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Walking the talk
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Since Club Car first started its “Let’s Go Golfing” program, the company has introduced 200 of its employees to the game through lessons and league play. Club Car is taking its program to a broader scale, making it available to golf-related companies free of charge. Photo courtesy of Club Car |
A company executive, a staff accountant and a production line worker heading out to play golf together on a favorable afternoon may seem an improbable scenario, but at Club Car, it’s a growing tradition. For four years, the Augusta, Ga.-based company has offered its “Let’s Go Golfing” program to its employees, giving them free lessons at The First Tee of Augusta and encouraging them to continue with the game through league play where family members and friends are also welcome.
The brainchild of company CEO and chairman Phil Tralies, the program has introduced more than 200 new players to the game since its inception. A member of the Golf 20/20 panel, Tralies says the idea came from the desire to grow the industry by ushering new customers to the game of golf. “When we first rolled it out, (it was) just an instinctive response to find something to do to help drive the growth of the game,” Tralies says. “We want to walk the talk.”
With the philosophy that those in the golf industry should be involved in promoting the game, Tralies and Club Car are now expanding the concept by making it available to any golf-related entity free of charge.
“Once we got into it and made our mistakes, backed up and moved forward again, it became obvious that we had something here that we should share with others,” Tralies says.
A complimentary do-it-yourself kit from Club Car includes a video of Club Car employees and managers discussing the program and lessons, a getting-started guide with detailed steps to implement the program, a PowerPoint presentation, media coverage and a list of contacts at the company who can provide additional info.
Club Car’s intent is not for other companies to install a carbon copy of its program, but to give tips on how to take the idea and customize it to their location and circumstances, Tralies says.
The program’s benefits are abundant, he adds, explaining that the program enabled Club Car employees to come closer together and get to know one another in a different environment. “Outside of this opportunity, our interactions are limited to company-sponsored functions, but you’re still operating in the atmosphere of business,” he says. “This is outside of that. The format we’ve established gets people from the executive wing playing with people on an assembly line, and it’s hard to put a price tag on that.”
The company discovered another benefit when Club Car employees inquired about a way to extend their participation beyond lessons, and the company met with Jones Creek CC to set up its employees for league play at the Evans, Ga.-based course.
“It became apparent that this was an opportunity for clubs to market it from their end to companies in off-peak times,” Tralies says. “The win-win was pretty obvious.”
Danny Cope, owner and general manager at Jones Creek, plans to replicate the Club Car model by hosting league play for 10 companies this year and estimates $1 million in incremental revenues from the corporate leagues.
At Club Car, the program will continue indefinitely.
“There’s no cap on it as long as we have employees that are interested,” Tralies says. “But we have 1,000 more to go.”
To learn more about the Club Car program and to receive its complimentary kit, call 800-227-0739, ext. 3833.
April is the PGA’s free fitting and trade-up month, where PGA professionals across the nation will provide free 15-minute expert equipment fitting sessions at participating facilities. With the help of Golf Digest, the PGA Trade-In Network and the PGA.com Value Guide, the equipment-themed consumer promotion is part of the group’s Play Golf America programs aimed at promoting golf through free and affordable opportunities. In 2007, more than 3,100 PGA professionals helped 36,300 consumers find the appropriate equipment for a better golf game. For more information, visit www.playgolfamerica.com. Bob Marshall and Sean Cracraft, two leaders in the golf industry, have formed Marshall/Cracraft Golf and Community Management, a new company geared toward integrating functions of the community under one hospitality umbrella, it says. Bob Marshall, the “B” in OB Sports, is a 30-year veteran in golf and community development, while Cracraft, a 14-year GCSAA member, has worked as a superintendent, a general manager, a PGA professional and a hospitality executive. |
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