GOLF IRELAND A SINGLE GOVERNING BODY FOR GOLF IN IRELAND A Proposal from the Golfing Union of Ireland (GUI) and the Irish Ladies Golf Union (ILGU) GOLF IRELAND Members of the Discussion Group (DG): Billy Black, GUI Past President (DG member: November 2015 – November 2016) Frank Bowen, GUI Past President Teresa Byrne, ILGU Finance Director Pat Finn, GUI CEO Sinead Heraty, ILGU CEO Brege McCarrick, ILGU Past Chair Iggy O’Muircheartaigh, GUI Chair (DG member: August 2016 – October 2017) John Power, GUI Independent Board Member (DG member: Joined November 2017) Ethel Ruddock, ILGU Ulster District Executive (DG member: Joined June 2016) Kevin Stevens, GUI Ulster Branch Executive Officer (DG member: Joined November 2016) External Consultant & Facilitator: Jane Williams, Sia Partners Project Manager: Sarah Crowe 2 GOLF IRELAND To our Fellow Golfers We are delighted to present here our proposal to form Golf Ireland. The Discussion Group came together in November 2015, with a brief from the two Unions to set out what a new governing body for golf in Ireland might look like. Since then we have been listening to the views of club golfers all around Ireland, to representatives of clubs and to officials and staff members of both Unions. We have also looked at how golf is administered in other countries and we sought input from representatives of other sporting bodies in Ireland. We were also very mindful of the fact that Ireland is the only country left in the world to have two single gender governing bodies for golf. All of the conversations, submissions and presentations we have been part of have helped us to form a very clear view John Moloughney Vonnie Noonan of how we should shape our new governing body so that it GUI, President ILGU, President can deliver the best possible outcome for the future of golf in Ireland. We now firmly believe that the establishment of Golf Ireland gives us the best chance of securing a bright and prosperous future for golf. In this proposal, we set out in some detail how Golf Ireland will work in its organisational and regional structures, financial arrangements, legal structure, governance and how it will extend the level of services available to clubs. We also set out our proposals on how Golf Ireland will operate, including how it will promote and develop the game for golfers of all levels of ability, streamline the handicapping and course rating systems, set up a new and integrated calendar of events, recruit new volunteers and recognise better the invaluable work that volunteers do all around Ireland. We would like to thank everyone in the golf community and beyond for their frank and open engagement with this process over the past few years. It has been an immensely enjoyable and rewarding experience, and we have tried to capture the spirit of Iggy O’Muircheartaigh Clodagh Hopkins those contributions in this proposal, as much as possible. We GUI, Chair ILGU, Chair would also like to thank our fellow Discussion Group members for their incisive observations and for contributing to the excellent collaborative atmosphere in which we worked. It remains for us to formally ask you to give your support to the proposed establishment of Golf Ireland. 1 Acknowledgements Championships: Aidan Marsden (Chair), Sandra Barnett, Rules: Tom Donnelly (Chair), Norman Bennett, Ger Henry, Linda Bradshaw, Barry Doyle, Paula Reynolds, Mark Wehrly Brian Hutchinson, Barbara O’Keeffe, Anne O’Sullivan Game Development: Anne Brett (Chair), Tracey Farrell, Lucia Finance: Teresa Byrne (Chair), Frank Bowen, Sinead Heraty, Farrell, Richard Gormley, Diarmuid Logue, Cathal McConn, Michael Malone, Rollo McClure Teresa Thompson Future Club Formation: Donard MacSweeney (Chair), Club Services: Nick Agate (Chair), Gordon Campbell, Pauline Bailie, Grainne Clancy, Ger Ennis, Neil Kilgallon, Agnes Curley, Ben Headon, Beth Mason, Sean Moran, Barry Ramsay, Lesley Williams Goretti O’Connor Volunteerism: Terry Crothers (Chair), Anne Brett, Derek Ervine, High Performance: Alasdair Gibson (Chair), James Corcoran, Rosemary Hayes, Michael Heaney, Jane Joyce, Henry Lee. David Kearney, Cian Hoban, Clodagh Hopkins, Neil Manchip, The GUI and the ILGU would also like to thank all affiliate Denise McCarthy Golf Clubs and members, Union Officials and Staff who Communications: Sarah Crowe, Alan Kelly, contributed to the consultation and feedback process. The Carla Reynolds input received was invaluable and enabled us to continue developing and testing emerging ideas. Also, a special thanks Course Rating/ Handicapping: Patricia Jordan (Chair), to the following for their knowledge and input in a range Jerome Clancy, Tom Jones, Jim Mooney, Nora Murphy, of areas pertinent to the project: Amanda Bennett (Fair Play Carla Reynolds Enterprises), Tom Craig (Scottish Golf Union), Alan Kirk (Legal Organisational Structure: Frank Bowen, Pat Finn and NI), Michael Doyle (Arthur Cox) and Frank O’Riordan (Legal). Sinead Heraty The ILGU and the GUI are also grateful to Deloitte (Accounting