Emerald Golf Club’s new manager Graeme Warrick is working hard to boost club memberships.By Tania Martin
EMERALD Golf Club is looking strong, according to its new manager, Graeme Warrick
In just three months, Mr Warrick has almost doubled the membership of the club.
The club is now moving ahead in leaps and bounds with 90 members compared to 50 in November last year.
But for Mr Warrick this is just the beginning and he aims to have 100 members by the end of March and 300 by the end of the year.
He now wants to reassure hills people that rumours of a closure were misguided.
“We want to quash these rumours that we are closing and show people that we are going from strength to strength,” he said.
Mr Warrick is no stranger to the golfing world as he was first introduced to the sport at the young age of 11 and has never looked back since.
In 1976, he even had a spell on the professional circuit before taking a break from golf and going into business.
But he couldn’t stay away from golf for long and has spent most of his adult life working in the industry.
Since taking over the management of the golf and country club in November last year, Mr Warrick has made some big changes including bringing all the prices down.
Membership fees which over the years had crept up to almost $1000 are now back to a more reasonable $645 for a 12-month membership.
Mr Warrick said there are currently 20 female members but he will be working on increasing that.
Golf clinics for children are also part of the plans for the new and improved club.
“We have lost a lot of members over the past few years and I’m hoping to get them back,” Mr Warrick said.
He said in the three months since starting at the club he has seen some marked improvements but says there is still a lot of work to be done.
“We are really working to improve the course and we are already getting some really good comments from the players about the greens,” Mr Warrick said.
“Before we only had one greens keeper, now we have three which means we can mow the greens more often and keep the bunkers raked – the course is improving.”
The changes have gone well beyond the playing greens with Mr Warrick going so far as reopening the clubrooms for the first time in five years.
He has introduced an all-you-can-eat buffet style spit roast lunch for local residents on Saturdays and Sundays for just $19.90.
Mr Warrick said the clubrooms had sat dormant for too many years but they are now open for business.
He said local residents could also rent out the rooms for functions such as birthdays and weddings.
“I will do whatever I can to lift the club back up to its heydays of the ’80s,” Mr Warrick said.
In the 1980s the club was thriving with more than 300 members and Mr Warrick believes it can reach those heights again in 2008.
The Emerald Golf Club is open seven days a week from 6.30am to 9pm for those interested in checking out the new and improved greens at Lakeside Drive, Emerald.
