Q Golf - Official online magazine for Golf Queensland Autumn 2014 | Page 3

Q Golf online Editor: Claire Power E: [email protected] Contributing Writers Bruce Young, Bernie Pramberg, David Newbery, Tony Durkin and Matt Cooper. Golf Queensland Chief Executive Officer Lindsay Ellis Golf Operations Manager Golf Operations Officer Golf Operations Officer Head Coach Luke Bates Chris Evans Matt Field Tony Meyer Communications & Marketing Manager Claire Power Communications & Marketing Officer Janelle Spencer Finance Manager Matthew Sedgman Administration Officer Jillian Johnson Participation Development Manager Adrian Hewat Participation Development Officer Lee Harrington 2/14 Walden Lane Bowen Hills, QLD 4006 GPO Box 1518 Brisbane, QLD 4001 P: [phone] F: [phone] E: [email protected] www.golfqueensland.org.au Publishing and Design Golf Industry Central www.golfindustrycentral.com.au Golf Queensland Ltd cannot ensure that the advertisements appearing in this publication comply absolutely with the Trade Practices Act and other consumer legislation. It is the responsibility of the advertiser and/or supplier to ensure compliance with all legal requirements. Golf Queensland does not accept responsibility for incorrect information appearing in such advertisements. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, transmitted or used in any other way without prior permission for Golf Queensland. Contributions including the contributor’s name and address are welcomed by this publication, and should be addressed to The Editor, Q-Golf Online, GPO Box 1518, Brisbane, QLD 4001 or emailed to [email protected]. From the CEO - Lindsay Ellis Should we support our talented amateur golfers? It was interesting to see the reaction from the pundits following Australia’s performance at the 2012 Olympics. In many quarters there was concern regarding Australia’s slippage in the medal count while other nations, such as Britain, with their far greater population and superior funding came to the fore. There was discussion about what could be done to improve our future results – is it more dollars? This debate always carries an emotional charge with some having the belief that spending on elite sport is unnecessarily high and should be reduced. Golf Queensland, while not supporting Olympic athletes or elite professionals, does invest a significant component of its funds in the development of competition and support programs for Queensland’s most talented amateur golfers. I would emphasise that we also spend considerable portion of our funds on grass roots development. It’s all a matter of balance. However, the underlying question is whether high performance golf and talent development programs are of value to golf and the golf community. A key word is inspiration! How many kids have been inspired by the Olympics to go and try one of the Olympic sports after watching it on TV? The effect may be anecdotal, but we all recall that the greatest ever participation in Australian golf clubs was around the time of Greg Norman’s years as world number one. While I am not suggesting improved media interest is a replacement