With informative presentations from acclaimed coaches, as well as industry leaders in facility management, fitness and more, there was truly something for everyone to take away from Monday and Tuesday’s gathering at Tsawwassen’s Beach Grove Golf Club.
The number of Professionals attending the seminar marked the highest turnout for a PGA of BC educational event in more than a decade.
“We are pleased that so many of our members were able to take part in the Spring Education Seminar to learn from our expert guests,” said PGA of BC Executive Director Donald Miyazaki. “Continuing education for our Professionals is an important focus of the Association, and in that regard, this year’s seminar certainly fit the bill.”
Each of the guest speakers shared insightful perspectives that will no doubt resonate with all attendees as another golf season gets underway. Naturally, the morning sessions dedicated to instruction were especially informative for our Professionals, who had nothing but positive thoughts to share after hearing from Golf Canada’s Tristan Mullally on Monday and the Curious Coaches, Matt Wilson and Corey Lundberg, on Tuesday.
Thoroughly enjoyed my first @PGAofBC Spring Seminar. Especially @tmullallygolf @CLundbergGolf & @mattwilsongolf. Opened my eyes to so much.
— Clark MacPherson (@clarkmacgolf) February 22, 2017
Great 2 days listening to @mattwilsongolf @CLundbergGolf @tmullallygolf talk about their amazing coaching concepts. Thanks so much! @PGAofBC
— Kate Weir (@katesweir) February 22, 2017
Great 2 days at @PGAofBC seminar. Highlight for me was @tmullallygolf @mattwilsongolf and @CLundbergGolf World class!!
— John Randle (@RandleGolf) February 22, 2017
Mullally said he doesn’t often get the chance to address crowds as large as the one that was fixated on his presentation with rapt attention Monday. The national women’s amateur team head coach said it was an “awesome” opportunity to pass on his knowledge with fellow instructors.
“To be here amongst some fantastic people and my peers to share some of my journey, but also to have questions that made me raise an eyebrow and think about my answers, and to know that people are interested and want to do better, was great,” said Mullally, who stressed the importance of learning from one another.
“If you don’t know everything, that’s OK. There are others who may be better in a particular area, and you should engage them. Your athletes will get better and so will you.”
The idea that the lessons learned during the seminar will benefit more than just the Professionals who attended was a sentiment shared by Tuesday afternoon speaker Robert Thompson.
After delivering an eye-opening talk on how golf industry stakeholders can be doing much more to improve their online presence and their brand in an internet-first age, Thompson lauded the “wide variety” of information that attendees will take from the seminar back to their clubs, ultimately leading to better experiences for golfers across the province.
“You have a better-educated Pro who has more understanding of the varying elements of the operation from people who are considered best in class,” said Thompson. “I think there’s a huge benefit to this.”
Spring Education Seminar attendees will receive eight Professional Development Program points for each day they were present at the event. Last year, all but one of the top-20 finishers in the PDP standings collected points for seminar attendance.
“I would like to extend many thanks to each of our presenters, attendees, Education Committee co-chairs Ashley Zibrik and Alan Palmer, presenting sponsor Honma Golf and the Beach Grove Golf Club for making the seminar a beneficial and memorable event,” said Miyazaki.