PGAsofEUROPE


Brazil - Brazil Goes Nuts for Footgolf By Nat Sylvester


Location: Brazil, South America PGA Professional: Craig Thomas (GB&I)


C


raig Thomas introduced Footgolf to the South American country’s golf coaches during a teaching and coaching conference hosted by the


Paulista Federation of Golf in Sao Paulo. “My role was to look at alternative forms of golf to try


and breakdown the barriers in Brazil that are stopping people getting into golf, and bridge the gap,” explained Thomas. “In Brazil they have a programme called Golfe Para


Vida – Golf for Life – which develops golf in schools. Over 30,000 kids have received some golf coaching in schools and my role was to show how these kids can access golf outside of schools. “We took urban and street golf and introduced it to the


coaches so they could look at introducing golf in their communities, because while a lot of kids would not be able to afford to join golf clubs, they would play nine holes of urban golf in the streets. We also showed them Footgolf as a way of introducing golf to people who might be football fans and hadn’t previously considered golf as a sport they might try.”


Madagascar - PGA Pro Helps Madagascar Get to Grips With Golf By Nat Sylvester


Location: Madagascar, Africa PGA Professional: David Johnson (GB&I)


F


orget the penguins - it could be the golfers of Madagascar aſter input from PGA of Great Britain & Ireland Master Professional, David Johnson. Johnson, who previously helped Botswana develop its


golf education programme, spent 10 days on the island with a wide ranging brief all with the aim of raising standards of golf. It included coaching its junior team, training its


trainers, guidance on the strategic development of the Federation of Madagascar Golf, giving advice on the quality of golf courses on the island and reviewing the handicap system. “Madagascar is very sparse as far as golf is concerned


with only about five courses,” explained Johnson. “The clubs have a lot of talented caddies and I was


helping to teach them how to coach but also being mindful that they were not becoming golf professionals. “My brief was to assess golf on the island, to teach the


caddies and juniors and players at a couple of clubs because they don’t have a single golf pro on the island. “I was also trying to achieve some unity between the golf clubs and


the Federation so it will become a body that reports to The R&A,” he added. Since his visit Johnson has regularly kept in contact with the


country and hopes to go back as part of the PGAs of Europe development team.


www.pgae.com


For more information on the PGAs of Europe visit www.pgae.com. For more information on The R&A’s Working For Golf Programme visit www.randa.org/en/Working-For-Golf.


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