." Then we just put our hearts and souls into it."
"It sounds like it's an impossible task because we've only ever operated one golf course to then knowing that we had another golf course that was 300 miles away. It was exhilarating. It was fantastic to go into these golf clubs and say to the staff "You've still got a job, come and work for us. It's going to be fantastic." And then also tell the members of the golf club. "Hey, you're not going anywhere. You're going to stay right here. Your golf course is going to stay open". And that feeling is just incredible and that's why we do what we do. It's because golf is just so important and we owe so much to the game of golf and this is how we give it back".... Nick Darby / Get Golfing
Episode Chapters
03:40: Nick provides an overview of what Get Golfing does and why they do it
05:15: How and when Nick was introduced to golf and who invited him
06:25: The story of the "AHA Moment" and launch of Get Golfing
08:20: How Get Golfing Founder Edward Richardson acquired Redlibbets Golf Club in Kent England
10:15: How during the pandemic Get Golfing went from operating one golf course to seven
13:10: Using Redlibbets GC and the non-profit test case that led to tripling the club membership
30:50: The Festival of Golf... August 2024... 3 day Ladies European Tour Access Series event... includes Night Golf, a Golf Sixes event
32:00: Hosting the first global Ladies Disabled Golf Tournament
39:40: Nick discusses the future of Get Golfing, that includes partnering with innovative technology companies like our show sponsor Golf Genius Software!
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You can also learn more about Nick on his bio page.
On this episode Nick shared that their August 2024 "Festival of Golf" weeklong activation will feature a Golf Sixes event. One second ever ModGolf Podcast episode back in 2017 was with then DP World Tour CEO Keith Pelley, who talked about their first Golf Sixes event. Click on the image below to listen to this engaging episode.
Want to learn more about the impactful non-profit work Get Golfing takes on, perhaps book a tee time or just hang out at one of their welcoming clubhouses? Have a look at the Go Golfing website or email Nick Darby at [email protected]
We want to thank Golf Genius Software who have supported The ModGolf Podcast since 2019!
Golf Genius powers tournament management at over 10,000 private clubs, public courses, resorts, golf associations, and tours in over 60 countries. So if you’re a golf professional or course operator who wants to save time, deliver exceptional golfer experiences, and generate more revenue, check them out online at golfgenius.com.