Raleigh, NC—North Carolina-based golf player development program, Operation 36, announces that they were invited by the Bermuda Golf Association, Bermuda PGA, and local government to explore a long term working relationship and advisement role this past week.
The island nation of just over 60,000 people is ahead of most other nations as they work to execute an organized and deliverable national golf program that is aligned with Long Term Athlete Development. Originally penned in 2014, “Projection: Birth to Podium” is the Bermuda Golf Association’s strategic plan to support and develop the game of golf in Bermuda. The Bermuda Golf Association is the National Sport Governing Body (NSGB) for golf in Bermuda.
Golf professionals Ryan Dailey and Seth Thompson from the Operation 36 team traveled to Bermuda to work alongside the local PGA and Physical Education teachers. The goal was to learn what resources were currently available, what initiatives the nation is trying to achieve and the viability of using Operation 36 to deliver on some of the measurable outcomes. The deliverable was a recommendation to the Bermuda Golf Association on what steps to do moving forward to execute on these mandates from the government to measurably grow the game.
Operation 36 Co-founder, Ryan Dailey, PGA, said, “Going into the visit, we didn’t know what to expect. This was an Exploratory Visit to assess if we could help. It is an incredible honor for them to invite us to share our expertise and what we’ve learned over the last 15 years of building beginner golf programs around the world. The country is trying to revitalize a junior golf program that was very successful in the 90s and early 2000s. They produced some very talented golfers over those years in Bermuda, many who have gone on to play in national Amateur events and the local PGA Tour event on the island, the Butterfield Bermuda Classic. We are trying to help guide them into using the most effective programs that will produce measurable progress for all stakeholders involved for the long-term (parents, students, coaches, facilities, tourism and the nation's golf program).”
Dailey continued, “During our time in Bermuda, we worked with the Bermuda PGA, Bermuda Golf Association, Physical Education teachers and local government officials. We delivered a 2-day hands on workshop to close to 60 professionals and educators. Each participant learned the theory and history of Operation 36 in the classroom and then we went on the course and played 9-holes with the group on both days. Of the 60 in the group, close to 45 of them had never played golf before. We trained the local professionals to deliver the on-course portion of the event and they guided the groups around the course. After the 2nd 9-hole event, everyone had either shot 36 or better from Level 1 or shot their personal best. It was a huge success and everyone was excited to get started with the program on the island. We also spent time exploring what resources are available and developing relationships with the key decision makers. We finished the trip by sharing an ‘Assessment and Recommendations’ document with a bulleted list of next action steps that would meet their initiatives with long-term success. Operation 36 was a large part of the recommendation to measurably increase participation of beginner juniors and Adults.”
Local golf professional Scott Roy, hosted the event at Turtle Hill Golf Club, voted the best par 3 golf course in the world in 2020 by World Golf Awards. Scott is the president of the Bermuda PGA and he looks forward to helping the local professionals on the island deliver the Operation 36 program to grow the game.
Roy said, “Being a par 3 course, we have a lot of beginners come through our doors. Having the Operation 36 program will certainly help us deliver a fun and motivating experience to beginners. It will also help to increase revenue for our facility and allow me to increase the compensation to my staff which will help with employee retention. It’s a simple program that any professional can run with a little training. Ryan and Seth did a wonderful job and we look forward to having them back in the future to help us.”
For pictures/videos of the trip, please visit the Operation 36 Instagram page. For more information about the Operation 36 program, check out their website here. If you would like to speak with Operation 36 about scheduling an Exploratory Visit for your golf association, nation or governing body, please reach out to ryan@op36golf.com.
About Operation 36
Operation 36 is a Division of Golf Genius and is the most effective developmental program to teach beginners how to play golf. All new players begin on the course, and instead of starting at the tee box, they play from 25 yards away from the hole. Once the player shoots par (36) from 25 yards, they back up to 50 yards, and so on, until they are shooting even par (36) from the full tee box. Participants engage in weekly classes taught by golf professionals and all progress of the golfers is tracked in the Operation 36 Platform. The Operation 36 mission is to create 1 million new golfers over the next five years, and they want to help coaches with introducing new golfers and retaining them for the long term.
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