Rasen golf course first in county to be recognised with national acreditation

The presentation was made by Nick Pink, England Golf’s Chief Executive Officer, when he visited the course last week.

It was the first time Mr Pink, who only took on the role five months ago, has visited the Rasen course and he was clearly impressed with what he saw.

“There are some fantastic facilities here and there is a great deal of passion and enthusiasm from everyone I have met, all backed with good business sense” he said.

“They are a great example to other clubs, both in Lincolnshire and nationally.

“A huge congratulations to you all.”

GolfMark is an official seal of approval for clubs which successfully work to develop the game.

The four key areas are attracting new members and encouraging existing members to play more, using practical business planning to develop the club, offering coaching and playing opportunities for all golfers and ensuring safeguarding policies are in place.

“We are extremely proud to be the first in the county to receive the GolfMark,” said club chairman Colin Law.

“And we are delighted Nick has taken time out to come along and present it to us.

“GolfMark will help us move forward and to make a safe environment for people to come and enjoy playing golf.

“There has been months of hard work to achieve this national accreditation but we have done it.

“Particular thanks go to our acting business manager Kim Robinson who has had the biggest input of all, making sure everything was done in the correct way.

“Grateful thanks also go to England Golf and especially development officers Jim Lammin and Richard Brown – we couldn’t have done it without their help and guidance.“

Over the past two years, the club has undergone a number of changes in the way it is run.

One of the biggest was a change from being run by a committee to being run by a volunteer board of directors.

“Since February 2014, we have run the club as a business rather than a private members club,” added Mr Law.

“We are in the top five courses in Lincolnshire, but we are not particularly well known and this is something we want to change.

“We have a lot of visitors and they all think it is fantastic, so we want to be proactive in making people aware we are here.”

As part of the GolfMark initiative, the club has been opened up to the who le community and is accessible to all, those wanting to play golf and non-players alike.

A change in the licence means the clubhouse is also open to all.

Speaking earlier this year about the changes at the club, house manager Pete Bray said: “Lots of people think we are exclusive and so they have never been here - some town residents don’t even know we exist.

“We invite everyone to take a walk down Legsby Road, come in for a coffee or something to eat, and see just what we have to offer.”