A great golf program does three things: generates excitement, sustains interest and appeals to all ages and skill levels. Most golf programs at private clubs struggle to achieve all three, but one area in which most clubs could improve is youth programming.
Throughout the years, McMahon Group has surveyed more than 100,000 club members at some of the best golf and country clubs across the nation, and we’ve often found that members are in need of an improved golf experience for their kids. Only 56% of private members say they feel satisfied with their club’s junior program; compare that rating to 79% for the men’s program and 66% for the women’s showing that many clubs can still place a higher priority on the family golf experience.
“Grow the game” is a mantra often repeated by private club leaders and golf professionals, but it begins with young golfers.
Fortunately, two innovative golf programs aimed at young golfers are making headway in the private club sector. While name-brand youth programs have made successful inroads at clubs—First Tee and Girls Golf to name a few—these two programs are making a name for themselves with savvy technology, gamified curriculum and fun, social environments for young golfers. And they’re earning a following.
OPERATION 36
PGA Professionals Matt Reagan and Ryan Dailey founded Operation 36, a developmental program aimed at turning nongolfers into golfers, in 2010, but it was by no means a finished product back then.
For the first few years, Reagan and Dailey struggled to crack the code on why so many of the program’s students were dropping out. After doing some digging, they discovered that, although their students were having a blast in the program, they weren’t learning the nuts and bolts of the game. They weren’t becoming golfers.
From that realization emerged the idea that forms the backbone of Operation 36: Start close to the hole (25 yards) and try to score par 36. Some students succeed the first time and get a first taste of success in the game. Others don’t but eagerly try again knowing the goal is within grasp. The genius of the program lies in how it scales by skill, allowing young golfers the ability to advance their game by incrementally moving back to the tee box, “unlocking” the course as they progress. A mobile app with GPS capabilities shows instructors and golfers where to begin each hole depending on their current ability.
The app also logs scoring data for students and functions as the interface through which they earn prizes and merit badges. The app also tracks aggregate data that holds fascinating insights. How long does it take your average student to progress from hitting 25 yards in to tee box? According to Reagan, about 55 rounds.
This program also helps to eliminate unnecessary frustration and slow play—and has fewer dropouts. Operation 36 has grown a lot since those early days and now has a presence in more than 500 locations from coast to coast including at many private clubs.
CRUSH IT
Crush It is a step-by-step junior golf program that ClubCorp offers at more than 120 of its locations. Jennifer Bermingham, a certified PGA and LPGA instructor, helped develop the program a little over a year ago after ClubCorp approached her with the idea of creating a standardized junior golf program based on the one she was running at Coto De Caza Golf & Racquet Club in Coto De Caza, Calif.
Everything in Crush it is based on the American Development Model which places a strong emphasis on offering fun, developmentally-appropriate activities for developing youth golfers—a corrective to the winning-at-all-costs mentality that informs a lot of junior instruction.
Like Operation 36, Crush It is a progressive model that allows players to move through six levels in a gamified environment with “achiever rewards” and other milestone markers that quantify success, motivating young golfers to reach the next stage.
Where Crush It really stands out is in its attention to the social experiences of junior golfers. Girls learn in female-only groups where working collaboratively and making friends is often more of a priority.
“Girls like to work together and become friends and want to have a social element to the game and to practice,” said Bermingham in a recent New York Times article. “There are always exceptions, but boys like to compete with each other and want to see who’s the winner. There’s a mentality that is just slightly different.”
Crush It hosted an LGPA, USGA golf experience during the week of October 18, 2021, across its many locations. Golf activities were only one part of the experience, which culminated with participants creating a dream board of how they see their future, in golf and in life, and sharing it with others. Other events on the quarterly social calendar include a family event that will allow young golfers to share—and show off—their burgeoning skills with Mom and Dad.
Eventually, Bermingham sees Crush It expanding its reach. “My goal is to have ClubCorp offer places for learning for every member of the family,” says Bermingham. “Every demographic, every ability level—we want to make sure we are accessible to them.”
PROGRAMMING FOR THE FUTURE
With golf booming since the start of the pandemic, it’s incumbent on clubs to create and steward the types of programming that encourage every type of golfer. But that long overlooked segment—junior golfers—deserve some attention. After all, they stand to make up not just the next generation of golfers but the next generation of club members who, if their early experiences at the club are remembered fondly, will be looking for a club themselves one day.
Operation 36 and Crush It are doing their part and making the adoption of a great junior programming a no-brainer for many clubs. So, if it’s time to inject new life into your club’s junior program, perhaps you could learn a thing or two from these two upstarts leading the way forward for golf’s future.