Pro speak


Not many clubs can boast two generations of the same family occupying the position of head pro. Paul Sherman tells Geraldine Faulkner how he is continuing a family tradition


It’s a family affair P


aul Sherman took over as head pro at Ashford GC when his father, Hugh,


retired three years ago. “My dad was a traditional club


pro and spent 31 years here at Ashford. Originally he came from Formby in Liverpool and he’s always been ‘members oriented’. We are not a proprietary golf club so that means you provide a service that members want and where nothing should be too much trouble. It’s all about giving the members value for their membership,” explains Sherman. Like many of his peers, golf is


in the younger Sherman’s blood. “I was two when I started


playing golf. We used to live on the golf course at St Augustine’s in Ramsgate; then when I was about five or six we moved to Ashford where I joined the club at the age of 10. There is no limit as to when a junior can join. “As long as a youngster can


stand up and swing a club, they can join the club,” he adds. Sherman turned pro when


he was 19 years old and played on the Challenge Tour and the European Tour. Fellow Tour pros at the time


included Lee Westwood, Justin Rose (“He is always a nice fellow”) and Darren Clarke. “I got to the point when


playing wasn’t as successful as it needed to be. I was pretty decent, but I might have a good week every three to four weeks when top players need to be on the top all the time. Also, when you’re on tour you need to spend thousands of pounds and you get to the point when you have commitments at home and you need a regular income,” says the pro ruefully. He pauses before adding: “You need to be realistic. You


24


can’t say to the bank manager ‘I might win a tournament next week, can you pay my mortgage for me’? Among his successes


on Tour, Sherman won the PGA Southern Professional Championship in both 1999 and 2005. “In 2003 I came back and


started working with my dad. “Then the opportunity arose


to run a teaching academy at Birchwood Park in Dartford, which is part of the Burhill group. A friend of mine had taken over as director of golf and he needed someone to run the teaching academy,” remembers the pro, before adding it was a busy but highly rewarding job. “On average, the club


hosted 52,000 rounds of golf a year. There was a lot of group coaching and lots of juniors. In all, I spent the best part of four to five years building up a large client base. In the summer, it wasn’t unusual to work 12-hour days. We also did a lot with schools to encourage youngsters to come to the driving range,” he continues. However, working at


Birchwood Park entailed a daily 100-mile round trip which was tiring as well as expensive. Plus, Sherman says: “It was at


the back of my mind that dad was going to retire at some stage. Then in 2009 the club offered me the job to take over from him.” Now Sherman lives a mere


five minutes away from the club. Is he turning into his dad?


“I could do a lot worse, I have his grey hair already,” is the response. As part of his remit, Sherman


owns and runs the pro shop. “I have Tom Muchmore as my


assistant. He is in his second year of his training and between the two of us, we completely run the golf course with tee times, societies, members competitions and green fees. Added to which, we do all the teaching and assist members on a daily basis.” What brands does Sherman


stock in his shop? “In terms of hardware, we


have Titleist, PING and Mizuno while clothing includes FootJoy, Greg Norman, ProQuip and Glenmuir. We do a lot of crested sweaters and shirts as members like to wear a crested jumper and t-shirt. We wouldn’t sell brands like Lindeberg or Puma as it doesn’t appeal to the clients.” The average members’ age is


57-58 and the club has a smaller group of 20-35 year-old players. Overall membership at Ashford GC is healthy. “There are currently 620


members and we have the capacity to accommodate 650,” says Sherman. “And to encourage younger members we offer a sliding scale of membership fees with full membership costing


£980. It’s good to encourage younger players to join as they are the future of the club and often make greater use of the facilities.” An innovation introduced by


Sherman on the 18-hole course are blue tees for the juniors. “We’ve never had them before.


Up until now it’s just been red, yellow and white. “They play 4,000 yards rather


than the full 6,000 yards, but it’s good as it incentivises the juniors. Plus we arrange competitions for them as well as an order of merit, Coaching along with rules and etiquette sessions creates situations for them to give them of idea of what to do on the course.” Does Sherman have any


hobbies outside golf? “No hobbies, but my partner


Kelly and I have just got a two- year old rescue Labrador that is taking up a fair bit of time as he gets walked about five miles a day. It’s nice to get home and walk the dog around the farmer’s field, especially after a 12-hour day.”


Pro Shop Europe April 2012


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56