A leading name in the world of golf, Troon recently celebrated 25 years of excellence. Speaking to Tatiana Tsierkezou, area managing director, senior vice president – Middle East, Troon, Mark Chapleski outlines the company’s history and exciting pipeline plans.
TTG: As a leading name in the world of golf, how does Troon ensure that it stays ahead of the worldwide golf industry?
There couldn’t be a better time to ask about the company’s history, as Troon just celebrated its 25th anniversary last year! It was founded in 1990 in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA, by Dana Garmany, who still remains the company’s CEO. From our work at that first facility in Arizona, the philosophy has always been to stay true to the third-party management ideal. That means simply focusing on achieving results to match the brief given by our client.
Those briefs can vary as much as the clients do, but Troon’s experienced network of Associates is fully capable of dealing with all of them. We provide a full range of third-party management and operations support. Our organisation has the ability to enhance any aspect of a golf facility, from agronomy, business development and operations management to developing the leisure facilities and providing marketing and sales support. We work on new developments, providing advice on everything from course design to clubhouse layout.
Over the course of Troon’s first quarter-century the company has reached a half-century in terms of its international client numbers. Troon is currently developing, managing or advising on 52 courses internationally, including facilities as diverse as Fairmont St Andrews in Scotland, Costa Navarino in Greece and The Prestige Golfshire Club in India. This ever-growing portfolio complements a collection well in excess of 100 facilities in North America, which means we’ve got over 200 facilities worldwide and over 250 18-hole equivalents.
TTG: Tell me a bit about Troon’s expansion.
A couple of exciting growth areas for Troon recently have been Central Europe and Australia. In Europe we’ve recently begun working with Golfclub Pfalz in Germany and Golfclub Domat/Ems in Switzerland. In Australia we’re getting a lot of interest with new signings joining our family all the time. This year alone we’ve added The Grange Golf Club in New South Wales, and Queensland courses Paradise Palms and Pacific Harbour Golf & Country Club.
Looking ahead, some of the most interesting development projects we have on our books are the Royal Greens Golf Club in Saudi Arabia, Rossington Hall in the UK and Mill Creek Country Club near St Petersburg in Russia. These varied locations really show how wide our remit is internationally and how we are trusted with projects in all kinds of climates and locations.
Vietnam and South East Asia in general is probably the geographic area with the biggest golf growth potential at the moment. Vietnam is growing fast in terms of tourism development. Golf is a natural part of that, therefore it’s not surprising that there are around 50 courses under construction there at the moment. We were thrilled recently to be awarded the responsibility of managing the Els Performance Golf Academy in Hanoi.
TTG: As for developments in the Middle East, what can golfers in or travelling to this particular region look forward to?
On the whole, the UAE has many very good golf courses, with amazing service standards and amenities compared to most places in the world. Some courses are winners for everyone, like the Abu Dhabi Golf Club, where you rarely hear someone say they didn’t like it. Other courses, even some tour venues, are a really love it or really don’t like it type of course.
The Middle East is one of Troon’s most important customer bases, and we opened our latest course there just last year in the shape of Al Zorah Golf Club in Ajman, which has been receiving rave reviews. We’ve typically tended to be given more all-encompassing contracts in this region, where we’ve managed facilities on a more integrated basis, rather than just one aspect. The headlines Al Zorah has made are just rewards for the efforts of all concerned, and good news for the profile of golf throughout the UAE.
The number of courses we have in Middle East certainly makes our loyalty programmes, especially Troon Rewards and the Troon Executive Card, more valuable for the local market. Our busy portfolio of close-together courses also makes it very convenient for our Associates who are interested in taking on a new challenge at another Troon property, but don’t really want to leave the UAE. We have moved at least 50 staff members over the past eight years to other properties within the region. Generally, these moves are promotions for our Associates.
Looking ahead, our major project in the region now is Royal Greens in the King Abdullah Economic City north of Jeddah on the Red Sea. It’s set to open in the next few months. This course is part of a grand housing and resort development that will ultimately have 25,000 hotel rooms, along with 970 plots and villas around the course in the Al Marooj Golf Communities.
TTG: What trends have you picked up on throughout 2016, and how do you expect them to develop in the coming years?
Back in the late nineties and early 2000s it was all about how much money you could spend on a golf course. The industry has grown up since and efficiency continues to be a major theme. Every facility needs to work, and simply put if you’ve got revenue of a million then you need to have maintenance costs well below that. You’ve got to be much more accountable for what you’re doing now.
Times are also changing on the sustainability front. Planning requirements increasingly insist on detailed ecological and environment surveys ahead of any permissions being granted. Golf as an industry has recognised its responsibility towards the environment. Users have a growing interest in any environmental impact of the golf they’re playing, and that will only continue to grow.
In sales and marketing, the pace of development continues to be remarkable. There is such a multitude of marketing opportunities compared to a decade ago that plotting the right course has become a key skill. Social media has changed everything too by allowing brands to own their own advertising channels, and Troon continues to innovate and support its clients in this area.
TTG: Finally, when deciding upon the design of a golf course, what are the factors that Troon takes into consideration?
Local attitudes to planning often dictate the scale and nature of developments that can be realistically achieved. Then there is the local economic climate, which varies everywhere and can be affected by factors a long way away.
Government attitudes to the role new developments might play in the overall tourist landscape of their country are also a major factor. We are generally aligned with many destinations’ marketing efforts; golf remains a positive economic driver, featuring as a key pillar of tourism strategies.
One thing is constant wherever we operate: we draw on what we’ve learned from other areas where we have worked. Troon’s wide international experience is one of its strengths, because even a course in Norway will have taught us something we can apply to a course in Malaysia. Places like Dubai have thrived through learning from other parts of the world and embracing the experience that is available. We are great believers in this and, importantly, developing the indigenous talent pool wherever we’re working.
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