and Tax) who offered their ongoing services throughout the project, and to Matheson (Legal) for their expert legal view. 2 GOLF IRELAND Contents 4. Making the Transition to Golf Ireland 17 1. The Case for Golf Ireland 4 Creating the Structure 17 Why we need Golf Ireland 4 Creating the Organisation 17 The Idea of Golf Ireland and how it Developed 4 Consultation Process 5 A. Historical Financial Schedules 18 The ‘Dream’: what we want in a National Governing Body 5 GUI Income and Expenditure, 2016 and 2017 18 The Strategy for Golf Ireland 6 ILGU Income and Expenditure, 2016 and 2017 18 The Benefits that Golf Ireland will bring 7 CGI Income and Expenditure, 2016 and 2017 19 Honouring the Heritage of ILGU and GUI 7 GUI, ILGU and CGI: Combined Income and Expenditure 2016 and 2017 19 2. The Model for Golf Ireland 8 Membership Numbers 20 Structure and Culture of Golf Ireland 8 Historical Balance Sheets 20 Golf Ireland and the Clubs 9 B. Presidential Rotation in Golf Ireland 21 The Governance of Golf Ireland 10 The office of President of Golf Ireland 21 Club Voting in Golf Ireland 10 Eight-year Cycle 21 Financial Management of Golf Ireland 11 Honorary Life Members 21 Projected Income and Expenditure of Golf Ireland 11 Communications 13 C. The Board of Golf Ireland 22 Composition of the Board 22 3. Operations of Golf Ireland 14 Rotation of Regional Board members 22 Volunteers 14 GenderBalance on the Board 22 Developing the Game 14 D. Golf Ireland Staffing Structure 23 Handicapping and Course Rating 14 Championships 15 E. Golf Ireland Regional Executives 23 Rules 15 Elections to the Regional Executives 24 High Performance 15 Support teams for Regional Zones 24 Ensuring Environmental Sustainability 15 Rotation of the Regional Executives 24 3 GOLF IRELAND 1. The Case for Golf Ireland needs of modern Ireland and there is a substantial risk to the Why we need Golf Ireland popularity of the sport. Change is needed at national, local and With our strong roots that go back to the end of the 19th club level to meet the challenges facing our sport. century, golf in Ireland has so much to celebrate and be proud A single governing body, Golf Ireland, is an essential first of. We have a long sporting and social tradition that has become step. a part of life in every corner of Ireland. Our courses are among the finest and most challenging in the world, and we have all been inspired by the exploits of some of our best Irish golfers The Idea of Golf Ireland and their victories in the world’s major competitions. But as well as celebrating the great successes of golf in and how it Developed Ireland, we must continually search for ways to bring the The idea of bringing Ireland’s two golf Unions together to game forward, to attract new members and to reinvigorate our establish a single governing body for golf in Ireland began a clubs. The success of Irish golfers – male and female – on the number of years ago on the initiative of the Boards of both international stage can make it easy to believe that the game Unions. In November 2015, the detailed work of thinking this of golf on the island of Ireland is in good shape. Certainly, the through was given to a Discussion Group made up of four elite player programmes run by the GUI and the ILGU over members of each union, with an independent facilitator and many years have been very successful. However, when we look a project manager. The Discussion Group also commissioned elsewhere at the game in Ireland, we see that there are many assistance from volunteers with relevant expertise, who worked questions we need to ask. collaboratively in working groups (which included Union officials and club members) to develop proposals on specific Meeting the needs of modern Ireland elements of the proposed new body. As we move deeper into the 21st century, we need a Good, collaborative working relationships were established governing body that can extend its focus beyond rules and among members of the Discussion Group, whose main aim was competitions and look more widely at regulation, promotion to allow time for the necessary insights and for understanding and development of the game, as well as meeting public to emerge and grow into a strong, coherent and well-considered expectations in relation to all aspects of modern life – in proposal. particular, diversity, gender and inclusivity. Our current structure of two Unions – one for men and one Learning from the experience of other countries and for women – struggles to meet the demands and expectations other sports of modern society and is confusing for members and affiliate The Discussion Group considered the experience of other clubs. In practical terms, we know that future funding from golfing organisations, principally in the UK, and it also sought Sport Northern Ireland will be contingent upon golf having input from other sporting bodies in Ireland on their structures a mixed gender governance structure, in line with Sport UK and the development of their single governing body.