Britain's Newest Course Takes a Positive Stand for Lady Golfers

2013 could prove to be a pivotal year for ladies’ golf in the UK. For the first time in the tournament’s history, August’s Solheim Cup was won by a European team on American soil. A trio of Brits played a key role. Britain’s newest course, Centurion Club, is keen to foster the resultant upswing in women’s interest in the sport.
“It was great to watch Europe’s ladies take the Solheim Cup by the largest margin to date, eight points, and see rookie sensation, Charley Hull from Kettering, become the youngest ever competitor in the field aged just 17,” says Scott Evans, Co-Owner of Hertfordshire’s 18-hole Centurion Club. “This victory had the ‘Olympic-effect’ equivalent on ladies’ golf with many newcomers inspired by the likes of Charley. At Centurion Club our relaxed lifestyle environment embraces the whole family and membership is open to everyone, male or female. Whether they’re in the Clubhouse or on the golf course, women are very welcome here - on equal footing with their male counterparts.”
The most influential man in golf, Dana Garmany, Chairman of Troon Golf LLC, the management company assisting Centurion Club, echoes Scott’s sentiments. “We applaud the efforts of Centurion Club to step into the forefront and take action on welcoming women and families to the golf course. Creating authentic and inclusive environments that make everyone feel at home is an extremely important initiative for the game and Centurion Club is making great strides to accomplish this.”
A recent study, Growing Golf in the UK, released in October last year, also advocates Centurion Club’s all-inclusive ethos. The survey discovered that lady golfers preferred to participate with family and friends and also played a key role in introducing children to the game. It also revealed that the number of people playing golf in the UK could be doubled if clubs and courses were friendlier and more family-orientated. Centurion Club has set out to be exactly that.
“Sadly some sex discrimination exists in British golf as it is still steeped in historic tradition,” continues Scott. “The Open Championship continues to be held at male-only venues in the UK for example, whereas in Europe, where the game is so much younger, there’s no such thing as segregation between sexes and women and children are actively encouraged to play. In fact Germany now has more lady golf club members than the UK - 222,191 versus 180,331 - despite having less than a quarter of the number of courses. At Centurion Club we are proud to have several lady golfers as members, including those from overseas, and we look forward to welcoming many more.”
According to last summer’s research by KPMG, 76% of the UK’s 1.2 million golf club members are adult males, and just 14% females – way below the European average of 22% female. Germany and Austria take the lead with 35% of its golfers being female, followed by Switzerland (33%), the Netherlands (32%) and Belgium (31%). Only Bulgaria, Greece and Latvia have a smaller percentage of female golf club members than the UK.
About Centurion Club - Opened on 1 July 2013, Centurion Club is the UK’s newest private 18-hole golf course, put together by a management team who’ve worked at some of the world’s finest clubs. Set in picturesque Hertfordshire countryside, the Simon Gidman-designed course is varied and challenging featuring some 80 bunkers, four major water features and undulating greens. Aimed at the high-end, Centurion Club’s catchment area not only encompasses the local community and bordering counties of Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire and Essex, but also Greater London by virtue of high speed rail link from St Alban’s to London St Pancras in just 19 minutes. Various types of membership are on offer – Senate, Centurion, Corporate/Business and International – for further information or a guided tour contact Club on +44 (0) 1442 510 520, hello@CenturionClub.co.uk or visit www.centurionclub.co.uk.